With only a few weeks before pitchers and catchers report to spring training in Port St. Lucie, the Mets still have some holes to fill.
Conveniently, there are still several free agents available, many of whom have some type of skill or value to offer. Let’s do a quick rundown on the pitchers who are still available and how they might help. Continue reading
While looking again at the trade of Brian Stokes to the Angels to Gary Matthews, Jr., a crazy fact became apparent:
The Angels paid $21.5M for Brian Stokes.
Wow. That pretty much makes him the most monetarily valuable player in baseball, doesn’t it?
I did a bit of research and couldn’t find another player who was acquired for that much dough. The Mike Hampton deal was the only similar salary dump on record, but that one was much more complicated, involving several more players and three teams. In regard to cash deals that involve one player moving to a new team, there doesn’t appear to be anything else comparing to the Angels’ “purchase” of Stokes.
If I missed something, please let me know in the comments. Even if there is a comparable deal, it’s pretty crazy, don’t you agree, that a middle reliever could be worth over $20M ?
Funny, I clearly remember MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn vetoing a deal that had the Yankees purchasing Vida Blue from the A’s for $1M. Kuhn claimed that such cash deals would be “bad for baseball”. One must wonder what he’d think of today’s salary dumps, if he were still alive.
Way, way back at the end of September — and the beginning of the NFL season — I posted some articles regarding rookie Jets coach Rex Ryan.
In the first post, I mentioned that “The Mets Can Learn From the Jets“, with the gist of it being that Rex Ryan came into New York and announced that he “expected” to win IMMEDIATELY.
The subject of the second post was related to the Mets being “soft”, and compared that to Rex Ryan’s edict that the Jets would be “tough”. To reiterate the point of that post:
I’ve brought up Ryan again because he is living proof that the right leadership can completely change the culture and attitude of a professional team — and parlay that into success on the field.
If you remember, the underlying motivation behind these Rex Ryan posts was to compare him to Wally Backman, who eventually found his way back into the Mets’ system. That said, I remain 100% behind the Wally hiring, and believe that if the Mets want to return to the postseason, they will need to make more moves aimed at changing the overall attitude of the organization.
Since the Jets have miraculously found their way to an AFC Championship game, I feel it is relevant to remind everyone of these posts from September — mainly as proof that a sheer change in attitude can vastly impact results.
Here are the two Ryan videos, for those who missed them the first time around:
Buster Olney had some “inside knowledge” to report on Gary Matthews, Jr.
Some of the highlights, for those who are not “Insiders”: Continue reading
From Mike Puma of the New York Post:
According to an industry source, if Carlos Delgado is not re-signed, Fernando Tatis is a strong candidate to rejoin the Mets next season. The organization continues to monitor Delgado’s progress in the Puerto Rican winter league
Let me start by saying I am a huge fan of Fernando Tatis. I love his hustle, love his team-first attitude, love his versatility, love his passion on the field.
However, I also love Chris Woodward, Eric Valent, Joe McEwing, Jay Bell, Bob Bailor, and John Stearns for similar reasons. But that doesn’t mean I want those players on the Mets now.
Further, I’d be OK with Tatis if he were the Continue reading
Art Shamsky has re-launched his offical website, and it’s looking good. Nice to see the internet can properly rekindle Mets history, since the Mets themselves are incapable. Be sure to check it out and “eduMETcate” yourself.
James K at Amazin Avenue likes the idea of Fernando Tatis returning to the Mets. I disagree, and you will read my argument later today.
Andrew Vazzano has posted a poll at TheRopolitans asking who you believe will be the Opening Day centerfielder. Carlos Beltran is not one of the options.
Finally, watch Kerel Cooper’s take on the Gary Matthews trade:
It appears to be a done deal: Jon Heyman has reported on SI.com that the Mets have sent Brian Stokes to the Angels for outfielder Gary Matthews, Jr.
The Mets will be responsible for paying only $2M of the remaining $23M+ left on Little Sarge’s contract.
And this makes sense how?
I know, I know … a few days ago I pointed out the Mets were desperate for a backup outfielder with the ability to play centerfield. But why pay $2M and give up a healthy arm for an aging outfielder with declining skills when you could have easily re-signed either Cory Sullivan or Jeremy Reed to a minor league deal worth less than $1M?
The logic, I suppose, is that Matthews could possibly return to the form that posted 19 HR, .313 AVG, and Gold Glove-like fielding in 2006. Unfortunately, Rudy Jaramillo is not the Mets’ batting coach, the Mets are not moving to the Ballpark at Arlington, and PEDs are still banned in MLB.
Matthews is 35 years old, turning 36 in August. His skills declined so quickly after signing with the Angels that they put his $55M contract on the bench. That didn’t set well with him, and he was so unhappy with the situation, and so affected the Angels clubhouse, that the Angels were willing to eat $22M to make him go away.
Remember now, the Angels were perennial postseason participants. Do you think Matthews is going to be thrilled to be riding the bench for the struggling Mets?
Further, the Mets now have to commit another spot on the 25-man roster to an aging, injury-prone veteran with a guaranteed contract. This small detail is a big deal when a team carries 12 pitchers, and thus has room for only 4 non-catching bench players. Half of those precious spots are now cemented with Matthews and Alex Cora. Not a flexible situation, is it?
Yes, if things don’t work out with Matthews they could simply release him. Another $2M down the drain. Not much on its own, but a few million here, a few million there, eventually adds up.
Maybe I’m overreacting. Perhaps Little Sarge will magically rediscover the athleticism of his (enhanced) youth, transform into an unselfish, team-first ballplayer, and lead the Mets to the playoffs with an All-Star season.
Anything is possible, after all.
Jon Heyman says the Mets are on the verge of acquiring Gary Matthews, Jr. from the Angels, with the Angels paying the majority of the $23M left on his ridiculous contract.
No official word on who is going the other way, but Heyman mentions that the Angels have shown interest in Brian Stokes.
Let’s wait until the whole story is published before we react. Though, my initial gut reaction is that there’s no way this can turn out well for the Mets.
Some of you may recall Matthews’ two-game tenure with the Mets in 2002. That team was, in some ways, eerily similar to the 2010 version.