Monday, June 4, 2012

Mets Select SS Cecchini With 12th Overall Pick

With the 12th pick in the 2012 First Year Player Draft, the Mets selected 18-year-old shortstop Gavin Cecchini out of Barbe High School in Louisiana.

The righty hit .413 with seven home runs, 32 RBI and 31 stolen bases for Barbe this season.

Last Fall with the USA Baseball 18U National Team, he helped his team earn a gold medal at the Pan American Championship in Colombia, where he hit .500 with 17 RBI in 15 games.

As of right now, Cecchini is committed to the University of Mississippi, so it remains to be seen if he decides to sign or not.

I honestly don't know whether this will be a good pick for the Mets or not. I don't pay much attention to the draft. It's such a crap shoot. 

It doesn't matter to me where a player is drafted, whether they are a first round pick or some obscure player in the final round. It doesn't matter to me if they were the best in their high school, or if they were the best player on their college team. What matters is if they can perform in professional baseball.

If he decides to sign, I wish him well, and I'll check back in a year to see how he's doing.

To read more on Cecchini, check out ESPN HS.

He's not very active on Twitter, but if you care to follow, you can find him at @GavinCecchini2.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

ICYMI: The Week In Review

Something big happened Friday night. You may have heard about it. JOHAN SANTANA THREW A NO-HITTER. For the first time in the franchise's history, that's 8,020 games played, a Mets pitcher threw a no-hitter. 

R.A. Dickey followed with a gem of his own on Saturday afternoon, throwing a complete game shut out. I guess that's one way to not have to worry about your bullpen imploding every day. Dickey was also named the National League Player of the Week. 

Banner Day returned last Sunday. The winning banner payed homage to Mike Piazza's home run on Sept. 21, 2001, and read, "The home run that helped heal NY...God Bless America! Let's Go Mets!" 

The Mets finally gave Manny Acosta the boot. He was put on waivers, but cleared and has since joined Triple-A Buffalo.

In his first major league hit, pitcher Jeremy Hefner hit a home run. 

David Wright told WFAN that he will not discuss a contract while the season is going on. 

The Mets optioned catcher Rob Johnson to Triple-A Buffalo, called up reliever Elvin Ramirez, and designated pitcher Chris Schwinden for assignment. Schwinden was claimed by the Toronto Blue Jays.

John Franco will be inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame prior to today's game against the Cardinals.

On the injury front...

Justin Turner went down with an ankle sprain after making an attempt to get back to first base. Omar Quintanilla was called up from Buffalo and has taken over at shortstop. Piece of trivia for you. Quintanilla is the first player in Mets history to have a last name that begins with the letter Q. 

The Mets placed Ronny Cedeno on the disabled list with a calf injury. Jordany Valdespin was called up from Buffalo. 

On Thursday, Chris Young pitched six scoreless innings in Buffalo. He walked three and gave up two hits in 87 pitches. He also hit 84 MPH on the radar gun. According to ESPN New York, Young will join the Mets rotation as soon as Tuesday.

Josh Thole returned to the Mets after spending nearly three weeks on the disabled list with a concussion. Thole got the concussion after taking an elbow to the head as Philadelphia's Ty Wigginton went into home plate. 

Mike Baxter suffered a displaced right collar bone after making a spectacular catch to preserve the no-hitter. Ramon Ramirez has a hamstring injury thanks to the no-hitter celebration. Baxter and Ramirez have been placed on the disabled list.

Jason Bay made a rehab start in St. Lucie on Saturday. He went 0-3 with two strike outs.

Miguel Batista is eligible to return from the disabled list on Monday. Pedro Beato may return today.