Slowly Getting It

Another one bites the dust and it’s about time.

The Mets figured out that another one of their dead-weight players was not going to help the team and cut him loose. Frank Catalanotto was designated for assignment yesterday and Chris Carter was brought up from Triple-A Buffalo to replace him.

Frankly, this is a move I would have made weeks ago. Carter has been doing nothing but hitting the ball like a madman in Buffalo, hitting a rock solid .339 with 16 extra base hits and 20 RBI in 28 games. He looked great in spring training. In fact, as I have stated many times before, once Daniel Murphy went down with his injury, I would have made Carter my opening day 1st baseman. Obviously he won’t be doing that since the 1st baseman of the future is already there in the exciting Ike Davis, but Carter can play the corner outfield spots as well as spot Davis at first.

As with Mike Jacobs, I like Catalanotto, but he just wasn’t getting the job done. He was a drain on the bench batting .143 in 21 at bats as a pinch hitter, with five strike outs.

The Mets are starting to get it. It’s important to not wait to make the moves that will improve this club. Jacobs was a mistake, and thankfully they realized it quick enough that it wasn’t a disaster. Davis came up and breathed new life into the team, and they’ve played much better since. Catalanotto was next and while it took longer it’s still the right move early enough to help.

Now, it’s time to get rid of Gary Matthews, Jr. I don’t care how much he’s getting paid (not too much, but he is making a million this year). Matthews is worse than Jacobs and Catanotto were. After “pinch hitting” in the 7th (I use quotes because what Matthews has been doing cannot honestly be called actual hitting) and striking out again, he is batting .136 with 18 strikeouts, 0 RBIs and two extra base hits in 44 at bats. Keep in mind Matthews had a double in his 1st at bat on opening day which means he’s only had 3 base hits in the 43 at bats after that. He is BEYOND a disaster. At this point *I* could likely make more contact. He needs to go.

So far, this team is playing above what many expected of them, and without the overworked bullpen blowing a few games in the Reds series and in the last game of the Giants series, this team would be doing even better. You need to put guys in the clubhouse to helpo, not make things worse. Please Omar, keep up the right decisions in cutting out the dead weight and get someone else in here to replace Matthews. It’s already too late. Don’t let it be later.