Juuuustt A Bit Outside

Felix Heredia very well could have thrown his last pitch as a Met last night. Following his three balls to the backstop and his removal of the game after one batter, the Mets released that Heredia's thumb was weak. First the numbness, now the weakness. We know he is not being overworked, so it is a curious situation. I've never quite heard of such ailments and all Heath Bell has to do is be useful for even the Mets to see no point in letting Heredia back on the team and I think Bell will prove himself more than useful. If he picks up where he left off last year, how could bringing back Heredia be justified?

If/when Felix does come back, they can designate him for assignment without fear of another team picking him up if they really, really do not want to grant his outright release. Either way, the Mets win.

* * *

Kaz Ishii's horrible game in which he walked six batters in fist five innings, including four in the first 1 2/3 innings, does not bother me. When he came over, we all knew he was wild and inconsistent. He'll turn in a gem and then lay a big crap on the mound and that is why the Dodgers were willing to pay so much to see him go.

Shaun Powell has a must read today.

Steve Zipay is partially delirious.

Thinking about new faces, when the new Mets cable network debuts next season, who should be the lead announce team? My vote: Gary Cohen and Tim McCarver.

Gary Cohen is ready for the big time. Out of all the announcers you hear, he stands out as one the best. He deserves to be in the highest visible position possible. However, Tim McCarver while being a big name, is horrendous. Give me Fran Healy over McCarver. McCarver is a know it all who unlike Keith Hernandez, does not know it all. Tim McCarver is best known for ruining the playoffs on Fox for anyone that watches them and having a hard on for hearing himself talk.

The Mets have said they'd like to keep Cohen and Rose together on the radio for continuity, but things change. Rose could stay on the radio with another partner, maybe Ed Coleman or someone else.

I actually like this idea. Ed Coleman and Howie Rose could certainly be a solid tandem and Cohen should be the voice the Mets open up with on their network and have him for at least a decade if not longer. The dude is that good.

Victor Diaz has been compared to Manny Ramirez, but maybe he's a bit too much Manny.

Ugh.

First-round pick Philip Humber, who has limited opponents to one run in 10 innings, will miss up to two St. Lucie starts with an abdominal strain.

Didn't this hound Kazmir for way too long to start the '04 season?

From BA's Daily Dish:

A prospect showdown Sunday in West Virginia featured the Power’s Mark Rogers, the fifth-overall pick in the 2004 draft, against Mets second-rounder Gaby Hernandez and Hagerstown. The Suns right hander won the duel, throwing five hitless, scoreless innings while striking out seven. Hagerstown pitching coach Shawn Barton said that while Rogers was throwing harder, in the mid-90s range, Hernandez had much better command of a 90-92 mph fastball. “His curveball wasn’t as sharp as it can be, but he changed speeds real well and had a good changeup with a little sink and fade,” Barton said.

also

Mets first baseman Brett Harper is off to a big start for high Class A St. Lucie in the notoriously power-deprived Florida State League. After hitting a career-high 16 home runs in 2004, Harper has hit a league-leading six long balls in 10 games for the Mets.

Harper is a bit old for St. Lucie, but he is still a solid hitting prospect. In a perfect world, he'd be at AA, but Mike Jacobs is manning first base for the B-Mets right now.

and

Double-A Binghamton right hander Brian Bannister has owned Eastern League hitters. Bannister, a seventh-round pick out of Southern California in 2003, delivered his third start without allowing an earned run on Saturday. In three starts for the Mets, Bannister is 3-0 and only allowed eight hits in 16 1/3 innings. He's struck out 23 and walked only four. Bannister works his fastball in the 90-92 mph range, with a 12-to-6 curveball, average changeup and average slider.

They just love the Mets right now.

After such a bad game, here is something to lighten the mood. Some nice stats on possibly the top five pitchers in the system:

          G   IP ER  H BB SO   ERA WHIP    K/9  K/BB
Hernandez 3 13.1  4  6  6 16  2.70 0.90  10.80  2.67
Durkin    2    7  0  9  2  9  0.00 1.57  11.57  4.50
Humber    2   10  1  4  1 10  0.90 0.50   9.00 10.00
Bannister 3 16.1  0  8  4 23  0.00 0.73  12.67  5.75
Petit     2    7  0  5  0  9  0.00 0.71  11.57   n/a
=======================================================
Total    12 53.2  5 32 13 67  0.84 0.84  11.24  5.15

I think it is safe to say the Mets system is pitching rich again.