Hessman plays minor role

Mike Hessman, 33, is easy to root for. He has spent the better part of 15 seasons in the minor leagues, where he was Home Run Hessman with 329 career round trippers. His .231 batting average kept him in the minors, save for brief trials with the Braves and Tigers.

And now, the Mets. Hessman has not made the most of his time here. He is at .147 with one home run and five runs batted in. He has 14 homers in 202 major league at-bats, covering 97 games.

Hessman's reputation has been home run or nothing and it seems that pattern continues. He hit his first big league HR against the Mets (off Mike Stanton) in 2003.  It has taken seven years to hit his 13 more.