Monday Morning — May 12th, 2003
Look forward to a week of sleep deprivation, as the Mets are in Colorado and San Francisco. Two of the games against the Rockies begin at 9:00 PM, while two against the Giants start at 10:15 PM EDT.
Making a Move - After years of speculation about when Mike Piazza would make the move from catching to first base, it appears that the time is now. With Mo Vaughn on the disabled list for the foreseeable future, Mets management met with the All Star catcher and talked with him about taking ground balls at first and starting to work on the position. Piazza, who is 11 home runs shy of Carlton Fisk's record for four-baggers by a catcher, has never been enthusiastic about making the move, but appears to be resigned to it. "Personally, I told [Art Howe and Steve Phillips] I'll do whatever they think needs to be done for the organization," said Piazza. "Obviously, my love is for this ball club and I just want to do what you guys want."
Rehab - The Good Kind! - John Franco has headed down to Port St. Lucie to begin a rehab assignment with the Mets' Florida State League team. If that goes well, the Mets captain should be ready to rejoin the major league team around the end of the month, which is roughly one year after he underwent Tommy John surgery.
Franco isn't making the trip alone. David Cone, who is on the disabled list with a strained left hip, has also joined the Class A St. Lucie club for rehab work.
Roster Moves - The Mets have sent catcher Jason Phillips back down to Norfolk in order to make room for Pat Strange to come up as the team's 12th pitcher.
Health Notes - Mike Piazza was out of commission last week after having a mole removed from his abdomen on Tuesday. The mole was of particular concern to Piazza because his father, Vince, had a cancerous lesion removed from his nose last summer. Fortunately, a biopsy showed that the mole was benign. It took seven stitches to close the area where the mole had been removed, and that rendered the All Star catcher's skin too tight for him to be able to wear his equipment for a few days.
And MRI on Tuesday revealed that Mo Vaughn's inflamed right knee is the result of bone spurs and a lack of cartilage. Vaughn is seeking a second opinion as to the feasibility of a surgical solution to the pain that the knee has been causing him.
Scott Strickland left Saturday's game after 15 pitches with a pulled right groin. The extent of his injury, including whether it will put him on the disabled list, is not yet known.
Barbergate! - The scandal of the week is an ESPN report from Michael Kay stating that recently, while the Mets were losing a game badly, Mike Stanton entered the Mets clubhouse only to find teammate Rey Sanchez getting a haircut. Stanton reportedly mentioned the incident to a former Yankees teammate, who went on to relate the story to Kay.
Mets fans will wait and see whether this haircut ultimately stirs as much outrage as the card game between Bobby Bonilla and Rickey Henderson during the 1999 NLCS did.
On Tuesday, after a team meeting, Sanchez denied having had the haircut. Other Mets refused comment, and manager Art Howe simply said, "It's taken care of." Putting the issue into perspective, Mo Vaughn quipped, "If we're in first place, nobody cares. You could be getting a full body shave."
A Smaller Scandal - Involves Mental Skills Coach Dr. Fran Pirozzolo. Last month MLB warned the Mets that Dr. Pirozzolo would not be allowed in the dugout during games. This is a series-by-series directive, and the Mets could allow the psychologist, who prefers to wear a Mets uniform when he is with the team, in the dugout if the manager of the opposing team doesn't object. However, Dr. Pirozzolo was in the dugout on Friday night, and nobody asked Padres manager Bruce Bochy for his permission to have an extra coach on the bench. It is unknown at this time whether MLB will discipline the Mets for this incident. The Mets have reportedly spoken to Dr. Pirozzolo and have made it clear to him that he may no longer appear in the dugout during games.
In the Community - Last Tuesday, Ty Wigginton and broadcaster Howie Rose participated in the unveiling of the new baseball field at Benjamin Cordozo High School in Bayside, Queens.
Fred Wilpon, Mo Vaughn, David Weathers and Matt Galante were on hand at a press conference to kick off the sixth season that the Mets are participating in JPMorgan Chase's "Baseball for Kids" program. Through the program, tickets to Mets games will be distributed to thousands of children in the Tri-State area.
On Thursday, Scott Strickland and Vance Wilson visited PS 92 in Corona, Queens and participated in a Power Lunch and a Reading Rally at the school.
Tug Update - Mets Hall of Famer Tug McGraw isn't going to let a little thing like brain surgery keep him down. Check out the newly revamped tugmcgraw.com website for updated news, photos and contact information from one of the most beloved figures in Mets history.
Condolences - To Bobby Valentine, whose 80-year-old mother, Grace, passed away last week.
Special Feature: Baseball as America
Special Feature: Talkin' Baseball with Terry Cashman
Unless otherwise stated, these stories have been extracted from reports on www.nydailynews.com, www.nypost.com, www.nytimes.com, www.njo.com, www.newsday.com, www.bergenrecord.com, AP , and www.mets.com reports.
