Hey, at least the Mets are keeping themselves out of the police blotter, right?

As expected, the club offered salary arbitration to Oliver Perez, who obviously won't take it as he seeks a longer-term deal under the direction of Scott Boras this offseason.

In other news, Nick Evans was examined this morning at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan -- right next door to Plaxico's doc -- and was diagnosed with a mild right quadriceps strain. Evans hurt himself playing the outfield in the Puerto Rican Winter League and is headed to Phoenix for three to four weeks of physical therapy.

Hey everybody, Chris Mascaro here filling in for Mr. Lennon. Yesterday I spoke with Jose Reyes, who met with patients at the Schneider Children's Hospital in New Hyde Park (you can see video from the event down the right side of this page).

Here is the story from today's paper, in which Reyes spoke about the need for a closer and his desire to have Pedro Martinez back next year.

Here are some leftovers (even before Thanksgiving!) from Reyes:

On seeing the Phillies win the World Series: "It's kind of tough to see them win because we're in the same division. But at the same time, we have to say 'congratulations' to them because they played better than us, better than everybody. That's why the won the World Series, so you have to give credit to them."

On playing for the Dominican Republic in the 2009 World Baseball Classic: "You get to represent your country. That's the most important thing to me. You just try to be there and try to do whatever they ask me to do."

(Reyes added that the Dominican team is well stocked at shortstop, as Hanley Ramirez and Miguel Tejada are also likely to play.)

On Brian Fuentes after saying that he'd rather have Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez on the Mets: "He's good too. He's good."

(Reyes is 2 for 5 with two doubles and an RBI off Fuentes and is 1 for 2 off K-Rod. You can find those numbers by scrolling through this.)

On Luis Castillo: "He got a lot of injuries last season, so that's kind of tough to play like that. He just started working out and he says he's going to be ready for next season. We know what he's capable to do in the field. "

On Castillo's leadership: "No doubt he helped me. How many Gold Gloves did he win? He's great defensive-wise at second base. Last year, he got a lot of injuries, so he wasn't able to play the way he normally plays."

On playing with five different second basemen last season: "I'm used to that already, so I don't mind. I get comfortable with anyone there."

On yesterday's event: "You can see how happy the kids are when they see me, so that's really important for me and for them."

Reyes signed hats and pictures of him for the children, and posed for photographs with them. He mentioned that he is also involved in building a new baseball field for children in the Dominican Republic.

The Mets' Nelson Figueroa, along with his wife, Alisa, are involved with an auction to help a former teammate. Check out the details below:

DEREK JETER, A-ROD, DAVID ORTIZ, ICHIRO, DAVID WRIGHT, JOHAN SANTANA, GRIFFEY JR., AND JIM THOME ARE AMONG MORE THAN 100 MAJOR LEAGUERS DONATING TO AN ONLINE MEMORABILIA AUCTION TO BE HELD THIS WEEK TO BENEFIT A FORMER MAJOR LEAGUER STRIKEN WITH A MALIGNANT BRAIN TUMOR

Two large boxes from the New York Yankees arrived at the Chandler, Arizona, home of Alisa and Nelson Figueroa on Tuesday, September 23, 2008. They were filled with autographed Yankees jerseys, baseball caps, and baseballs, their donation to Rally for Recovery, an online auction being held to benefit 33-year-old former National League relief pitcher Ricky Stone who was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in August.

They were signed at Yankee Stadium on Sunday, September 21st, the day the Yankees played their last game at the House That Ruth Built. The jersey Derek Jeter signed was one of the jerseys he wore that last day. Included were signed jerseys of A-Rod and Mariano and a number of signed caps including one signed by Yogi Berra who was at the Stadium that day to say goodbye.

Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz, Ichiro, David Wright, Johan Santana, Ken Griffey, Jr., Jim Thome, Ryne Sandberg, Jeff Kent, Jose Reyes, Miguel Tejada, Carlos Quentin, Mark Belhorn, John Smoltz, Brad Ausmus, Joe Nathan, Adrian Beltre, and Roy Oswalt are among over 100 baseball players donating to an online memorabilia auction to be held this week to benefit 33-year-old Ricky Stone, relief pitcher for the Astros (2001-2004), Padres (2004), and Reds (2005, 2007), who was stricken with a malignant brain tumor in August 2008.

In May 2008, Ricky Stone was signed by Taiwan’s Uni-President Lions in the Chinese Professional Baseball League. He suffered an injury in Taiwan and he returned to the United States. After Ricky had a Grand Mal seizure, it was discovered that he had a malignant brain tumor. Nelson Figueroa, who pitched for the New York Mets in 2008, had pitched for the Uni-President Lions in 2007. His wife Alisa and Erin Pote, wife of Lions pitcher Lou Pote, founded Rally for Recovery to raise funds for the Stone Family.

Other highlights of the auction of signed baseball memorabilia include a selection of game used items: a catcher mask worn by the Astros Brad Ausmus, a cap worn by Astros pitcher Roy Oswalt, a bat used by Red Sox 2nd baseman Mark Belhorn during Boston’s 2004 World Championship season, spikes worn by Padres shortstop Khalil Greene, and a baseball used in practice by Mets pitcher Johan Santana before his 3-hit shutout on the next to the last game at Shea Stadium. Also, jerseys signed by David Ortiz, Ryan Howard, Andy Pettitte, Ichiro, and Miguel Tejada, spikes signed by Jose Reyes and David Wright, bats signed by Ken Griffey, Jr., Jim Thome, and Morgan Ensberg, caps signed by Jeff Kent, Mike Mussina, Jorge Posada, and Joba Chamberlain, bobbleheads signed by Roy Oswalt and Adrian Beltre, and dozens of single signed baseballs. A 2008 All Star Game ball signed by 26 All Stars and a Cincinnati Reds team signed bat and helmet will also be auctioned.

The Rally for Recovery auction items will be listed on http://stores.ebay.com/Rally-For-Recovery-Baseball-Auction in random order from 6 PM PST to 8 PM PST on Sunday, November 23, 2008. The auction will end on Sunday evening, November 30, 2008.

It appears that what the Mets intially believed was a knee issue for Murphy is actually a hamstring strain. Good thing they got him to an MRI machine.

Here's the full update from the team below:

The Mets Daniel Murphy underwent an MRI this morning at New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery and the test revealed that he has a Grade 2 Strain of the right hamstring. Murphy felt discomfort in the leg in pre-game batting practice of his November 11th Arizona Fall League game.

He will skip winter league ball in Puerto Rico so that he can be ready for the opening of Spring Training this February in Port St. Lucie, Fla.

Daniel Murphy has left the Arizona Fall League because of "discomfort" in his right knee and will have an MRI on Thursday at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan.

The Mets have refused to categorize the injury as either a strain or sprain, only saying that he complained of the discomfort during batting practice before a game on Nov. 11.

Murphy was batting .397 (25-for-63) with eight doubles, two home runs and 18 RBI in 15 games at second base for the Peoria Saguaros, which I believe is a species of cactus. Makes sense, being Arizona and all.

By now, it's no secret that Albert Pujols won the NL MVP -- thereby vindicating the ballot of my colleague Ken Davidoff. The Mets had a decent showing with two players -- David Wright and Carlos Delgado -- in the top 10, but I figured that Johan Santana (14), Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes would have placed a little higher.

Albert Pujols, Cardinals ................ 369
Ryan Howard,Phillies ................... 308
Ryan Braun, Brewers ................... 139
Manny Ramirez, Dodgers ............. 138
Lance Berkman, Astros ................ 126
CC Sabathia, Brewers .................. 121
David Wright, Mets ....................... 115
Brad Lidge, Phillies ...................... 104
Carlos Delgado, Mets .................... 96
Aramis Ramirez, Cubs .................. 66
Hanley Ramirez, Marlins ................ 55
Chipper Jones, Braves ................... 44
Geovanny Soto, Cubs .................... 41
Johan Santana, Mets .................... 30
Chase Utley, Phillies ..................... 30
Ryan Ludwick, Cardinals ................ 17
Brandon Webb, Diamondbacks ....... 14
Adrian Gonzalez, Padres ............... 13
Matt Holliday, Rockies ................... 13
Prince Fielder, Brewers .................. 11
Derrek Lee, Cubs .......................... 10
Carlos Beltran, Mets ...................... 10
Tim Lincecum, Giants .................... 9
Jose Reyes, Mets .......................... 3
Jose Valverde, Astros ..................... 3
Stephen Drew, Diamondbacks ......... 2
Nate McClouth, Pirates ................... 1

Not quite as exciting as "Mets sign K-Rod to 4-yr deal" but we're working on it.

Here are the details, courtesy of Mets PR guru Jay Horwitz:

METS NAME LUIS ALICEA FIRST BASE COACH

FLUSHING, N.Y., November 14, 2008 – Manager Jerry Manuel completed the New York Mets’ coaching staff today by naming Luis Alicea the team’s first base coach.

For the last two years, Alicea was the first base coach for the Boston Red Sox. Luis also was a manager in the Red Sox minor league system for three seasons. He directed Lowell (A) of the New York-Penn League from 2004-2005, Greenville (A) of the South Atlantic League in 2006 and Peoria of the Arizona (A) Fall League, also in 2006

Luis, 43, a native of Santurce, PR, played in the major leagues for 13 years with the St. Louis Cardinals (1988, 1991-1994 and 1996), Boston Red Sox (1995), Anaheim Angels (1997), Texas Rangers (1998-2000) and the Kansas City Royals (2001-2002). He compiled a .260 batting average with 47 home runs and 422 RBI in 1,341 games.

Primarily a second baseman, he also saw action at the other three infield spots and in the outfield during his big league career. Luis, a switch hitter, experienced his best season in the majors with the Rangers in 2000, establishing career highs with a .294 bating average, 139 games, 85 runs, 159 hits and 63 RBI. In 1992 with the Cardinals, he ranked fourth in the National League with 11 triples. In 1995, Alicea hit .270 and was the Red Sox regular second baseman, helping them capture the American League East Division crown.

Luis was St. Louis’ first round pick in the 1986 First Year Player Draft. He earned first team All-America honors at Florida State University in 1986.

Alicea joins Dan Warthen (pitching), Howard Johnson (hitting), Sandy Alomar, Sr. (bench); Razor Shines (third base), Randy Niemann (bullpen) and Sandy Alomar, Jr. (catching instructor) on the Mets coaching staff.

If the Mets do go toe-to-toe with the Yankees for CC Sabathia, as was loosely suggested here, that would explain some of their exploration of trade possibilities for closer. With a payroll still expected to be around $140 million for next season, it seems very, very unlikely the Mets would give Sabathia $25 million annually for the next six years or so -- as well as pay someone like K-Rod an additional $15 million per season for four?

That's not even counting what they hope to do for leftfield -- Jermaine Dye ($11 mil)? -- or second base, where they could sign Orlando Hudson and hopefully rid themselves of Luis Castillo (3 yrs, $18 million). And we haven't even brought up the cost of more bullpen help and possibly another starter.

Any serious pursuit of Sabathia would jack up the price with the Yankees involved, and that would bring the Mets to the neighborhood of a $180-million payroll by the time spring training begins. That's a significant escalation and not one I can see happening at this point. Unless they plan on selling even more Blue Smoke BBQ at Citi Field than was originally projected.

... then I promise I'll stop.

I was a little surprised that I received a few phone calls yesterday asking why I put Johan Santana at the top of my Cy ballot and Tim Lincecum at No. 2. Here's an article from the SF Chronicle on that particular subject, with the closing quote from yours truly, but I think my reasons were better articulated in today's story in Newsday.

A couple of things I may have left out.

-- Santana went 2-0 with a 2.97 ERA in five starts against the world champion Phillies. He struck out 32 in 36 1/3 innings with six walks. Three of those starts were at Citizens Bank Park, where he whiffed 22 in 21 innings and walked only three.

-- Against the NL East, a division that supposedly "hated" the Mets, Santana was 8-2 with a 2.58 ERA in 14 starts. Lincecum had the benefit of living in the NL West, a division full of weak teams this season and pitcher-friendly parks. Yes, even Coors Field is better now since they've been using the humidifier.

-- The measure of a truly great pitching performance often has to do with the magnitude of the game. Did Lincecum pitch in a "big game" all year? I know that the Giants were bad, which makes his job tougher, but there's not much pressure either. The Giants were 12 games out by May 19.

As for Santana, every time he took the mound, he was expected to win, from April through September. He was unbeaten since June 28 and went 9-0 with a 2.09 ERA in those last 17 starts. He also was named Pitcher of the Month for September, when Santana went 4-0 with a 1.83 ERA.

-- Santana had three complete games, one more than Lincecum, and pitched a shutout in his final start -- on three days' rest with a torn meniscus in his left knee. Santana had a 1.148 WHIP, Lincecum had a 1.172.

OK, that's it. I'm done.

I wasn't the only one to give Santana the top spot in the Cy Young voting.

THE CY YOUNG BREAKDOWN
Here are the first-place votes among the 32 writers who voted for the
National League Cy Young Award:

TIM LINCECUM
Bob Hertzel, Honorary (Pittsburgh)
Aurelio Moreno, El Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale)
Adam Rubin, New York Daily News
Stephen Miller, Allentown (Pa.) Morning Call
Paul Hagen, Philadelphia Daily News
Mel Antonen, USA Today
Tim Kurkjian, ESPN.com
Bruce Miles, Daily Herald (Chicago)
Scott Priestle, Columbus Dispatch
C. Trent Rosecrans, At Large (Cincinnati)
Zachary Levine, Houston Chronicle
Brian McTaggart, Houston Chronicle
Anthony Witrado, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Dennis Semrau, Madison (Wisc.) Capital Times
John Perrotto, Beaver County (Pa.) Times
Paul Meyer, Pittsburgh Post Gazette
Derrick Goold, St. Louis Post Dispatch
Bernie Miklasz, St. Louis Post Dispatch
Mark Faller, Arizona Republic
Jack Etkin, Rocky Mountain News
Scott Miller, CBS Sport.com
Jeff Fletcher, Santa Rose Press Democrat
John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle

BRANDON WEBB
Chris De Luca, Chicago Sun Time
Roberto Colon, Primera Hora (Miami)
Jack Magruder, East Valley (Ariz.) Tribune
Patrick Saunders, Denver Post

JOHAN SANTANA
Bob Nightengale, USA Today
David Lennon, Newsday (NY)
Kevin Modesti, Los Angeles Daily News
Bill Center, San Diego Union Tribune.

CC SABATHIA
Kevin Pearson, Riverside (Ca.) Press Enterprise

Well, at least I got Obama right.

Call me a homer if you must, but I did put Johan Santana first on my Cy Young ballot this year, followed by Tim Lincecum and Brad Lidge.

Santana did have the NL's best ERA, and with adequate help from either his lineup or bullpen, he would have 20 wins.

Lincecum was dominant (18-5) for a bad Giants team, however, and he did have 265 strikeouts -- 59 more than the second-place trio of Santana, Dan Haren and Edinson Volquez.

2008 NL Cy Young Award Voting
Pitcher, Club.........................1st.......2nd...3rd.......Points
Tim Lincecum, SF..................23.........7...... 1.........137
Brandon Webb, ARI.................4........15.......8......... 73
Johan Santana, NYM...............4..........8 .....11........ 55
Brad Lidge, PHI.......................0..........1........7........ 10
CC Sabathia, MIL....................1..........1........1......... 9
Ryan Dempster, CHC...............0..........0....... 4......... 4

There's a catch.

They're both Phillies.

Met killer Pat Burrell and the very, very old Jamie Moyer each filed for free agency today.

The only other player to do so was Brad Penny.

With my colleague Ken Davidoff pulling all-nighters at the GM meetings this week, and me back home in the city, I figured the blog could use an update or two. Plus, the Mets did have a few developments, if not any new additions during Omar's stay in Dana Point.

-- As for Carlos Delgado's option year, which the first baseman talked about yesterday, I find it funny that he was pushing for a two-year extension. He had to know there was no way the Mets were going for that. While Delgado is an interesting trade chip, I think it's not unreasonable to expect another big year, especially given the fact that he's playing for another contract. Delgado wants to get to to 500 HRs -- he's at 469 -- and that's some pretty good motivation as well. He also played much better defense after Willie Randolph was fired.

-- David Wright took a lot of abuse for winning the Gold Glove last year, with Chipper Jones even ripping him for it. Say what you want about the award itself, but Wright deserved recognition for his defense this season. I don't have any of the Bill James info at my fingertips, but seeing him every day, I can say that his throwing -- the weakest part of his game -- was much, much better this year. Wright also has become a master of that charging barehand-and-throw play, which he did quite often.

As for Carlos Beltran, what else needs to be said. Not only did he play centerfield this season -- he played left and right, too. With barely adequate OFs flanking him on each side, Beltran did the pitching staff a great service by covering a huge stretch of area.

-- With the GM meetings finishing up today, the Mets should get down to business next week, with the offers starting to fly after Nov. 14. Despite the frenzy for Derek Lowe around the league, the Mets have three advantages: Lowe wants to return to the East Coast, he may prefer to stay in the pitcher-friendly NL and Minaya has the ability to outbid anyone for his services. On a purely selfish note, Lowe is great with the media, and seems well-suited for handling the unique pressures of playing in New York.

Kudos to David Wright for not backing down when asked on Saturday about the Phillies' obsession with the Mets during this postseason.

With Jimmy Rollins and Phillies GM Pat Gillick both saying the Mets were the most hated team in the NL East, Wright seemed fine with it.

"I don't like those guys," Wright said. "I know they don't like us. There are guys that I respect on that team. I respect them, but that doesn't necessarily mean that I'm going to be friends with them. My whole career, I've tried to stay away from that. I'll shake somebody's hand and say hello, but I'm not going to be buddy-buddy with anyone before the game.

"I'm not a big fan of the teams in our division just because we play them so much. I would hope as a competitor that you would have that edge, that you would have a genuine interest to go out there and beat them by as much as you can."

Wright has the, um, right attitude. Who really cares if the Mets are hated? Certainly not Wright, who also believes that the Mets need to get more of a "killer instinct."

"I think that we can get better in that category," Wright said."I think that we can get better as far as having that killer instinct, that killer attitude, where when we have a team down, that we put our foot to their throat, and finish them off. I think that was part of the reason for our failure this year was – whether it’s offensively or pitching wise – we couldn’t put teams away when we had the opportunity to put teams away.

"So I think that’s the attitude that we have to go into next year, when we have a lead going into late, instead of just coasting, we have to get the mindset that we have to continue to add on and just finish teams off."

Orlando Hernandez is among Saturday's crop of free agents.

And here they are:

Arizona
Dunn, Adam (OF); Hudson, Orlando (2B)

Atlanta

Baltimore

Boston
Kotsay, Mark (OF)

Chicago Cubs
Ward, Daryle (1B)

Chicago White Sox
Cabrera, Orlando (SS)

Cincinnati
Fogg, Josh (SP); Weathers, Dave (RP)

Cleveland
Rincon, Juan (RP)

Colorado
Fuentes, Brian (RP); Herges, Matt (RP); Hernandez, Livan (SP); Podsednik, Scott (OF)

Detroit Tigers

Florida
Rhodes, Arthur (RP)

Houston

Kansas City

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Los Angeles Dodgers
Park, Chan Ho (RP)

Milwaukee
Branyan, Russ (3B); Durham, Ray (2B); Sabathia, C.C. (SP)

Minnesota

NY Mets
Hernandez, Orlando (SP)

NY Yankees

Oakland
Foulke, Keith (RP)

Philadelphia
Gordon, Tom (RP)

Pittsburgh

St. Louis
Isringhausen, Jason (RP)

San Diego
Hoffman, Trevor (RP)

San Francisco

Seattle

Tampa Bay
Hinske, Eric (OF)

Toronto

Texas

Washington

Here's today's list:

Happy Halloween.

Arizona
Clark, Tony (1B)

Atlanta
Julio, Jorge (RP); Smoltz, John (SP)

Baltimore
Cintron, Alex (SS)

Boston
Casey, Sean (1B); Colon, Bartolo (SP); Schilling, Curt (SP)

Chicago Cubs
Blanco, Henry (C); Lieber, Jon (RP);Wood, Kerry (RP)

Chicago White Sox
Hall, Toby (C); Ramirez, Horacio (RP)

Cincinnati
Hairston Jr, Jerry (SS); Mercker, Kent (RP);Valentin, Javier (C)

Cleveland
Elarton, Scott (SP)

Colorado
Melhuse, Adam (C)

Detroit Tigers
Wilson, Vance (C)

Florida
Hendrickson, Mark (RP)

Houston
Ausmus, Brad (C); Hawkins, LaTroy (RP);Wolf, Randy (SP)

Kansas City

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Oliver, Darren (RP); Rivera, Juan (OF)

Los Angeles Dodgers
Garciaparra, Nomar (1B); Johnson, Jason (RP); Sweeney, Mark (1B)

Milwaukee

Minnesota
Everett, Adam (SS)

NY Mets
Alou, Moises (OF); Armas Jr., Tony (RP); Ayala, Luis (RP); Martinez, Pedro (SP);
Martinez, Ramon E (2B); Rincon, Ricardo (RP)

NY Yankees

Oakland
Thomas, Frank (DH)

Philadelphia

Pittsburgh
Michaels, Jason (OF); Rivas, Luis (SS)

St. Louis

San Diego
Prior, Mark (SP)

San Francisco
Aurilia, Rich (1B)

Seattle

Tampa Bay
Baldelli, Rocco (DH)

Toronto
Parrish, John (RP)

Texas

Washington
Perez, Odalis (SP)

The Mets made it official this morning by picking up the $12-million option on Carlos Delgado. But that doesn't mean they have to keep him.

I'm not expecting Delgado to be anywhere but Flushing, but there is an argument to trading him while his value is this high. Delgado is 36 and there's no guarantee he'll be able to follow up with another 38-homer, 115-RBI season. Plus, he could be tempting for an AL club looking to split some time at first base/DH.

Here's the complete list of today's filings. The free-agent filing period begins today and runs through Nov. 13.

Arizona
Cruz, Juan (RP); Eckstein, David (SS)

Atlanta
Norton, Greg (OF); Ohman, Will (RP); Tavarez, Julian (RP)

Baltimore
Millar, Kevin (1B); Payton, Jay (OF)

Boston
Cora, Alex (SS); Ross, Dave (C); Varitek, Jason (C)

Chicago Cubs
Dempster, Ryan (SP); Edmonds, Jim (OF); Fox, Chad (RP); Howry, Bob (RP)

Chicago White Sox
Crede, Joe (3B); Uribe, Juan (2B)

Cincinnati
Affeldt, Jeremy (RP); Lincoln, Michael (RP)

Cleveland
* Donnelly, Brendan (RP)

Colorado

Detroit Tigers
Garcia, Freddy Antonio (SP); Jones, Todd (RP)

Florida
LoDuca, Paul (C)

Houston
Loretta, Mark (2B)

Kansas City
Grudzielanek, Mark (2B)

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Anderson, Garret (OF); Garland, Jon (SP); Teixeira, Mark (1B)

Los Angeles Dodgers
Beimel, Joe (RP); Blake, Casey (3B); Lowe, Derek (SP); Maddux, Greg (SP); Ramirez, Manny (OF)

Milwaukee
Gagne, Eric (RP); Kapler, Gabe (OF); Lamb, Michael (3B); Sheets, Ben (SP); Shouse, Brian (RP)

Minnesota
Guardado, Eddie (RP); Punto, Nick (SS); Reyes, Dennys (RP)

NY Mets
Easley, Damion (2B); Perez, Oliver (SP); Wise, Matt (RP)

NY Yankees
Abreu, Bob (OF); Moeller, Chad (C); Ponson, Sidney (SP); Rodriguez, Ivan (C)

Oakland
Brown, Emil (OF)

Philadelphia

Pittsburgh
Gomez, Chris (3B); Mientkiewicz, Doug (1B)

St. Louis
Izturis, Cesar (SS); LaRue, Jason (C); Looper, Braden L. (SP); Lopez, Felipe (2B); Springer, Russ (RP); Villone, Ron (RP)

San Diego

San Francisco

Seattle
Bloomquist, Willie (OF); Cairo, Miguel (1B); Ibanez, Raul (OF)

Tampa Bay

Toronto

Texas
+ Blalock, Hank (3B); Bradley, Milton (DH); Jennings, Jason (SP); Vazquez, Ramon (3B); Wright, Jamey (RP)

Washington
Wilkerson, Brad (OF)

No surprise here. Now that his shoulder is recovering nicely, Fernando Tatis should help again. Check out the Mets' official release below:

METS SIGN FERNANDO TATIS TO A ONE-YEAR CONTRACT

FLUSHING, N.Y., October 30, 2008 – Fernando Tatis, who was named the National League Comeback Player-of-the-Year this season, today signed a one-year contract with the New York Mets. Terms were not disclosed.

Tatis, 33, who hit .297 with 16 doubles, one triple, 11 home runs and 47 RBI for the Mets separated his right shoulder diving for a double by Nationals’ pitcher Odalis Perez in the fifth inning on September 16th at Washington. Fernando underwent an MRI the next day and the test revealed a Grade 3 shoulder separation.

“I feel fine now,” said Tatis, whose contract was selected from New Orleans (AAA) of the Pacific Coast League on May 13th. “I didn’t need surgery and I will be ready to go in the spring.”

For the Mets, Tatis made 35 starts in rightfield, 28 in leftfield, two at third base and one at first base.

“Fernando got so many key hits for us last year,” said Mets’ General Manager Omar Minaya. “Not having him the last few weeks of the season certainly hurt. His versatility certainly makes us a better team.”

In 2008, Fernando hit .392 (29-74) with men in scoring position. He also compiled a .311 mark (33-106) against lefthanded pitching.

Tatis’s Sporting News Comeback Player-of-the-Year Award was voted on by 314 current major league players, 18 managers and 41 General Managers and Assistant General Managers.

I see that Phillies' GM Pat Gillick and former MVP Jimmy Rollins are spouting off again about how much the Mets are hated by other teams, especially in their own division, and this somehow prevents them from making the playoffs year after year. Here's an excerpt from Jon Heyman's column:

[Rollins agreed with Gillick's original assessment in the New York Daily News that the Phillies benefit in their division battle with the Mets by the hatred other NL East teams have for the Mets.

"It could be a number of things,'' Rollins said with a sly smile when asked why that was. "I have an assignment for you. In spring training next year go to each clubhouse and you'll get a number of answers.'']

I believed this was nonsense last year, and I feel like it is nonsense again, so I looked at the division records of the Phillies, who I guess everybody loves, and the despised Mets. Here they are:

Phillies ... 41-31.
Mets ..... 40-32.

Yep. I clearly see that being hated makes a huge difference. If only other teams liked the Mets as much as the Phillies, they'd be in the World Series right now.