On the Mets beat

Paul Lo Duca insists that he has moved on since the Mets turned their back on him this winter. But he did admit to being a little disappointed with how the whole matter was handled.

"Any time in your life time that you’re not wanted, it’s tough," Lo Duca said. "I was vocal that I wanted to stay in New York, but with the way that the offseason went, I’m glad I’m not there. I hate to say that, but they went through three guys and I never got a phone call. I wasn’t wanted, obviously. Maybe I wasn’t the first choice to begin with, I sort of landed there [in 2006] when things sort of fell through with the other guys [Benjie Molina and Ramon Hernandez]. Maybe I wasn’t the first choice from the beginning, I saw the writing on the wall I guess."

When told that the Mets suggested that they couldn't accommodate his demands for a three-year deal, Lo Duca flashed some temper.

"Are you kidding me with that?" Lo Duca said. "Seriously. There was never a phone call. The man [Omar Minaya] called my agent and said he was interested in me after they had signed [Yorvit] Torrealba. They had signed Torrealba an hour before that. I don’t want to throw stones and I don’t want to get mixed up in any of this stuff, but it's ridiculous.That’s the bottom line."

Lo Duca, who is coming back from knee surgery, was scheduled to play five innings of a minor-league game today and expects to DH later this week. He also said he should be fine for Opening Day, which neither one of the Mets backstops -- Brian Schneider or Ramon Castro -- can guarantee at the moment.