Collins said he hopes Wright will be ready to play on Frida

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What do Dave Stieb, Tim Wakefield, and Sergio Santos have in common? All three started out as position players, and made the conversion to pitchers. http://www.nflpanthersgearofficial.com/ ... rt-jersey/ . A couple of more players trying to make the switch came to light over the weekend. Both have Blue Jays connections, one direct and one in a more roundabout way. Justin Jackson was drafted as a shortstop by the Blue Jays in 2007. He was a decent fielder with a strong arm who just never came around as a hitter. Over the course of this past year, the Blue Jays convinced him to give pitching a try. Jackson worked 49.2 innings between Lansing in low "A" ball and Dunedin of the Florida State League in high "A" ball. Jackson put together a decent ERA of 3.26 over the two stops. The Jays decided not to put Jackson on the 40-man roster, so he will be available for the Rule 5 Draft next month in Orlando. The organization is gambling that no team will take a chance on claiming a newly minted pitcher with so little experience. The other pitcher-to-be is the younger son of former Blue Jays right fielder Jesse Barfield. Jeremy Barfield is a 25-year-old 65" outfielder in the Oakland As chain. Back in July, the As approached Jeremy about making the switch. He has the arm strength of his father and is a left hander to boot. The As figure its worth a shot, especially in light of the success theyve had with lefty reliever Sean Doolittle. The 27-year-old was drafted in 2007 by the As to be a 1B/OF. However, he had been a standout pitcher through high school and college. During instructional league in 2007, the As converted Doolittle back into a pitcher. In two seasons in the As bullpen, the hard throwing 63" southpaw has pitched so well, Oakland is at least considering making him their closer for 2014. We mentioned Jeremy Barfield. Well, Jesses older son Josh is still playing as well. Once considered a top prospect with San Diego and Cleveland, the 31-year-old finished up last season with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League. Rumours and Deals The Jeff Samardzjia to the Blue Jays rumours picked up a little steam over the weekend. Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago claimed that Alex Anthopoulos was putting together a list of prospects to make an offer for the 28-year-old right-hander. The number mentioned for Samardzjia was three to four prospects and you would have to think a couple of those would need to be Major League ready. Samardzjia has struck out 394 batters over the past two seasons, but at age 28 has never won in double digits with a career record of 29-35 and a 4.19 ERA. He still might be their best option considering the money and length of contract that the likes of Ervin Santana, Matt Garza and Ubaldo Jiminez should be able to command as free agents. Another pitching option came off the board on Sunday. Veteran right-hander Dan Haren, who really wanted to pitch on the West Coast, agreed to a one-year, $10 million deal with the Dodgers. http://www.nflpanthersgearofficial.com/ ... er-jersey/ . The eighth-year point guard played in his 500th career game on Sunday, a 98-93 win over the Orlando Magic. Does he feel like hes played in that many games? "No," he said initially, before reconsidering. http://www.nflpanthersgearofficial.com/ ... on-jersey/ . -- Dee Ford prefers to keep things simple: Play hard and fast, and let others worry about his NFL draft stock.ATLANTA -- Mets manager Terry Collins said Monday there is "zero" thought of placing David Wright on the disabled list even though the third baseman will remain in New York and miss the three-game series with the Braves. Wright, who has a bruised left rotator cuff, had a follow-up examination in New York on Monday. Collins said the exam "went OK." Wright will receive more treatment this week while resting his non-throwing shoulder. Collins said he hopes Wright will be ready to play on Friday, when the Mets open a weekend home series against Texas. "Hes not 1000 per cent so were going to give him a few more days," Collins said. http://www.nflpanthersgearofficial.com/ ... on-jersey/. "Hes going to meet us in New York on Friday and be ready to go then. "I thought it was important to make sure that when he comes back that we dont have issues." Wright was scratched from Friday nights lineup against Pittsburgh and also was held out Saturday and Sunday. He is hitting .277 with six homers and 41 RBIs. The seven-time All-Star had an MRI on Saturday in New York. Rookie Eric Campbell is starting at third base and hitting fourth against the Braves on Monday night. Cheap Jerseys From China ' ' '