7/24/09

Minor Thoughts - Maine Back 2nd Wk Aug




1. SS Reece Havens hit his 9th home run of the season for Lucy. Havens, who has been hobbled fpr a portion of the season, is showing the pop that earned him a first round pick, but not the defensive skills or consistency (.235) needed to make it to the Bigs. I can’t figure out what they are going to do with this guy. Wilmer Flores is biting up his ass and Ruben Tejada is doing just fine ahead of him. I’ll say it for the 100,000th time… move him to catcher.


2. 2B Alonzo Harris (K-Port) continues to raise his batting average, getting two more hits on Wednesday night and ending the night at .308. He’s hitting .386 in the last ten games and his .564 slugging percentage is unheard of for a Mets second baseman. Harris turns 20 in November.


3. Two of the six players that were mysteriously suspended the same time (must of been a hell of a party...) in extended camp, P’s Mike Hebert and Brian Valenzuela, were reinstated and both shipped out to the GCL Mets, where they both pitched this afternoon. Hebert: 3.0-IP, 1-ER, 2-H, 2-K, 1-BB… I liked Hebert last year (GCL: 4-4, 4-71), though he walked 29 batters in 21.0 IP. A 7th round draft pick that needs to speed it up.


4. Had a nice conversation today with C Teddy Dziuba, one of many talented, young catchers the Sand Gnats had in 2007. Dziuba was kicked around by the Mets that year, going to four different teams when other catchers came up lame, but never getting a real shot. The Mets seem to be famous for that and I could add the names of around 10-15 catchers I remembered that never got their “300 at bats” to prove they were worth signing. 2007 was Teddy. Last year was Tony Maccani. And hopefully, this year’s won’t be Jordan Abruzzo. Anyway, Teddy says to say hello to everyone. He’s living up in Beantown and is pictured her with his lovely fiance.


5. Message exchange with John Maine today:


Me: John, it's Mack from Mack's Mets... just checking how the rehab is going and your timetable... btw... take your time... no rush to come back to this mess…


Maine: I will be back the second week of August hopefully. I feel great and Jose Reyes might be a week before me.


6. Tough night for Brad Holt… gave up four home runs… doesn’t really matter how many innings you pitched or who you struck out, when you dish up four yard balls. AA ERA now stands at 5.45, not something you want to brag about one of your top three prospects.

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