Mark Prior Off the Market

Another one bites the dust. As many had expected, Mark Prior signed with the San Diego Padres.

We don’t yet know the details, but it’s likely a one-year deal.

It makes a lot of sense from Prior’s point of view. First, he’ll be pitching in a decidedly pitcher’s park; second, he’ll be in a nice warm climate; third, he won’t be counted on to be an ace; fourth, he’ll have a fairly good bullpen behind him; and finally, he was born and raised in San Diego and continues to make his home there.

Based on all the above, there was little to no chance of the Mets getting Prior if the Padres showed just a whiff of interest. And they did. You can’t argue with geography, and in this case it was all about location, location, location. On the other hand, this could be a blessing in disguise for the Mets, as there’s a chance he won’t ever come back from his arm issues — his mechanical flaws are yet to be corrected, and until/unless there are, he may continue to be chronically injured. Or am I justifying Omar Minaya’s fear of rolling the dice?

Looks like there may be some calls to Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon this week.