Carlos Beltran played center field for the first time in a rehab game Friday. Beltran had been serving as the designated hitter in his rehab games, so this is a step toward coming back to the Mets. As noted previously, Beltran will not be returning to the Mets as a DH during interleague play, so he can't focus exclusively on his offense, as he'll be required to play in the field when he does return to the Mets. He's still likely a month away, but everything seems to be progressing nicely for Beltran. link
Jefry Marte, 3B, Mets. Marte struggled throughout the 2009 season, but it could be explained away by the fact that he was one of the youngest players in the South Atlantic League. Marte, 18, is still one the league's younger players, but a second trip through the league hasn't made hitting any easier. Marte is hitting .231/.313/.333 this season and is in the midst of a 3-for-21 slump this week. There are signs of hope though—Marte has upped his walk rate and cut his strikeout rate this year, he's just not yet driving the ball with much authority. - link
Last weekend, I posted a few trivia questions on Twitter, the type that anyone could look up but which would be more fun to answer without the help of a statistics site. The one that went unanswered for a longer than expected period of time involved naming the only National League hitter who, at the time, had 100 or more plate appearances, a slugging percentage above .500, but an on-base percentage south of .300. Forgive the slight tangent, but we need to come up with the OBP version of batting average’s Mendoza Line. Would the “Jacobs Line” work? Anywho, the answer was none other than Mets legend Rod Barajas. On June 5, Barajas boasted a .261/.283/.529 slash line, displaying plenty of power while rarely reaching base. As of June 9, the catcher’s numbers sat at .261/.282/.521, with 11 home runs and four walks. Four. That isn’t a typo. His odd slash line got me wondering about how often a player finishes a season as a member of the .300/.500 club, while receiving a decent amount of playing time. Players with such poor rates of reaching base are unlikely to remain in the lineup for an entire season, but if they can absolutely mash, 400 or more trips to the plate isn’t exactly out of the question. From 1954-onward, there are only six players to match these criteria: - link
6-10 from: - link - Cory Vaughn has taken the first big step toward his dream. The San Diego State junior outfielder signed with the New York Mets after they selected him in the fourth round of the MLB Draft, 122 overall. When asked if he had any hesitation in signing so quickly, Vaughn laughed. “Nope, not at all,” he said. “Without a doubt, (I’m) gone.” Vaughn told The Daily Aztec last month he would leave SDSU if he was drafted and said finding out his future team was a surprising and exciting experience. “I can’t ask for much better,” he said, still energized a day after hearing the big news. “There are a lot of people that don’t get the opportunity to get picked up – I’m fortunate to get drafted by any team.”
John Maine is close to returning. The righthander, on the DL after an MRI showed “weakness” in his right shoulder, will make his first of two probable rehabilitation starts on Sunday, pitching in Trenton for Double-A Binghamton. When he returns to the Mets, Maine is willing to become a member of the bullpen, where he could be more effective than he was in the rotation. “They’re going good right now, so they might want to use me differently,” he said. “I just want to go back and pitch. Starter, reliever, whatever. Of course I prefer starting, because it’s what I know, but I’ll do what they want me to do - link
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