Church concussed; Pedro makes progress

Every Mets fan's fear has been confirmed -- Ryan Church indeed suffered a concussion on the final play of Tuesday night's game against the Braves.

Church was taken to a local hospital for evaluation. He could miss the next 10 days.

Church has hands-down been the Mets' best player, but this is his second concussion of the season; he collided with Marlon Anderson in spring training. While there were concerns at the time regarding how he would come out of it, Church responded by playing outstanding baseball for the first 1 1/2 months of the season.

We can only hope he'll come back strong again.

Meanwhile, Pedro is close to returning from his hamstring injury. Although his father's illness has Pedro thinking about retiring at the end of the season, he is on track to be back when the Mets come home from their road trip. He threw well in a simulated game and was set to throw a bullpen session Wednesday before returning to the Dominican Republic to be with his ailing father, who reportedly suffered a medical setback. His father, Pablo, has a form of brain cancer.

If we can get four months out of Pedro and have him replace Vargas, that's a huge boost, not to mention the lift his presence clearly gives the team. And if the Mets can also trade Aaron Heilman, which is also hotly rumored, even better.