Whammy

By Tom "Mr Star" Starita
Posted Thursday, July 26, 2007

"I can see Willie going with Valentin, unless he totally falls apart and Gotay continues to hit 350. Of course with Jose’s history of injuries the problem might be taken care of without any decisions needed." - Tom Starita - last Thursday

I feel like I gave Jose the evil eye – like the one Franklin Delano Romanowski gave Kramer in the backwards episode on Seinfeld.

Kramer: Franklin Delano Romanowski - I go to his birthday party, and just before he blew out his candles, he gives me this look.
George: Stink eye?
Jerry: Crook eye?
Kramer: Evil eye.

For the record I take no pleasure in the above quote. Jose Valentin was one of the many feel good stories of 2006. Sure most of the fan base wasn’t thrilled when he was re-signed, and there were some frustrated with his season so far and his decision to fight a wall during the All Star break. Still, I will always remember Shea shaking when Valentin’s two run home runs allowed me and the rest of my crew to count down the outs until we clinched the division. The second home run of the night was the icing on the proverbial cake.

Thank you Jose for the hitting, the unexpected glove work and your Pink Panther mustache. You will be missed.

Now that we paid proper respect to the man….

HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO RUBEN!

While it remains to be seen whether he’ll be more Gregg Jeffries ‘88 or Lenny Dykstra ‘86 I am more than happy with what we have seen so far. The top of the order has been infused with the tag team of Jose and Ruben. With Ruben’s ability to drive the ball, and Jose being Jose it’s like Lenny and Wally on steroids.

OK, maybe that’s a bad analogy for many reasons, but you get the idea!

I am also in favor of platooning him with Damion Easley. There are several big spots to come down the stretch and it’s to Damion’s and the team’s benefit to keep him sharp.

Another kid I’m happy to see in the middle of everything is Lastings Milledge. I have been a supporter of his since Day 1 and have written many columns in the past regarding him. Last year he went from Single A to the majors and was obviously overwhelmed. Sure his talent shone through in patches (the throw to third, the home run off Benitez), but there were some rough spots mixed in as well (Fenway, “Know Your Place Rook”)/ What we are seeing right now is the start of the maturation process. He is fully aware he doesn’t have “Jose Reyes” job security and is showing Willie, Omar and the fan base his desire to stay here and win with his play on the field.

A quick glance at the numbers shows not only the quality of Lastings’ play so far, but conversely, the continued frustration I, you, we all have had with Shawn Green

Lasting Milledge:

AB: 42

BA: 262

Hits: 11

OBP: 289

SLG: 452

HR: 2

RBI: 11

R: 6

Shawn Green:

AB: 307

BA: 270

Hits: 83

OBP: 319

SLG: 410

HR: 7

RBI: 29

R: 39

To put this in proper perspective, in two hundred fifty more at bats Shawn has five more home runs and eighteen more RBIs.

How is that even possible?!?

Shawn is at least batting seventh. Lastings, outside of a couple of games in the two slot, has had the pitcher as his protection. Of course if Johnny Maine continues to swing a mean bat that nullifies this whole thing!

Right now we have to deal with this because there is no other option to replace Shawn. But I think all Mets fans should start lighting candles and praying to whoever gets them through the day for the health of Moises Alou. If that doesn’t work, pray for Omar to pull another Oliver Perez out of his hat at the deadline.

I feel like the Notre Dame coach on the sidelines waving at Rudy to “STAY IN STAY IN”. I know Willie trusts the veterans over the rookies, and Omar is doing his due dilligence to find veteran starters out there, but hopefully if Omar does make a trade it jettisons Green to the bench. Here’s hoping Ruben and Lastings become part of the “A” line up. Let’s see if we can find two more early twenty something bricks to add to our already young foundation.

The way Tom roots for Lastings you would think he has money on him. If you would like to discuss your frustration with Shawn Green, or wish to have Tom give the evil eye to an enemy either email him at MrStarita@yahoo.com. Or, as always, simply discuss in the forums below