Angel Pagan CF
Luis Castillo 2B
David Wright 3B
Gary Sheffield LF
Fernando Tatis 1B
Fernando Martinez RF
Omir Santos C
Ramon Martinez SS
Livan Hernandez P
The Mets top prospect Fernando Martinez makes his much ballyhooed debut in the Major Leagues tonight as the Mets take on the Washington Nationals at Citi Field. Jerry Manuel wasted no time in inserting Martinez into the lineup in the six hole.
Martinez has been tearing through the Minors where he’s batting .291 (48-165) with 22 runs scored, 15 doubles, two triples, eight home runs and 28 RBI through his first 42 games of the season. When you take into account only the games he’s played in May, his average goes up to .337.
Carlos Beltran is sitting out the rest of the series with a bruised knee. The Mets cannot afford to lose Beltran to the disabled list, too. Ryan Church and Jose Reyes were sent to the DL earlier today. Beltran’s offensive production will be sorely missed.
The Mets offense will face Nationals starter and rookie Craig Stammen, who has only pitched on game so far this season. He pitched 6 1/3 innings vs. the Pirates and allowed four runs. However, he threw four perfect innings before being tagged with those runs.
