According to ESPN-NY’s Adam Rubin, the Mets are on the verge of announcing the signing of Willie Harris to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training.

The 32-year-old Harris has been a thorn in the side of Mets fans for his dramatic outfield catches in late innings against the Mets over the past few years. Otherwise, though, there isn’t much to say about Harris, who hit .183 for the Nationals last year and is a career .239 hitter. He’s an average to slightly above-average corner outfielder, and average defensively in center. He can also play second base adequately, and fill in at short and third in a pinch. Once a speedster, he’s still faster than average and won’t make many mistakes on the basepaths.

It’s good to have him around for depth, particularly considering the injury histories of Carlos Beltran and Angel Pagan, but I’m not sure Harris is any better overall than Jason Pridie. I suspect Harris’ MLB experience is valued by the Mets braintrust, as well as his ability to play second base. Similar to Harris is Russ Adams, who also hits from the left side but is primarily a middle infielder who can play some outfield when needed (whereas Harris is primarily an outfielder who can play some infield when needed).

I know this is strictly a depth acquisition, but if the Mets are going to be insistent upon having an experienced MLBer competing for the fourth outfielder spot, I’d be more excited about a return to New York by Lastings Milledge or Ryan Church, or the signing of Andruw Jones. Though, I’m sure none of those three make sense for one reason or another — even if all three can play centerfield as well or better than Harris and almost certainly will provide more offense. Most likely, it’s a money thing, in which case, I wonder if Delwyn Young is on the Mets radar? Young is a 28-year-old switch-hitter who, like Willie Harris, is an outfielder who can also play second base adequately. Young doesn’t have much (if any) experience in center field, but is pretty much the same player as Harris — except four years younger.

You may be wondering why I even care to quibble over the differences between Willie Harris and Delwyn Young but this is how the Mets fans’ winter is going … so, please, don’t shoot the messenger.

If nothing else, Harris has always been a fan favorite in his previous big league stops. You can read a very nice interview with him on MLBlogs. Harris may not be a tremendous performer, but he’s hard not to like. Nothing wrong with this signing, but nothing exciting about it, either.

Seems that everyone in baseball is getting involved in the excitement of the annual trade deadline … heck, even the Pittsburgh Pirates are wheeling and dealing.

This morning, the Bucs sent Ryan Church (remember him?), Bobby Crosby, and D.J. Carrasco to Arizona (well, technically, they’re being “sent” to New York from St. Louis) in return for Chris Snyder and a minor leaguer.

Seems like an unusual trade for both sides — how often do you see two “sellers” hook up to make a deadline deal? The Pirates get a talented catcher who has been saddled with chronic back issues to add to a stable of backstops that already includes Jason Jaramillo and the similarly injury-prone Ryan Doumit. Doumit recently was placed on the DL with a mild concussion.

Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks get three over-30 veterans who are unlikely to be with the club next season. Both Church and Crosby have been terrible offensively in limited action with the Bucs, but Carrasco has been more than passable in a middle-relief role, sporting a 3.88 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, and 45 Ks / 22 BB in 56 IP.

Over the winter, I suggested that Crosby would’ve been a more efficient idea to be the utilityman than Alex Cora, and advocated him again when Jose Reyes went down. Despite the .220 average he’s posted with the Pirates, I stand by my original thoughts. Why? Because his monetary cost is half that of Cora and he doesn’t have an option kicking in for 2011. Further, his rancid .595 OPS is still about 60 points better than Cora, he’s shown some HR power in the past, and he can capably play all 4 infield positions. Crosby may not be a future manager some day, but he might have a few more granules of grit.

Not sure why I’m ranting about Bobby Crosby — it’s not like he would’ve made a difference on the 2010 Mets.

Carrasco, on the other hand, might have been a welcome addition to the Mets’ bullpen right now. I realize that the relief corps has been surprisingly good since the All-Star Exhibition, but we will be seeing more performances similar to Raul Valdes‘ last night as the arms get more worn and exposed. I’m a little surprised that the Mets haven’t yet acquired a low-cost, obtainable, usable reliever such as Carrasco. Though, I suppose that’s because Ryota Igarashi and Sean Green will be ready to return any day now (joy!).

Snyder used to be intriguing for his defensive prowess and power potential, but now that he’s closing in on age 30, there isn’t much hope for significant improvement. He could fall into the Rod Barajas category (little value when not slugging homeruns) or possibly sneak up into Miguel Olivo level (some value when not hitting homers).

The Pirates may be in the news again before the day is done, as the names Paul Maholm, Octavio Dotel, and Javier Lopez are being bandied about. Must be fun to be a Bucs fan this time every year.

Forget about the ironic pipe dream of platooning Jeff Francoeur with Ryan Church in right field next year — Church has signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Additionally, you can drop the possibility of Ramon Castro returning to the Mets to bolster their second-string catching depth, since Castro has re-signed with the White Sox.

In other news, the Mets are not the only team scouting Carlos Delgado this winter. The Blue Jays are keeping tabs as well, so a return to Toronto is a possibility for the hobbling slugger. Since some people claim that Delgado is “not moving well”, his best landing spot may be in the AL where he can DH. But, I don’t remember Delgado EVER “moving well”, even when healthy, so take that scouting report with a grain of salt. I’d prefer to hear from someone who has been watching Delgado for the past three years, and is familiar with the fact his feet move like cinderblocks in oatmeal.

Speaking of former Blue Jays, the latest rumor is that Orlando Hudson is being courted by the Washington Nationals. Those Nats are quietly building what could turn out to be a pesky club. If they add O-Hud and one more veteran starter, they might have enough to jump out of the cellar. Color me concerned.

The last update to report is that Bengie Molina has supposedly lowered his contract demand to two years. Surprisingly, his door is still firm on its hinges, with no one racing to break it down. I’m still looking for the team that’s willing to give him more than one year guaranteed.

A quick update on the goings-on in Indianapolis today …

When Jeff Francoeur was acquired from the Braves in return for Ryan Church, the immediate reaction was mixed. On the one hand, the Mets were getting a 25-year-old, high-energy outfielder who regressed for two and a half years after being considered a cornerstone player and future All-Star. On the other hand, they were giving up a right fielder who — as the statheads will confirm — was a better all-around player at the time of the trade. In other words, the Mets were giving away a known, steady quantity in return for a possible flash-in-the-pan — and at that, one that might be sitting on a cold stove.

It was a moderate-risk, high-reward gamble on

A sickening feeling came over me after again looking at this December, 2008 trade:

Mets trade Aaron Heilman, Joe Smith, Endy Chavez, Jason Vargas, Mike Carp, Ezequiel Carrera, and Maikel Cleto in return for J.J. Putz, Jeremy Reed, and Sean Green.

Here’s part one of the analysis:

After having his knee examined, Oliver Perez has been shut down and scheduled for season-ending surgery because of patella tendon tendinosis. No word on whether he will have his head examined.

Johan Santana will have elbow surgery.

J.J. Putz has been shut down for the season, due to new fraying in his elbow near the ulnar collateral ligament and a slight tear in his right forearm. He will NOT have surgery to correct the condition.

No word on Carlos Beltran , Carlos Delgado, John Maine, nor Jose Reyes.

There are others on the DL and/or lost for the season, but I mentioned the above for a specific reason. Can you find the common thread?

If not, I’ll make it plain and simple: in each of the above cases, the player’s original injury was misdiagnosed and/or rehab was mishandled.

In other words, all this talk about the Mets being “unlucky” because of all the major injuries suffered is a bunch of bull. Maybe some of it is luck, but at least half of it is due to incompetence.

Though, I tend not to fault the Mets’ medical staff — I have a hunch they know what they’re doing, and making the proper recommendations. In the end, the doctors and trainers have no control over whether a player goes back on the field or to the disabled list — that decision is made by the front office.

If you’ve been paying attention since spring training, you don’t need me to re-hash each individual case and point out where the team went wrong. And it goes back further than the spring — last year’s handling of Ryan Church and Billy Wagner are the most obvious examples from 2008 (you can put Maine in there as well).

In every case, a player continued to play despite an injury. Now, we know that all athletes have to learn to play with pain, and can often play through injuries without causing further damage. But over the past several years, the Mets have been grossly negligent in the evaluation and assessment of injuries.

We know this because:

– the manager, general manager, and player are rarely ever on the same page in terms of information
– the general manager cannot “remember” serious injuries to vital players
– the manager has admitted to allowing injured players to talk him into letting them on the field
– the team has admitted to hiding injuries and allowing players to continue to play through them
– the team has consistently waited too long to place players on the DL
– cortisone shots have been administered so frequently and easily it has become an industry joke
– more than one player has sought a second opinion from outside doctors, without the team’s recommendation
– Maine, Putz, Reyes, Beltran, Delgado, and Church all experienced failure in the rehab process

The only successful injury rehabilitation in the past year was Billy Wagner’s recovery from Tommy John surgery. Is it any coincidence that Wagner, for the most part, rehabbed on his own, at his home in Virginia?

Yes, there is some luck involved in a player becoming injured, and recovering from injury. But bad luck is not a valid explanation for this level of medical failure. In addition to personnel moves, the Mets need to make sweeping changes in the way they a) prepare and condition their ballplayers; b) evaluate and assess all injuries; and c) make determinations based on the recommendations of their medical staff.

** UPDATE **

David Lennon at Newsday has written a similar, more in-depth piece. Good thing to see the professional journalists are seeing things similarly to the fans and bloggers.

Back in May, before the entire Mets roster went on the disabled list, there were many “stars” in the lineup but only a handful of “gamers” — the type of players who went all-out, all the time, regardless of the score, the opponent, or the condition of their body.

One of those players was Ryan Church.

Or, as Jerry Manuel described him — AFTER he left the Mets:

“You have to be careful into stereotyping individuals. David is a different animal, so to speak. How he is made up is a little different than, say, Ryan Church, in my opinion. That’s not to say that one is better than the other, but they’re different.

With Ryan, there was always something thrown from leftfield – ‘We need to check that.’ That made it somewhat difficult to evaluate that particular situation.”

Um … actually, it IS saying one is better than the other. Further, it’s saying that Ryan Church isn’t as “tough” as David Wright.

Strangely enough, it was Church who was rushed back into service not once but twice after concussion injuries, while the “different animal” known as David Wright was immediately placed on the DL.

To Church’s credit, he acknowledged Manuel’s statement but wouldn’t engage it any further:

“I could read between the lines,” Church said before the Mets-Braves series opener at Citi Field. “It was kind of a cheap shot, but it is what it is. I’m not going to get into a pissing contest. It’s not worth it. I’m here trying to make the playoffs”

Manuel’s response was Minayalike:

“What I was referring to is that he is different from David Wright … I didn’t mean no intent … I just mean they are different individuals”

Huh? “Didn’t mean no intent” ? What in the world does that mean? Ah, heck … moving on …

Now, there has always been buzz that Church was a guy who didn’t play through pain the way some other players do — one rumor is that Frank Robinson hated Church for his reputed “softness”. Regardless of that reputation, it’s unfair for one individual to judge another’s pain — and it’s completely unacceptable to measure one’s toughness when it comes to head / brain injuries.

Maybe Ryan Church was “soft” before he came to New York, but he played as hard as anyone when he was on the field and wearing the orange and blue. His type of animal is welcome in my zoo any day of the week.