A brutal offensive player, but his defensive reputation is almost otherworldly. Every scout, manager, or GM who's ever seen him play swears he's the second coming of Ozzie Smith, and some have even been foolhardy enough to claim he's better than the Wizard was. He better be, if he wants to be a major league regular. Twenty years from now they might be calling a .200 average the "Ordonez Line". But if the Mets are willing to use pinch-hitters for him anytime he bats after the sixth inning, he could be a genuinely useful player. The Mets are generally considered to be the worst defensive team of the '90s, but for 1996 they could start an outfield of Everett, Johnson, and Ochoa; an infield of Alfonzo, Ordonez, Kent, and Brogna; and Hundley behind the plate. It wouldn't score many runs, but that defense and Shea Stadium could keep Mets pitchers very happy all season. - http://www.baseballprospectus.com/other/bp1996/mets.html
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How do you negotiate with a dream? Shawn Bowman is navigating that. The 26-year-old third baseman from Port Moody, B.C., has been close enough to the major leagues that you couldn’t help but wonder if he keeps a travel agent on retainer to get his family and friends to a big-league city at a moment’s notice. For instance, he was slotted to be the Atlanta Braves’ triple A third sacker this season. That makes you an understudy to Chipper Jones, and that generally puts you in line for big league at-bats, since it can feel like duct tape is keeping aging Jones together. Read more: link
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The New York Mets’ 2011 season has been one of pleasant surprises, an unfamiliar feeling for this generation’s fanbase, thanks mostly to a rebuilding state and expectations lower than the Phillies’ team ERA. Daniel Murphy, the lefty hitter from Jacksonville, Florida, stroked his way to a .320 batting average through 109 games before suffering his second MCL injury in two years. At the time, he was fifth in the league in hitting. As the rebuilding movement in New York evolves completely into Sandy Alderson’s brainchild, the GM has a lot of options and freedom over what to do with Murphy, as he does with the rest of the team. Here are four of those options, ranging anywhere from realistic to bold. - http://bleacherreport.com/articles/855948-new-york-mets-offseason-what-does-gm-sandy-alderson-do-with-daniel-murphy
9-20-11: - http://www.nctimes.com/sports/article_8da63360-2b6a-58f5-8774-c126796b81d8.html#ixzz1YVtT8erv - Some people join the Navy to see the world. Phillip Evans signed a professional baseball contract with the New York Mets. A 15th-round draft pick by the Mets in June out of La Costa Canyon High, Evans signed hours before the Aug. 15 deadline for what amounted to a bonus typically given to players taken at the bottom of the first round. Evans, a shortstop, started his pro career in the Rookie Gulf Coast League with Port St. Lucie, Fla., played four games and was promoted to Kingsport, Tenn., of the low Rookie Appalachian League and finally to Brooklyn of the New York-Penn League
That the Mets are playing out the string at this point, rather than competing for a playoff spot, is not all that unusual based on recent history. What is out of the ordinary is the fact that they are in the position to play spoiler to other more fortunate teams. The last two seasons, as the Mets came to the end of September, they encountered virtually no opponents whose playoff chances they could damage in any appreciable way. The only exception was when they hosted the wild card-hopeful Braves for three games on September 17-19 last season, and made the least of the opportunity by allowing Atlanta to sweep. - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2011/9/20/2436699/remembrances-of-spoils-past-part-one
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