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 Whether or not the Mets lost the services of Jose Reyes for a while (again) remains to be seen as Reyes aggravated a right oblique injury in the 7th inning on Saturday and could need time on the disabled list. He will go to the All-Star Game and take part in the festivities, but he will not participate and will be replaced on the roster by Rafael Furcal. The Mets said that they will make a decision on his health in a few days. (Don't you just cringe whenever you hear the words, "The Mets will make a decision on his health....?")
The Mets will be getting the services of Carlos Beltran back though as Mets manager Jerry Manuel said that Beltran should be in the lineup and batting cleanup Thursday when the Mets return from the All-Star break to start an 11-game road trip in San Francisco.
"I'm going to put him in the lineup right away," Manuel said. "I think because of how long it took Reyes to kind of get his major league flow and feel, rhythm, I think that's going to be somewhat of a process for him."
Manuel added that Angel Pagan, who has continued to spark the team in center field in Beltran's absence including three of the Mets' four hits Saturday likely will platoon with Jeff Francoeur in right field, but would get plenty of time in center and left, also.
While no one is suggesting that Carlos Beltran should be the odd man out, let's face it, the only reason that Pagan will not own a starting outfield spot is that he doesn't make enough money.
Let's take a look at the salary vs. production.
- Pagan makes $500,000 this year.
- Jeff Francoeur is making $5 million this year.
- Jason Bay is was just given an $8.5 million signing bonus, is receiving $6.5 million for 2010 and has the Mets on the ropes for $16 million per season for three more seasons.
- Angel Pagan .311, 6 HR, 40 RBI, 19 SB, .368 OBP, .464 SLG
- Jeff Francoeur .253, 8 HR, 42 RBI, 7 SB, .303 OBP, SLG .391
- Jason Bay .265, 6 HR, 44 RBI, 10 SB, .355 OBP, .424 SLG
Of the three outfielders, Pagan has the highest batting average by a long shot, just about the same amount of HR's and RBI as Bay and Francoeur, the most stolen bases, the highest on base percentage and even the highest slugging percentage!
If you are looking for the best offensive player on the Mets year to date, it's probably David Wright. After Wright, who's been better than Pagan?
Both Mets fans and fantasy owners alike can breathe a sigh of relief as it appears the Mets will not screw this one up. Beltran will be the start in centerfield however, the plan is to give him a day or two off each week regardless of his play making certain not to bring him back too quickly. Pagan will get those days in center. Unless Bay starts to hit soon, Pagan will be getting a day in left each week, and the switch hitter will almost certainly be getting at least two days each week in right field over Francoeur.
The four man rotation will have everyone playing quasi-full time with Jeff Francoeur getting the least amount of time. Francoeur will be seeing plenty of late inning defense time and crunch time pinch hitting appearances when he is not in the starting line-up.
More Mets Injury Updates
Luis Castillo will start playing rehab games today for Class A St. Lucie. The Mets still do not anticipate him being ready until at least the end of the western trip. ... John Maine and Sean Green are both expected to begin throwing to batters this week. .. Jenrry Mejia is pain-free now, but working out and waiting to throw again according to a schedule the team has worked out for him.
 Olliver Perez (he gets his own category...)
Oliver Perez will make his third rehab start on Sunday. Ollie likely will make at least two more starts for Buffalo, but the Mets must then figure out a role for the pricey left-hander.
"I think once we evaluate where he is, especially that last start," Manuel said, "that will probably give us some time to make a decision what direction we're going to go with the rotation."
Here's a suggestion Omar, see if Creedmoor Psychiatric Center has a softball team, and you can have him continue his rehab there! It's only a stone's throw from Citi Field and you'll be able to keep an eye on his progress. - Paul Leume
Paul is a MLB columnist from Montreal, Canada. Paul, a one-time beat writer covering the Montreal Expos for the Montreal Gazette is a proud grandfather of 3 girls and now spends his time offering his thoughts and prospective on Major League Baseball on a variety of blogs and websites throughout Al Gore's internet.
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