Mets, Washington Deal: Milledge for Catcher, Outfielder
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The Mets and the Washington Nationals pulled the trigger on a deal which sent young, talented but problematic outfielder Lastings Milledge to the Nationals in exchange for catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church.
Milledge, with a world of talent also displayed a problematic and prima-donna work ethic along with off-field hi-jinx. AP Baseball Writer Mike Fitzpatrick provides insight for Yahoo sports;
In Milledge, the Nationals pick up a talented young player they hope can avoid the sort of missteps that marked his Mets career and be a key component of their rebuilding project.
Milledge and Acta know each other from Acta’s stint as the Mets’ third-base coach.
“I can assure you Lastings is a good kid,” Acta said. “He came up very young in a tough spot, in New York, and he wasn’t prepared to handle that. You can’t believe everything you read and you hear. I believe the kid is going to be just fine with us.”
Milledge hit .272 with seven homers and 29 RBIs in 184 at-bats with the Mets in 2007. Now, he gets a chance to play every day.
“That’s the most important thing to me at this point in my career,” Milledge said. “It’s a real big relief for me and my family and everybody, because I really didn’t get enough time to show what I can do.”
Still just 22, Milledge was the Mets’ top prospect when he made his major league debut in May 2006. Right away, he showed why he was so highly rated on the field — but also drew the ire of his team and teammates.
One of the most publicized episodes came in the town that will be his new home. In September 2006, a sign was posted in Milledge’s locker in the visiting clubhouse at RFK Stadium that read: “Know your place, Rook. Your teammates.”
Milledge earlier had been reprimanded for not running hard on the bases and had arrived late to the clubhouse for a game. He also rankled Mets management by making a rap CD that used offensive language.
“As far as the controversy goes, sometimes you feel like you get a raw end of the deal,” Milledge said. “But whether it was or wasn’t, it made me a better person, it made me a better ballplayer. It helped me at a young age to play at a big market and have everybody against you at one time.”
In return the Mets acquired two mid-line players. 29-year-old Ryan Church hit .272 with 15 homers and 70 RBIs while for the Nationals’ team lead with 43 doubles. 31 year old catcher Brian Schneider, considered by many one of baseball’s top defensive catchers and credited with holding together a shakey D.C. pitching staff in the 2007 season, has struggled with his hitting throughout his career. In 2007, he batted .235 with six homers and 54 RBIs.
The Mets now have 3 catchers on their roster; the recently acquired Johnny Estrada, back-up catcher Ramon Castro who hit a ton during limited duty in 56 games in 2007 and Schneider. The Mets seem lacking in interest to free agent catcher Paul Lo Duca and could not close a deal with then free-agent Yorvit Torrealba who re-signed, in a 2 year deal, with 2007 NL Champion Colorado.
It will be interesting to see who got the better of the deal and whether Milledge, on the Nationals, develops to potential and and comes back to haunt the Mets as they chase the Phillies for the NL East title in 2008.
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