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Gategem
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Feb 17 2006, 11:30 PM
Post #1
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Member In Exile
- Posts:
- 9,656
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- Members
- Member
- #278
- Joined:
- December 5, 2004
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- Quote:
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PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- A leaky ceiling and subsequent flood three years ago initially separated Mike Piazza from his teammates by forcing him to a remote section of the Tradition Field clubhouse. But even after the soggy mess was cleaned up, the damage, in some ways, became permanent.
Piazza never returned to that locker next to the kitchen, the one alongside his fellow catchers. That move, though a necessity at the time, later added to the perception that he was becoming more isolated on the Mets.
Now that Piazza is gone, his job belongs to Paul Lo Duca, and shortly after his arrival yesterday, it became obvious that the position of catcher no longer will be a 24-and-1 situation on the Mets.
Lo Duca immediately settled in to Piazza's original locker. Within minutes he was talking to anyone within earshot, whether it was trading insults with Billy Wagner or poking fun at Jose Lima, his former teammate on the Dodgers.
After Lima walked into the clubhouse wearing a gray three-piece suit, along with a wide-brimmed black fedora, Lo Duca yelled over, "It's the Dominican Crocodile Dundee!"
Lima smiled back from across the room and later had nothing but praise for the new backstop on the Mets. "When you have a catcher like Lo Duca," Lima said, "it's a different story."
Then again, replacing Piazza hardly is unusual for Lo Duca, who has followed a similar career path. When the Dodgers shipped Piazza to the Marlins, it was Lo Duca who eventually took over the job in Los Angeles. Two years ago, Lo Duca suffered the same fate as Piazza when the Dodgers, in another overhaul, traded him to the Marlins.
Both ultimately got to the Mets via trade, but the megastar Piazza parlayed that into a seven-year, $91-million contract. With Lo Duca, the Mets took advantage of another fire sale by the Marlins and gladly sent them two prospects - pitcher Gaby Hernandez and outfielder Dante Brinkley - instead of pursuing either Bengie Molina or Ramon Hernandez through free agency.
Lo Duca is sympathetic to the Marlins' plight after spending time there. But after another offseason of salary dumps in South Florida, the Brooklyn-born catcher is not complaining about returning to New York, especially with the additions of Carlos Delgado and Wagner.
"I've said from the beginning that I think it will be a disappointment if we don't win the Eastern Division," Lo Duca said. "There's so much talent here and if we stay healthy, I think there should be no excuses."
Lo Duca said he is disappointed that he was downgraded to alternate for the U.S. team in the World Baseball Classic, but his loss should be the Mets' gain. The next six weeks are crucial for Lo Duca to familiarize himself with a new pitching staff, and the most important step in forging that relationship is trust.
"You don't develop it," Lo Duca said. "You've got to earn it. You talk about it in spring training, but in key situations, you want your pitcher to trust you. You want to be able to put down that finger and know even though he may not think it's the right pitch, he's trusting you."
As an added bonus, Lo Duca can handle a bat. He's not the intimidating presence that Piazza once brought to the lineup, but as a career .285 hitter, Lo Duca creates some interesting options for manager Willie Randolph. The Mets already have discussed with him the possibility of hitting second behind Jose Reyes because Lo Duca is proficient at using the hole on the right side when the first baseman is holding Reyes on.
"I've always tried to hit that hole," Lo Duca said. "I'm going to tell Jose whenever I see him that 'I'll take pitches for you. Whenever you want to go, go. Don't worry about me.' I'll protect him and do whatever it takes. I mean, you've got the best base-stealer in the league, so my job is to get him to third base with less than two outs."
Then help the pitching staff hold that 1-0 lead.
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