Arbitration Recap
The Mets avoided arbitration with all four of their arbitration-eligible players today, signing each to a 1-year contract.
- RHP Manny Acosta signed for $875,000. He figures to be in the Mets bullpen when Opening Day comes around.
- RHP Mike Pelfrey signed for $5.675MM, roughly the amount most experts expected he would win in arbitration. For better or worse, Pelfrey will be in the starting rotation because he can rack up innings.
- RHP Ramon Ramirez signed a 2.65MM deal. The key piece of the Angel Pagan trade will be the Mets’ seventh or eighth inning arm.
- OF Andres Torres, the other part of the Pagan deal, agrees to a $2.7MM contract. Will he be 2010 Torres or 2011 Torres? Either way, to paraphrase Casey Stengel, you need a center fielder, because without one, there would be a lot of inside-the-park home runs.
The Mets haven’t gone to arbitration with any player since Oliver Perez (*shudder*) was awarded $6.5MM in 2008. Before then, they hadn’t gone to arbitration since 1992, when David Cone was awarded $4.25MM. He was traded that season to the Blue Jays for Jeff Kent and Ryan Thompson.
About the Author
Paul J. Festa is a freelance writer and blogger, and a broadcast technology professional. He's written articles about baseball, golf, technology, and even animal health. He currently resides in Denver, CO, where the Mets will be playing the Rockies on his birthday in 2012.
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Hopefully one of 2 things happen now that Pelfrey is signed: 1- he has a good season pitching in the #4 hole and can be traded at the deadline or 2-he can be traded during spring training. I am not holding out too much hope for either though. I think they should have non-tendered him and signed someone on the cheap $1 mil (Harden, Pinero, Penny or other). If the Mets finances are so bad, I cannot understand signin Pelfrey for nearly $6 mil-he’s just not that good.