Quoting a blog by the News Journal, Metsblog passes along word that 23-year-old right-hander Mike Pelfrey has been added to the starting rotation, likely as the fifth starter.
Mets manager Willie Randolph also announced that Tom Glavine, Orlando Hernandez, Oliver Perez and John Maine would be the team's other starters to open the season, but no order has been established.
Pelfrey outlasted several others, including veterans Chan Ho Park and Aaron Sele. Rookie Phil Humber was also in the mix, but was demoted recently. Matthew Cerrone, proprietor of Metsblog, believes Sele will become the team’s new long reliever, while Park will settle into a middle reliever role. In a related announcement, right-hander Joe Smith, a 23-year-old non-roster invitee, has also been officially added to the bullpen.
Beerleaguer: The Mets are experimenting, but have the luxury of some experienced arms to fill the shallow parts of the bullpen. Like Smith, Joe Bisenius, a non-roster invitee of similar age, may be working his way toward a spot in the Phillies bullpen. Neither team is having an especially good spring, but the Mets are in better shape with their 'pen.
Give Ryan Howard a break
I’ve got zero experience covering a baseball beat, but I know a little about the unspoken respect reporters and players extend to one another. That’s why Randy Miller of phillyburbs crossed the line by labeling Ryan Howard’s behavior yesterday as "his first-ever media boycott."
Howard’s meteoric rise is unparalleled and almost unprecedented; breaking minor league marks and winning both Rookie of the Year and National League MVP all over the course of just three seasons. The young slugger has also shown Hall-of-Fame class on issues ranging from steroids to contracts, and is the player most responsible for putting a smile back on the face of a fledgling franchise.
This spring, Howard has been answering the latest headlines on why he’s struggling in games that mean absolutely nothing. Zero. His spring struggles came to a head yesterday when Howard reportedly got testy with a beat writer at his locker, proclaiming it "Ryan Howard Day. No interviews. No media."
In Miller's defense, the incident was reported in several places, but Miller's particularly self-serving attempt to vilify yet another Philadelphia athlete should be dismissed.
Just a punk reporter trying to stir up some anger in a young player to get a story. There is no doubt in my mind the Howard is going to get his swing back and he will be hitting over .300 40+ homers this year. He will be fine. he has show a lot of class and he doesn't need that kind of treatment from the media.
Posted by: Tim from Williamsport | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 10:29 AM
lame.
why should we care if howard didn't want to answer the brilliant question - "how did it feel to get a hit today?"
or maybe they were going to ask him about andy reids kids.
because those are things people buy newspapers for you know.
Posted by: Tim | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 10:53 AM
I don't like Miller much, but what is the problem with his comment? At least in the context above, it seems pretty tame.
Posted by: kdon | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 11:09 AM
From Dictionary.com:
boycott - to combine in abstaining from, or preventing dealings with, as a means of intimidation or coercion
Gee, I wonder why randarino feels intimidated and coerced. Maybe, if he wants to be a better writer, he could learn what words in the English language actually mean.
The correct phrase should have been:
"his first-ever, break from the same old stupid media questions, mental health day".
Posted by: AWH | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 11:30 AM
Howard's blowup, if it even was that, was notably absent from the DN and Inquirer coverage today. Perhaps Miller is demonstrating why he's writing for the Bucks County Times.
Then again, you just *know* that the NY papers would have this all over the back pages...it's actually a good example of how the Philly media is more reasonable than it's given credit for.
Posted by: RickSchuBlues | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 11:32 AM
I just read Miller's article - he doesn't even mention the game or anything that happened in it, only the score and Howard's hit. The rest is devoted exclusively to Howard-bashing. That's just irresponsible journalism.
Posted by: RickSchuBlues | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 11:35 AM
Happy trails...Brito, Castro, Brennan King and Dusty Wathan sent to minor league camp. Guess Matt Smith and his belt-high fastball are here to stay.
Posted by: Glennbo | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 12:48 PM
RSB - I totally agree. Just a bad piece of writing by Miller.
Posted by: MG | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 01:26 PM
this is a what a poor writer cooks up when he's bored. i've never cared for miller -- i find him egotistical and irritating. although its not as offensive as i had expected when i read the comments above, it does have a consciously off-hand tone that's unnecessary. he and marcus hayes should get an apartment together.
Posted by: gr | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 01:28 PM
What does any of this have to do with baseball? Miller is a self-serving, average writer who gets by as much on controversy as he does his prose. He finds a way to make it about the writers and their inability to get questions answered as he does the game. No empathy whatsoever for a guy who may not want to be stalked with 75 questions about his swing and '07 pressures. I don't care how much he makes or will make. At some point, you're going to have enough of that. There are a million stories to cover with this team. Howard should be allowed a day off every once in a while from staring at Miller's mug.
Posted by: Matt | Monday, March 26, 2007 at 09:26 PM
Brilliantly worded defense of Howard here, J.
Kinda makes Miller pale in comparison.
Posted by: Matt P | Tuesday, March 27, 2007 at 09:33 AM