Tonight on SNY, Sandy Alderson said the Mets are going to keep Ike Davis on the big-league roster for a little while longer, although he has discussed the idea of sending him to the minor leagues.
“It may be that he is better off going to Las Vegas for some period of time,” Alderson said. However, at this point, he added, “We are going to live with Ike a little longer.”
Alderson said it’s hard to ignore what Davis did to turn his season around in 2012, although the big difference is that the team was playing well at this time a year ago.
The Least You Should Know:
In the first inning, with the bases loaded and two outs, David Wright let an easy ground ball go through his legs, which let two runs score. Jon Niese then walked a run in.
Niese rebounded after the first inning to pitch five scoreless innings, while striking out seven.
The Mets could only muster three hits against Mike Leake, who pitched seven scoreless innings for the Reds.
The Mets had first and third in the fourth inning, but Ike Davis grounded out to end the inning.
Following tonight’s game, Terry Collins said he has seen a more competitive attitude with Jon Niese all of the time now. Collins also commented on David Wright’s error in the first inning and said it just shows you that everyone is human and makes mistakes. When asked about the boos from the crowd towards Ike Davis, Collins said it’s all part of playing the game and thinks Ike has handled it well so far.
To get a full boxscore and recap of tonight’s game, check out this link to SNY.TV.
Matthew Cerrone, MetsBlog.com:
This is embarrassing and boring, there is no other way to put it. Wright makes that play every day, all the time, it seems. Yet, tonight, in this season, in this stretch of games, with the bases loaded, the ball goes through his legs. It’s unreal. And hats off to Niese, who, after a rough first inning (one in which he could have easily let himself get mad and distracted) he settled down to pitch well. Of course, it doesn’t matter, even zeroes are meaningless, because this team’s offense is beyond weak right now.
They all look so overwhelmed. It’s like they’re totally guessing when up at bat. They’re flinching at curve balls, flailing at change ups, taking strikes down the plate and swinging at balls in the dirt. They’re a mess. I don’t know if this is opposing pitchers reacting to a team-wide hitting approach? Or, is it just a bunch of guys totally out of sync and pressing? If it’s the approach, for the love of Mr. Met would someone please make a change? It’s painful to watch, because they just look totally overmatched night after night.
Tomorrow afternoon at 1:10 pm ET, the Mets conclude their three-game series with the Reds at Citi Field, when Matt Harvey (5-0, 1.55 ERA) takes on Mat Latos (4-0, 2.91 ERA).
Sandy Alderson talked with SNY tonight during their broadcast of the Mets game, during which he said:
Travis d’Arnaud will be on the Mets this season, as soon as he is healthy enough to join the team;
Rafeal Montero will return to Double-A after making a spot start for Triple-A Las Vegas;
He is very disappointed in how this team is playing right now;
His staff is being patient, but not too patient, when it comes to making changes to the roster;
The Mets will take a look at the young players in their system, such as Montero, when considering ways to improve the big-league roster.
Zack Wheeler will be on-track to pitch every five days with Triple-A Las Vegas starting tomorrow in Iowa, Sandy Alderson said on SNY tonight.
According to Alderson, if Wheeler has two or three more good starts, the Mets will consider promoting him to the big-league roster.
Matthew Cerrone, MetsBlog.com:
Earlier this week I said I’d bet on Wheeler making his big-league debut some time after June 10, after an off day, in the middle of the team’s nine-game home stand. In talking to people close to the situation, I think the Mets would like Wheeler to get three or four more starts at Triple-A Las Vegas, to put this shoulder situation behind him, before having him join the big-league rotation. In addition, they’d like him to be pitching well, and be strong. They do not want to promote him just to promote him. They want it to feel like a seamless transition, keeping him on rhythm and healthy. The point is, his promotion is getting closer than ever… and it’s about time.
Bobby Ojeda’s live chat with fans, pres. by Verizon
Click here to see Bobby Ojeda's chat with fans from the SNY Studio from earlier tonight, pres. by Verizon...
Tweet from Paul Lo Duca…
What did WFAN’s Boomer & Carton, ESPN’s Mark Mulder, SNY’s Jim Duquette and Andy Martino of the Daily News say about Ike Davis’s recent struggles?
Watch this SNY.TV Recapr and find out…
In less than two minutes, SNY.TV’s Recapr covers the media’s reaction to New York’s sports stories, pulling together multiple angles and viewpoints – from Twitter to text to talk radio – giving you the whole story in one place.
Bobby Ojeda Online Chat, tonight, pres. by Verizon
Tonight, starting in the third inning, you’ll have a chance to chat with Bobby Ojeda, who will be answering questions live from the SNY Studio.
Start thinking of questions, and check back tonight to participate in the chat.
Michael Baron, MetsBlog.com:
The Mets have used seven different players in the leadoff spot this season, all of whom are batting a collective .182 with a .250 OBP.
What’s worse, the team is hitting only .179 with a .238 OBP, two walks and 11 strikeouts when leading off a game.
This past Sunday, Terry Collins inserted Daniel Murphy into the leadoff spot for the first time this season. Murphy had not hit there since 2009.
“We were talking about how we needed to find somebody to lead off,” Collins said before Monday’s game. “And Bob Geren said, ‘Hey, how about we lead Murphy off?’”
Murphy is just 1-for-8 out of the leadoff spot so far. His one hit was a go-ahead solo home run against the Cubs on Sunday. However, Murphy is 10-for-31 with four doubles, three home runs and three RBI, with three walks, when leading off an inning this year. And, Murphy is 14-for-his-last-32 at the plate, although his eight-game hitting streak came to an end with his 0-for-4 at the plate on Monday against the Reds.
At this point, why not hit Murphy leadoff? He is a good contact hitter, he works counts, he can foul pitches off and – when he’s going right – he’s an on-base machine and a quality table-setter at the top of the lineup.
Is he a prototypical leadoff hitter? No, but nobody else on this team is either. At least Murphy has a consistent approach at the plate, which so far is working for him. Terry needs to ‘ride the hot hand,’ and see what offense he can generate from the top of the order. And, if that means batting Murphy leadoff, so be it…
A’s 1B Daric Barton cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A.
This past weekend, Joel Sherman of the New York Post said the Mets would look into picking up Barton in the event they demote Ike Davis.
Barton, 27, had been hitting .137 with just 1 HR and 3 RBI in eight games before being cut by Oakland.
Matthew Cerrone, MetsBlog.com:
Eh, I mean, he’s a baseball player who owns a first base glove, so it makes sense he’d get a look – especially considering the situation with Davis. Barton was cut, unclaimed and sent to Triple-A twice already this season. He’s a really good defensive first baseman who has had seven years to become a consistent hitter and he just hasn’t done it, despite hitting well in the minors. Frankly, given the team’s long-term plan, I’d rather Ike at that point.
Mets OF prospect Cory Vaughn was named the Eastern League Player of the Week last week.
He hit .400 (10-25) and led the league with nine RBI during the stretch.
In 118 at bats with Binghamton this season, the 24-year-old Vaughn is batting .305 with a .388 OBP, 5 doubles, 5 home runs, 27 RBI and 30 strikeouts.
Vaughn did not appear on the team’s top 10 prospect list for MLB.com, MinorLeagueBall.com or Baseball Prospectus.
Matthew Cerrone, MetsBlog.com:
This is his first season in Double-A. He had injuries in the past, but seems healthy now. On paper, he reads like he should be a top prospect (tremendous size, decent pop, son of a big-leaguer, big college hitter, etc.), but he just hasn’t hit for average yet and he’s looked over-matched at times in the field. He has the goods, though, you can tell just by looking at him, which is why (at 24-years-old) this is a pivotal season for Vaughn… especially considering he’s an outfielder in an organization in dire need of outfielders.
