Mets Trade for Francoeur

Posted by Matt Pignataro

The Mets have acquired OF Jeff Francoeur from the Braves for OF Ryan Church.

Francoeur is batting .250 with 5 HR and 35 RBI this season, while Church is batting .280 with 2 HR 22 RBI this season.

This definitely was a surprise of a trade. At first, I thought it was a joke, but Frenchy's a Met.

Steve just texted me from Citi Field saying, "...maybe a change of scenery is good for Jeff." I got to agree with Steve maybe this will help Francoeur get back to what he was and the promised he showed.

It's going to be really weird seeing Francoeur in a Mets uniform, rather than a Braves uniform. Greg and I said on the show, that we wouldn't be surprised if Church gets trades, because for some odd reasons ownership doesn't like Church. Well I guess we were right.

I like the trade as we get younger as Francoeur is 25 than Church who was 30. We don't lose anything defensively as Francoeur has a gun of an arm and the Mets have him under contract for a couple of more seasons.

Last Series Before Break, Serenity Now...

Posted by Matt Pignataro

The Mets begin a three game series at Citi Field with the Reds, before the All-Star break. The Mets won the opening day series against the Reds, 2-1. Here are the series pitching match ups:

Friday: Fernando Nieve 3-2, 2.73 vs. Bronson Arroyo 8-8, 5.85, 7:10 p.m.

Saturday: Johan Santana 9-7, 3.29 vs. Johnny Cueto 8-5, 3.45, 7:10 p.m.

Sunday: Mike Pelfrey 6-4, 4.52 vs. Aaron Harang 5-8, 3.89, 1:10 p.m.

Pagan Activated from DL

Posted by Matt Pignataro

The Mets have activated Angel Pagan from the disabled list and have optioned Nick Evans to Buffalo.

Pagan will start in CF and bat leadoff in tonight's game against the Reds.

He went 2-for-4 with two RBI's and two walks for St. Lucie in a rehab game yesterday.

David Wright on SportsCenter's "My Wish" Series

Posted by Matt Pignataro

Mets to Think Over Rotation

Posted by Matt Pignataro

In Livan Hernandez's last two starts against the Phillies and Dodgers, he has allowed a combined 15 runs, 21 hits and eight walks in seven innings.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, "Livan Hernandez allowed four first-inning runs on Thursday after allowing three runs in the first frame in each of his last two starts. He's the first pitcher in Mets history to allow three or more first-inning runs in three successive starts and no major-league pitcher had done that since Mike O'Connor for the Nationals in July 2006."

Livan hasn't given the Mets a chance to at least stay in the game in his last couple of starts. I bet Jon Niese takes Livan's spot in the rotation. Niese has a 1.04 ERA in his last six starts. I also would bet Nelson Figueroa or Lance Broadway takes over for Fernando Nieve, once he finally hits the wall. Figueroa has a 2.50 ERA and was selected to the Triple-A All-Star game, while Broadway is coming off of a complete-game shutout in his last start.

So your looking at a rotation with Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, Oliver Perez, Jon Niese, and Nelson Figueroa/ Lance Broadway.

“Over the break, we’ll decide what the rotation is going to be,” Manuel said. “We haven’t decided that yet. We’ll just have to take a good look at it and see which direction we’re going to go. I’m not saying somebody is in, somebody is out. I’m just saying that we’re going to take a look at it.”

No Murphy in Tonight's Lineup

Posted by Matt Pignataro

Jerry Manuel just released the lineup for tonight's game with Castillo leading off, followed by Evans, Wright, Sheffield, Tatis, Church, Santos, and Cora.

The one question I have is, why does Jerry Manuel not have Daniel Murphy in tonight's lineup?

I undertsand the Dodgers have a lefty going in Wolf, but Murphy had two big doubles in last night's game and is batting .317 against lefties this season.

Fernando Tatis meanwhile, is 2-for-28 lifetime against Wolf. I'm willing to bet Tatis grounds into a double play tonight.

F-Mart Lands on 15-Day DL

Posted by Matt Pignataro

The Mets have placed Fernando Martinez on the 15-day disabled list with inflammation in his right knee. The move is retroactive to July 3.

Argenis Reyes has been promoted from Buffalo.

The Norfolk to Shea trip was the "Heath Bell Shuttle," and now I think we can now call the trip from Buffalo to Citi Field the "Argenis Reyes Shuttle."

F-Mart hit just .176 with six doubles, a homer and eight RBIs in 29 games.

Martinez has yet to play a full healthy professional season in his career.

Murphy’s Behind-the-Back, No-Look Pass

Posted by Matt Pignataro

Ollie Still Needs Work

Posted by Matt Pignataro

Oliver Perez's first start back with the Mets lasted five innings, allowing two runs, while walking seven batters and got the win in the Mets 5-4 win over the Dodgers.

After walking Furcal to lead off the game on four straight balls, Perez settled down getting out of the inning with only one run. Perez's slider looked good, but the command on his fastball wasn't all there, more than half of Perez 108 pitches were for balls. I don't understand why Perez can't throw it over the plate and trust his stuff, rather than trying to be perfect and nibble the corners of the plate.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau on ESPN.com, "Perez is the first pitcher in Mets history to win a game in which he pitched fewer than six innings and allowed at least seven walks."

"I think there’s still some things that he obviously needs to work on," Jerry Manuel said after the game. "Obviously command is one of them."

The Mets Mismanaged the Injuries

Posted by Gregg Hopps

Maybe I'm just a cynic. Maybe I've been a Met fan for so long I've become used to disappointment. Truth be told, I didn't really expect to see Carlos Beltran, or Jose Reyes return to action right after the All Star Break. I'll even go far to say I'll be surprised to see Reyes and Beltran return by July 31.

What has me concerned here is, have the Mets been upfront with the fans and the media about the extent of these injuries? Are the Mets downplaying the injuries? Lets face it the Mets management has a bundle of money invested in this season. They have a brand new ballpark, that at least on my T.V. looks maybe like its 60% full on a nightly basis. The Mets need to sell tickets. They need to be relevant to their fans. What better to do that than provide false hope that help is on the way, sooner rather than later?

I also feel that the Mets screwed around too long with Delgado's injury. Delgado sat on the bench a good two weeks before the diagnosis was made of his hip injury. They are screwing around with Fernando Martinez now too. If the kid is truly hurt, put him on the DL, and bring up someone who can contribute.

I don't like to believe in conspiracy theories, but I think Met management is playing the fans here.