Since the New Year, several pitchers were signed to contracts by teams other than the New York Mets. Let’s quickly review them.
13-14 Offseason
Why is Stephen Drew Still Available?
Heading into the the 2013-2014 offseason, the two most sought-after free agent shortstops appeared to be Jhonny Peralta and Stephen Drew. Either player seemed a good match for any team (including the Mets) who looked to add a shortstop.
J.P. Ricciardi: Teams Don’t Build Through the Draft
Last week, Mets special assistant J.P. Ricciardi appeared on WEEI Radio (Boston) to comment on the free agent status of 2013 Red Sox shortstop Stephen Drew. During the interview, Ricciardi mentioned that the Mets were “very happy” with the prospect of heading into 2014 with Ruben Tejada as their shortstop. Some fans may not love … Read more
Meet Jim Duquette and Jeff Nelson, Help Baseball Ireland
Join former Mets GM Jim Duquette and former Yankees reliever Jeff Nelson at Foley’s in NYC on Wednesday, January 8, 2014, at 7 PM for a night to raise funds for baseball programs in Ireland. Money raised will go to travel and shipping expenses for baseball clinics in Ireland. A group of baseball scouts and … Read more
Mets May Not Add To the Bullpen
Have you noticed that the Mets haven’t yet added any veteran big-league arms to the bullpen? There’s a possibility they don’t acquire one significant reliever — though, surely they’ll sign a few pitchers on minor-league deals. What do you think of that?
MetsToday Mailbag: Where Does Carlos Torres Fit?
Opening the MetsToday mailbag, here is an email from reader “Mike W.”:
There’s not been a lot of chatter about the bullpen this off season. We hear more about the rotation and in particular the 5th starter spot. One name left out of the conversation has been Carlos Torres who was a nice surprise for us last year. I personally think he is more
valuable out of the pen as a long man to give us 2-3 innings when a starter gives us less than 6 innings. I would want to limit his exposure to keep him effective. What do you expect from him next season?
Should Mets Bid On Masahiro Tanaka?
For those who celebrate the holiday, Merry Christmas! Hope Santa was good to you. For those who don’t celebrate, Happy Hump Day!
Late last night, the Rakuten Golden Eagles announced that they would post right-handed pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, who went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA last year in the Nippon Professional Baseball League. In 7 pro seasons, the 25-year-old has 53 complete games and 18 shutouts with a 1.10 WHIP. His K/BB rate is 4.5 (8.5 K/9, 1.9 BB/9).
In the new posting system, the highest possible bid is $20M. So in effect, any MLB team that is willing to post $20M can negotiate with Tanaka. If a team posts a bid and fails to sign Tanaka, the team has their bid returned to them. The signing deadline is January 24, 2014.
Will the Mets post up to $20M to enter the sweepstakes? Should they?
Jordany Valdespin Signs with Marlins
In case you missed it, Jordany Valdespin has signed a minor-league contract with the Miami Marlins. He did NOT receive an invitation to spring training, so he’ll presumably begin the year in AAA, with New Orleans. Your reaction, if any?