Lefty swinging RF Darryl Strawberry burst onto the scene for the Mets back in 1983 when he was the N.L. Rookie of the Year. He played in 122 games for the Mets in 1983 and he was 108 for 420 (.257 avg, .848 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 26 homers, 74 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Strawberry made the N.L. All-Star team in 7 of his 8 years with the Mets. He played in 1,109 games for the Mets in his career and he was 1,025 of 3,903 (.263 avg, .878 OPS) with 662 runs scored, 252 homers, 733 RBIs and 191 stolen bases. Strawberry is the Mets’ all-time franchise leader in runs scored (662), homers (252), RBIs (733) and walks (580). Strawberry is also #7 in games played (1,109), #9 in hits (1,025), #7 in doubles (187), tied for 6th in triples (30) and he’s #4 in stolen bases (191) in Mets’ history. It’s too bad that drugs ruined Strawberry’s career because he was definitely talented enough to make the Hall of Fame.

Joe Torre is likely to get into the Hall of Fame as a New York Yankee. But his time with the Mets was the worst of his career as both a player and a manager. Torre played in three seasons for the Mets (1975-77) and he appeared in 254 games in which he was 193 of 722 (.267 avg, .701 OPS) with 71 runs scored, 12 homers, 75 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He was riden hard earlier in his career with the Braves and Cardinals and it appeared that he didn’t have much left in the gas tank when he got to the Mets. Torre was also the manager of the Mets for parts of five years in which he compiled a 286-420 (40.5%) record, while never getting the Mets to the playoffs.

36-year old righty knuckleballing starting pitcher R.A. Dickey came out of nowhere to pitch well for the Mets in 2010. He pitched in 27 games (26 starts) for the Mets last year and he was 11-9 with a 2.84 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. The most amazing thing to me about Dickey last season was his control as he walked only 42 batters in 174 1/3 innings. This year has has already walked 14 batters in 26 1/3 innings and it has gotten him into some trouble. Dickey has pitched in 5 games (4 starts) for the Mets so far this year and he is 1-3 with a 4.10 ERA and a 1.60 WHIP. The Mets don’t have a lot of depth in the starting rotation, so they can’t afford to have Dickey revert back to the pitcher he was prior to 2010.

24-year old lefty swinging 1B Ike Davis had a solid rookie year for the Mets in 2010. He played in 147 games for the Mets last year and he was 138 of 523 (.264 avg, .791 OPS) with 73 runs scored, 19 homers, 71 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Davis is proving so far in 2011 that last year was just a starting point for him. He has played in 22 games for the Mets this year and he is 24 of 76 (.316 avg, .986 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 4 homers, 18 RBIs. Davis is the best lefty power hitter that the Mets have and they need him to keep swinging the bat well to give the lineup some balance.

The New York Mets have placed 29-year old switch-hitting CF Angel Pagan on the 15-day disabled list due to a strained left oblique muscle. Pagan has played in 19 games for the Mets so far this year and he is 11 of 69 (.159 avg, .506 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer, 6 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. The Mets have recalled 27-year old lefty swinging outfielder Jason Pridie to replace Pagan on the active roster. Pridie has played in 14 games in AAA-ball this year and he is 11 for 59 (.186 avg, .582 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 3 homers, 6 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Pridie has played in 11 games in his major league career to date and he is 0 for 4 (.000 avg, .200 OPS) with 3 runs scored. I don’t see Pridie getting much P.T. with the Mets. 33-year old lefty swinging Willie Harris and 31-year old righty swinging Scott Hairston might platoon in CF until Pagan is ready to return to action. Harris has played in 17 games so far this year for the Mets and he is 13 for 50 (.260 avg, .759 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer, 7 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Hairston has played in 16 games for the Mets so far this year and he is 5 for 28 (.179 avg, .579 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer and 5 RBIs. I think Harris & Hairston will be able to replace Pagan offensively but they are likely going to miss his glove.