News: Mike Nickeas

Mets purchased the contract of C Mike Nickeas from Triple-A Buffalo.

Nickeas was acquired from the Rangers way back in 2006 in exchange for Victor Diaz. The 27-year-old backstop batted .276/.389/.382 with five home runs and 33 RBI in 293 at-bats between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Buffalo. He'll be the third catcher in Queens.

Update: Hisanori Takahashi

Mets general manager Omar Minaya told David Waldstein of the New York Times that the team would like to re-sign Hisanori Takahashi. We’ve been very happy with him," said Minaya. "He’s done everything we’ve asked of him, and he’s shown the ability to pitch in New York. I’m sure we’ll sit down after the season and, hopefully, we can work something out."

Takahashi has been one of the lone bright spots on the club this year. He has shown that he can pitch out of relief or as a starter. I would not be opposed to bringing him back as a reliever, but I would much rather spend the $2-3Million it would take to wrap him up on a more pressing need for the ball club. If Omar Minaya makes re-signing Takahashi a priority, we should all expect to be in for another long season in 2011.

Post-Game Wrap-Up: Braves 4 Mets 1 - Un-Inspired Baseball From The Mets Again

The Mets were defeated by the Braves 4-1 tonight at Turner Field. The Mets again had no offensive attack as they were held to 1 run and only 2 hits on the evening.

The Braves got on the board early again tonight. Leading off, in the Bot of the 1st, Omar Infante looped a single to RF. Jason Heyward would quickly follow with a 2B to Left-Center, setting the Braves up with runners on 2nd and 3rd. The next hitter Martin Prado then drove a ball to the LF gap, scoring both Infante and Heyward, to put the Braves ahead 2-0.

The Braves added another 2 runs in the Bot of the 2nd. With 1 out, Rick Ankiel singled to CF. After a Tommy Hanson SAC bunt advancing Ankiel to 2nd, Omar Infante would record his 2nd hit of the game, an RBI single to Left-Center to put the Braves up 3-0. Jason Heyward would then bring Infante around to score on his RBI double to make the score 4-0.

The Mets finally got on the board in the Top of the 8th. With 2 outs and a runner on 2nd, Luis Hernandez singled up the middle to drive in the Mets lone run of the night.

Once again, the Mets played lifeless un-inspired baseball. The offense was non-existant. The only thing that made this game even watchable was the debut of Lucas Duda, and he even struggled going 0-3 with a K on the night.

Despite going 0-3, Duda looks like a ball player. He is a big young kid and I am very much looking foward to how he does on the big league level with a decent amount of at-bats.

Mike Pelfrey did not look good tonight. His fastball was up in the zone much of the evening which resulted in a lot of balls in the air. He was hit extremely hard tonight. He finished the night with a line of 5 IP, 4 ER, 9 Hits, 0BB, and 2 K's while taking his 8th loss of the year.

David Wright finally broke his Turner Field drought in 2010 tonight by doubling to LF. He went 1-4 on the evening and is now 1-32 on the season at Turner Field.

Omar Infante and Jason Heyward, the Braves 1 and 2 hitters respectively, combined to go 7-8, with 3 runs scored, and 2 RBI.

The Mets are now 9-53 at Turner Field when the Braves score first.

The Braves have now held the Mets to 3 runs or less in 13 consecutive games.

The Mets conclude their 4 game series with the Braves tomorrow night at Turner Field. The pitching match-up is a beauty as Mets ace Johan Santana takes the hill looking to salvage the final game of the series VS Braves Cy Young candidate Tim Hudson. Game time is 7:10PM.

News: Jenrry Mejia

The Mets announced that Jenrry Mejia will start Saturday’s game against the Cubs in Chicago.

This announcement just confirms the assumed. Mejia will make his first career Major League start. I hope for the sake of his future that the start goes well. The last thing this franchise needs is for their top prospect to struggle going into the 2011 season.

Pre-Game: STARTING LINEUPS FOR 9/1/2010

The Mets' continue their 4 games series with the Braves tonight at Turner Field. By falling 2 games under .500 for the first time since May, the Mets have finally realized that they will not make the playoffs and therefore will be starting to play their youngsters for the remainder of the season. Tonight, Lucas Duda makes his Major League debut for the Mets. The 24 yr old OF has a ton of power. Combined between Double-AA and Triple-AAA, in 114 games, Duda hit 23 HR's, 87 RBI, and had an average of .299. Here are the starting lineups for tonight's game:

For the 77-55 Atlanta Braves:

1. Omar Infante 2B
2. Jason Heyward RF
3. Martin Prado 3B
4. Brian McCann C
5. Eric Hinske LF
6. Freddie Freeman 1B
7. Brooks Conrad 3B
8. Rick Ankiel CF
9. Tommy Hanson P

For the 65-67 New York Mets:

1. Luis Castillo 2B
2. Josh Thole C
3. David Wright 3B
4. Chris Carter RF
5. Carlos Beltran CF
6. Ike Davis 1B
7. Lucas Duda LF
8. Ruben Tejada SS
9. Mike Pelfrey P

LETS GO METS!

Rumor: Dillon Gee To The Big Leagues?

According to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewyork, the Mets will soon promote 24 yr old P Dillon Gee to the Major League club. Rubin goes on to say,"there are rumblings the Mets' youth movement will extend beyond right-hander Jenrry Mejia and outfielder/first baseman Lucas Duda, who are due to join the Mets on Wednesday. A source also expects right-hander Dillon Gee will receive a promotion at some point in the coming days."

The 24-year-old Gee, a 21st-round pick in 2007 from the University of Texas-Arlington, is listed as Thursday's pitcher for Tripe-A Buffalo. He is 13-7 with a 4.69 ERA in 27 starts for the Bisons. In 157 1/3 innings, he has 161 strikeouts, which set the Bisons' modern-era single-season strikeout record.

Rumor: R.A. Dickey Contract Extension?

The New York Daily News reports that According to a source, the Mets are willing to engage in extension talks with Dickey this offseason, in lieu of salary arbitration or a one-year deal. Dickey is arbitration-eligible for one more season, meaning he will be under team control in 2011 regardless of whether he agrees to a new contract. Because of that, the Mets could wait to see if the 35-year-old knuckleballer can duplicate his 2010 success.

I would not be opposed to an extension for Dickey as he has been one of the most consistent parts of the Mets all year. I just hope that the contract is within reason as the knuckleballer is 35 yrs old.