33-year old switch hitting CF Carlos Beltran had knee surgery against team wishes late in the winter which caused him to miss most of this year. He has played in 43 games for the Mets and he is 31 of 142 (.218 avg, .660 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 2 homers, 14 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Beltran just doesn’t look anything like the player he was in his first five years with the Mets. Beltran played in 677 games in his first five years with the Mets and he was 720 of 2,560 (.281 avg) with 469 runs scored, 127 homers, 466 RBIs and 94 stolen bases.

34-year old switch hitting 2B Luis Castillo said last week that there is no way he sees himself wearing a Mets’ uniform in 2010. That is probably quite allright for the Mets as Castillo looks like his career is nearing an end. Castillo has played in 66 games for the Mets this year and he is 49 of 204 (.240 avg, .617 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 0 homers, 15 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. In his four years with the Mets, Castillo has played in 345 games in which he is 328 of 1,187 (.276 avg, .696 OPS) with 180 runs scored, 5 homers, 103 RBIs and 54 stolen bases.

With Carlos Beltran back in action the Mets are shifting Angel Pagan to RF. That leaves 26-year old righty swinging outfielder Jeff Francoeur on the bench. Francoeur has played in 92 games for the Mets this season and he is 76 of 308 (.247 avg, .677 OPS) with 34 runs scored, 8 homers, 42 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. The Mets are going to try to trade Francoeur because he will likely mope sitting on the bench. If not by July 31st, then some time in August the Mets will try to deal Francoeur. Despite his age, I don’t think the Mets will get a big haul in return for him.

20-year old lefty swinging outfielder Fernando Martinez was the Mets’ #1 prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. He started this season in AAA ball where he played in 45 games and was 51 for 176 (.290 avg, .877 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 8 homers and 28 RBIs. When the Mets suffered a rash of injuries they called up Martinez and gave him his first taste of the majors. He played in 29 games for the Mets this season and he was 16 for 91 (.176 avg, .517 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 1 homer, 8 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Martinez’ season ended with an injury which was the fate of many Mets players in this lost season. But, Martinez will be on the New York Mets for good as early as 2010.

Veteran utilityman Alex Cora is proving that his best days are behind him. He has played in 69 games for the Mets this season and he is 52 for 219 (.237 avg, .602 OPS) with 23 runs scored, 12 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. The Mets really needed Cora to step up with Jose Reyes down to injury but it just hasn’t happened to this point. Even though this is a lost season for the Mets due to widespread injuries they should still consider making a move for a shortstop as it’s getting hard to watch Cora play out there.