Johan Santana, LHP, starter Sponsor this player for $50/year Santana brings three excellent pitches to the mound. He has a hard fastball in the low-90s which he can spot on both sides of the plate. His changeup is known as one of the best pitches in the game; a soft pitch, floating, then sinking under bats as it reaches the plate. Santana's third pitch is his slider, which gets sharp, late, sweeping action. Santana does not bother to experiment with any other offerings. In 2007, he saw a significant jump in homeruns allowed and seemed to lose a little velocity on his fastball in 2008. However, Johan has been the best starting pitcher in baseball over the last five seasons, and the Mets expect years of success from him. 5/14/09 CSJ *fastball(88-94), change(77-83), slider(80-84)

Francisco Rodriguez, RHP, closer Sponsor this player for $50/year Francisco throws a tough breaking ball and can dominate with it. His fastball has lost some of that old velocity, but 92 mph with some natural cut is still tough to hit. He has begun to mix in more and more changeups to both LHs and RHs. Rodriguez uses an unbelievable amount of tork to deliver all his pitches, and it's all about "showtime". 8/1/09 CSJ *fastball(90-95), curve(76-82), changeup(83-87)

Pedro Feliciano, LHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $25/year Feliciano throws from a very low 3/4 arm angle. This low release point creates dramatic movement on his pitches, making up for his lack of velocity. His fastball flies around 87 MPH with good sinking and running action. Feliciano's bread and butter is his two different breaking balls. He'll throw a tight slider in the low-80s to both LHs and RHs. Then he'll mix in a slower, sweeping breaking pitch that LHs wave pathetically at. Against RHs, Feliciano relies on a good changeup that fades off the plate. This deceptive repertoire has made him a very valuable member of the Mets bullpen over the last few seasons. 8/1/09 CSJ *2-seamer(86-89), slider(81-84), curve(74-77), changeup(74-77)

J.J. Putz, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $45/year Putz throws a dominant fastball. It often sits in the mid-90s and is the only pitch he needs. When necessary, he'll also throw splitters that dive when kept down, or will float to the plate like a changeup when left up. Putz owns a very sharp slider that he throws with more frequency nowadays. His fourth pitch is a slow 12-6 curve. Most famously, he has the best CBSportsline Player News headline ever, (Putz, pitching like one). 5/1/09 CSJ *fastball(91-95), splitter(82-87), slider(83-87), curve(74)

John Maine, RHP, starter Sponsor this player for $40/year Maine changed his approach multiple times during 2008. He always uses good 2-seam and 4-seam fastballs to get ahead of hitters, but it's his secondary pitches that he needs to tinker with. He went from being a fastball/slider pitcher, to a fastball/changeup pitcher, and as of July 2008 he is finally using his entire repertoire in the same game. Maine's changeup tails considerably to his arm side, making it effective away from LHs and inside to RHs. The slider is a very tight pitch that has a tendency to lose bite when he's throwing poorly. Maine has also broken out his old curveball but he's still reworking it. Maine's pitches are difficult to hit and all this sounds great, but Maine still walks too many batters and has trouble finishing hitters off. 5/1/09 CSJ *fastball(89-94), slider(82-87), changeup(82-86), curve(76-77)

Fernando Nieve, RHP, starter Sponsor this player for $10/year The Mets claimed Nieve off of waivers from the Houston Astros. He had shown some promise in the lower minors, but struggled at both the AAA and Major League levels. He has shown the Mets a good arm at times but can be inconsistent with his velocity. He throws the standard four pitches, and comes right after hitters. He's only 26 years old but is already pitching as if he has nothing left to lose. 6/26/09 CSJ *fastball(87-94), changeup(80-86), curve(75-79), slider(80-85)

Eddie Kunz, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $15/year Kunz was the closer for one of Oregon State's national championship teams. Now he's dominating minor league baseball in that same role for the Mets organization. He throws a sinking 2-seamer, a sinking changeup, and a tight slider. 8/14/08 CSJ *fastball(89-95), slider(88-89), changeup(87)

Billy Wagner, LHP, closer Sponsor this player for $45/year Billy Wagner dominates with a fastball and slider. The D-III legend can generate amazing velocity from his small frame. His fastball sits between 93-95mph, seemingly rising at it approaches home plate. His slider is sharp, diving in towards the ankles of RH, and away from LH. Wagner has thrown some changeups in the past, and used it in his first outing of '08, but they are very rare. 4/23/08 CSJ *fastball(92-99), slider(81-86), changeup(87)

Carlos Muniz, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $10/year Muniz is a young pitcher, but so far is acting like a polished veteran. He has low-velocity on his fastball, but works the corners with good command. His slider is tight, and he works it away from RHs. Muniz is mixing in more and more changeups, but still prefers the backdoor breaking ball to LHs over the offspeed pitch. Muniz seems to have already mastered the 'balk move', picking off a runner with it on 4/12. 8/1/08 CSJ *fastball(86-93), slider(80-86), changeup(79-81)

Brandon Knight, RHP, starter Sponsor this player for $10/year Brandon Knight is a career minor leaguer and 2008 Olympian. He throws the standard four pitches; fastball, slider, curve, changeup. His fastball is hard at times, especially early on in games, before losing a few mph as the innings add up. His slider has big downward break and often backs up on him. He also mixes in a slower 12-6 curve. Lastly, Knight throws a few changeups that seem to get some natural cut on him. 3/26/09 CSJ *fastball(88-94), slider(79-85), curve(73-79), changeup(79-81)

Lance Broadway, RHP, starter/reliever Sponsor this player for $10/year Broadway throws an average fastball and some indistinguishable breaking stuff. His slider is brutal, backing up and sitting flat when left up. Lance will also mix in plenty of changeups, a pitch that gets plenty of sink, but that sink seems to be more attributable to the extremely low velocity than it does to Broadway's talent. Broadway was a first round pick out of TCU, and it looks like he knows what he's doing out there. However, unless he finds a few more mph in his arm, he's going to struggle. 9/16/09 CSJ *fastball(85-90), slider(82-85), changeup(76-77)

Elmer Dessens, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $10/year Dessens is the definition of journeyman. He has pitched for nine major league teams now, which doesn't include at least one stint in the Mexican League and a season in Japan. Now he is one of the Mets many four-A players. Dessens throws a moving fastball, a tight slider, a standard curveball, and a splitter. None of his stuff is dominant, but he keeps getting jobs. 9/16/09 CSJ *fastball(88-92), slider(82-86), curve(73-76), splitter(81-83)

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Mike Pelfrey, RHP, starter Sponsor this player for $40/year Pelfrey has been a strange case so far. He has a great arm and his varied fastball appears to be a plus pitch, but he has trouble missing bats. He throws moving 2-seamers around 92 MPH and can pump in a 4-seam fastball at 95 MPH. The 2-seamer really dives when it's thrown low and to his arm side. As a top prospect at Wichita State, he was known as having a hammer of a curveball. Somewhere along the way he lost that pitch, until halfway through the 2008 season, when he started mixing a few in per game. The pitch seems to be back again in 2009, but he's still just tinkering with it. His slider is hard, but fails to get the necessary movement to be a strikeout pitch. His changeup actually looked like it regressed in '08, as Mike began to slow down his motion when he delivered it. Pelfrey's strategy is simple, pound the 2-seamer low in the zone to try and get groundouts and strikeouts. 8/1/09 CSJ *fastball(88-95), slider(83-87), curve(74-80), change(81-85)

Bobby Parnell, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $25/year Parnell is a hard thrower that seems to sling his pitches across his body. His fastball gets some sinking action in the low-90s or can rise up the ladder in the mid-90s. His slider looks fairly standard at this point, but can miss bats after a batter sees multiple fastballs in a row. Parnell has shown a straight changeup as his third pitch. 8/1/09 CSJ *fastball(92-98), slider(84-90), changeup(85-87)

Livan Hernandez, RHP, starter Sponsor this player for $45/year Livan has regressed to a low-80s fastball and slurvy breaking pitches. He starts with his fastball, a pitch that gets some sink and tail, but is very hittable. Then Livan will flip up multiple sliders in the 70s and a curveball that he varies considerably. The curve can be anywhere between 60-70 MPH. Livan's fourth pitch is a changeup that he'll show to LHs. He gives up tons of hits but can pitch deep into ballgames when going well. 8/1/09 CSJ *fastball(82-87), slider(75-81), curve(60-70), changeup(74-78)

Sean Green, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $20/year Green throws from a very low 3/4 arm angle, giving his fastball some good movement down. He has a slow, sweeping curve for his breaking pitch. Green will mix in a sinking changeup as his third pitch. He allows lots of baserunners because his stuff is hittable, but in Seattle he showed a 'knack' for pitching out of trouble. 8/1/09 CSJ *sinker(84-91), curve(72-76), changeup

Jonathan Niese, LHP, starter Sponsor this player for $15/year Niese's signature pitch is his huge curveball. It's a big breaker, dropping from 11-5, and buckles LHs knees. In 2009, Niese has introduced a cutter, and he's using it often. He'll throw it to either side of the plate, to any hitter, but prefers to use it inside on RHs. Jon's fastball is average, getting some decent movement and he seems to do a decent job of working the corners with it. His fourth pitch is his changeup, a pitch that has improved mightily over the last two years. Niese has quickly climbed through the Mets' minor league system, succeeding at every level. 8/1/09 CSJ *fastball(87-93), cutter(86-89), curve(71-75), changeup(80-84)

Brian Stokes, RHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $15/year Stokes throws a fastball/curve/change combination. His fastball is 95 MPH, but very straight and hittable. Stokes seems to have improved his changeup, making it get some drop nowadays. His breaking ball is a loopy curve that he spikes with his index finger. 8/1/09 CSJ *fastball(91-97), curve(78-83), changeup(79-82)

Oliver Perez, LHP, starter Sponsor this player for $40/year Oliver's stuff always looks good, starting with a fastball around 90 MPH from a 3/4 arm angle. Perez varies the velocities on his breaking stuff alot. He uses a sweeping slider between 75-81 MPH to get Ks. When thrown well, the slider will either dive towards the ankles of RHs, or break away from LHs bats. Oliver has a very slow curveball that he started to use in 2007, dropping that pitch in to mix things up. Perez' off-speed pitch is a splitter; a good change of pace that dives under RHs bats. Oliver has begun to use the split-joint more often to keep hitters guessing. Late in 2009, Perez added a cutter to the mix, and he's throwing it about five to ten times per game. Ultimately, Oliver's success will always depend on his suspect command. 8/19/09 CSJ *fastball(87-92), slider(74-81), splitter(78-85), cutter(84-87), curve(63-71)

Tim Redding, RHP, starter Sponsor this player for $15/year Redding survives by mixing his pitches well. He has an average fastball that he tries to spot on the corners. Then he mixes in tight sliders to both sides of the plate, using it much like a cutter inside on LHs. Redding owns a standard curveball and a straight changeup. I noticed a split-finger pitch from Redding in 2008. He'll try to use it as a strikeout pitch once or twice a game. T-Red is also the nephew of Trixie Norton of The Honeymooners. 8/5/09 CSJ *fastball(87-93), slider(80-86), curve(74-77), change(79-83), splitter(83-85)

Nelson Figueroa, RHP, starter/reliever Sponsor this player for $10/year Figueroa, the former Mexican Leaguer, has average velocity but uses a 3/4 arm angle to get movement on his fastball. He has a slow curveball that seems to get good bite despite its low velocity. His slider is a weak offering, but it can be an effective pitch when he backdoors it to LHs. His offspeed pitch is a sinking changeup. Overall, Figueroa appears very underwhelming, but the Brooklyn native has excellent command. 8/5/09 CSJ *fastball(85-91), curve(70-75), slider(79-84), changeup(82-84)

Ken Takahashi, LHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $15/year Takahashi, the 40 year old Japanese rookie, is obviously a smart pitcher. He owns a repertoire that isn't overpowering, but he seems to be one step ahead of hitters. His fastball won't touch 90 MPH and his slider won't duck under many bats. His sinking changeup looks like his best pitch. 5/14/09 CSJ *fastball(84-89), changeup(77-83), slider(75-79), curve(71-72)

Pat Misch, LHP, reliever Sponsor this player for $10/year Misch is a soft-tossing, junk-balling lefty. He throws his fastball in the upper-80s with some movement, and follows it with a sweeping curve and straight changeup. I've noticed Misch begin to throw tight sliders. 6/5/09 CSJ *fastball(85-89), curve(75-79), changeup(78-82), slider(83-85)