GAME FIVE: Mets 6 - Reds 3 - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Looking to see if they could string together two wins in a row, The Mets sent Dillion Gee up against The Reds in the second game of this weekend series.

THE GOOD
DILLON GEE: Except for one (admittedly big) mistake on Opening Day, Gee pitched quite well. Today he had a similar outing with pretty much the same type of mistake, but overall it was a good job, keeping the Mets one bright spot in 2014 so far to be it's starting pitching. He's not Harvey, and in the long run I think Wheeler and Syndergaard will both be better, but Gee is a very bright spot for what should prove to be a very strong rotation.

CURTIS GRANDERSON: Despite the rough first couple of games at the plate, I haven't wavered in my thought that I'm quite glad Granderson is here. I don't expect 40+ home runs (heck, I don't expect much more than 28-30 overall), but he will provide protection in the lineup for Wright and will be a presence in the lineup that opposing pitchers will respect. His two-run shot in the 6th was a nice start.

THE BULLPEN: Two pitchers, (Rice and Torres), 1.2 innings, 3 Ks and NO RUNS. It's a Christmas Miracle.

IKE DAVIS: Two days after he lost the first base job to Lucas Duda, Davis makes himself relevant again with his ninth-inning walkoff grand slam. I'm a Davis supporter, so I hope he can fight his way back into everyday play. We shall see.

THE BAD
THE BATS: The final score is a little misleading because six runs makes it look like a healthy offensive day, but the first half of the game the Mets bats were as anemic as a Karen Carpenter luncheon. For the second day in a row, all scoring came via the long ball. The Mets are going to have to improve their situational hitting.

LUCAS DUDA: One day after his two-homer/four RBI day, Duda went 0-4 with three strike-outs. I told you yesterday that you shouldn't count on many days like Friday night for him.

THE CATCHING POSITION: Anthony Recker didn't hit any better than d'Arnaud has, and The Mets' catchers haven't had a hit all season.

THE UGLY
ERIC YOUNG JR.: Finally got a hit, but the Mets leadoff man is hitting a disturbing .063 for the season. That's not setting the table... that's not even in the kitchen

What's the rush?

Oliver Perez is in camp and basically is viewed as a dead man walking. Odds are he'll be out on he butt in about two/three weeks.

This isn't really speculation. It's pretty much expected unless he manages to find a few mils an hour on his fastball and stops walking people.

I have heard the question though... "why is he even in camp?"

Well, basically... why not? The Mets have to pay him anyway. His being in camp could possibly (albiet doubtfully) do two things:

1 - He could actually pitch well enough that he earns a spot. Likely in the bullpen if this was to happen. It's doubtful. VERY doubtful. Chances of happening: about 10%.

2 - Could pitch well enough that the Mets could trade him, while eating about 90% of his contract. Also doubtful, but slightly more possible considering the lack of depth in pitching for many teams. Chances of happening: about 16%.

Listen, I don't want Perez taking up innings that someone who will really benefit will miss out on (say Dillion Gee, Pat Misch or D.J. Carrasco) but for now the Mets don't lose anything in having him in camp. While I doubt it'll do anything much for the Mets, the slim chance it could work out is worth the amount of time. I just hope the Mets know when to draw the line and in reality, I think they do.

Another Arm: Mets Ink Young

Well, it was expected and in the end it was another decent low-risk, possible high reward move. Adding Chris Young to the rotation (I would say it's fairly likely he'll be the Mets #4 starter to start the season) was a move many projected.

Young gets a simular deal that Chris Capuano got earlier this month. He signs a $1.1 million dollar contract with inceptives that could make the total amount $4.5 million.

Young had excellent back to back seasons in 2005 and 2006 and was solid in 2007 and the start of 2008 before injuries put him on the DL twice. In 2009 he again started well but ran into problems and lost his last four starts before he had season ending arthroscopic surgery to repair partial tears in his labrum. In 2010 he six shutout innings in the second game of the season before being pulled with a right shoulder strain which caused him to miss most of the season. He did make three starts at the end of the season, finishing 2–0 with a 0.90 ERA.

Like Capuano, I think this is a good move that helps stablize the rotation to a degree. I think Young is a decent talent that healthy, can do quite well in Citifield. Right now I would pencil him in as the #4, ahead of Dillon Gee and Capuano who will compete for the #5 spot in the rotation.