The last place Mets have three All-Stars and none of them is named Cliff Floyd.
The Mets picked for the game had different emotions yesterday. Pedro Martinez still isn’t sure he will go. Mike Piazza plans on cherishing it. Carlos Beltran thinks Floyd is more deserving.
As for the snubbed Floyd, he is OK with the situation and has made even bigger team and individual goals.
“If we win and I’m the MVP, that would be outstanding,” said Floyd, who is hitting .288 with 21 homers and 53 RBIs.
Along with Floyd, Martinez is the Met who truly deserves to be in Detroit a week from tomorrow. Heading into his start tomorrow in Washington, he has been everything the Mets could have hoped for when they inked him in the offseason. He is an entertaining 9-2 with a 2.74 ERA.
Still, Martinez is not sure he wants to attend his seventh All-Star Game.
“I will get together with my coaches and see what is more convenient for the team, the organization for the future,” said Martinez, who started and won the All-Star MVP in Boston in 1999. “So I will wait and see. I have two outings to go [before the break] and I’m just going to concentrate on those two.”
At 36, Piazza may not be the player he once was, but he is still popular. Despite only hitting .261 with nine homers and 34 RBIs, Piazza’s nearly 2 million fan votes allowed him to surpass Johnny Bench and Pudge Rodriguez for the most elected starts – 11 – in the game’s history.
“I’m honored,” said Piazza, who is not expected to be with the Mets next season. “I’m a little confused with the support. The fans not only in New York, but all over the country – they have spoiled me. I thought last year possibly could’ve been my last year. This year, I’m just going to cherish it.”
Floyd’s numbers are better than Beltran’s. After yesterday, Beltran was hitting .262 with nine homers and 40 RBIs. In the player balloting, Beltran didn’t vote for himself, instead he picked Floyd.
“I feel sorry for [Floyd],” said Beltran, who, like Piazza, was picked by the fans to start. “He deserves to be there. He has had a great year.”
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National League All-Stars (s, lcf)
Three Mets – Carlos Beltran, Pedro Martinez and Mike Piazza – made the All-Star team yesterday, but Cliff Floyd was left off the National League roster despite some of the best numbers in the league.
Pedro Martinez
9-2, 2.74 ERA, 123 K
Mike Piazza
9 HR, 34 RBI, .261
Carlos Beltran
9 HR, 40 RBI, .262
POS NAME TEAM GAMES HR-RBI-AVG
POSITION STARTERS
Catcher Mike Piazza Mets 12 9-34-.261
First base Derrek Lee Cubs 1 25-67-.383
Second base Jeff Kent Dodgers 5 15-59-.298
Third base Scott Rolen Cardinals 4 5-21-.250
Shortstop David Eckstein Cardinals 2 2-23-.290
Left field Carlos Beltran Mets 2 9-40-.262
Center field Jim Edmonds Cardinals 4 15-50-.278
Right field Bobby Abreu Phillies 2 17-52-.315
POS NAME TEAM GAMES REC-ERA
PITCHERS
Starter Chris Carpenter Cardinals 1 12-4, 2.60
Starter Roger Clemens Astros 11 7-3, 1.41
Starter Livan Hernandez Nationals 2 12-2, 3.32
Starter Pedro Martinez Mets 7 9-2, 2.74
Starter Jake Peavy Padres 1 7-2, 2.89
Starter John Smoltz Braves 7 9-5, 2.68
Starter Dontrelle Willis Marlins 2 13-3, 1.89
Reliever Chad Cordero Nationals 1 29 S, 1.25
Reliever Brian Fuentes Rockies 1 10S, 2.68
Reliever J. Isringhausen Cardinals 2 22 S, 2.05
Reliever Brad Lidge Astros 1 18 S, 2.73
RESERVES
C: Paul Lo Duca, LA; 1B Albert Pujols, STL; 2B: Luis Castillo, FLA; 3B: Aramis Ramirez, CHC; SS: Cesar Izturis, LA; SS: Felipe Lopez, CIN; OF: Moises Alou, SF; OF: Jason Bay, PIT; OF: Miguel Cabrera, FLA; OF: Luis Gonzalez, ARI; OF: Andruw Jones, ATL; OF: Carlos Lee, MIL.
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All-Star snub (m)
Three Mets – Carlos Beltran, Pedro Martinez and Mike Piazza – made the All-Star team yesterday, but Cliff Floyd was left off the National League roster despite some of the best numbers in the league. Here’s a look at how Floyd’s season matches up with the outfielders who were selected:
Player Team HR RBI AVG
Cliff Floyd Mets 21 53 .288
Starters
Carlos Beltran Mets 9 40 .262
Bobby Abreu Phillies 17 52 .314
Jim Edmonds Cardinals 15 50 .283
Reserves
Moises Alou Giants 12 39 .323
Jason Bay Pirates 15 42 .310
Miguel Cabrera Marlins 16 59 .340
Luis Gonzalez D’backs 11 50 .302
Andruw Jones Braves 26 59 .280
Carlos Lee Brewers 22 72 .271
Stats through yesterday afternoon
Carlos Beltran
9 HR, 40 RBI, .262
Pedro Martinez
9-2, 2.74 ERA, 123 K
Mike Piazza
9 HR, 34 RBI, .261
