Hudson to Twins, Kennedy to Nationals
Gold Glove second baseman Orlando Hudson has signed a one-year deal with the Minnesota Twins, prompting the Nationals to sign Adam Kennedy as their second sacker.
Thus, it appears that Mets fans will endure another year of Luis Castillo at second base.
Yes, there are delusional fans still clinging to the fantasy that the Reds will trade Brandon Phillips for Omir Santos, but I wouldn’t count on it. Castillo is most likely Jose Reyes’ partner at the keystone come Opening Day.
Is it such a terrible thing? Read more
No Physical for JJ Putz
While being interviewed by Chuck Garfien on Comcast Chicago (hat tip to MetsBlog), J.J. Putz admitted that he had bone spur in his elbow long before his trade from the Mariners to the Mets, the Mets were aware of it, and the Mets didn’t put him through a physical prior to making the deal official.
Skimmed from MetsBlog:
“When the trade went down last year, I never really had a physical with the Mets,” Putz told Garfien. “I had the bone spur (in the right elbow). It was discovered the previous year in Seattle, and it never got checked out by any other doctors until I got to spring training.”
According to Putz, the Mets told him not to discuss the injury with reporters, saying:
“I knew that I wasn’t right. I wasn’t healthy. The toughest part was having to face the media and tell them that you feel fine, even though you know there’s something wrong and they don’t want you telling them that you’re banged up.”
Um …
There are so many things wrong with this I don’t know where to start. Why would the Mets knowingly acquire damaged goods, especially knowing the high salary that came with it? Why would they give up so much talent in return?
The answer is simple: season ticket sales. The Mets latched on to the nonsense propogated by the media that the reason they missed the 2008 postseason was due to a terrible cast of characters in the bullpen (rather than the mismanagement of the bullpen, the lack of an extra slugger, piss-poor fundamentals, below-average defense, occasional lackadaisacal effort, or the fact the rotation was absent of a high-quality starter behind Johan Santana). It was easy to blame all the team’s woes — and in particular their second consecutive late-season collapse — on one scapegoat, the bullpen.
Once everyone bought in to the idea that “the Mets bullpen needs a makeover”, the signing of Francisco Rodriguez combined with the trade for Putz was a seemingly simple solution that would propel the Mets back into the postseason. Therefore, the story the Mets sold to prospective season-ticket buyers was: “we’re bringing back the same team, adding two elite relievers, so we’re a lock to make the playoffs — hurry and buy a ticket package lest you get shut out from the glory and celebration in October”.
It didn’t matter that Putz was damaged, and could possibly miss the bulk of the season. As long as the injury was kept secret, people would believe the Mets would have a fantastic bullpen — perhaps the best in all MLB — and therefore would easily trot to “meaningful games in October”.
Why else would a team send seven players to two different teams for a $7M player? Why else would they completely ignore a documented history of chronic elbow problems?
Further, why would a team allow a high-salaried pitcher with a known injury compete in the World Baseball Classic? Perhaps because if they didn’t, people would wonder why — and the injury could be revealed. Or, maybe the plan was to keep fingers crossed in hopes that Putz could stay healthy enough in short spurts to display his 95 MPH a few times — in turn getting Mets fans jazzed up to buy ticket packages in March.
This time, it’s not a conspiracy theory. This time, the Mets really did know something, and kept it from the public, for the sole purpose of ticket sales.
Which makes one wonder about Jason Bay and the various concerns that caused the Red Sox to pull a 4-year contract off the table. Suddenly, we can’t be so sure to believe Bay’s assertion that he’s completely healthy. After hearing this news from Putz, we need to re-examine the detailed, bizarre story written by Rob Bradford of WEEI regarding what happened with Jason Bay and the Red Sox. Perhaps the Red Sox cautious approach was valid. Maybe there is a good reason that the Mets were the only other publicly known bidders for Bay’s services.
After all, the top “scapegoat” for the Mets’ failures in 2009 — after, of course, the injuries — was the lack of homeruns. The Mets’ “story” for prospective 2010 ticket buyers is this: “When healthy, we have a championship club. And now we just added a big-time slugger to hit some homeruns and really annihilate the competition. So hurry up and buy your ticket package lest you miss the glory and celebration in October!”
Sound familiar?
Of course, it doesn’t matter whether Jason Bay has potential injury issues that may creep up as soon as mid-season. All that matters is you phone in your ticket order — NOW. Leave the worrying about what happens after Opening Day to the Mets.
Jason Bay’s Defense on Trial
Enough is enough. If I hear, read, or see one more complaint about Jason Bay’s defense, I’m going to scream.
Since the day after the World Series ended, Jason Bay’s defense has been on trial. His deficiencies in the field have been brightly exposed by every negative stat, scouting report, and fan comment that could be unearthed. According to seemingly hundreds of sources, the Mets would do better to place a stone monument in left field rather than Jason Bay.
We get it, OK? Jason Bay’s “thing” is not defense. Now let’s move on to realistic considerations. Read more
Jason Bay, Beirut, Siberia
Only days before Jason Bay agreed to a deal with the New York Mets, Peter Gammons told listeners of WEEI that Bay would “rather be playing in Beirut than Queens”.
And a day after Bay agreed to play in Queens, Boston Herald columnist David Buckley said
Imagine: Jason Bay now plays for the Siberia Mets.
That’s not all Buckley said. Here’s some more:
The Mets! The fourth most-popular team in New York, trailing the New York Yankees, Staten Island Yankees and Brooklyn Cyclones.
The Mets, a team for which things got so bad last year that general manager Omar Minaya actually blamed a sportswriter after it was announced that club executive Tony “I’ll Take off My Shirt and Fight You” Bernazard had been fired. …
… And now he signs with the Mets, a team with big-market bucks and big-market fans who expect a winner, but a team in desperate need of a good, old-fashioned organizational housecleaning.
Hmm … hard to argue with anything Buckley states, even as a diehard Mets fan. Siberia is pretty cold from what I understand, and the truth can be chilling, eh?
Welcome Back Kevin McReynolds
Not long after Mike Francesa announced that Jason Bay accepted the Mets’ contract offer, I received a phone call from good friend and occasional MetsToday contributing writer John Fitzgerald.
John: “Hey, we should invent the internet while there’s still time.”
Me: “Huh?”
John: “Well, it’s 1987 isn’t it? I mean, didn’t the Mets just sign Kevin McReynolds?”
Well played, Mr. Peanuts.
Indeed, Jason Bay today is not far from Kevin McReynolds circa ‘87. There are some obvious differences — namely, that McReynolds was Read more
Jason Bay To Sign with Mets
It’s not official, but according to Mike Francesa, Jason Bay will sign with the Mets.
Was it just a coincidence that Francesa’s announcement came a day after MetsToday pulled the Mets offer off the table?
Perhaps Omar Minaya will send a thank-you note for saving him a year and another $16M or so.
Comment away …
Jason Bay: No News is Good News?
A blizzard has come and gone, and still Jason keeps the Mets at Bay (bad, I know, but couldn’t resist).
But for Jason Bay, time is running out — quickly. He managed to alienate the team he should be signing with, the Red Sox, and they have moved on by signing Mike Cameron. Four more years in Fenway Park would’ve been ideal for padding his stats for a rare second free agency jackpot at age 35 — because he IS going to be worth $16M+ when he’s 35, isn’t he?
Ah, and that’s why I say “no news is good news”: because we know Read more
How About Miguel Cabrera?
While we wait for Jason Bay to make up his mind about playing in Flushing, we may as well consider other alternatives.
During a “hot stove huddle” a few days ago, a rabid and intelligent Mets fan named “Kevin K” proposed that Omar Minaya make a deal for Miguel Cabrera. The more I think about it, the more it makes a lot of sense.
While many eschew him for his weight issues, sloth-like movements in the field, and questionable effort, there’s one thing about Miguel Cabrera that cannot be dismissed: Read more
Should They Pay Or Just Say No?
This time last year rumors of the Mets’ losses due to Bernie Madoff were cited as a possible reason why the team didn’t make a run for any big-time free agents other than K-Rod. After all, they had more issues other than finding a closer, but watched players such as Manny Ramirez, C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Orlando Hudson, Bobby Abreu, Raul Ibanez, and Derek Lowe sign with other clubs.
This year, Jeff Wilpon promised that the Mets would be aggressive players in the free-agent market, and that Omar Minaya had no specific budget constraints.
Wilpon has plenty of time to make good on that promise, but the early signs suggest that there is indeed a budget, and the top-tier free agent targets likely will go untouched by the Mets.
Bill Madden of the Daily News says the Mets have only $20M to spend this winter, so they’ll focus on “second-tier” free agents. Adam Rubin reports that the Mets are looking at Jose Guillen as a bargain basement alternative to Matt Holliday or Jason Bay (wow, that’s some drop off!). Recent rumblings are that the Mets will look past the high-priced John Lackey and toward less expensive (and less reliable) options such as Joel Pineiro and Randy Wolf. Further, there suddenly is talk that they are considering bringing back Carlos Delgado on an inexpensive, incentive-laden deal.
This could be posturing by the Mets, in order to keep their leverage in negotiations. After all, it wouldn’t make much sense if they publicly announced “hey, the wallet is open, and we’re spending freely this winter!”. Except, that’s basically what Jeff Wilpon said in October.
In the end, I might agree (gasp!) with Wallace Matthews, who believes the “Wilpons should be honest and look toward 2011“. The Mets have several holes to fill this winter, and have almost no trading chips they can afford to let go. That said, the free agent market is the quickest and easiest way to rebuild the roster, and the Mets have the added bonus of having their #1 draft pick protected (if they sign a “Type A” free agent). But Matthews is right on when he says:
The problem is, this year he will be spending thoroughbred money on a crop of dogs.
This year’s free agent class has two top players (Matt Holliday and Jason Bay), one top pitcher (John Lackey), and then everyone else is a few rungs below. Further, it can be argued that Lackey isn’t an “ace”, and is a question mark due to health concerns.
Holliday and Bay would probably get top dollar in any free agent year, though not Teixeira-type money. Lackey likely would not get top dollar if he were a free agent last year; my guess is he’d get something along the lines of a Derek Lowe deal (which is still pretty decent). But the rest of the class is sketchy, and they’ll all benefit from the trickle-down effect of these three “top dogs”.
What do you think? Should the Mets continue their habit of overpaying for talent — even if it’s the only way to build a contender — or is it time to tighten the budget, at the cost of possibly being also-rans in 2010?
10 Free Agency Fears for Mets Fans
Free agents go on the open market today, and with a lack of trading chips, the Mets are expected to dive in deep to fill their multiple holes.
At minimum, they need at least one starting pitcher — maybe two; a catcher; a left fielder; a utility infielder; a LOOGY; a righthanded reliever; and a first baseman (though, that one’s up for argument).
With so many holes to fill and the Mets desperate to erase the 2009 season from memory, fans should fear the following. Read more
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