July 22 -- MEET JOE BLANTON

Joe Blanton joined the Phillies on Saturday in Florida, but he didn't say much. He's a relative stranger to most of his new teammates, having rarely played against them in the minors or majors. And to most of us on the East Coast, who are asleep before most of the Athletics' games end, he's a veritable mystery.

But spend two minutes with Blanton and his country roots (he grew up in Kentucky and lives in Tennessee) come through. He's soft-spoken, with a low, deep voices that barely carries beyond his locker. He's built like Babe Ruth, and he even pulls up his socks just like the Bambino, too. And He isn't much for pop culture. In a piece for the Athletics game program, he admitted that he's never heard of Johnny Drama, and the other day in Florida, he confessed that he doesn't watch much television.

So, to get a better understanding of Blanton, we went in search of someone who knows him well. Luckily, the Marlins have recently recalled catcher John Baker, Blanton's catcher for three seasons in the minors and close friend. So, John, what's your most amusing story about Blanton?

"We used to always walk in the locker room and go, 'Shut up, Joe' because he'd never say anything," Baker said.

Really? That's it.

"We went out for dinner [Saturday] night, and he wanted to go for sushi," Baker continued. "He used to be a chicken-and-steak guy. I was like, 'You like sushi now? When did that happen?'" (Living in the Bay Area, Blanton said he couldn't avoid the raw fish).

But Baker also said Blanton is a pretty good pitcher. His first test will come in a pressure-packed environment tonight at Shea Stadium.

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If the Mets win the NL East, David Wright knows exactly when their resurgence began.

OK, time to head to New York. More later from Shea.