"There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as
space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area we call The Left Field Conundrum."

Sorry to totally rip off the opening of "The Twilight Zone," but it's true; the Mets left field is a gaping black hole, almost like a corner that we use to send players that have performed badly to. I can see it now......."Ollie, you suck! Go play left field!"

Since the departure of Cliff Floyd after the 2006 campaign, left field has been a huge question mark on the Mets lineup. We signed 40-year-old Moises Alou in the 2006 off-season; he ultimately got hurt standing in the outfield while playing for AA Binghamton and it ended his career. Since then, we've seen Damion Easley, Endy Chavez, Daniel Murphy, Fernando Tatis, Nick Evans, and maybe even Mr. Met play the left field position.

This off-season, if I had to sign ONE position player, I would make it an everyday outfielder. The 2010 free agent class is filled with left fielders. I've heard Matt Holliday's name come up, but given his performance in the NLDS, that was probably taken off the table very quickly. Holliday, Johnny Damon, Jason Bay and Manny Ramirez were all classified as Type-A free agents, however, Manny still has a $20 million option with the Dodgers.....and Scott Boras has taken enough money from the Mets.

I've heard that we should sign a first baseman and move Daniel Murphy back to left. Umm....Murph was actually one of the BETTER defensive first basemen in the National League. Nick Evans might work too, but I really don't see him as an every day player. As much as I like Angel Pagan and his bat and his speed, I also don't see him as the every day starter.

I wish I could be a fly on the wall on Omar Minaya's office as he tries to solve ALL of the Mets' problems. While a power hitter at first base would be nice, I want this Left Field Conundrum solved once and for all.


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My apologies for not being able to write this Mets article sooner, but I finally found a few moments that I could write my thoughts down.


As we head into the offseason, it was another disappointing season for our beloved New York Metropolitans. It wasn't an infamous choke down the stretch (2007) or a “choke” (2008), but better yet it was injury after injury after injury. The injuries were so unique and plentiful that even the backups got injured (see Ramon Martinez and Alex Cora).

Besides the wonderful injuries that the Metsies encountered, there was plenty of off the field issues as well such as Tony Bernazard's challenge to fight the double a team and Omar Minaya saying that Daily News writer Adam Rubin wanted a job with the Mets. Plenty of entertainment to go around, making the Mets season more like a long episode of The Jerry Springer Show.

Now as October begins, not only are the Mets not in the playoffs again, but our new hated rivals the Phillies and crosstown rivals the Yankees BOTH made it. It would be complete doomsday if these two play each other in the World Series. While some of you may be thinking “But Matt, its New York vs Philly, still!”, and I do agree with that, I would be making many of my relatives turn in their graves if I ever rooted for what was deemed the “Evil Empire”.

As Mets fans, you have to ask yourselves, haven't we suffered enough? Collapses, soap operas, injuries and then surgeries, dropped popups to basic fundamental mistakes. And if someone were to ask me, I would agree, even though we probably don't have much to compare to versus say Cubs fans who have 100 years of futility or even Indians fans where there city of Cleveland hasn't won a major sports championship since 1964.

As a Mets fan who received another “wonderful” apology from Wilpon Omar and company the day after the season ended, I really ask myself how much longer can this unit go on? The unit I refer to is management from the top down. As Jerry Manuel mentioned on WFAN the other day, he knows that 2010 will need to get off to a good start, or chances are him and Omar will be joining the unemployment line. While management is only part of the Mets problems, I think thats the basic foundation and we will find out quickly in 2010 if that foundation will build up or fall down.

I really don't know what to think, because while injuries are certainly not anyones fault, the wonderful record the Mets had down the stretch losing the majority of their games, playing lifeless baseball has to fall on someone, but it obviously wasn't enough to change hands.

It appears to me that the Wilpons are giving Omar Jerry and company one more shot, and we could be in for suffering one more time. All we can ask for is that players stay healthy and perform to the best of their abilities.

Record: 8-20
Wins: Misch (2), Feliciano, Pelfrey, Parnell, Redding, Maine, Stokes
Losses: Figueroa (5), Pelfrey (3), Misch (3), Rodriguez (2), Redding (2), Maine (2) Stokes, Parnell, Green
Saves: Rodriguez (6)
Longest Winning Streak: 2 (Sept 3-4 & 19-20)
Longest Losing Streak: 6 (Sept 13-18)
Series Record: 3-6 (swept 4 times though)
Runs Scored: 119
Runs Allowed: 126
Home Runs: 17. Murphy (4), Francoeur (3), Sullivan (2), Wright (2), Beltran (2), Hernandez (2), Santos, Tatis
Home Runs Allowed: 34 Read More...

If there is one person who can represent how this season has gone for the Mets it has been Daniel Murphy. He started the season in left but has been playing first base since around midseason. However, we tend to forget that he's been one of the players that we've been relying on to contribute due to all the injuries that have occurred throughout this season. We also fail to realize that he is in his first full year in the major leagues.

After finally winning a series over the weekend (albeit to the Washington Nationals) and clinching 4th place in the NL East, the Mets look to build off this rare momentum against the Atlanta Braves in this three game set. The Mets have not had a winning streak of longer than 2 games since winning 5 in a row July 25-30th. Meanwhile, winners of 8 of their last 10 games, the Braves are still holding out some hope in the playoff chase. They are 5.5 games behind the Colorado Rockies for the Wild Card. They have a 2.8% chance of making the postseason as their tragic number to elimination stands at 8. The Braves lead the season series 10-5 and hold a 4-2 mark at Citi Field.

Just for Fun Tracker: The Mets currently stand to get the #6 overall pick in the 2010 MLB Draft. The Magic Number to clinch a top-10 spot stands at 8.


Pitching Matchups for this series:

Tonight: Derek Lowe (14-9 4.53 ERA) vs. Pat Misch (1-3 4.21 ERA)
Lowe's last start (ND 6-5 vs. NYM): 2IP, 3R (2ER), 5H, 2BB, 2K
Career vs. NYM: 2-3 7.96 ERA, 1.99 WHIP, .364 BAA in 12 games (6 starts)
Road this season: 8-6 5.07 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, .310 BAA in 15 games (all starts)
Misch's last start (L 0-6 @ ATL): 5IP, 4ER, 8H, BB
Career vs. ATL: 0-1 4.91 ERA, 1.73 WHIP, .366 BAA in 5 games (1 start)
Home this season: 0-2 5.49 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, .243 BAA in 11 games (1 start)

Tuesday: Jair Jurrjens (12-10 2.75 ERA) vs. Nelson Figueroa (2-6 5.21 ERA)
Jurrjens' last start (W 7-3 vs. NYM): 7IP, 2R (ER), 6H, 2BB, 5K
Career vs. NYM: 5-1 2.62 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, .220 BAA in 7 games (all starts)
Road this season: 6-4 2.86 ERA, 1.28 ERA, .262 BAA in 15 games (all starts)
Figueroa's last start (L 3-7 @ ATL): 5IP, 6ER, 9H, BB, 4K
Career vs. ATL: 2-1 5.11 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, .283 BAA in 11 games (4 starts)
Home this season: 1-3 6.66 ERA, 1.89 WHIP, .362 BAA in 8 games (3 starts)

Wednesday: Tim Hudson (1-1 3.70 ERA) vs. Mike Pelfrey (10-11 5.10 ERA)
Hudson's last start (L 4-9 vs. PHI): 7IP, 3ER, 6H, BB, 3K
Career vs. NYM: 9-5 3.82 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, .260 BAA in 15 games (all starts)
Road this season: 1-0 5.23 ERA, 1.94 WHIP, .356 BAA in 2 games (both starts)
Pelfrey's last start (L 5-6 vs. WAS): 7IP, 5R (4ER), 8H, 4K
Career vs. ATL: 2-4 6.29 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, .277 BAA in 9 games (8 starts)
Home this season: 6-4 3.67 ERA, 1.31 ERA, .267 BAA in 16 games (all starts)

Do the Mets have what it takes to spoil the Braves' faint playoff hopes, or will the Braves use the Mets as a springboard once again? Stay tuned.
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Losers of 5 straight and 9 of their last 10 games...the Mets return home from an atrocious road trip to take on a team that they might actually be able to hang with- the Washington Nationals. The Mets are 8-4 this year against them; which includes a 5-1 record at Citi Field. Unfortunately, the Mets won't get to see their old teammate Livan Hernandez in this series but they will have to face their nemesis John Lannan- who accounts for two of the four Nats' victories over the Mets this season. The Nationals prior to being swept out of Philadelphia had actually looked semi-competent; going 4-3 in the 7 games before that series. Each team has a mere four wins this month.

If you're keeping track at home by the way, the Mets' tragic number to elimination from the race to the #1 overall pick in the 2010 draft is now 4. A series victory this weekend will do the trick. Meanwhile, the Nationals' magic number to clinching their 2nd straight #1 overall pick is 12.


Pitching Matchups for this series:

Tonight: JD Martin (4-4 4.29 ERA) vs. Mike Pelfrey (10-10 5.09 ERA)
Martin's last start (W 5-3 @ FLA): 5IP, 2ER, 2H, 4BB, 4K
Career vs. NYM: 0-1 11.25 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, .444 BAA in a gane (start)
Road this season: 3-2 3.86 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, .224 BAA in 5 games (all starts)
Pelfrey's last start (ND 10-9 @ PHI): 6IP, 8ER, 10H, BB, 3K
Career vs. WAS: 3-4 3.79 ERA, 1.49 WHIP, .275 BAA in 10 games (all starts)
Home this season: 6-3 3.56 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, .264 BAA in 15 games (all starts)

Saturday: John Lannan (9-11 4.08 ERA) vs. Tim Redding (2-6 5.52 ERA)
Lannan's last start (W 7-2 @ FLA): 5IP, ER, 6H, BB, 3K
Career vs. NYM: 3-3 3.73 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, .271 BAA in 8 games (all starts)
Road this season: 4-9 5.55 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, .286 BAA in 15 games (all starts)
Redding's last start (L 0-1 @ PHI): 6IP, ER, 3H, 2BB, 3K
Career vs. WAS: 2-0 2.37 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, .224 BAA in 4 games (3 starts)
Home this season: 1-3 6.42 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, .261 BAA in 14 games (6 starts)

Sunday: Garrett Mock (3-8 5.89 ERA) vs. John Maine (5-5 4.45 ERA)
Mock's last start (L 0-5 @ PHI): 6IP, 5ER, 7H, 2BB, 2K
Career vs. NYM: 0-0 1.80 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, .222 BAA in 6 games (all in relief)
Road this season: 2-2 4.82 ERA, 1.66 WHIP, .300 BAA in 12 games (6 starts)
Maine's last start (L 4-5 @ PHI): 3IP, ER, 2H, BB, 2K
Career vs. WAS: 7-3 4.52 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, .204 BAA in 12 games (all starts)
Home this season: 4-1 2.48 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, .176 BAA in 5 games (all starts)

Will the Mets make fans happy for 3 games? Will Mets fans even show up? Can the Mets score? Will Lannan's recent mastery of the Mets continue? Stay tuned.
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Sigh. With the Mets now officially mathematically eliminated from playoff contention at the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies, the rest of this season is meaningless to our fans in regards to postseason aspirations. But for the few of us left that will care, this is the time to see how these professionals respond to their earliest elimination since 2005. Will they continue to play hard as they did in Philadelphia; where even though they lost 3 of 4 three of the games were decided by 1 run and the other by 2...or will they roll over? Meanwhile, the Atlanta Braves continue to hang in there. Winners of their last four including an extremely impressive three game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals on the road, the Braves find themselves 7.5 back of the Phillies in the NL East and 6 back of the Rockies in the Wild Card. Their playoff chances right now stand at 3.5%.


Pitching Matchups for this Series:

Tonight: Pat Misch (1-2 3.86 ERA) vs. Tommy Hanson (9-3 2.83 ERA)
Misch's last start (L 3-6 vs. FLA): 6IP, 5ER, 6H, 2BB
Career vs. ATL: 0-0 3.00 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, .333 BAA in 4 relief appearances
Road this season: 1-0 2.42 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, .265 BAA in 11 appearances (2 starts)
Hanson's last start (ND 1-2 @ HOU): 8IP, 5H, 7K
Has never faced the Mets.
Home this season: 6-1 3.42 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, .242 BAA in 8 appearances (all starts)

Wednesday: Bobby Parnell (3-8 5.49 ERA) vs. Derek Lowe (14-9 4.47 ERA)
Parnell's last start (L 4-13 vs. FLA): 5IP, 6R (5ER), 7H, 5BB, 6K
Career vs. ATL: 0-1 10.57 ERA, 2.61 WHIP, .400 BAA in 8 appearances (1 start)
Road this season: 1-2 5.81 ERA, 1.86 WHIP, .327 BAA in 27 appearances (2 starts)
Lowe's last start (W 9-7 @ HOU): 5.2IP, 5ER, 8H, 2BB, 5K
Career vs. NYM: 2-3 7.89 ERA, 1.89 WHIP, .352 BAA in 11 appearances (5 starts)
Home this season: 6-3 3.90 ERA 1.46 WHIP .284 BAA in 15 appearances (all starts)

Thursday: Nelson Figueroa (2-5 4.57 ERA) vs. Jair Jurrjens (11-10 2.81 ERA)
Figueroa's last start (L 2-4 @ PHI): 5.1IP, 2ER, 9H, 5BB, 3K
Career vs. ATL: 2-0 4.22 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, .264 BAA in 10 appearances (3 starts)
Road this season: 1-2 1.89 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, .276 BAA in 4 appearances (3 starts)
Jurrjens' last start (W 1-0 @ STL): 8IP, 6H, 2BB, 7K
Career vs. NYM: 4-1 2.87 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, .219 BAA in 6 appearances (all starts)
Home this season: 5-6 2.76 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, .224 BAA in 15 appearances (all starts)

The Mets have a mere 2 victories from their starters this month out of their 4. Can the Mets translate narrow defeats into victories? Can Parnell get it together? Will the Mets score for Figueroa? Which Misch will we see, the one that allowed 5ER in the first against the Marlins or the one that shut them down in his next 5IP? Stay tuned.
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After being swept by the Florida Marlins at home for the first time since 2004, the Mets look to at least look competent this weekend as they take on the Philadelphia Phillies for the final four times this season. Last night's 13-4 loss (which I had the unenviable privilege to go to) was a microcosm of the entire season- walks, fielding blunders, poor base running, you name it it was there. While the Mets fade into oblivion, the Phillies look to protect and expand upon their 5 game lead in NL East..in which quite honestly they should be able to do with ease. Oh, and one more thing. If the Phillies win at least three out of four, they can officially eliminate the Mets from playoff contention. The Mets' tragic number stands at 6.


Pitching match-ups for the series:

Tonight: Nelson Figueroa (2-4 4.74 ERA) vs. Cole Hamels (8-9 4.32 ERA)
Figueroa's last start (L 3-5 vs. CHC): 6IP, 4ER, 7H, 2BB, 8K
Career vs. PHI: 0-0 2.84 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, .240 BAA in 4 relief appearances
Road this season: 1-1 1.32 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, .231 BAA in 3 appearances (2 starts)
Hamels' last start (L 3-4 @ HOU): 6IP, 4ER, 8H, 2BB, 6K
Career vs. NYM: 1-4 4.50 ERA, 1.63 WHIP, .318 BAA in 8 appearances (all starts)
Home this season: 5-3 3.67 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, .235 BAA in 13 appearances (all starts)

Saturday: Mike Pelfrey (10-10 4.83 ERA) vs. Jamie Moyer (12-9 4.98 ERA)
Pelfrey's last start (W 4-2 vs. CHC): 8IP, ER, 5H, BB, 5K
Career vs. PHI: 4-2 3.88 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, .273 BAA in 8 appearances (all starts)
Road this season: 4-7 6.55 ERA, 1.77 WHIP, .307 BAA in 12 appearances (all starts)
Moyer's last start (ND 3-4 @ HOU): 6IP, 2ER, 3H, BB, 4K
Career vs. NYM: 8-5 3.55 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, .261 BAA in 21 appearances (all starts)
Home this season: 6-7 6.07 ERA, 1.53 WHIP, .303 BAA in 14 appearances (12 starts)

Sunday's 1pm Game: John Maine (5-4 4.52 ERA) vs. Pedro Martinez (4-0 3.64 ERA)
Maine's last start (L 1-7 @ WAS): 4IP, 7ER, 6H, 2BB, K
Career vs. PHI: 5-0 2.54 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, .211 BAA in 9 appearances (all starts)
Road this season: 1-3 6.34 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, .265 BAA in 6 appearances (all starts)
Martinez' last start (W 5-3 @ WAS): 6.2IP, 3ER, 7H, BB, 4K
Career vs. NYM: 11-3 2.37 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, .206 BAA in 19 appearances (14 starts)
Home this season: 1-0 1.50 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, .186 BAA in 3 appearances (all starts)

Sunday's 805pm Game: Tim Redding (2-5 5.78 ERA) vs. Cliff Lee (13-11 3.13 ERA)
Redding's last start (L 2-4 vs. FLA): 5IP, 4ER, 5H, 4BB, 4K
Career vs. PHI: 5-3 3.13 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, .207 BAA in 13 appearances (all starts)
Road this season: 1-2 5.13 ERA, 1.69 WHIP, .299 BAA in 12 appearances (7 starts)
Lee's last start (W 6-5 @ WAS): 7IP, 5R (4ER), 10H, 0BB, 4K
Career vs. NYM: 1-0 0.00 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, .240 BAA in 1 appearance (start)
Home this season (CLE & PHI): 5-7 3.00 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, .276 BAA in 14 appearances (all starts)

Will the Mets play spoiler or be a welcome mat once again? How will John Maine do in his first start since coming off the DL? When Tobi Stoner spells him, how will he fare? Will Pedro Martinez continue to torment the Mets? Can Angel Pagan learn the fundamentals of base running? Will the Mets hit into another triple play? Stay tuned.
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Looking to build off their first series win since late July, the Mets look to continue to cause some havoc in the postseason race when they take on the Florida Marlins. The Marlins find themselves 5.5 back of the Colorado Rockies in the Wild Card and 6 back of the slumping Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East. The Marlins lead the season series 7-5, including 3-3 at Citi Field. Six of the twelve games played against these two have been decided by 1 run; the Mets being 2-4 in those games. Tonight, the Mets get a huge boost to their lineup as Carlos Beltran makes his long awaited (albeit way too late) return. My guess is that this will move Angel Pagan to left field and Cory Sullivan back to the bench.


Pitching Matchups for this series:

Tonight: Rick Vandenhurk (2-2 4.91 ERA) vs. Tim Redding (2-4 5.70 ERA)
Vandenhurk's last start (ND 8-7 vs. ATL): 5IP, 3R (2ER), 6H, 3BB, 3K
Career vs. NYM: 0-1 11.25 ERA, 1.83 WHIP, .314 BAA in 3 appearances (all starts)
Road this season: 1-1 4.80 ERA, 1.53 WHIP, .288 BAA in 3 appearances (all starts)
Redding's last start (ND 2-5 @ COL): 6.2IP, 2ER, 7H, 1BB, 6K
Career vs. FLA: 5-5 5.54 ERA, 1.49 WHIP, .271 BAA in 13 appearances (all starts)
Home this season: 1-2 6.33 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, .260 BAA in 13 appearances (5 starts)

Wednesday: Ricky Nolasco (10-8 5.27 ERA) vs. Pat Misch (1-1 3.25 ERA)
Nolasco's last start (W 8-3 vs. ATL): 6IP, 3ER, 7H, 1BB, 7K
Career vs. NYM: 2-6 6.44 ERA, 1.69 WHIP, .344 BAA in 13 appearances (11 starts)
Road this season: 5-4 5.45 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, .261 BAA in 13 appearances (all starts)
Misch's last start (W 8-3 @ COL): 7IP, 2ER, 4H, 2BB, 3K
Career vs. FLA: 0-1 13.50 ERA, 2.36 WHIP, .333 BAA in 2 appearances (1 start)
Home this season: 0-1 4.61 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, .240 BAA in 10 relief appearances

Thursday: Sean West (6-5 4.61 ERA) vs. Bobby Parnell (3-7 5.25 ERA)
West's last start (ND 9-6 @ WAS): 3IP, 5ER, 7H, 1BB, 4K
Career vs. NYM: 1-0 1.38 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, .204 BAA in 2 appearances (2 starts)
Road this season: 1-3 6.55 ERA, 1.63 WHIP, .295 BAA in 7 appearances (all starts)
Parnell's last start (ND 6-2 vs. CHC): 7IP, 0ER, 5H, 3BB, 7K
Career vs. FLA: 0-0 6.75 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, .368 BAA in 7 relief appearances
Home this season: 2-5 4.94 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, .260 BAA in 33 appearances (4 starts)

Don't let the records of the two teams deceive you. This will be a more evenly matched series than people anticipate; plus avoiding Met killer and Cy Young candidate Josh Johnson is HUGE. I'm torn on this. While I would love nothing more than to aid the Marlins and help them catch Philly; after the way they've knocked us out of the playoffs the past couple of seasons (and the celebrations to boot)...I wouldn't have any sympathy for them either. How will the young Marlins handle the pressure of being in the playoff chase? Can Redding, Misch and Parnell build off of their quality starts? How much of an impact will Beltran's return have on our starting lineup? Stay tuned.

For those tracking at home by the way, the Tragic Number to official elimination is 10 in the Wild Card; 11 in the Division. The Magic Number to avoid last place in the NL East is 11 as well.

Random "Why should I care" Fact: I'm going to Citi Field on Thursday for the 4th time. I am 2-1 this season; seeing 2 of Oliver Perez' 3 victories ha. Lifetime in games I've gone to however, I am 1-5 vs. the NL East (1-3 vs. PHI; 0-1 vs. ATL; 0-1 vs. FLA).
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Despite the injury-riddled season the big club has had this year, there is a silver lining for 2009. It's hard to imagine the farm system having a better season than it did this year. Many prospects took a huge step forward. Despite what media members might write, the mets farm is looking up at the end of 2009.

The bad news for Fernando Martinez was it turned out to be another injury-riddled season for him. The good news for the outfielder is that before this happened he dismantled AAA pitching in 2009. A 20 year old with an OPS of .877 in AAA is almost unheard of (even if it was in a little below 200 at bats). His brief stay at the majors was largely unsuccessful but not surprising. He does have more work to do, and staying healthy is priority number one going into 2010.

Ike Davis took as big a leap forward as one could take in a single season. After a sluggish start to his pro career in 2008, Ike was one of the best hitters in both leagues he played at in 2009. As of now, his only 2 real weaknesses are strikeouts (112 in 429 at bats in his 2 stops) and left handed pitching (though he hit lefties at a much better clip in AA to end his season). The first baseman showed good power, good patience and a good glove all year and firmly put his name in the discussion of Mets first baseman of the future (perhaps as soon as 2010).

Kirk Nieuwenhuis, the Mets 3rd round pick in 2008, showed impressive extra base hit power at St. Lucie in his first full professional season. He led the Florida State League in OPS (.824), doubles (35) and Slugging % (.467) and for good measure was 3rd in homers. All of this in a league notorious for being tough on hitters. The newly turned 22 year old centerfielder is interesting due to his above average power and speed potential, not to mention his very impressive (but albeit very small sample) showing in Binghamton after his late season promotion.

One of the Mets three first round picks in 2008 (thank you Atlanta), Reese Havens, has quickly become one of the better hitting prospects in the system. The shortstop (though a lot of indications have him moving to 2nd base sooner rather than later), finished among the league leaders in the Florida State League in OPS, homers, Slugging Percentage and walks. According to most scouts, his defense has a long way to go to reach major league calibur. If it doesn't get there, the Mets do have a nice trading chip on their hands. But if he can get it to be at least league average then the organization might have an answer to their 2nd base future. It's not like the team needs to replace gold glove defense, as Luis Castillo has been one of the worst defenders at his position in the sport (no offense to his hitting, which has been fantastic all year).

One of the Mets international free agent signings, Jeurys Familia, enjoyed a fantastic breakout season into the prospect landscape. The 19 year old right-hander finished in the top four in the South Atlantic League in ERA and WHIP, and it should be noted that the pitchers ahead of him were all at least two years older than Jeurys.

Another of the Mets highly touted international free agents, Jenrry Mejia, moved all the way up to double A Binghamton at the tender age of 19. He earned it by simply dominating St. Lucie in his short 50 inning stint, with an ERA under two and a 44:16 strikeout to walk ratio. All while also being one of the youngest pitchers in the Florida State League as well. Mejia is a ground ball pitcher with a heavy mid-90's fastball. In 2009 he threw 2 and half grounders to every fly ball (a ratio which grew to nearly 3:1 during his stint at Binghamton to end the year).

Other prospects worth mentioning:

Brad Holt-dominated St. Lucie, struggled in his promotion to Binghamton, but has as much upside as any pitcher in the system.

Kyle Allen-only 19, enjoyed a very strong season at Savannah as one of its youngest pitchers and boasts one of the best arsenals in the entire system, including a plus change up.

Eric Beaulac-the right-hander had one of the best strikeout ratios in the South Atlantic League, stuff might be better suited for bullpen as time goes on.

Zach Lutz-all he's done since being drafted in 2007 is hit whenever he's played, which wasn't often until this year due to injuries. Finished among league leaders at St. Lucie in OPS, Slugging, homers, OBP and walks.

Wilmer Flores-As one of the youngest players in all of the minors, Flores struggled in his first full season, with an OPS of .637. Talent is certainly there and he usually puts the bat on the ball, a good sign for the future. He will not end up at shortstop defensively. All indications are it will most likely be a corner on the field.

Lets hope 2010 brings us as many good performances as this past season did. The farm certainly needed it after a couple of very down years.