Friday, July 6, 2007

Gomez Injury Tough Break for Mets

It started with Valentin, Alou, and Green, then Endy, Sosa, and Perez, and now, rookie Carlos Gomez; this season, the Mets clubhouse has looked more like an infirmary than a baseball team. The latest injury to Gomez, who will be out 6-8 weeks with a broken hand, is a blow that hurts in more ways than one.

After being called up from AAA, the 21 year old Gomez stabilized a depleted outfield while showing flashes of brilliance with his glove and speed. And in doing so, he made Lastings Milledge the perfect trade bait. With Gomez in left, Beltran and Green solidifying the other two spots, there was no place for Milledge to play. Omar had a great chip to play with. Now, the Mets have to keep Milledge and play him in left field (most likely after the All-Star break), which renders the Burhle deal all but dead. And any chance of acquiring a couple of top flight middle relievers – a move the Mets desperately need to make – is out of reach.

For Milledge, the time is now. He must step up and be the player everyone raves about. He has to knock off the nonsense, shed the immaturity that plagued him last season, forget the silly rap career and play ball. Play it hard, go full tilt and inject some energy in to this lethargic offense.

For now, Omar and the Mets will cross their fingers and hope Milledge will finally live up to his potential, and will pray that their wounded warriors will return soon.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Man does this hurt. Left field is a cursed position. Floyd, Alou, Milledge, Gomez, Chavez.