What to do with Oliver Perez?

As it stands right now, Oliver Perez is not in the starting rotation for the New York Mets.  What’s left to be seen is where he’ll end up. 

All indications are pointing toward Perez heading to the bullpen as opposed to the minor leagues.  Another possibility is that Perez lands on the disabled list.  A report came out yesterday that said Perez had an ice pack on his knee before the rainout.

To me, that seems like a ploy by the Mets to slip him onto the DL and allow him to head to extended spring training without incident.

Perez cannot stay in the starting rotation at this pace.  His starts eventually lead to bullpen blowouts, hurting the team for the game he starts and even a few games after that.

Is the bullpen the best place for Perez to re-learn how to pitch?  Probably not.  Who will start in his place?  No idea.  Will it cost the Mets a player from the bullpen that they will likely need in a tough spot if they call up another starter?  Most likely.

For the last question, the most logical move right now is to slip Ken Takahashi into Perez’s spot in the rotation.  With a pitch count, hope he can get through four innings and patch together the rest of the game from the arms in the bullpen.  Not the best choice, but it keeps a roster spot from being swapped to call up a player from the minor leagues.

Options down on the farm include Brandon Knight, Nelson Figueroa, Jon Niese and Dillon Gee, among others.  Figueroa or Knight will likely get the call if they cannot figure out Perez while he’s in the bullpen or if he has to go to the disabled list.

Perez has quickly become Omar Minaya’s albatross.  He’s not performing anywhere near expectations and is costing the team a whole lot of money.  Right now, the Mets don’t seem to know what to do with Perez and would like to stick him somewhere where he cannot kill the team. 

I think they’ll put him on the DL with a “knee injury” and hope for the best.  Get him some “rehab” starts in the minor leagues and hope he can turn things around.

If not…well…who knows…

(Ed. note: Big Spanish final today (or should I say “grande”?).  I’ll be back to post afterwards.  Hopefully nothing important breaks.  Oh, and wish me luck.)

Game Recap: Mets 9 -- Nationals 7

Whewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

Pitching Performance

The bullpen must have given the poor guy a heart attack, but Brandon Knight earned his first major league win with five innings of baseball. Knight scattered six hits, walked four, and struck out five. He labored through a few innings, but allowed only two runs.

He looked good early, but struggled as he worked into the inning. Decent stuff. The bullpen wanted to hand this away, but thankfully the Mets scored enough runs to hold on.

From here, seven relievers struggled to get through the next four innings. Ricardo Rincon allowed a run on two hits and a walk. He got out of a jam thanks to a boneheaded play on the bases by the Nats.

Thank you, Nationals. Thank you.

Brian Stokes allowed a two-run home run to Elijah Dukes in his inning of work.

That ball was crushed. Crushed. Seems like the Stokes magic has run out too.

Aaron Heilman started the eighth inning, but was unable to get an out, as he allowed two hits before being removed. Scott Schoeneweis got the first two outs of the inning, striking out one. Joe Smith entered in a jam, and allowed a long fly ball to center field, but Carlos Beltran was able to track it down and escape the inning.

Aaron stinks. Simple as that.

Smith started the ninth, but allowed the first two runners to reach base, the first after a David Wright error. Pedro Feliciano came in and retired the first two batters, thanks to a nice play by Carlos Delgado and another by himself. Luis Ayala came on to get the final out of the game and seal the deal for the Mets.

These Mets are going to give me a heart attack. I swear.

Offensive Output

The bats woke up tonight.

The theme is back, as the Mets jumped on the board early. Jose Reyes led off the game with a solo home run to right field. A few batters later, Delgado homered deep to center field.

The beginning of a homer happy night for the Mets.

In the third inning, Reyes walked to lead off the inning. With Daniel Murphy batting, Reyes swiped second. Murphy cracked a ball to deep center, off the wall, and ended up with a triple, driving in Reyes. Delgado came to the plate and singled in Murphy. Beltran came up and connected for his first home run of the night, a two-run job, to deep right.

His swing is oh so sweet. I love it.

In the fourth, Reyes drove in Brian Schneider with a single to right field. After the Nationals tacked on runs and got way too close for comfort, Beltran put some distance between the two teams with his second homer of the night, a solo shot to left field.

It's about time the Mets scored some runs and won a game. Jeeeez!

The Rest of the Story

Wright is struggling with the bat and in the field. Somebody fix him.

I love Jerry Manuel.

My helmet is still broken.

Game Ball: Carlos Beltran.

Brandon Knight posts solid outing to get Team USA into medal contention

Team USA has moved onto the semis, after Mets farmhand and spot-starter Brandon Knight bounced back from a tough first game and limited the Taiwanese offense to only two runs.

Knight threw 6 1-3 innings, scattering five hits. He allowed one solo home run, walked two and struck out five.

Knight was quoted by the AP as saying, "We always seem to make it a little too interesting." Sounds like the Mets.

"There's a little sense of relief (to be in the medal round)," Knight said, "I'm not going to lie and say we didn't expect that. It was a goal."

Manager Davey Johnson said of Knight, ""We were lucky to get him back."

The US team will take on Japan on Wednesday night in their next game.

Brandon Knight struggles in Olympics

Team USA fell to South Korea by a score of 8-7 to open their Olympic play.

Brandon Knight, who made one start for the Mets before he was DFA'd and boarded a plane for China, was touched up for six runs. Knight threw 4 1-3 innings, allowing six hits, walking two and striking out two. All six runs were earned, as Knight threw one wild pitch and surrendered one home run.

Ouch.

On a funnier note, the first four batters in South Korea's lineup has the last name of Lee. As does the batter in the six hole.

Movin' on up: Jon Niese

With Brandon Knight heading to the Olympics, there was a void in the rotation in New Orleans. The Mets killed two birds with one stone here, as they promoted Jon Niese to fill the spot.

Niese, who posted a 6-7 record in AA, could be a fill-in for the Mets if Pedro Martinez cannot perform down the stretch. Niese's record is not the defining factor here, as he posted a 3.04 ERA through 22 starts.

I have an inkling we'll see Niese at Shea before the season is over. No wonder he's "untouchable."

The Dark Knight heads to China

Adam Rubin is reporting the Mets have designated Brandon Knight for assignment and will head to Beijing to join Davey Johnson and Team USA. Willie Collazo has been activated to take over the empty roster spot.

So long, Brandon. Not a bad four innings after you shook off the nerves.

Early Morning Madness: Brandon Knight is having a pretty good couple of months edition

Brandon Knight was playing baseball this season with the Somerset Patriots. Then, he got picked up by the Mets, and moved into their farm system. A pretty good day.

Recently, he was named to the US Olympic baseball team, and will travel to China to compete for a gold medal. An awesome day.

Now, Knight might get another shot at the bigs.

With Pedro Martinez home after his father's death, the Mets need a starter for Saturday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals. It looks like Knight might be that guy.

Knight has tasted the show before, pitching in 11 games with the Yankees, amassing an ERA of 10.71. But at AAA New Orleans this year, through 11 games, he is 5-1 with an ERA of 1.60. In 39 1-3 innings for the Zephyrs, has surrendered 23 hits and seven earned runs. He's walked 10, but struck out 49 batters.

Here's the quandary in my mind: Where would you rather be? Experiencing a once in a lifetime opportunity, going to China for the Olympics and participating in something so grand? Or getting possibly just one shot at showing the Mets what you have to offer in a spot start in Major League Baseball?

Honestly, that is a tough choice. This could all be moot if the Mets tab Brian Stokes or someone else as their starter. I'm just glad I don't have to make this decision for the Mets.

Hey, whatever happened to Nelson Figueroa?