Results tagged ‘ offseason ’
What Really Grinds My Gears
You know what really grinds my gears?
It annoys me how there are still so many free agents left on the market for anyone to pick up for practically nothing, and Omar Minaya has the nerve to say that he is not going to make any more big moves this offseason.
Another thing that bugs me is that Omar Minaya is spending millions of dollars signing nobodies when he could instead use the money to sign Adam Dunn or Orlando Hudson.
Hey, did you know that Ben Sheets is going to need surgery, so nobody wants him anymore? It’s too bad that Omar Minaya isn’t going to sign him, at this point he might even come as cheap as a nobody.
Also, it really annoys me how all the fans want Manny Ramirez, and Jerry Manuel wants Manny Ramirez, and David Wright wants Manny Ramirez, and the lineup needs Manny Ramirez, yet Omar Minaya wants to be done and Fred and Jeff Wilpon don’t want to pay for him. Even though they are going to sign him anyway and go, “I was just kidding! Dee dee dee!”
Lastly, I hate it how Manny Ramirez is too stupid to accept a great offer when he gets one.
I’m Bobby, the Mets’ Main Man, and that’s what really grinds my gears.
Mets Are Not Active Enough
Trevor Hoffman signed with the Brewers. The Red Sox inked Rocco Bladelli and John Smoltz (hard to imagine him anywhere else than Atlanta). The Mets are doing nothing. They met with Scott Boras but there are reports that the Mets and Derek Lowe are still far from a deal. I don’t know much about Oliver Perez and his current standing with the Mets but I certainly do not feel that signing him would be a major acquisition, especially because last year proved his infrequency and he is not a solid, proven number 2 starter they need. I have also read that the Mets have made contract offers to Tim Redding and Randy Wolf. I would actually prefer the Mets sign them both than just Oliver Perez. That way, they have 2 veteran pitchers who can both pitch well at the Major League level, and that adds more depth. Right now I can’t see the Mets signing Derek Lowe. The reports are just to negative lately and I don’t think he is going to be willing to lower his price tag as significantly as the Mets would like.
But what the Mets need is a proven veteran starter who is good as either a number 2 or number 3. Derek Lowe is obviously the top priority, but what if they can’t sign him? I think that a lefty would be preferred. Why? If that was the case, the Mets would have 3 lefties in him, Johan Santana, and Jon Niese, and only 2 righties in Mike Pelfrey and John Maine. Because if somebody went down with an injury, it is much, much easier to replace a right handed starter than a left handed starter. I personally like having a rotation with 3 righties and 2 lefties, that way it is nice and balanced. Plus, veteran lefties, while not packing much fastball life, seem to be masters of breaking balls, and injury resistant for the most part of their career, which in this day and age is a major asset.
So why not sign Andy Pettite? He turned down a 1 year $10 million offer from the Yankees because he reportedly wants $16 million. Randy Wolf wants $30 million for 3 years, or so I’ve heard. In my opinion, Pettite is better than Wolf anyway, and assuming the Mets can get him for $14 or 15 million, they might even be able to add in a second year for the same price and Wolf. But if they can only get him a 1 year deal, thats fine too. After all, it helps for this year and gives Jon Niese some time to progress. And don’t forget, we also have Bobby Parnell, and Brad Holt, who is projected as a Mike Pelfrey type pitcher, a fire baller who can be an ace some day.
I also really like the idea of bringing back Tom Glavine for a year or two. He really liked the Mets when he was with us, and now that Smoltz has signed, he doesn’t have to be pressured into retirement so that the trio of them and Greg Maddux can go into the Hall of Fame together. I think the Mets should pursue Glavine, but something tells me he will sign with an American League team so that he can pitch against Smoltz.
And lastly, if the Mets want a lefty reliever, why are they not going after Ken Takahashi? Before the new year, they had some interest in him. But according to this article on NPB Tracker, Takahashi hasn’t seen much of a market for himself.
The Mets Seem Confident
To me, it seems as if the Mets are really trying to make 2009 the year. They were supposed to win it all in 2006, but fell short. We all know how they missed the heavy expectations set last year, and it seems like they are trying to make it all up now. I look back at the Putz trade now, and while I still feel the Mets gave up way too much, I am not as upset about it as I was back then. However, I am still very concerned about the fact that he will be a free agent in 2010, unless the Mets pick up his $8.5 million option, which is pretty high for a set-up man. They better have some plans for the future involving Eddie Kunz if they are okay with that trade, because Joe Smith seemed to be an important, young, developing star in the making.
I have heard that because of the rapid dropping prices of Derek Lowe and Oliver Perez (which has to do with Scott Boras asking for too much initially), the Mets could possibly sign both. Not going to happen, but if these rumors are popping up, then the Mets must feel good in their chances to sign at least one.
And lastly, I’ve heard about some 40 year-old Japanese lefty named Ken Takahashi who used to be a starter, but also has expierence as a closer. I’ve heard the Mets are the frontrunners and he wants to sign by the new year. I say go for it. The Mets have never really gotten any Asian players, and even though this guy is near the end of his career, this offseason belongs to the Mets, and they have to continue to make headlines. Signing this guy will be such a splash with the media, he’ll be some kind of star. Plus he’ll fill the empty role Scott Schoenweis left. And the best part is, since he’s played for more than 10 years, the Mets won’t have to pay a posting fee to the Japanese league.
Happy Holidays
Happy holidays to all my readers, whether you celebrate Hannukah or Christmas or Kwanzaa or something else. My mother is Christian and my father is Jewish, so I’ve always celebrated both. I never went to church or temple or religious school, so the only thing I know about religion is pretty much whatever was in the social studies textbook in school. I don’t really believe in God or worship anybody/anything, so I guess I am an aethiest. But to me, the holidays are about spending time with your family and friends and just being happy. I didn’t really ask for much this year, but I can tell you one thing that will definitely make me happy this holiday season. I want the Hot Stove to heat up again. Ever since the Mets signed K-Rod, it seemed like the Putz trade overshadowed it. Then the Sabathia signing made headlines, and then the Burnett signing overshadowed that. Ever since, there has been really nothing going on. But boy, do I really want something to happen. Mark Teixiera, SIGN ALREADY! I’m pretty surprised the Red Sox haven’t done anything major yet. They always seem to be on top of everything every year, but all they’ve done so far was trade Coco Crisp and sign Junichi Tazawa.
Another thing that will make me happy is for the new year to roll around already. Why? I want the MLB Network to debut. Sure, I’ve gotten the preview channel that launched last week, but all it does is play a continuous loop of things like the Red Sox 2004 World Series Victory movie, and other things from MLB Productions. I’ve watched them all already. I am ready to watch some MLB Tonight.
Anyway, have a happy holiday season. And have a happy new year, too.
UPDATE: Just minutes after this post the Yankees have reportedly signed Teixiera. I guess I got my wish. I’ll blog about that some other time, I am tired of typing after this post.
DOES ANYBODY LISTEN TO ME?!?!?!
Everybody who has read me saying that the Mets should not make a trade raise your hand.
Nobody listens to me. In case you haven’t heard, here’s the story.
In short, it was a 3 team deal, going like this:
Indians Get:
Luis Valbuena
Joe Smith
Mariners Get:
Endy Chavez
Aaron Heilman
Jason Vargas
Mike Carp
Ezekiel Carrera
Maikel Cleto
Franklin Guttierez
Mets Get:
J.J. Putz
Sean Green
Jeremy Reed
In my opinion, this is an absolutely horrible trade. Obviously, I’m excited about getting Putz as a set up man, but honestly, we gave up way too much. We just signed K-Rod, do we really need Putz?
We gave up Endy, the best number 4 outfielder in the entire Major Leagues. I loved him. Everybody did. We will definitely miss his defense, although I’ve heard Reed is also a good defender, and we’ll never forget that amazing catch in game 7 of the 2006 NLCS.
Joe Smith was my favorite reliever. He was the only good reliever in the Mets bullpen last year. He was the perfect guy for New York, I remember watching him on the Subway on Mets Weekly. Plus he’s got an awesome name.
Mike Carp was the future first baseman, after Delgado. He was a great hitter, maybe better than Fernando Martinez, and he’s got lots of potential. I was looking forward to seeing him play.
I will miss Aaron Heilman and I won’t miss him. After all, who could miss that horrible ’08 season? I still think the Mets didn’t give him a fair chance, and I wanted to see him start. He will get that chance however, in Seattle, and he will get a better environment for his personality.
I’ve heard Sean Green is a good ground ball pitcher, which is great to replace Smith, and Reed is a mini Endy Chavez, so its not as bad as I thought. But I still hate the trade. Its like a punch in the gut to see my favorite players gone.
The Mets also picked up Darren O’ Day from the Angels and Rocky Cherry from the Orioles in the Rule 5 Draft, so they could also help replace Joe Smith.
I thought the Mets should have just gotten Huston Street for Heilman and Pedro Feliciano, they’d be giving up a lot less and be getting what they need, a set up man with closer experience.
I hope this turns out to be a good deal. I really don’t like it, I’ll really miss Joe Smith and Endy Chavez the most, but lets see how it works out. I meant to do my next projection today, but this news just shocked me so much, and I won’t do it now because this was a long post and I need to recover from my shock. Maybe it’ll come tomorrow, maybe tonight, I don’t know, but its coming soon.
Good news though, I finished 93 in the Year’s Top 100 Fan Blogs. Yay! It really surprised me since I came in around June, and since nobody commented much. hint hint
Sabathia Signs With Yankees
C.C. Sabathia has made the hard decision of choosing between home, or money. He chose to sign with the Yankees, because of the final contract adjustments they made. The deal is for 7 years, $161 million with an opt out option after 2011. This is the new largest pitching contract in history, breaking Johan Santana’s contract signed last year. I think he’ll get hurt somewhere along the line, seven years for somebody who pitches as much as him seems like an invitation to the DL. I think he should’ve gone to California with the Dodgers or Giants, where he really wanted to be. Either way, you’ll be making over a hundred million dollars, which I honestly can’t think of what to do with, and you’ll be pitching for a big market team. I’d love to know what he plans to do with that extra $40-60 million he’s getting.
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In response to I Still Love Piazza’s comment:
I see Oliver Perez as signing with the Mets, as I’ve previosuly blogged about here.
Starting Rotation for 2009: 1. Santana 2. Jon Garland 3. Pelfrey 4. Perez 5. Maine
And start blogging again, I miss reading it. :p
I Called It Part 2; Mets Sign K-Rod; My Free Agent Signings
First, today’s transaction.
Gerald Laird to Tigers for 2 pitching prospects in return. Won’t affect Mets at all.
Dodgers sign Casey Blake and Mark Loretta. This just means the Dodgers have less cash to sign some other free agents.
Adam Everett signs with Twins. Big deal.
O’s trade Ramon Hernandez to the Reds for Ryan Freel and prospects.
Mike Lamb signed with the Brewers. This could mean they trade Bill Hall, who I recall the Mets had interest in during the trade deadline.
The Indians signed Kerry Wood. Big deal seeing as the Mets signed K-Rod.
Wait, K-Rod? Yes, its official. Well, official as soon as he passes a physical, but I can’t hold it in until then. This is a huge relief, as the bullpen was the whole reason for the downfall, and in the words of John Kruk, “WE’RE FINALLY GONNA HAVE A CHANCE TO COMPETE WITH THE PHILLIES NEXT SEASON! BRING IT ON!!!!!” We still need a set-up man though, and I predict the Mets will sign Chad Cordero next.
Lastly, here are my prediction for the major signings. If I forget any, let me know, I’ll add it.
Brian Fuentes – Cardinals
AJ Burnett – Yankees
Derek Lowe – Red Sox
CC Sabathia – Dodgers
Trevor Hoffman – Rangers
Randy Wolf – Yankees
Pedro Martinez – Pirates
Chad Cordero – Mets
Adam Dunn – Rays
Jason Giambi – A’s
Manny Ramirez – Dodgers
Orlando Hudson – Giants
Jason Varitek – Red Sox
Bobby Abreu – Astros
Raul Ibanez – Cubs
Mark Teixiera – Angels
If you have any questions as to my reasoning, let me know.
No Trading Allowed
Right now I am reading all the rumors going around the Hot Stove now that the Winter Meetings have started, and let me tell you, I am shaking in my boots. While I am convinced that the Mets are dedicated to signing K-Rod and K-Rod is signing with the Mets, which is the way I like it, I am all too concerned about the Mets’ desire to make a trade involving prospects.
I am all for being aggresive in the Free Agent market. This is New York, we are atop the Major Leagues in terms of highest revenue total. We can afford to spend big money and land the big free agents. What we cannot do, and what every team cannot do, is trade away the farmsystem.
We’ve already messed it up way too much, from the Scott Kazmir deal to Mike Jacobs deal to the Matt Lindstrom deal to the Johan Santana deal. Now its time to start rebuilding. I understand that in New York, that is not allowed and we have to go for it every year, but honestly, that is not the way to go, and honestly, we are not going to win the World Series this year.
I have said before that in order for a team to be successful, there must be a balance between a good farmsystem and good free agent signings. We have done the trading already, and that hasn’t worked, so why are we still going for the stars, who are obviously under too much pressure or something, instead of growing our own stars and teaching them to deal with the spotlight of the Big Apple so they will be ready for it?
I am sick of hearing all the rumors about trading Jon Niese, Robert Parnell, Mike Carp, Nick Evans, anybody. I don’t want them to trade Luis Castillo, and at this point, I am even getting tired of the Heilman rumors. Either do it or don’t do it. The front office needs to give up on trades, and focus on signing quality free agents and building up the farmsystem again.
I Called It
Well what do you know, right after I said here comes an explosion a bunch of moves came the next day.
First the Giants signed reliever Bob Howry. He may have been a nice fit for the Mets now that I think about it, but really they have a suplus of relievers except for a closer. This shouldn’t affect the Mets at all.
Next, the Padres traded shortstop Khalil Greene to the Cardinals for two pitchers to be named. Again, for the few times the Mets play them, it shouldn’t make a difference.
Lastly, the Giants also signed Edgar Renteria to a 2 year deal, which is surprising because with the very small free agent shortstop pool, I was almost positive he would get at least a 3 year deal.
The Winter Meetings start tomorrow. Sabathia will probably sign within a week after they end, and then everyone else. I will certainly be watching the daily Winter Meetings coverage on ESPN 2 at 5:00 PM ET, as I look forward to hearing the familiar voices of the Baseball Tonight crew once more.
Time for the Explosion
If you think it, we are pretty far into the offseason already. Its been more than a month since the World Series ended, and we already know who is in the Free Agent Market. Its December already. That means that soon, everybody is going to start signing, whether its the big names or not. We have this month, but something tells me nobody will sign contracts on Christmas, and then January, when everybody is rushing to hurry up and sign a good deal, and then February, Spring Training.
So I think C.C. Sabathia is definitely going to sign in the next week, with several smaller names going along the way as well. After that, veterans like Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek will probably sign right away, just so they can relax for a while, then get ready for Spring Training and move in with their lives as long as they have baseball. I thikn Mark Teixiera will make a bunch of headlines and change his mind a lot but overall will sign fairly quickly, as he doesn’t seem like the type to make a huge deal of things despite the reported 10 years he commanded. Around this time several smaller big names like Brian Fuentes, Jon Garland, and Orlando Hudson will sign, along with a bunch of other middle and lower level free agents.
Francisco Rodriguez will want lots of money, and he obviously isn’t going to sign right away, and his price will drop. I think he will then keep dragging it out, and be one of the latest signers.
Now, there is one big name missing from here: Manny Ramirez. I think Manny will be Manny 24/7 as soon as the Hot Stove heats up, and he won’t stop until the season starts. He is going to want gigantic money, and more years than anyone is willing to give him. 5 years is a lot for a 36 year old. I honestly have no idea whether he wants to go back to LA, sign with the Yankees, or something in between, but I do know that he is going to drag this thing out as long as possible, and finally sign in the middle of February, right before Spring Training, and he will certainly get the sportswriters mad.
You can expect the Hot Stove to start burning real soon, folks.
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