Well, the Mets and Braves traded RFs last night. Ryan Church is starting for the Braves in Colorado, and Jeff Francoeur is wearing #12, starting in RF, and batting fifth in the Mets' lineup. Both guys needed the change of scenery, even to a division rival (and the two will meet in Atlanta just after the ASB). If Francoeur gets hot playing in front of the NY crowd, Omar looks like a genius. Oh--because Francoeur is making about $500,000 more than Church is, the Braves also included cash considerations. My take is that the Mets got hosed in this one, because Church is better offensively, running, and fielding. Francoeur has a better arm.
I hope it works for both teams. Francoeur is a guy who's averaged 152 games in his last few seasons, so he'll be a hit in the clubhouse. But, his attitude that he can hit whatever is pitched to him has led to his numbers dropping like a rock over the past year-and-a-half. Church sat for a game about a month or so ago, complaining of "nausea" (which, considering his concussion last year, may have been the case), and riled a few of the Mets' vets. But, time will tell.