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(2/19/02 8:18 am)
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 Mets Fully Armed
http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/ny-mets192594833feb19.story
Spring is for finding out where new faces fit
By David Lennon
STAFF CORRESPONDENT
February 19, 2002
Port St. Lucie - As another wave of pitchers lined up yesterday for another throwing session, Mets manager Bobby Valentine took a knee on the soft bullpen sod to more closely scrutinize his candidates for the upcoming season.
And when that group - including newly acquired lefthander Shawn Estes - completed their turn, Valentine hopped to his feet and exclaimed, "Oh, aces aplenty!"
Three days into spring training, it does seem like the Mets are blessed with an abundance of pitching talent, or at least potential.
Pedro Astacio, Estes and Jeff D'Amico have replaced Rick Reed, Kevin Appier and Glendon Rusch in the starting rotation. In the bullpen, David Weathers and Mark Guthrie fill the roles vacated by Turk Wendell and Dennis Cook.
Beyond that, the Mets have a small army of young pitchers for a variety of jobs, as well as more seasoned pros, including Japanese import Satoru Komiyama, a versatile righthander whose style Valentine compares to David Cone.
Just as the Mets wondered if they had enough offense heading into last season - they didn't - the questions this year involve the pitching staff. Not that the Mets are worried. The front office believes it can assemble a staff every bit as good as last year's crew.
The Mets had the fifth-best ERA (4.07) in the National League last season - the world champion Arizona Diamondbacks were second (3.88) - while the offense scored the fewest runs of any team in baseball.
After beefing up the offense with the likes of Mo Vaughn, Roberto Alomar and Jeromy Burnitz, general manager Steve Phillips would have no complaints if his pitching staff could duplicate last year's performance.
"In my view," said Phillips, "we certainly have the potential to be better." There's that word again: potential. Astacio is pitching with a torn labrum that may or may not cause a recurrence of the shoulder inflammation that shut him down for the final five weeks of the 2001 regular season. D'Amico has been bothered by a myriad of injuries since 2000 and sports a long scar above his right elbow from his latest surgery to relieve pressure on a radial nerve.
Both are tentatively penciled into the starting rotation, along with Estes, Al Leiter and Steve Trachsel. Bruce Chen is on standby, though Valentine praised his early work following yesterday's session, and Komiyama is available as a spot starter as well.
Valentine isn't sure yet where all the pieces fit, but he knows the answers usually materialize over the six weeks of spring training.
"I don't know how deep we are," Valentine said. "Just about every team this time of year thinks they're deep. We'll see what happens here this spring. Most of the decisions are made for you. But if not, I'll be glad to make them because we've got talent."
The biggest concern is always health, and both Astacio and D'Amico insist they're pain-free. Astacio, who hurriedly left his Shea Stadium introductory news conference in January for his final Dominican League start, could prove to be a dominant No. 2 behind Leiter.
"I feel 100 percent," Astacio said. "I don't have any problems or anything." D'Amico, after making just 10 starts last season and finishing with a 6.08 ERA for the Milwaukee Brewers, is thinking more like the pitcher who went 12-7 with a 2.66 ERA in 2000.
"Last season, I was achy and sore all year," D'Amico said. "If I can stay healthy, I don't see why I can't have another season [like 2000]. We'll just have to see how it all shakes out."
At the top of the rotation, Leiter showed up for spring training 10 pounds lighter after an offseason of yoga and a streamlined diet. He's also in the final year of his contract, which means he'll either want to go out strong or convince the Mets he's worth another season or so. Estes, who thinks the San Francisco Giants lost patience with him because he never fulfilled their lofty expectations based on his 19-5 All-Star year of 1997, would probably like to spite his former team with a stellar season, and he definitely has the talent to do it.
In the bullpen, John Franco is recovering nicely from offseason elbow surgery and is just about on pace with the rest of the staff. As for closer Armando Benitez, he's not scheduled to arrive until today, which is not making everyone happy, but it probably won't affect his preparation.
"We've got guys that definitely have spots on this team," pitching coach Charlie Hough said. "But teams that win a division, a pennant or a World Series don't do it with 10 guys. You win with 14 or 15 guys. There's a lot of factors that go into it and we've got all season to figure it out. It matters what happens at the end, right?"
Notes & Quotes: Mo Vaughn was expected to arrive in Port St. Lucie last night and should be in uniform today. The first workout for position players is not until Thursday, but Bobby Valentine pointed out that Vaughn was already late. As a rehab player, Vaughn, who missed all of last season because of a repaired biceps tendon, was supposed to begin working out at the complex by Saturday at the latest. "I find it interesting - all the attention on Armando [Benitez] - when Mo is three days late," Valentine said. "But I don't think it's a big deal for either one of them."
Iffy Situation
The Mets' overhaul includes almost half of their pitching staff. Here are the significant additions since spring training a year ago (last year's record, ERA in parentheses):
Pedro Astacio (8-14, 5.09) - Insists torn labrum in right shoulder isn't a problem. If it holds up, Astacio will be a major acquisition. That is a big 'if,' however, considering he didn't pitch in the majors after Aug. 23 last season.
Shawn Estes (9-6, 4.02) - Fell out of favor with the Giants, but nothing wrong with his pitching ability. Estes features a wicked curveball, and if he's throwing it for strikes, he can be dominant. Some wonder how he'll handle New York.
Jeff D'Amico (2-4, 6.08) - A wild card. The Mets aren't sure what to make of the oft-injured D'Amico, who has made just 33 starts since 1997. He won 12 games for the Brewers in 2000 with a 2.66 ERA, so if healthy, he could surprise.
Mark Guthrie (6-1, 4.55) - He'll complement John Franco in the lefthanded set-up role. Now with his eighth team in 12 years, Guthrie should have no problem adapting quickly to a change of scenery in New York.
David Weathers (4-5, 2.41) - Won a World Series with the Yankees in 1996, so he's no stranger to the city or postseason pressure. Sturdy righthander who eats up late innings, a great asset for any bullpen.
Satoru Komiyama (12-9, 3.03) - Komiyama is slotted as a long reliever, but he'll get a handful of spot starts as well. A smart, savvy pitcher who Bobby Valentine compares to the wily David Cone, high praise indeed.
Copyright © 2002, Newsday, Inc.
 
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