Kuzul

I have a few choice words for the New York Mets. In particular three specific players that did not partake in a life-changing experience. Those players are Carlos Beltran, Oliver Perez, and Luis Castillo. They recently denied the chance to take part in visiting wounded veterans to thank them for their service.

The choice words: solidarity, brotherhood, camaraderie, unity, and one accord.

These terms apply to a team or a group of people with one common goal to achieve. The terms do NOT apply to the Mets, however. Time and time again this season, this team has displayed a lack of unity and solidarity.

Disrespect and disunity have run rampant in the clubhouse. It shows on the field too. We all know by now of the many incidents where players have been in discord. The list of examples are as long as the list of excuses. Wise-cracking, chuckling, griping, finger-pointing, and ill-fated comments are all the end result of a deeper issue.

Looking back on this season thus far, we can recall, not just once, but several times a Mets player has commented about a teammate being traded by saying, “can I join him?” While this has repeatedly been laughed off in the clubhouse by the players and Morgan Freeman, I mean Jerry Manuel, it is not a laughing matter, despite what “Snoop Chuckles” Manuel thinks. It is a slip of the tongue from players regretting their state in the season.

Any time a player has spoken out against such behavior, they have been cast into exile. Alex Cora and Jeff Francoeur come to mind. This organization embraces laziness and ignorance. It ridicules hard work and respect for the game. How can any team succeed with that type of mentality.

The latest sacrilege occurred yesterday. It seems that the team decided to visit a veterans hospital. It was NOT mandatory for all players to participate, but it was encouraged that they all do. Furthermore, for the sake of the image of this team which is constantly under attack, it would be welcomed that all team players participate. With that in mind, all of them except for three did so.

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Irony: the all-time hits leader in Florida Marlins history burns his old team for the game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the ninth in Flushing.

Mets second baseman Luis Castillo flared a bloop single into right field to score Ike Davis from second, giving the Mets a 6-5 series opening victory. The win signifies only the second time this season that the Mets have won a game after trailing going into the seventh inning. Castillo, who has been relegated to bench role the last few weeks, was mobbed by his teammates after the winning run scored.

In the top of the seventh, R.A. Dickey gave up a three-run homer to the newest in a long line of Met killers, Gaby Sanchez. The shot put the Mets behind 5-4. For the second straight start, Dickey was plagued by a late-inning long ball to hand over the lead.

To be honest, I didn’t think the Mets would mount any comeback, simply based on their lack of offensive production over the last few weeks. However, tonight was different. With one out in bottom of the eighth, Angel Pagan, arguably the Mets’ MVP, hit a seeing-eye ground ball up the middle.

Marlins’ center fielder Cameron Maybin was playing deep in a “no-doubles” alignment. Pagan raced around first and dove into second to complete the hustle double, his fourth hit of the night. That play wound up being a huge factor in the Mets’ comeback victory. Carlos Beltran followed with an RBI single to right to score Pagan and tie the game. Slowly but surely, Beltran has been coming around with the bat.

After newly proclaimed closer Hisanori Takahashi retired the Marlins in the top of the ninth, Ike Davis reached base with a grounder that Dan Uggla made a fantastic play on, but his throw handcuffed Gaby Sanchez at first base. Two batters later, Josh Thole hit a broken bat single over short. After Mike Hessman struck out, Luis Castillo stepped to the plate. Castillo did not start tonight and was part of the double switch that lifted Dickey from the game.

Castillo came up big with his opposite field single. Though this has been a tough year for Luis and he most likely will not be back next season, this was a great moment for him. It shows that despite their lack of success this year, this team refuses to give up.

Who knows? That could be the attitude and this could be the win that allows the team to make a run as we enter September. With the victory, the Mets move ahead of the Marlins in both the NL East divisional and Wild Card races.

As a side note, former Mets catcher Rob Barajas had a stellar debut for the Dodgers with two doubles and a three-run homer to give L.A. the lead in the sixth inning over the Brewers in Milwaukee. That being said, Josh Thole was 2-5 on the night with a double and a clutch single in the ninth to set up Castillo for the game-winning hit.

Nice job Luis and good win for the Mets! Now please keep them coming so we as fans can experience exciting September baseball once again.

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New York Mets fans have finally heard what they may have wanted to hear the past few seasons. Luis Castillo is calling it quits on New York. The New York Post’s Dan Martin has quoted the Mets second-baseman as saying “I can’t be here anymore. I know I’m not going to be here next year.”

Castillo is a former All-Star and Gold Glove winner. Recently, Jerry Manuel doesn’t see the same Castillo as in years prior. Instead, the Mets have turned to a rotation of Reuben Tejada and Luis Castillo at second-base. 

Tejada is a rookie and Castillo has been in the Major Leagues for 15 seasons. The playing time seems to be equal since their time splitting. Castillo is unhappy because of this, but has not requested a trade from the Mets.

There is still one year left on Castillo’s contract out of four years worth $25MM. He was packaged in a deal for Carlos Zambrano and the Cubs that was rejected at the trade deadline. He could always opt for retirement if the Mets or any other Major League Baseball team does not give him what he desires. 

There has been no comment from the Mets front office or Omar Minaya on Castillo’s unhappiness. It will be interesting to see how his demeanor plays in the clubhouse. Mets fans fear that this could start a chain reaction of people expressing their disinterest with the team. 

Ever since last year’s Subway Series, the Mets have wanted to oust Castillo for dropping the game-winning out against the New York Yankees. Maybe Luis Castillo could get an offer from the Yankees for a bench role. Although a bench role is what he despises currently with the New York Mets. 

Tejada seems to only have a nice flashy glove and the Mets still may have to make a move to improve at second-base, so getting rid of Castillo is only the start to finding the right person for the job.

Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez are not what they use to be. The Mets are carrying dead-weight on the team and fans are counting down the days until they both come off the books for free-agency.

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When the garden variety Mets fan thinks about Luis Castillo, the first thing that rushes to their mind is the infamous dropped pop up against the Yankees.

If not that, it’s the ridiculous four-year contract extension that he received from general manager Omar Minaya. Twenty-five million dollars for a second baseman who was already old and physically drained.

Call me crazy, but I’ve always been able to sweep those disasters under the rug when it comes to Mr. Castillo. Now, I’m not an insider that’s prepared to dazzle you with astounding peripheral statistics; in fact, I’m just a 24-year old with a dead-end job that loves baseball with every ounce of my being.

But when I think about Luis Castillo, I think about everything that is right about the game of baseball. I think about everything that has allowed baseball to garner the weighty nickname of “America’s Pastime.”

Castillo isn’t a power-hitting second baseman. He wasn’t blessed with incredible natural ability, and he certainly won’t be a Hall of Famer.

But what Castillo is, is a winning ballplayer. He’s not the dynamic speedster he was with the Florida Marlins, and his range isn’t there defensively; but, technically speaking, he continues to play the game correctly .

He gets everything he possibly can from his 5-foot-11, 195-pound (drastically over-listed), broken-down body.

When his heartless Met teammates go down consecutively to start an inning, he takes the first pitch, instead of making it easy on the opposing pitcher by rolling over in one-two-three fashion.

In the ninth inning, when the Mets were down 13-1 against the Diamondbacks last week, he busted around the bases to score from first on a David Wright double. The way the Mets have been swinging the bats lately, that game was long over.

But Castillo never takes anything for granted. When I watch him play, I know he’s truly grateful for the blessing he’s received. He gets to play baseball, at the game’s very highest level, for a living.

When I watch Castillo play, I know that he understands how many people would kill to be in his position. That’s why he plays hurt until the Mets’ training staff is forced to shut him down. That’s why he busts it around the bases when it may not be the best idea for him physically.

Luis Castillo is a ballplayer, all the way down to his core. The game is in his blood. Every game matters. Every out matters. Every pitch matters.

And you can be damn sure that he knows that.

I pitch in an 18-and-older hardball league, and last night we had our final playoff game. In the bottom of the second inning, I was trailing 1-0 to a lineup that physically, was far superior to me.

They had two runners in scoring position with two outs, and the count was 1-2. After seven consecutive breaking balls over the span of two at bats, I guided a 70 MPH fastball over the meat of the outside corner.

As I drifted off the mound, ecstatic about escaping the jam, the umpire never raised his hand. He never made a sound.

The very next pitch, the number nine hitter tapped a roller up the middle for an RBI single. The opposition never looked back. My team never recovered.

That pitch mattered. Not getting that call was like getting drilled in the back by a 90 MPH fastball. I knew that one pitch was the entire game.

On second thought, maybe I’m not making any sense.

I guess all I can really say is…

Luis Castillo knows what I’m talking about.

(John Frascella is the author of “Theo-logy: How a Boy Wonder Led the Red Sox to the Promised Land,” the first and only book centered on Boston ‘s popular GM Theo Epstein. Check it out on Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble online. Follow John on Twitter @RedSoxAuthor.)

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As the Mets start a three-game series against the D-Backs, one thing is sure: Luis Castillo has returned. He has been activated from the disabled list, and Ruben Tejada has been demoted to make room. I, for one, am not happy about this. I consider Tejada to be a plus over Castillo. Neither can hit, but at least Tejada can field. Castillo is expected in tonight’s lineup.

Flushing Baseball Daily reporter, Tyler Moore. Follow Tyler on Twitter, where he’ll discuss Mets, and also his posts. If you wish to email him, send an email to Tyler with the subject of Flushing Baseball Daily Mail. Thanks for reading!

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Twitter is such an interesting place to spark ideas and have conversation. I was talking to Rob_Sports over there tonight when they mentioned an interesting scenario for when Luis Castillo returns.

@TylerFlushingBB I’d like to see Tejada get a chance to start full time with Castillo there to take over if he struggles.

https://twitter.com/rob_sports/status/18569163935

Could Ruben Tejada fill the starter role when Castillo returns? I personally would love for him to take over the starter role everyday. I have not been a fan of Castillo but still, Tejada has done pretty well. He can also spell Jose Reyes once in a while.

What do you all think? What is your opinion on the second base question? Post comments, let me know what you think!

Flushing Baseball Daily reporter, Tyler Moore. Follow Tyler on Twitter, where he’ll discuss Mets, and also his posts. If you wish to email him, send an email to Tyler with the subject of Flushing Baseball Daily Mail. Thanks for reading!

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, the New York Mets are currently shopping second baseman Luis Castillo and have gone as far as to contact the Rockies, who are looking for a replacement for the disappointing Melvin Mora.

Rosenthal is right to point out that Castillo is not one of the Mets’ biggest problems. His wOBA of .303 does leave a lot to be desired, but it is respectable, especially considering his UZR/150 is a positive 2.5 so far this year compared to a minus-12.7 and minus-9.5 over the last two years.

Still, with Daniel Murphy planning to move back to second base and getting closer to playing each day, it does make sense to move Castillo now. Actually, now is probably as perfect time as any.

The biggest problem the Mets are going to run into is that of salary. Castillo is owed the remainder of his $6 million salary this season and another $6 million next year. So in reality the Mets will have to eat quite a bit of that in order for this not to become a pure salary dump.

That’s not to say the Mets can’t move him without eating a large portion of his salary, but the more they eat the better the return.

It’s really hard to predict exactly what the Mets are going to do with this situation because it is hard to tell if they are considering themselves playoff contenders. At this point you’d have to think that they think they are, which would lead me to believe they’ll eat salary in order to get a better player—hopefully a pitcher.

Like this post? Want the latest Mets news and rumors? Subscribe to Flushing Baseball Daily via RSS Reader, e-mail, Twitter, or Facebook. You can also follow this post’s author, Rob Abruzzese, on Twitter.

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