Royals Outbid Mets for Jeff Francis

Posted on January 14, 2011 by Joe Janish

If you haven’t yet heard, the Kansas City Royals have signed lefthanded starter Jeff Francis to a one-year, $2M contract, plus incentives.

The deal was reportedly double what his former team, the Colorado Rockies, offered, and apparently more than the Mets offered. That is, assuming the Mets offered anything. But, we’ve heard many times from many sources for many months that the Mets were “interested” in Jeff Francis, so you would have to think that they made some kind of offer at some point. It would be awful to think that the Mets simply think about what players might help their club but never actually discuss terms with their agents.

So, we could safely assume that the Kansas City Royals outbid the Mets for Francis’ services. Is that depressing?

In all seriousness, if indeed the Mets made an offer to Francis, I’m surprised he chose to join the Royals. After posting a 5.00 ERA and looking lackluster in 2010, the crafty lefthander would seem to be looking at 2011 as an opportunity to increase his value for a big contract next winter. Generally speaking, crafty lefthanders don’t increase their value pitching in the Adulterated League — a baseball league that allows a Designated Pinch Hitter to bat for the pitcher. Usually, a soft-tossing lefty would try to avoid such a league, especially one that faces lineups such as those of the Twins, White Sox, and Tigers 18 times each (though, I guess it’s better than signing with the Orioles, and facing the AL East). One would think that someone pitching for his next payday would at minimum choose an NL team, and ideally go to one with a huge “pitchers’ park” such as San Diego or Flushing.

We mentioned Francis a few times before in the past few months, and my personal opinion was lukewarm. I don’t see him being anything better than a back-end starter at this point in his career, mainly because he wasn’t that tremendous before the shoulder surgery, and has lost some velocity since the surgery. So the fact that he signed with the Royals doesn’t bother me all that much; what bothers me is that it seems like Kansas City outbid the Mets, and it didn’t take much money to get Francis’ signature on a contract.

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Mets Sniffing Around Young, Bush

Posted on January 14, 2011 by Joe Janish

Get your mind out of the gutter.

Not sure how you interpreted that headline, but I read at MetsBlog that the Mets are interested in pitchers Chris Young and David Bush.

You already know my stance on Young; despite his intelligence and degree from Princeton, I’m not convinced that a) he’ll be healthy; and b) if healthy, he’ll be all that great. I have also mentioned Bush before, suggesting that he’s unspectacular but is healthy, cheap, takes the ball every five days, and would likely keep D.J. Carrasco in the bullpen and Tobi Stoner in AAA — both of which are good things.

Although both of these hurlers have been discussed here before, this is the first time MetsToday has put Young / Bush on display in the same post. That said, I’m curious to hear your thoughts: do you like Young / Bush? Why or why not?

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | Tagged , | 12 Comments

Mets Sign Taylor Tankersley

Posted on January 14, 2011 by Joe Janish

As you can see by the picture to the left, the Mets have re-signed Dick Tidrow. Tidrow last pitched for the Mets in 1984, sporting a 9.19 ERA through 11 ballgames before being released. We thought it was the end of his career, but he never officially announced his retirement; thus, the Mets, needing a swing man who can start, setup, or provide long relief, signed “Dirt” to a one-year deal.

Wait … that can’t be right, can it? Dick Tidrow must be at least 60 years old … that’s almost as old as Julio Franco for goodness sakes … but it sure LOOKS like him.

Hmm … on closer inspection, I’m mistaken. That’s not Dick Tidrow. It’s Taylor Tankersley — in a Dick Tidrow Halloween costume, I think.

Yes, the Mets have finally made a big splash, inking Tankersley to a minor-league deal that includes an invitation to spring training.

This is a very “smart” signing, in that Tankersley’s father is a nuclear physicist. The Mets new “braintrust” seems to value intelligence — perhaps because two-thirds of the Fantasy Front Office consists of Ivy Leaguers. The Mets also signed high school valedictorian and Duke grad Chris Capuano, and are hot for Princeton alum Chris Young. If nothing else, they’ll have a heckuva crossword puzzle team.

As for whether the Tankersley signing is a “smart” one in baseball terms remains to be seen. The soon-to-be 28 year-old lefthander posted a 7.50 ERA in 27 games for the Marlins last year, after missing a good chunk of 2009 on the DL with an elbow injury. He had surgery on the elbow, but not the Tommy John ligament replacement type; it was the old-fashioned screw-insertion type, to correct a recurring stress fracture. Apparently, he originally suffered the fracture in 2008, but it never healed, so surgery was performed in April of 2009. He resumed throwing in July of ’09, but didn’t pitch in a game again until 2010. Last year he spent the bookends of his season in AAA, striking out 22 in 26 IP, posting a 3.42 ERA and 1.06 WHIP. During his big-league stint from May to mid-August, Tankersley was used exclusively as a LOOGY; he tossed only 12 innings in those 27 appearances, striking out 7, walking 7, and allowing 4 HR. However, all 7 of those strikeouts came against lefthanded hitters; he faced 35 in all, so he struck out 20% of them. This is where the smart guys come in and clean up, you see … in the numbers. The Ivy Leaguers are good with calculators, and they saw that last year’s LOOGY — Pedro Feliciano — struck out 25% of the lefties he faced (35 of 139), but Feliciano wanted 2 years and $8M for that kind of efficiency. In Tankersley, they pay the MLB minimum, for only one year, for similar performance. Kind of. You see, Tankersley’s is a small sample size, and there’s that high walk number. And the one homer given up to every 14 batters (Feliciano allowed one dinger out of the 280 batters he faced).

But, if one looks back to before Tankersley started to suffer elbow issues — to 2006 and 2007 — he put up pretty good numbers. In ’06, he held lefties to a .236 AVG / .695 OPS; in ’07, .179 / .581. So if Tankersley can just get back to where he was four years ago, the Mets will have a lights-out LOOGY.

Stepping away from the numbers, what can you expect from Taylor Tankersley? He’s a bulldog, and always has been, going back to his early days in the minors. This is a great attitude that a manager loves, of course, but it might also have been partly to blame for his elbow injury — he’s so tough that he likely pitched through pain that he shouldn’t have, and may have made his injury worse as a result. Before the surgery and elbow issues, Tankersley hummed his fastball in the high-80s, topping out around 92, and threw a pretty good slider; you might have compared him to Jesse Orosco in his 30s. Last year, after the surgery, he averaged around 85-87, topping out around 89-90, with a less-biting slider; you might have compared him to a Jesse Orosco in his mid-40s. He throws from a low three-quarters arm slot; not quite as low as Feliciano, but actually, closer to where Orosco threw from.

Perhaps most importantly, if both he and Taylor Buchholz can make the team, it will be the first time in Mets history that two pitchers with the first name of “Taylor” will be in the bullpen. The last time the team had two “Taylors” in the bullpen occurred when catcher Hawk Taylor warmed up fireman Ron Taylor in 1967. Hmm … is it just a coincidence that Ron Taylor eventually became DOCTOR Taylor, and was perhaps one of the smartest baseball players of his era?

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Will Luis Castillo Be the Starting Second Baseman?

Posted on January 11, 2011 by Joe Janish

In a recent interview of Sandy Alderson by Adam Rubin at ESPN-NY, Alderson made fairly clear that Luis Castillo either will be the starting second baseman on Opening Day, or he will not be a Met.

From the interview, see this particular exchange:

Rubin:

In terms of second base, Luis Castillo — in addition to Oliver Perez — is a lightning rod for the fan base. If Castillo does not win the second base job, is there another role for him on this team? He does not have a lot of pop, or run-producing ability as a pinch-hitter. And I don’t know that he’s capable of playing multiple positions. Is it kind of second base or bust for him?

Alderson:

“Well, that’s certainly his best role on the team. If he’s going to be on the club, it probably will have to be as the regular second baseman, or somebody who plays quite a bit of the time at second base. He just doesn’t give us enough coverage other places to play a utility role. So I would say he needs to have a role on the team. And I think that’s probably his best and maybe only role — regular duty at second base.”

Unless Castillo puts on the catcher’s gear and starts shagging fly balls, it appears that he has to win the 2B job in order to remain in the orange and blue. And it makes sense, because if he’s not starting, Castillo has very little value. Further, since the Mets are going nowhere, and Castillo has no future, it behooves them to give younger players auditions throughout the year.

Castillo’s competition includes Daniel Murphy, Justin Turner, and Brad Emaus. From Alderson’s comments, it sounds as though they plan to give Ruben Tejada a full year in the minors, so he’s a darkhorse for the position. Additionally, the utility infielder position is Chin-lung Hu‘s to lose.

The thing I wonder about is how the Mets are going to give Castillo, Murphy, Turner, and Emaus enough reps at second base during spring training to make a decision. It would be a challenge if we already knew the defensive capabilities of all four players — because theoretically, you could alternate them in DH roles just to give them at-bats — but the main issue is that no one has any idea if Murphy or Emaus can handle the position, and if Castillo has any range left at all. Ironically, Turner is the closest to a “known entity” in that the club had a good long look at him in Buffalo last year, yet he’s most likely to lose the competition because he still has options remaining. Turner, in 78 games with Buffalo in ’10, and two seasons in the minor previous, he’s proven to be a solid offensive player with good plate discipline and occasional pop, and plays about average defense. Some might project him to be a righthanded Todd Walker, or a Mark Loretta. If he can reach the level of either of those longtime MLBers, he’ll do OK for himself. But it seems like the competition is more about whether Emaus and Murphy can field the position, while also hitting well enough to force the Mets to eat the last $6M of Castillo’s salary.

Here are the possible scenarios: Continue reading →

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | 21 Comments

Mike Piazza and the Steroid Issue

Posted on January 9, 2011 by Joe Janish

If you missed it, loyal MetsToday commenter “Walnutz15” unearthed a New York Times article from 2002 that collected responses from New York baseball players regarding the then-recently published Sports Illustrated story focused on Ken Caminiti and steroids in MLB.

To refresh your memory (or add to it, depending on your age), SI published a controversial story about steroids in baseball (written by Tom Verducci), based primarily on conversations with Caminiti, Jose Canseco, and other admitted steroid users. If you haven’t read it, you should — and you should read it once a year, right around this time, while considering whether certain players from a certain era should or shouldn’t be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Why? Because it paints a very clear picture of what was happening in baseball (MLB, minors, college, and yes, high school) at that time. I can confidently support the article because I speak from personal experience; I played with and against young men who “juiced” — at the high school, college, semipro and pro levels — and I can tell you that at least a few of them went from marginal amateur prospects to #1 draft picks and/or MLB players as a direct result of taking steroids. No, I’m not naming names; but as an example, I watched one individual go from throwing 84 MPH as a high school senior to 97 MPH as a college junior — and not because he hit a natural growth spurt or learned better mechanics. So anyone who claims that steroids can’t artificially improve a baseball player’s skill set, probably has never stepped foot on a regulation baseball field and seen the effects first-hand (and that would account for about 90% of all beat writers/bloggers/broadcasters/pundits and 99% of all BBWAA HOF voters).

Now, back to the NY Times article, which is still compelling as we review it almost ten years later. Among the players quoted — who expressed their anger over Caminiti’s expose and steadfastly denied using steroids themselves — included (among others) Jason Giambi, Mo Vaughn, Mike Stanton, and Mike Piazza. Interesting group, eh?

Just for kicks, let’s look at a few of those quotes. Continue reading →

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | Tagged , , , , | 117 Comments

Chris Carter Signs with Rays

Posted on January 8, 2011 by Joe Janish

In case you haven’t yet heard, “The Animal” has gone south for the winter (and spring) — Chris Carter has signed a minor-league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, who extended an invitation to spring training.

The 28-year-old Carter was non-tendered by the Mets in November. He hit .263 with four home runs and 24 RBI in 100 games for the Mets in 2010, splitting time between right field and left field and coming off the bench as a pinch-hitter.

He was let go by the Mets because the new regime didn’t see him as a sure thing to make the 25-man roster, and because he spent as much he did on it last year, he would have been guaranteed to make at least $200,000 (60% of last year’s salary) even if he were to spend all of 2011 in AAA.

It was a somewhat surprising move by General Anderson and Co., since we assumed they valued players like Carter — who can hit, hit with power, and show an affinity to get on base. But I guess the move came down to saving a few extra dollars for the cash-strapped Wilpons. Hopefully they can pay the peanut vendors at Citi Field come April.

I’ll miss Carter, but once he was non-tendered, the writing was on the wall: the Mets’ future did not include his bat and hard work ethic. It always stunned me that Jerry Manuel had no problem making left field a platoon of Fernando Tatis / Dan Murphy, but avoided at all costs putting Carter in the lineup more than once a month. It also baffled me that Manuel never let Carter hit against lefthanded pitchers, since he tore them up in AAA. On the one hand I’m disappointed to see him go, but on the other, I’m happy for him and hope he gets a legitimate shot to make the Rays.

Considering his defensive deficiencies, one would think that Carter will be looked at in a DH role. However, the Rays already have lefthanded-hitting Matt Joyce penciled into that role. They also have a lefthanded-hitting first baseman in Dan Johnson. Though, Joyce also plays the outfield, and depending on where Ben Zobrist ends up, Carter does have an outside shot at making Tampa Bay’s big-league club. If nothing else, he’s likely to be the first corner man called up if he starts the year in AAA.

Good luck, Animal.

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Would Mets Bid for Albert Pujols?

Posted on January 7, 2011 by Joe Janish

According to the St. Louis Dispatch, the Cardinals have begun discussing a contract extension with Albert Pujols. Per most reports, Pujols wants to get something done before spring training begins, and if nothing gets done before ST, he prefers not to talk contract at all until after the 2011 season — when he has the opportunity to become a free agent.

Though it appears that the Cards and Pujols will indeed get something done before Valentine’s Day, one never knows — as of this moment, his contract ends at the conclusion of the ’11 season. And if Albert Pujols became a free agent, would the Mets be in the bidding? Continue reading →

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | 21 Comments

Brian Bannister Goes to Japan

Posted on January 7, 2011 by Joe Janish

According to a tweet by Ken Rosenthal, former Met Brian Bannister is headed to Japan to pitch for the Yomiuri Giants

Have to agree with Ed at MetsFever: huh?

Granted, Bannister is not nearly as awesome as some Mets fans seem to have believed (as Ed astutely points out in his post), but he’s still a decent, low-cost, #5 NL starter under the age of 30 — which in this day and age, is in demand. Hard to believe he had to cross the Pacific to pitch in 2011.

But, maybe this is entirely his decision. Perhaps he has a genuine interest in experiencing Japanese culture, their way of playing baseball, and sees it as an opportunity either to grow as an individual or improve himself for another shot at MLB.

Posted in 10-11 Offseason | Tagged | 1 Comment