The Mack Attack - April 10, 2009

Mets:

I have come not to bury Gary Sheffield as so many others have since the Mets signed him unexpectedly last week on the eve of the opening of the season. Have I come to praise him? Not necessarily, but I would like to offer a fairer picture of the veteran slugger than usually is presented. I don’t know what, if anything, Sheffield has left in his bat. I don’t know if Sheffield can play the outfield well enough to get himself into the lineup, or if Jerry Manuel simply has to resign himself to using Sheffield as a pinch-hitter. I don’t know if Omar Minaya, the Mets’ general manager, made a smart move in signing Sheffield or a dumb move for signing Sheffield. I don’t know if he will contribute anything to the Mets’ pennant aspirations. I don’t know if his presence will interfere with the development and potential production of the Mets’ younger outfielders

http://www.murraychass.com/?p=647


Darren O'Day made his Mets debut Thursday at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, but his thoughts were 3,000 miles away, back in Orange County, where former teammate and friend Nick Adenhart died in a traffic accident at about 12:30 a.m. Thursday. The Mets plucked O'Day from the Angels in the Rule 5 draft last December after the sidearm reliever played with Adenhart at Triple-A Salt Lake last season. The night before O'Day took the mound for his new team, Adenhart, a rookie righthander, pitched six shutout innings against the Athletics. "I distinctly remember last year when I got sent down to Salt Lake and he called me the first night," said O'Day, who was visibly upset as he talked with reporters. "He went out of his way to welcome me to the team. He was an awesome teammate and a great friend. He'll be missed. I wish I would have called him last night or at least sent him a text message or something. I sent him one today, but that doesn't really do much good

http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/ny-spreax1012638922apr09,0,3175666.story?track=rss


Maybe age has humbled Gary Sheffield. Maybe during his injury shortened 2008 season, or even as recently as last month during his stint with the Detroit Tigers, Sheffield realized he’s not Gary Sheffield anymore. The 1996, 2000 or 2003 Gary Sheffield, that is. The .320, 40 HR, 120 RBI, .430 OBP, .620 SLG, 1.000 OPS in 150+ games Gary Sheffield. That Gary Sheffield began slowly fading in 2004, collecting fewer hits and, subsequently, dropping his batting average and on-base percentage some 30 points. In 2006, he played in just 39 games due to injury. In two seasons with the Tigers Sheffield reached new lows, batting .265 and .225 respectively. The bat was a little slower, the legs a little tighter, another step lost and, now, his ability to play defensively is in question.

http://flushing9.com/?p=2323


Wagner, who is seven months removed from surgery to repair a ligament and muscle in his left arm, has been throwing long toss and playing catch on flat ground, according to the report. "I do exactly what I'm told," Wagner said. "But I'm going to break the rules by getting back before they expect it. ... With no big setbacks, I'm kinda shooting for late in July or August. But we'll see. I know I have a lot of hurdles. I told Omar [that] everybody doubting me is my motivation. ... that, and getting a ring. I'm going to get back. I'm not going to get any saves. But I'd like to help. That could be some bullpen."

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/rumors/post/Mets-Wagner-to-throw-off-mound-eyes-August-ret?urn=mlb,154734


Bisons:

There was plenty of excitement at the newly-christened Coca-Cola Field as the Bisons opened their 124th season of professional baseball in Buffalo. The anticipation of a new era in team history brought a crowd of 13,178 on a sunny, albeit brisk afternoon downtown. Mr. Met shook hands with Buster and the new-look Bisons team took the field for the first time as Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets. The final score read 6-4 Pawtucket, thanks to an early lead that was too much for Herd batters to rebound from. But a crowd that was a virtual sea of Mets and Bisons hats and jackets celebrated the promise of a new era in team history. The first pitches where plenty, as Coca-Cola GM Pete Benzino tossed a strike to commemorate the new name to the team's new home. Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown and Erie County Executive Chris Collins gave Mets owner Jeff Wilpon the Key to the City and proclaimed it Mets Day in Western New York. State senator Charles Schumer and Governor David Patterson joined in with first pitches as well.

http://buffalo.bisons.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090409&content_id=558375&vkey=news_t422&fext=.jsp&sid=t422


Starter Jonathon Niese struggled through two innings and was pulled after falling into a 5-0 hole. Five Buffalo pitchers combined for 11 walks while Buffalo batters struck out 13 times … including seven of the final 10 to come to the plate. Pawtucket's Dusty Brown had an RBI double in each of the first two innings. Paul McAnulty's two-run double in the second highlighted a four-run inning that meant curtains for Niese, the Mets' top pitching prospect. Working on a 48-degree day with a 20-mph wind whipping around, Niese struggled to get the feel of his offspeed pitches. "My arm felt good, my whole body felt good but my hands were the worst part," Niese said. "My hands were a little cold. I felt good but it was just one of those things where my first pitch for a strike wasn't good and I left balls over the plate and I paid for it."

http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bisons/story/635300.html


B-Mets:

The Binghamton Mets, the Mets Double-A affiliate, has some of the Mets better prospects on its roster. Among its starting pitchers, Mike Antonini is a player to watch. During Spring Training he pitched five innings for the New York Mets, limiting opponents to three hits and no runs. In 2007 with the Brooklyn Cyclones, the left-hander threw 19.2 innings and had a 0.46 ERA. Last season, Antonini pitched 199.1 innings for three Mets minor league teams and had a 2.62 ERA. Particularly impressive was his WHIP: only 1.079. Baseball America rates Antonini as the Mets 15th-best prospect.

http://metbaseball.blogspot.com/2009/04/mets-15-prospect-could-be-b-mets-1.html


Lucy:

St. Lucie Mets manager Tim Teufel will be filling out his lineup card with some impressive talent this season. St. Lucie opens its season Thursday with a 7 p.m. game against the Sarasota Reds, now a divisional rival with the Florida State League's new North-South realignment. It will be the first of a four-game set between the teams. And the series will feature plenty of star power. St. Lucie boasts three first-round picks from the 2008 Major League draft, plus a few other prized prospects, while Sarasota features first-rounder Yonder Alonso, a Miami Hurricane alum. "We do have a lot of talent that's on the field," Teufel said of his Mets. "From the draft, we have some high picks on the team, which we haven't had in a while here. It's nice to see."

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/apr/09/no-headline---200904082108-09tslmets


The Sarasota Reds gave Mets pitching prospect and 2008 supplemental first-round pick Brad Holt an unfriendly welcome to the Florida State League in his St. Lucie debut Thursday. The Reds scored three runs off the right-hander in the first inning and ripped three home runs during his stint — including two in a five-run third inning — to spoil the season opener for St. Lucie, which went on to lose 9-3 at Tradition Field. Holt, who Baseball America ranks as the Mets' fourth best prospect, allowed all nine runs on seven hits and four walks in 3 2/3 innings with five strikeouts. "I felt good, but you never know how it's going to go your first start," he said. "The whole spring I was working on my changeup and tonight was one of those nights I just didn't have it." His outing was doomed from the start after he needed 31 pitches to get out of the first frame. Sarasota's Alex Buccholz hit a two-run double to to start the scoring, then touched home plate on Neftali Soto's single. The struggles continued in the third inning when the 22-year-old gave up a two-run homer to Buccholz and a three-run shot to Daniel Perales. Then in the fourth, the Reds' Yonder Alonso drove a solo shot over the right field wall to give Sarasota a 9-1 lead. Holt was replaced, and the bullpen then shut Sarasota down. The Mets' first run came from first-round draft pick Ike Davis, who doubled and scored on Hector Pellot's flyout in the second inning. St. Lucie scored two more in the fourth inning on Pellot's two-out double

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/apr/10/sluggish-start-for-st-lucie/?partner=RSS


General:

Nick Adenhart, 1986-2009 – R.I.P.