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Trachsel Joins Six Man Rotation
Steve Trachsel was activated from the DL yesterday ending what seemed to be an endless rehab assignment. It was also announced that he will be part of a six man rotation getting his first start Friday night between Pedro Martinez and Kris Benson.
The six man rotation is not a bad idea this time of year. I remember Bobby Valentine using it with some success several years ago. (I know, hardly a glowing endorsement.) The idea is that the starters get an extra day of rest between starts. But it’s not the kind of thing that will last very long. I’m thinking that two, maybe three times through the rotation and it’ll stop. Obviously a decision is imminent. Whether that means the team will make a trade or cut someone I don’t know but something has got to give.
To make room for Trachsel the Mets designated Danny Graves for a ssignment making it the second time this season that Graves has been DFAed. According to a report in the Daily News Graves may consider retiring.
That’s What I’m Talking About!
Click here for a recap of yesterday’s game.
The Mets controlled the whole game yesterday. Scored first, held the lead, scored some more and never gave up (even when Danny Graves was pitching). Kazuhisa Ishii (4 H, 0 ER) did a good job of protecting his spot in the rotation for now despite walking 5 batters in 6 innings. David Wright continued to show why so many people think so highly of him. It was just a good game all around to complete the sweep and pick up a game on first place Washington. The Nationals are now in a first place tie with Atlanta and the Mets are in second place, 4 1/2 games back. Their weekend opponent is the Dodgers who are 43-52 but are not to be taken lightly. The Mets have a way of playing well against first place teams (like the Padres) and then falling apart against teams they should beat (like the Pirates).
Mets End Skid
Click here for a recap of yesterday’s game.
Carlos Beltran hit a 3 run homer in the 7 run 5th inning to give the Mets a lead they wouldn’t give up (no matter how hard Danny Graves tried). It was Beltran’s 8th homer of the year and first in a game not started by Pedro Martinez.
Kris Benson started shaky but then settled in to have a respectable outing (6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB). Graves came in to pitch the 8th inning after Heath Bell pitched a perfect 7th. Graves allowed 4 hits and 3 earned runs in 1 inning. Not good for his first outing but the Mets were up 9-3 at the time so it was a good idea to for the coaching staff give him some work and see where he’s at to give them a starting point to work from. And it also allowed Braden Looper to come in to the game in the 9th in a save situation. Looper closed the game for his 13th save of the season.
Brian Daubach started at first base in his first game as a member of the team. He walked 3 times and scored twice.
Graves Finally A Met… Officially
The Danny Graves signing was finally made official yesterday and he was in uniform last night. The Reds will pick up the $6.25 million Graves was due under terms of his contract with them. The Mets will pay a prorated portion of the Major League minimum to Graves this year and own a $5 million club option for next year with a $500,000 buyout clause.
To make room for Graves on the roster Manny Aybar was designated for assignment.
Graves Still Not Quite A Met - But Almost
Danny Graves wore a Mets uniform (no. 32), pitched batting practice (to batter Ramon Castro) and received a hug from Pedro Martinez but is still not officially a Met. Graves agents and the Mets are still working out the particulars of the 2006 portion of his contract. As soon as those details are worked out you’ll see Graves wearing a Mets uniform in a game and not just for BP.
Graves Not Quite A Met Yet
Marty Noble at mlb.com reports that Danny Graves worked out for the Mets at Shea today. Noble says that Graves has not yet signed but can be expected to be in uniform by the end of the week.
Graves Signs With Mets?
According to a report on ESPN.com the Mets have signed Danny Graves.
I’ll have more on this when there’s official confirmation.
D-Day for Graves
According to a report by Ken Rosenthal the Atlanta Braves have dropped out of the Danny Graves sweepstakes. That leaves the Mets and the Florida Marlins the last two teams in the race. Rosenthal says Graves will sign with one of the two teams today. I think it would be great if the Mets got Graves. He saved 41 games last year and I can’t believe that he’s lost that much stuff in such a short period of time. The team that signs him only has to pay him a pro-rated portion of the minimum salary (the Reds are responsible for the rest of his 2005 salary) so if an option for next year would be enough to get him then they should. If he demands an outright extension then I’d try to get him with a one year, incentive laden extension. If he can get his act together then the Mets will have someone on the staff that will allow them to dump current closer Braden Looper on some unsuspecting team.
Danny Graves: Free Agent
The Reds cut closer Danny Graves yesterday. He’s more or less been stinking up the joint this season but had 41 saves last year. I have to believe that someone doesn’t lose their stuff that quickly and that if he’s really that bad it’s a mental block or a small mechanical breakdown that can be fixed. That’s why I think that any team has nothing to lose by signing him. I don’t know his thinking in terms of taking a minor league deal but certainly if you could get him like that it would be a no brainer. Get him down on the farm with your organizations pitching guru and see if he can work it out. What have you got to lose, Omar?
