Movin' On Up

When it comes to prospects, I want to see them succeed an move up as fast as anyone, but I have fooled myself into believing that I am rational when it comes to the topic of promotions. If a player is not ready, then I would never advocate moving them up. When it comes to Mike Pelfrey and Henry Owens, I do think now is the time to give them a promotion for the way they have been performing.

Mike Pelfrey's numbers:

         IP  H/9  HR/9   K/9  BB/9  K/BB  WHIP   ERA
High-A   22 6.95  0.41 10.64  0.82  13.0  0.86  1.64
AA     41.3 9.58  0.22 10.23  3.48  2.94  1.45  2.83

Pelfrey's first four games in AA were inconsistent as he traded good starts and bad starts, then he threw a short .2 innings outing in which he gave up no earned runs, and then he gave up three earned runs in his last nineteen innings.

           IP   H/9  HR/9   K/9  BB/9  K/BB  WHIP   ERA
1st four 19.2 12.46   0.0  9.97  3.74  2.67  1.80  4.15
2nd four 21.2  6.41  0.46 10.53  3.20  3.29  1.07  1.37

I was listening to WFAN last night and a caller had phoned into the Kevin Burkhardt show and had a wealth of information on Mike Pelfrey. I did notice Mike DiFelice on the Binghamton team the other day was I was doing the Minor League Recap for Metsgeek.com, but I thought nothing of it. Apparently Mike DiFelice was sitting home retired and was called up by the Mets to come and play for Binghamton to help along in Mike Pelfrey’s development.

Apparently the guy had gone to Pelfrey's last start, which was a gem, and said his fastball has tremendous movement. He also was messing with Pelfrey and throwing him some jabs in fun and Pelfrey took them in stride and had thrown some back. But the real big thing is that he was talking to DiFelice thoughout the game and he had asked Mike DiFelice if he was ready for the next level (assuming the bigs), and Mike said definitely. The jump from High-A to AA is not as tough as the jump from AA and AAA and should provide a nice challenge for him with some retreads from the bigs that might a tougher out. The Mets do not need him right now and might not need him this year at all, but better to have him in AAA than AA should the need arise and he looks ready.

As for Henry Owens, there is nothing to say but straight filth. He started pitching when he was 22 in 2001 in the Pirates organization and was a work in progress. He was converted from a catcher to a pitcher and it looks like things are fully clicking for him at this point. in 17.2 innings, Owens has allowed a measly five hits for a sick 2.55 H/9, struck out 39 batters for a 19.87 K/9, has a 1.09 ERA, and has a 0.57 WHIP. The guy is mowing people down to say the least. I do not think AAA will even pose much of a problem for him but he might as well progress and take steps towards the bigs instead of beating up on over matched kids.

* * *

Billy Wagner is ready to take what is coming to him from the Phillies fans.

"No, not until you pitch in front of them," said Wagner, who saved 59 games in his two seasons as a Phillie. "I'll take my beating."

Willie lays down the smack down on Brian Bannister.

"Bannister and all of those guys have to work their way back into pitching shape," Randolph said. "Especially, with Bannister. It's like starting with Spring Training again. If the guys are doing the job up here, then what are going to do? Take someone out to put someone in who has three [actually five] starts in the big leagues?."

There is no way Bannister cracks back into the rotation with the way things are going, but it will be comforting to know the Mets have some depth again there.

The odds were that Pedro was finally going to get a win again and he did it in a big way. The Mets beat up on the Diamondbacks and cruised to a 15-2 victory. The Mets started this road trip 6-1 and increased their lead to 6.5 games. Carlos Beltran inched closer to .300 while driving in four more runs and Carlos Delgado looks to have woken up from his slump with a 3 for 4 night. Jose Reyes picked up an incredible three walks and Heath Bell struck out two in his one inning of work to lower his ERA to 3.27.

"It's pretty scary how potent we can be when everything's clicking," David Wright said.

The Mets just look amazing right now and are primed to go 8-2 on his road trip while only .5 games back from having the best record in the Major Leagues. The Mets should feel really comfortable right now with a 39-23 record and being sixteen games over .500 at this point is extremely impressive.

"If I were the other team, I'd be worried right now," Pedro Martínez said.

Endy Chavez continues to play solidly.

Chavez has the speed to get to balls, and his strong left arm has thrown out seven runners on the bases, including Craig Counsell at the plate to end the first inning of yesterday's 15-2 mauling of Arizona.

"That was probably the play of the game," starter Pedro Martinez said. "It took their momentum away."

Pedro is banged up.

"I'm OK," Martinez said. "I won't say I'm 100-percent healthy, but I'm good enough to go out there."

Martinez, 34, has a sore hip and an aching right big toe. On Tuesday, the Dodgers ripped him for seven runs in five innings.

Joel Sherman says A-Rod does not have IT.

TOM Brady and Adam Vinatieri have IT. Peyton Manning and Mike Vanderjagt don't.

You don't have to be one of the greatest players to have IT. Sam Cassell, for example, has IT and so does Robert Horry. Meanwhile, Patrick Ewing most definitely did not, and Stephon Marbury would not know IT if IT hit him upside the skull.

David Ortiz, as if he needed to prove the point any more, showed again yesterday at Fenway Park that he is a master of IT with a two-out, three-run, ninth-inning walkoff homer to lift Boston to a 5-4 victory. Meanwhile, 200 miles away, Alex Rodriguez once more was the Big un-It.