Drafty, Draft, Draft. I Like The Draft: Part Dos / Fuck Yeah: Pedro Edition

I was praying for a little Eric Hosmer (#4 on K Law's list), but it appears as if the Royals are fed up with being losers and have decided that they are undeterred by the potential price tag of Hosmer. And methinks that if they go after him that early, they will have a pretty good idea if they can afford him.

I was also feeling greedy and was hoping that Gerrit Cole (#10 on K Law's list) would fall as well due to signability concerns and Mets would nab him at 22, but I have backed off of that desire and would prefer they pass on him if he is on the board and wait until 33 to see if he really falls. I like the arm, but there have been mixed reports on him and while his upside is sky high, he is far from a sure thing and there stands to be some pretty good talent on the board that I would rather see get drafted first.

There are few guys that have had the Mets associated with them for either the fact they are actually a good fit or there is legitimate interested in them. If there is no Yonder Alonso (#14 on K Law's list) falling down in the draft or Justin Smoak (#3 on K Law's list), then Brett Lawrie (#52 on K Law's list) is the guy I want at 18. The Mets could gamble and wait until 22 if they really, really want Castro and he is still on the board, but Lawrie reminds me a lot of Jay Bruce.

He is a very good high school bat who just keeps impressing and is hot riser close to the draft. According to MILB.com, he has plus, plus raw power and a he is recognized to have tremendous upside with the bat. He may drop a bit due to concerns about where he play, but that may be the break the Mets need to pick him and he will not be a guy that will cause them upset the commish with some outrageous contract.

For the Mets second pick, I am sure a lot of people may be down with Jason Castro (#20 on K Law's list), but I am bit unsure about that one. I would go Ike Davis here (#46 on K Law's list) because I believe in the bat more and any catcher would take longer to hit the bigs than a position player. It is not that I dislike Castro, but Jason is no stud behind the plate and if he has to move, his bat simply will not play as well as a guy like Davis'. Also, Ryan Babineau will be available in the later rounds as a guy who could really be the Schneider-esque backstop Omar likes so much and might be a better fit than Castro if the Mets can get some big time bats with their first two picks.

For the third pick, I am down with a gambling pick on an arm. Brett Hunter and Gerrit Cole would play perfectly here and it not unfathomable that one of them would be available here and would be a solid, solid pick. If Ike Davis is gone or the Mets choose to go with Jason Castro at 22 (or 18 for that matter and pass up on Ike Davis altogether), Allan Dykstra (#60 on K Law's list) would be a solid pick at 33.

A popular pick here would be Cutter Dykstra (out of the top 75 on K Law's list), but he would be a bit of an overdraft here to say the least. I would not mind him with a later pick if he is still around and having him shift to second, but the novelty of having a Lenny's son as a Met might be clouding my vision a bit.

As always, things change on draft day and it is impossible to predict who will be around at 18 much less 33. However, outside of the standard studs that we all know would be a gift at 18, I would love to see Brett Wallace (#9 on K Law's list) fall to the Mets because he can flat out rake. He is Ike Davis' teammate and the best hitter on the team which is pretty impressive because Davis can rake pretty well himself.

As for the 33rd pick, I would take Andrew Cashner if he fell, which I do not expect to happen. I just see too much offensive ability being available at 18 and 22 and I have become allergic to college relievers and even ones that that throw in the high 90s and look dominating (thank you Craig Hansen). I would also take Reese Havens at 33 if he falls out of the first round as a Dustin Pedoria type with a little bit more pop.

The reality is after all of my whining about the Mets needing to go over slot, they might not have to nor might they have the opportunity to. Just because a guy like Cole might be on the board at 18 or 22, does not mean he is the best investment. However, at 33 he would be a good risk to take on. I think the Mets should focus on offense unless a stud arm that falls in their lap with less questions because there could be some absolute mashers on the board.

* * *

Pedro Martinez may not have struck out ten or threw a shut out, but for the love of Evangeline Lilly and all that is holy that was an amazing performance. Pedro was hitting 90 mph for most of the game and owned some pretty impressive secondary pitches. The party pooper might point out that the Giants have the 14th best offense in the NL, but to you I say may you be banished to a life in which you can only watch Yankee games and hear Michael Kay refer to Derek Jeter as Captain Jetes.

“It’s not over until the season is over,” Martinez said afterward. “But I would say I feel really, really good and really confident that I’m going to be healthy this time for a little while. So I’m going to pray to God that I stay that way and I just continue to do what I did today, give the team an opportunity to win and be here with the team especially – be here with the team. Have my presence out there every five days.”

What is even more impressive that since September 16th of 2005, he only threw 109 or more pitches once on June 22nd of 2006. I know it was not his arm that kept him on the sideline this time, but there were positives here and it was a good moment for the Mets. At least for a day, the Mets were a feel good story both for the fans and for the team.

It was a big shock to all of us," Ryan Church said. "Now it's a big shot in the arm for us that he's back. Everything he does, he just makes it fun and keeps everybody loose."

I am tempering my excitement right now in regards to the state of the Mets, but things do not feel as dreary as they did a week or so ago.

* * *

Willie quotes...

"I'm not worried at all," Schneider said. "It's not something I've ever thought about. ... I knew there was a chance coming in that I wouldn't get to play as consistently as I have in the past. Before anything like that happens I'm sure Willie will come talk about it."

One thing good about Willie is that he will sit his guys down and let them know what is happening like he did with Green last season. However, the only caveat here is that it is most likely a vet because rooks haven't earned the right, but that is another story.

"He's got to finish the year out," the Mets' manager said. "It's too early to say he's not going to have the year he had last year."

I think it is good that said that publicly, but I hope he is sitting down with Perez behind closed doors and really digging into it. Also, Willie issued a conflicting statement that did not instill much confidence.

Randolph described Oliver Perez's start Monday as both "horrible" and "terrible" but took it one step further when he did not completely dismiss a reporter's question about moving the lefthander to the bullpen. "We haven't got to that point yet," Randolph said

Barry Zito is a disaster. A big time disaster. Barry costs a lot of money and is giving them an ERA+ of 72. Last year he gave in a Glavine-esque 98 ERA+. If he can get back into the 113 / 116 range he was in during his last two years in San Francisco this thing will not look like the worst contract in the history of baseball, but it does not look promising for him. He never topped 4.48 in terms of ERA in the AL and posted a 4.53 in 2007 and has a 5.87 in 2008 so far.