All right, I’m going out on a limb here even before John Maine comes off the DL. I really don’t want to see him anymore, not as a starter and not in the bull pen. And Oliver Perez, the only way I want to see Perez is if he’s a beer vendor in the Upper Deck.
I’m not saying Takahashi is the answer, though I will say Dickey solves the Perez problem but I’ll address that later. But do you think 15 days of work and throwing is going to “cure” Maine? He went to the DL with “shoulder weakness”. I don’t know whether I believe that or not but I don’t think 15 days can solve that or anything else that ails him. I mean I think he’s got “weakness” of the heart and there is no cure for that.  Y’know, I’m just tired of the faces and the excuses and the first inning woes. Look at what Takahashi and Dickey have done with the Mets, when they pitch, at least you know their going to battle. Tell me, have you felt any angst or trepidation when either Dickey or Takahashi takes the mound? I don’t and as a matter of fact, neither does Jerry Manuel or Dan Warthen and I’ll tell you why. When Maine and Perez pitched, all you saw was the face of Jerry on top of the dugout-sometimes you saw him pacing, sometimes talking to Warthen.  When Dickey and Takahashi pitches, I don’t think they even pan Jerry until the third inning. O.K, I may be exaggerating a bit but hey, it’s just me talking here. But honestly, I don’t have any confidence in Maine and I have ZERO confidence in Perez.  If and when Maine comes back, it will be another “project” that the Mets will have to deal with. When Perez ever returns it’s just another spot that someone else can occupy.   I hope I’m wrong. But just before I get to R.A. Dickey, think on this; tonight Takahashi threw 7 innings of solid ball and didn’t even hit the 100 pitch mark.
Do you think Maine is doing that coming off the DL?Â
I would like to see Maine come back, pitch 2 good games and then get traded and I don’t care to who to.Â
Now R.A. Dickey, who in my opinion,  is everything Perez should have been. He fights and pitches to win, he plays hard, he gives a 100 percent, he’s mentally tough and most of all, he can pitch past the 4th inning. I love watching him pitch and with a knuckleballer, the opposition just looks lost. And even if he gets bombed in his next start, he is still better than Perez can be on any given day. So I think Dickey and Perez is a wash. If Perez is done, and I think he is , and since Dickey was gotten on the cheap, Perez should be given the Pick slip, after all, with Dickey’s stats, he would’ve gotten Perez money anyway.
In truth,  I don’t see any reason to take Dickey out of the rotation. I think is one of the biggest reasons for the success of this team. Why are we going to mess with a good thing here and you know the old saying ” if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”Â
This Rotation ain’t broke, so let’s not try to fix it.
7 comments
Kingman 26
6/13/2010-11:16am at 11:16 am (UTC -4)
I completely, totally, and wholeheartedly agree.
I don’t EVER want to see either of these clowns in the rotation again.
Regardless of how great Taka may or may not be, he is our 5th starter now, and is doing fine!
Dickey simply must stay in the rotation until he has maybe 3 straight bad starts at least.
Maine should be a 7th inning BP guy; if he does great, wonderful, move him up to the 8th.
Ollie should be deliberately messed with, kept on the DL forever, unless he wants to go to AAA.
This team is now 14-5 in its last 19 games and climbing rapidly, both in the standings and in the eyes of fans and all of baseball.
Keep Ollie, Maine, Jacobs, GMJ (yes, I know he’s gone for good; just had to throw him in as I took a LOT of heat for being incensed when we picked him up at the curb where the Angels leave their garbage, and boy was I right) and all of the other frigin garbage AWAY!
This is a new team, a new day, with a new window for success which is just cracking open. Keep every loser from the past as far away as possible.
Thank you and let’s sweep the rancid Orioles!
darknova306
6/13/2010-11:34am at 11:34 am (UTC -4)
The early season roster turnover with all these fresh faces is a breath of fresh air, isn’t it?
Ollie is trash, leave him on the curb. If Maine doesn’t have his fastball velocity back, try to turn him into a middle reliever.
I’d still prefer to see a trade for a solid starter so we can send Takahashi to the pen, as I think he makes the pen that much better, but I’ll take quality starts from him for the moment
whataputz
6/13/2010-11:59am at 11:59 am (UTC -4)
Gonzo, I’ve been saying this since the offseason, and it’s still true. These 2 clowns need to go. I’m sick of their maybe’s, if-and, and buts. They’re not good! Maine was a one trick pony with his fastball, and now cannot throw over 90 anymore. Ollie, well, you know Ollies situation. Who knows what the result of this season will be, and who knows how long Dickey and Tak will keep this going, but regardless the 2011 season must begin with these guys off the roster. Know more waiting for these guys, the ship isn’t coming.
whataputz
6/13/2010-12:02pm at 12:02 pm (UTC -4)
And can Tejada play back to back days! When you have a DH you don’t need to start Feliciano, Cora, and Blanco. You have a day off tommorow. DH Big Rod, if he can’t catch, keep Frenchy in since he can rest tommorow and has been hot (hit a hr yesterday and you bench him!!), and get the sweep.
njstuckintx
6/13/2010-12:16pm at 12:16 pm (UTC -4)
Maybe Manuel’s getting a cut from Cora’s contract when it vests.
GravediggerHebner
6/13/2010-1:05pm at 1:05 pm (UTC -4)
I agree with the general sentiment that I’d prefer to never see Maine or Perez on the Mets active roster again. But I think as a practical matter it’s not likely to unfold that way.
Perez is simply owed too much money and unless he remains unhealthy all season I think he’ll be back. I could envision him being cut at some point during the 2011 season if he’s underperforming, because in that scenario the financials are less hurtful and the chances of him rediscovering himself in a way that comes back to haunt the Mets (however remote) are less.
Maine I could actually see just being cut. Financially I think it would be a hit of about $1.5 mil which the Mets have shown a willingness to absorb, with Sanchez, Scho, and more recently GMJ.
But I disagree that he has a “weakness of the heart.” He wants to pitch, the desire to be an active part of the team is clearly there, I don’t know how even a casual Met fan can miss that. IMO Maine’s problem with weakness is physical. He calls upon his body to do something that it isn’t capable of doing. I think these rehab starts will show if his body is able to return to a semblance of what it was previously capable of. And if it does I think he’ll be back on the 25 man roster just like I think Perez will, even though I would rather they both simply move on.
Maybe it’s a coincidence, maybe not, but the Mets are 14-6 since Maine last pitched for them, and are 8-2 since Ollie last pitched for them. I’d hate to see their returns coincide with a downturn in the won-loss percentage.
stickguy
6/13/2010-1:25pm at 1:25 pm (UTC -4)
well, I don’t think anyone would really mind if neither guy made it back this year, if the replacements (and the team) did well.
But, it would actually be better for the mets if one or the other did come back effectively, since it will make the team better and deeper.
Dickey I agree needs to stay in the rotation. But, having taka in the rotation does weaken the pen.
so, I think M and O both get one more shot (when/if they prove to be healthy in the minors). And if they fail, you may never see them again.
Maine could also end up in the pen at some point, but i really don’t see Ollie getting put back out there.