Mets Morning News: Looking For A Cheap Closer, Tejada Is A Key Player,Potential Investor Picks Yankees Instead

Mike Puma of the NY Post writes that general manager Sandy Alderson is likely not spending big money on a closer this offseason. Seeing as how no one currently on the Mets seems to be a "proven" closer, Alderson will have to search elsewhere.

The likely scenario has the Mets acquiring a cheap, proven veteran and hoping they get lucky -- in much the same manner they did with Jason Irsinghausen this year.

Alderson isn't bothered by the fact that none of the current crop of Mets pitchers appears qualified for the job.

"I'm not troubled by it," Alderson said. "One of the reasons that you try a variety of possibilities is to sort through it all. We know more than we did a month and a half ago, and that is a good thing."

Brendan Prunty of The Star-Ledger believes Ruben Tejada could be a "key player" in the Mets' future. Tejada has been proving as of late that he can fill in for Jose Reyes, and he's happy about that.

So were the Mets, who got another glimpse of why losing Reyes in the offseason to free agency wouldn’t necessarily be a death knell to the franchise. Sure, they would miss the electrifying speed at the top of the batting order and the power that comes with Reyes, but Tejada showed once again that he is growing more capable of taking over the shortstop and leadoff role.

According to David Waldstein of the New York Times, Ray Bartoszek, the wealthy former oil trader who had an interest in buying a minority stake in the Mets, has instead become the newest limited partner with the Yankees.

"My conversations with the Mets was a very interesting and positive experience, and I was able to parlay that into this great opportunity,” Bartoszek said. “I’m privileged now to be a part of this incredible group of owners."

As for his negotiations with the Yankees:

"It was done within 90 days of the initial contact," Bartoszek said. "It was the most straightforward negotiation I’ve ever been a part of."

Mets Morning News: Byrdak Extended, Old Habits Die Hard, SantanaPitches Without Issue

The Mets and Tim Byrdak agreed to a one-year contract extension yesterday. The left-hander has appeared in 68 games so far this season, and is 1-0 with a 2.95 ERA.

Manager Terry Collins believes Dillon Gee fell into old habits during his outing on Sunday.

"He stayed in that fastball/change-up mode," Collins said. "I looked up (at one point) and he had 65 pitches, and about half were for balls and half were strikes. That’s the difference. He’s the kind of guy where you look up and he ought to be pounding that strike zone. When he does that, that’s when he’s successful.

"Today, he was a lot of deep counts and behind a lot of hitters. That’s not normal for him."

Johan Santana pitched three innings in a simulated game against instructional league players. General manager Sandy Alderson said Santana "felt good," after his outing where he allowed one hit and struck out four.

Mets Minor League Playoff Update: Cyclones, Gnats and St. Lucie Metsvaliant seasons end with no rings

Savannah Sand Gnats

So close, and yet, so far.

It was game four, the Gnats had a 2-1 series lead, and were one strike away from winning the South Atlantic League Championship. Unfortunately, they never got that strike.

Despite a fantastic comeback, coming back from a 7-2 deficit, the Gnats eventually lost game four and then game five last night. The story of these two losses mainly falls on the shoulders of the pitching staff.

In game four, only one pitcher, Ryan Fraser, pitched a clean inning. Eric Goeddel, who had a solid season for Savannah, gave up seven runs in four innings. He was followed by Michael Hebert, who also gave up one run. Even with these performances, giving up eight runs in five innings, the Gnats mounted comeback, and took a 9-8 lead into the ninth inning.

Feast Your Eyes On This Ladies And Gentlemen

Or don't. It's probably better if you don't.

After today's game against the Braves, the Mets rookies were subjected to the annual rookie hazing. This year's theme: Cheerleaders.

WARNING: These are the ugliest cheerleaders you may ever see.

Justin Turner

Lucas Duda

Both photos are courtesy of Turner's Twitter account.

If your eyes can handle it, there are some more pictures over at ESPN New York.

Mets Walk All Over Braves

The Mets were able to get to the Braves mighty bullpen this afternoon, beating the Braves, 7-5.

• Dillon Geelasted just 4.1 innings, giving up four runs on eight hits, while striking out four and walking five.

• Ruben Tejada had a huge day at the plate, going 2-4 with four RBIs. He hit a three-run double int he fourth inning, and he drove in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning with a single to right field.

• The Mets were lucky in the eighth inning. With the bases loaded, Braves reliever Jonny Venters walked Ronny Paulino to force in the tying run.

• Lucas Duda hit his 10th home run of the season in the ninth inning off Braves closer Craig Kimbrel.

• Bobby Parnell had a very Parnellesque outing. He was hitting 99 on the radar gun, but the command was not there. After getting Martin Prado to ground out to start the eighth inning, he gave up back-to-back walks to Chipper Jones and Dan Uggla. He was then able to get Brian McCann to fly out to deep center field. By that point, Terry Collins had seen enough, and Manny Acosta was brought in.

• Mets pitchers gave up a combined nine walks in the game. Between the Mets and Braves, there was a total of 17 walks. Yikes.

Next Up: The Mets have the day off on Monday. They begin a three-game series against the Cardinals on Tuesday night in St. Louis. Mike Pelfrey gets the start for New York. Game time is 8:15 p.m.

Maybe Today Will Be The Day The Mets Decide To Play Spoilers

September 18, 2011

1:35 PM ET

Turner Field, Atlanta

TV: WPIX

RADIO: WFAN 660

NEW YORK METS

 Starting Pitcher: Dillon Gee (12-6, 4.37 ERA)

Gee pitched five very good innings before falling apart in the sixth in his last start. Fun fact about Gee, he has allowed more earned runs in the sixth inning this season than in any other inning. Here's hoping today's different. Against the Braves, he is 2-2 with a 2.86 ERA.

ATLANTA BRAVES

Starting Pitcher: Brandon Beachy (7-2, 3.43 ERA)

Beachy is making his first career start against the Mets this afternoon. He hasn't lost a game since July 19. In his last start, he went 5.1 innings, giving up four runs on nine hits, while striking out ten.

METS LINEUP: 

Tejada-SS, Pridie-CF, Wright-3B, Duda-RF, Bay-LF, Evans-1B, Thole-C, Turner-2B, Gee-RHP

NOTES:

According to Mike Silva of NY Baseball Digest, the Mets and Tim Byrdak are close to signing a 1-year extension for next season.

Johan Santana will throw a simulated game this afternoon in Florida. His next stop should be pitching in the instructional league during the offseason.

Mets Morning News: Thole Wants To Be Better, Wright Can't Let ThingsGo, Savannah's Out

Josh Thole told Mike Puma of the NY Post that he is not happy with his catching this season. Guess what, Josh, us fans weren't exactly thrilled about your catching either.

"I don't want to be what's called a defensive liability," Thole said. "You lead the league in passed balls, and I'm sure that is raising questions. I don't want those questions anymore. I don't want to hear the negativity that I can't catch in the big leagues."

David Wright doesn't know how to forget about a bad days work. Wright opened up to the Daily News about how this year has affected him.

"I guess it's just in my nature to focus on the negatives, and what I could have done, instead of the positive," Wright says. "Having a short-term memory and being able to forget about it - it would probably be the ideal situation, but I just don't know if that's in my DNA. I wish I could."

"I think that I need to do a better job of, good and bad, leaving it at the ballpark after the game. Sometimes, especially when you're struggling, you take it home with you. You're kind of dragging on, and that can hurt you, performance-wise, the next day, and the day after that."

After coming within one strike from winning the South Atlantic League championship Thursday night, the Mets' single-A affiliate, the Savannah Sand Gnats lost in a winner-take-all game 5, Friday.