The Buzz

Breaking...

The Mets have signed ex-Yankee LHP Ron Villone to a minor-league contract.

Church talks to reporters after intrasquad game

Tour of Citi Field

Mets won't be first to play in Citi Field

According to a team press release, on March 29 at 1:10 p.m., St. John’s will take on Georgetown for the first game played in Citi Field.


I thought the Mets would be the first ever to play in the new stadium, oh well.

Redding injured

Over at Mets.com Anthony DiComo is reporting the Mets pitcher Tim Redding has some shoulder discomfort and needs to stay off the mound until late next week. Redding had surgery on his foot back in November and was told not to put any pressure on it so he did not start throwing until 10 days before reporting to Camp.

The shoulder now is feeling some discomfort so he will just do some long toss before he try the mound again.

Redding said. "I got down here and I tried to force it, and it caused some discomfort in the back of my shoulder."

Redding, signed as a free agent, is trying to make the starting rotation and is up against youngster Neise and Freddy Garcia and maybe even Livan Hernandez.

Spotlight: Dan Warthen-Mets Pitching Coach

This is the first of a series of posts spotlighting Mets players, coaches, and more.

Daniel Warthen was a major league pitcher. Now, he's the pitching coach for the New York Mets.

Warthen was drafted in 1971 by the Montreal Expos. He pitched four seasons total with Montreal, Philadelphia, and Houston. He finished his major-league career with a 12 win-21 loss record and a 4.31 E.R.A.

Warthen began his coaching career with the Pittsburgh Piratesin 1981, following that with coaching in the minor league organizations of San Diego and Philadelphia. Warthen was the pitching coach for the Detroit Tigers(1999-2002), San Diego Padres(1996-97) and Seattle Mariners (1992), also serving as the Mariners bullpen coach in 1991. He was the pitching coach for the Triple A Norfolk Tides from 2003-2005.

Warthen served as the bullpen coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers under manager Grady Littlefrom 2006-2007.

On June 17, 2008 Warthen was named the New York Mets Pitching Coach replacing Rick Peterson. Since taking over, Warthen has attributed to the success of the starting rotation, especially Mike Pelfrey.

Murphy stays focused

Needeless to say, its been quite a few months for Daniel Murphy, being in the spotlight and all.

The AP did a great spot on him, and I urge you to read it.

Dodgers sign Hudson

UPDATE According to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick, Hudson gets $3.4MM guaranteed with another $4.6MM in incentives. Nice bargain for the Dodgers, though the draft pick loss hurts.

Sirius XM’s MLB Home Plate is reporting Orlando Hudson has agreed in principle with the Dodgers, pending a physical.

The Diamondbacks lose their second baseman to a division rival, but also receive L.A.'s #17 pick in the June draft plus a supplemental pick.

Jose Valentin

As you may recall, the Mets signed Jose Valentin to a minor league contract. But according to the Post, the Mets do not expect Jose to make the team, and would rather him be a player/coach at AAA-Buffalo. Valentin adressed the media Thursday. "Now that I have a chance, I'll take it. Use all the bullets I have left. See if I can make it. If not, I'll try to start a new career and start coaching."

I'd love to have Jose back in the clubhouse. He was a huge leader in 2006 to the team.

The sights of Spring Training

Carlos Delgado and his son, Carlos.

Dan Warthen and Brian Schneider.

Angel Pagan.

Luis Castillo and Carlos Beltran.

David Wright working out.

David Wright.

Spring Training Update

Matthew Cerrone of is in Port St. Lucie and has great photos, player intervies, and more. I really urge you to check it out. He's got some great stuff.

Mets new hat patch

Take a look at this hat patch that will be worn by the Mets all year.

Nice right? If only they could have a good patch on their uniforms!

Notes

• Luis Castillo shocked many by showing up to camp slimmed down. But now is the hard part, proving that he can still play to the level he once was: An all star.

• Veteran infielder Jose Valentin, who is in camp on a minor-league invite at age 39, said his comeback attempt was prompted in part by the surprising success of laser surgery he had last summer to repair a herniated disk in his neck.


• 
  The Mets ultimately hope Valentin will agree to serve in a player-coach role at Triple-A Buffalo.

-NYPost

Watch: Shea goes down

Wow.

Heyman rates teams offseason moves

SI.com's John Heyman writes about how he thinks all the MLB teams did this offseason. The Mets were ranked number two, right behind the Phillies. The Yankees were ranked as number 3, after they went on a shopping spree that included CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Mark Texeira.

Junior signs with Seattle

John Hickey of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports, free-agent OF Ken Griffey Jr. has agreed to a incentive-laden one-year, $2 million contract with the Mariners.

At least he didn't sign with Atlanta. I have a great deal of respect for this guy--just not in an Atlanta jersey!

Mets Opening Day Ticket Drawing

Online registration is now open for the opportunity to buy tickets to the inaugural home opener at Citi Field (Monday, April 13 vs. San Diego).



Individuals selected through the online random drawing on Mets.com or LosMets.com will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to this game. This drawing will be held on or about Wednesday, February 25, 2009.


The Mets have launched the online ticket registration to provide fans a fair and convenient way to purchase tickets from the limited availability for Opening Day.



CLICK

Shea is no longer

It's gone Mets fans. Beloved Shea Stadium is gone, and it will soon be transformed into a parking lot to accommodate CitiField.

For raw video of Shea crumbling down, visit our friends over at metsblog. Warning: This footage is not suitable for diehard fans.

Mets' Stokes injured

Adam Rubin - NY Daily News is reporting that Met reliever Brian Stokes injured his right hamstring, leaving him unable to work off a mound. Downplaying the severity, Stokes said, "It didn't pop or anything."Stokes, who is expected to make the Met bullpen out of Spring Training, had a solid year for the Mets after being called up on August 9, 2008.

Out of options, if Stokes does not make the Met roster, he must clear through waivers before being re-assigned to the Mets minor league affiliate in Buffalo.

The chance of Stokes passing through waivers is slim at best.

thanks to limetsfan for the info.

Spring Training is here!

Thank God baseball is almost here. After a long off-season, America's Pastime gets back into action. The Mets pitchers & catchers reported to spring training yesterday. That means baseball is back in swing--somewhat.

I have to admit, I was weary a few weeks ago, but now I think we are a stronger team than last year. Our bullpen was upgraded drastically, and if you look at it, our starting rotation looks better than last years as well.
Take a look:

2008 Opening Day Rotation
Johan Santana
Pedro Martinez
John Maine
Oliver Perez
Mike Pelfrey

2009 Projected Opening Day Rotation
Johan Santana
Oliver Perez
Mike Pelfrey
John Maine
Tim Redding, Freddy Garcia, Livan Hernandez, or Jon Niese.


In '08 Pedro and Pelfrey were question marks. Inevitably, Pedro went down, and we were stuck with a combination of Claudio Vargas, Nelson Figueroa for much of the year. This year we have 3 proven starters and a rookie competing for the 5th spot in the rotation. Thats what you call depth.