Cutnpaste: - Roger Craig, 27th Rotation, 2nd Base, Gary Sheffield, and Darryl Strawberry

Roger Craig:

Roger Craig, pitcher: A severely underrated member of the original Mets. Leading the league in losses in both ’62 and ’63 is the main reason for this, but Craig threw over 230 innings in both seasons and Baseball-Reference credits him with 6.0 wins above replacement for his two year Mets tenure. Craig notably went 5-22 in 1963, but 12 of his losses came in quality starts and the Mets supported him with a whopping 2.3 runs per game. As a Met, he had a higher percentage of quality starts than Pedro Martinez or Mike Pelfrey. - .patrickfloodblog.  



27th Rotation:

New York Mets- Johan Santana is on the DL and coming back from major surgery, their #2 starter is a 36 year old knuckleballer who has never pitched half as well as he did last year, and they are still starting Oliver Perez and paying him 12 million dollars for the privilege. At least they have a wealth of minor league talent to fill the gaps, right? Oh no, I forgot, they had Omar Minaya as a GM so the pickings are thinner than Glenn Beck's credibility as a media member. - bleacherreport.  



2nd Base:

In my opinion, Chin-Lung Hu isn't a candidate to be a Major League everyday infielder, especially up the middle. Thus, the $6MM Luis Castillo, Rule 5 pick Brad Emaus, and the only 2009 New York Met to play more than 150 games, 25 year old Daniel Murphy. I'll be honest, I trust the new Mets management to make a proper decision taking in to account everything that must be thought of when making the decision whether it's a day or a week before Opening Day, although it'll be a hard decision. I'll say this though, if I'm Sandy Alderson, I think it's Murphy's job to lose -
beyondtheboxscore.  



Gary Sheffield:

It appears that Tampa native Gary Sheffield's career is coming to a close. Sheffield told ESPN 1040 in Tampa this afternoon that he's "99.9-percent" sure he's going to retire. Sheffield, who last played in 2009 with the Mets, wanted to play with his hometown Rays, and had dinner with manager Joe Maddon last month. Maddon had said the meeting was just to get to know him, and there was no expression of interest, but Sheffield said on ESPN 1040 that he felt a "little disrespected" he didn't get a call back. Sheffield, a career .292 hitter, has hit 509 home runs and racked up 1,676 RBI in his 22-year-career. - tampabay  



Darryl Strawberry:

Never quite lived up to the “black Ted Williams” moniker, but is the most feared cleanup hitter in team history. Rookie of the Year, Six All Star Appearances, and was robbed of the MVP in 1988. Rare combination of speed and power (30/30 in 1987) as he hit 252 homers and stole 191 bases with the team. Remember him now more for the good times than the bad exit in 1990. The ultimate “what if” in team history. I suspect he would be the second Mets Hall of Famer if he stayed clean. - nybaseballdigest.