Look, it is easy to take today’s move by the Mets to release Luis Castillo in two ways. One is to somehow blame him for his injuries and diminishing performance, ignore how hard he worked to stay on the field as much as he did, and assume everything will be better once he is gone. [...]

What had been an obvious conclusion in the dispersal of Carlos Beltran and Angel Pagan to the outfield came to pass Monday, when the Mets announced that Pagan would be the center fielder, and Beltran moving to right field. The reason that needed to be the choice is simple: Pagan is the better fielder at [...]

My parents took me on regular trips to the Berkshires each summer, and each trip included a stop at Wahconah Park to watch the Pittsfield Mets. I had the good fortune to see an extremely young Edgardo Alfonzo, Benny Agbayani, even an infielder named Guillermo Mota. But the best luck came from the starting pitcher [...]

Reaction has been twofold on the recently announced Flex ticket plans by the New York Mets. Short version: buy five, eleven, or seventeen games, get one free. Included in the package are Opening Day and the series against the New York Yankees. The move represents progress from the Mets on two fronts. For one thing, [...]

It was a dark day among those who care about the fortunes of the New York Mets (except for Mike Pelfrey, who welcomed a baby girl into the world). The unsealing of the lawsuit brought by  Irving Picard against Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz provided joys only to those who thrive on human misery. There [...]

Some people may be tired of the reporting and discussion of Mets ownership and Bernie Madoff, and that is understandable. The group identifying itself as Mets fans is made up of people who care about baseball, and not necessarily finance. But make no mistake: the resolution of Irving Picard’s suit against Fred Wilpon is not [...]

Ever since we first learned the details of the Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme- and that the Wilpons were heavily invested- the question of whether the team’s finances would be compromised hung over the team and everything it did. If a free agent didn’t sign, if a draft choice wasn’t made over slot, it became more [...]

The writer Murray Chass, in his January 23 blog entry, re-visited his oft-cited idea that he knows Mike Piazza took steroids, since he saw “back acne” on Piazza while interviewing him in the New York Mets’ clubhouse during the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Chass wrote: “Attention, Mike Piazza fans and other cynics: A report in [...]

Adam Rubin wrote a fascinating piece describing, for the first time, how the Mets plan to decide who plays center field: Carlos Beltran or Angel Pagan. In his piece, Rubin describes the process, as told to him by Mets manager Terry Collins, this way: Collins indicated Wednesday at Citi Field that the logical plan is [...]

It seems strange to think that the Mets acquired a strong fourth outfielder in Scott Hairston when considering his .210/.295/.3416 batting line from 2010. So what is it that made me advocate for a signing of Hairston the day he was non-tendered by the Padres? Well, pretty much everything else. Let’s start with that batting [...]

Though the two New York teams seldom make deals with one another, a straight-up, one-for-one trade of Joba Chamberlain for Mike Pelfrey would satisfy both the potential short-term and long-term needs of each club. In the case of Pelfrey, the Yankees would receive a pitcher who just turned 27, is remarkably durable and consistent, and [...]

The usual reaction flowed from the news Tuesday night that the Mets signed Chris Capuano and Taylor Buchholz to low-cost, one-year deals. A segment of the blogosphere ridiculed the Mets for failing to make a big splash, while others credited the team for intelligent, low-cost signings with significant upside. And Patrick Flood does a good [...]

Once again, I find myself in the unfortunate position of strongly agreeing with those who believe Jeff Bagwell belongs in the Hall of Fame, while finding myself embarrassed over the personal attacks by many who share my view. Two primary punching bags, Dan Graziano and Jeff Pearlman, have taken a huge number of insults. To [...]

One of the overlooked stories concerning the impact Sandy Alderson has already had on the Mets’ roster concerns the values he’s managed to pick up. Saving money at the margins is vital, and quite different from failing to address issues of secondary talent and depth. Indeed, spending less for the same player affords a team [...]

Mets fans all over the world are disappointed today, with Cliff Lee signing a pact to pitch in Philadelphia. That deal makes it likely that the Phillies will try to dump Joe Blanton, and will probably need to take on some of the $8.5 million salary Blanton is owed each of the next two years [...]