14 June 2007

King looking to get Mets back on winning track

By George Kostinas
GateHouse News Service
Thu Jun 14, 2007, 01:19 PM EDT 

Cape Cod - Hyannis Mets field manager Greg King was the eighth manager introduced at the Cape Cod Baseball League’s First Pitch Brunch Sunday and quipped, “I hope whoever put together the list did not base it on projected finish.”

    Somebody informed him there were two other managers who had yet to speak.

    “Oh, we’re not last. At least we’re moving up,” he laughed.

    King hopes to get the Mets back into playoff contention starting with tomorrow’s 5 p.m. home opener against defending champion Y-D Red Sox at McKeon Field, but will have their work cut out for them facing Terry Doyle, the Cape League’s pitcher of the year last season.

    “It’s always good to get off to a fast start, but consistency is the key. You try to avoid those downward spirals where you lose four or five games in a row,” said King. “You want to make sure you’re not out of it early.”

    After making the playoffs his first year as manager in 2004, King’s teams have had a tough time, setting a record for the most losses (7-36-1) in 2005 and going 16-24-3 record last season.

    But King sees some good signs for 2007, the most promising of which is that most of the players on the roster have already arrived or are expected by the first game.

    “To put a team together you’ve got to do it early, and on paper we looked good right up to the last minute. Then I started getting phone calls. We lost some guys to Team USA, some to injuries and some to summer school,” said King. “We had to replace 20-some odd guys. And there were no players available at that late date.”

    Six pitchers and nine position players were on hand for Sunday first practice.
What King expects is a powerful pitching staff led by returnees Matt Daly of Hawaii and Austin Wood of Texas.

    Daly turned down an offer from Team USA to return to Hyannis. He has a live arm and throws 94 to 96 miles per hour. “He has another year of experience and we expect a lot of things from him,” said King.

    Wood is a lefty and more of a control pitcher. He is tweaking his mechanics and with Daly should provide leadership and experience.

    The Mets should also have some offensive punch with returning outfielder David Macias of Vanderbilt. Macias is a good defensive outfielder, but he also batted .281 with 10 RBI and three doubles last season.

    James Darnell of South Carolina batted about .350, hit 18 homeruns and can play both shortstop and third base.

    Ryan Flaherty of Vanderbilt is the only returnee who is questionable as he waits for confirmation as a selection to Team USA. Flaherty batted .250 for the Mets last season and was second on the team with 18 RBI. “If we lose him, we lose a key player,” said King.

    Still the Mets have a number of other young players who show promise.

    Ryan Jackson of Miami is one of the best defensive shortstops in the country; Dan Brewer of Bradley has speed and gives the Mets another dimension on offense, and Patrick Long of Georgia Tech hit .300 as a freshman in the very competitive ACC. 

    He can hit with power; he’s got some pop in his bat,” said King.

By George Kostinas