Daily Archives: November 15, 2006
The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria has said his team’s 2007 payroll will be in the range of $25 million.
…the buzz from baseball suggests that Marlins LHP Dontrelle Willis can expect to earn roughly $8 million next season through arbitration, while OF Miguel Cabrera can expect to earn close to $4 million…
…at a total of $12 million, it would appear the marlins can meet loria’s mark of $25 million while keeping their two biggest stars…
In a column for USA Today, Bob Nightengale asked Scott Boras, who represents Barry Zito, among others, “to identify baseball’s next great franchise, the one that could dominate the next 10 years.”
Boras’s response…
“The New York Mets will be a juggernaut. They have so much money coming with their new TV deal, they could have the biggest payroll in baseball. They understand what it takes to win.”
…wow, the mets have come a long way with boras since the days of private jets for Alex Rodriguez…
…thanks to jon f for the link, by the way…
In the column, which details the inner-workings of Boras’s lair, and which is worth taking the time to read, the super-agent notes that Zito will be the finest left-handed starter since Steve Carlton, adding, “He will be baseball’s next great ace.”
…oh, man, these negotiations are going to take forever…i am setting the under/over on the number of times i type zito at 200 for this off-season…
For a column at ESPN.com, Jerry Crasnick surveyed 20 general managers, 
assistant GMs, and assorted scouts and personnel for their takes on six noteworthy hot stove topics.
Asked to choose between free-agent LHP Barry Zito and Japanese RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka, 13 of Crasnick’s subjects chose Matsuzaka, while five selected Zito and two were undecided.
Of the following free-agent pitchers, Adam Eaton, Ted Lilly, Gil Meche, Vicente Padilla and Randy Wolf, eight would take Lilly, while six like Padilla, three like Wolf, and only one would choose Meche and Eaton.
Among other questions, Crasnick also collects opinions on where Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds will end up, as well as who out of Pat Burrell, Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodrigiez will get traded.
Bob Klapisch, of the Bergen Record and ESPN.com, talked about a variety of Hot Stove topics in a segment on WFAN this morning.
According to Klapisch, there is a 98 percent chance that Tom Glavine will return to the Mets.
Meanwhile, though the Mets would prefer to bring on free-agent LHP Barry Zito with a four-year deal, if they want him, they will have no choice but to give him five years, since the player’s agent, Scott Boras, is asking for seven.
Due to the complicated and expensive pitching market, Klapisch also believes that the Yankees will eventually have no choice but to make a run at Zito, as well.
However, in a bidding war between the Mets and Yankees, Klapisch feels Zito and Boras will choose the Mets, because a) the pitcher knows he must soon get to the National League, and he will do well in b) a pitcher’s park, like Shea Stadium and Citi Field, and c) alongside his old pitching coach, Rick Peterson.
Klapisch discusses the inevitable fight for Zito between the Mets and Yankees in his latest column for the Bergen Record.
Lastly, though the Mets like Julio Lugo a lot, notes Klapisch, “they’ll probably just get a right-handed platoon,” to join Jose Valentin at second base.
Klapisch also offers comments on the value of Lastings Milledge, preliminary talks between the Mets and Cliff Floyd, and Willie Randolph’s discontent with Alfonso Soriano.
To listen to Klapisch’s entire interview with WFAN, continue to check WFAN.com.
Mets 3B David Wright and Cardinals 1B Albert Pujols are in Bristol, Conn, today filming a ‘This is SportsCenter” commercial for ESPN.
…thanks to, well, you know who you are, for the info…
…if this ad deals with anything other than wright and mr. met stealing albert’s world series ring, i will be disappointed…
A reader in the comments section recently asked the following…
“Is Lastings Milledge playing Winter Ball this year? Last I heard he was still “thinking about it.”
…from what i understand, milledge will not play winter ball at all this off-season, much to the disappointment of the mets…
Joe Girardi has been named the 2006 National League Manager of the Year. The Marlins fired Girardi at the end of the season. He recieved 18 of 32 first-place votes.
…man, florida looks so foolish right now…
Willie Randolph finished second in the voting with eight first-place votes, while Bruce Bochy finished third with five first-place votes.
…fair enough…it’s hard to argue with what girardi accomplished this season, though his team did completly run out of gas…however, through 
much of the summer his team may have been the best in the national league…
…by the way, michael, from the metropolitans, i think it may be time for you to remove the ‘ken oberkfell movement for manager’ section at your blog…
…i mean, willie finished second in the manager of the year, could have won it, actually, and took his team to a game seven of the nlcs in just his second season…he must be doing something right…so, i’m thinking maybe the picture with the giant x over his face may be a bit off-base at this point…
At his blog for Newsday, David Lennon posts the official team release 
announcing the swap of Royce Ring and Heath Bell for Ben Johnson and Jon Adkins, complete with a statement from Mets GM Omar Minaya.
Lennon and Roger Rubin will be at Borders on Wall Street in Manhattan at 1 pm tomorrow signing copies of their book, The Great New York Sports Debate, while meeting fans and talking about Hot Stove baseball.
…i talked with lennon for a metsblog minicast, which you can read about, and listen to, here…
…the buzz from the arizona fall league is that Mets OF Fernando Martinez is making quite a name for himself, with many scouts taking notice of just how talented he is, especially since he is the youngest player in league history…i have heard him compared to a young Alfonso Soriano, i’ve heard references to how ‘the ball sounds different when coming off his bat,’ he’s been referred to as a ‘potential star-in-the-making’ and he’s ‘easily’ the system’s best positional talent at just 18 years old…
…wow…now that’s a stock on the rise, and just in time for the hot stove season when we’re about to mull over the value of Lastings Milledge…go figure…
Playing mostly as a center fielder, in 87 at-bats for the Mesa Solar Sox in the AFL, Martinez hit.253 with two HR and seven RBI, but with 17 strikeouts and just five walks.
However, over his last 69 at-bats hit .304, mostly against pitchers from Double-A and Triple-A.
At FOXSports.com, Ken Rosenthal writes that Martinez, and fellow outfield-prospect Carlos Gomez, might eventually prove to be better than Milledge.
In 431 at-bats at Double-A Binghamton in 2006, Gomez, 21, hit .281 with seven home runs and 24 doubles along with a .350 on base percentage.
Meanwhile, in his latest Rumor Mill at Gotham Baseball, Mark Healey notes that while the Marlins simply ‘like’ Milledge, they ‘love’ Martinez.
…for what it’s worth, in terms of trading Dontrelle Willis, the word from miami is that florida will seek a top-notch, young, major-league ready center fielder, should their ace become available…
Regardless, Healey adds, “Minaya has no intention of including Martinez in any deal for any player.”
…i asked Matt Meyers from Baseball America to offer up a few words regarding Martinez and Gomez…
On Gomez, Meyers says…
“Gomez has exceptional speed, a great arm and is a fantastic defender in center field…Some people believe that power will start to come, and that is typically the last tool to develop so it will be interesting to watch. His command of the strike zone also needs work, but he doesn’t even turn 21 until December.”
On Martinez, he says…
“Martinez is an elite hitting prospect, and the fact that he could compete in the Arizona Fall League at the age of 18 is a testament to that.”
On both, collectivly, he says…
“The Mets don’t have a lot of depth in their system in regards to position prospects, but these are two guys Mets fans can get excited about. They are both young for their levels and have room for improvement, so fans should stay patient.”
…by the way, be sure and be on the look out for meyers’s Mets Prospect Report for Baseball America in Jaunary of next year, as as well as the 2007 Baseball America Prospect Handbook, set to be released in mid-february…
The Mets have traded LHP Royce Ring and RHP Heath Bell to the Padres for RHP Jon Adkins and OF Ben Johnson, reports Ken Rosenthal at FOXSports.com.
…bell is what he is, and while i once thought he could be a pretty good closer, he has shown he is a one-dimensional pitcher who will always excel at triple-a, but struggle in the majors…and ring, while good, was not great…of the two, i had thought ring had a shot with the mets next season, but i guess they thought otherwise…in the end, i will not lose sleep over losing either of these guys…
The 25–year-old Johnson hit .250 in 120 at-bats during 2006 with the Padres, while collecting four HR and 12 RBI along with 14 walks compared to 36 strikeouts. He has played most of his career in left field, but has occasionally played in center and right, as well.
Johnson was ranked as the best athlete and the top outfield prospect for San Diego entering last season by Baseball America.
According to Baseball America…
“Johnson has all the tools to be an everyday outfielder in the big leagues. He has shortened his swing and developed above-average power while improving his grasp of the strike zone. Once a plus-plus runner, he’s now just a tick above-average. He’s a good right fielder with a solid arm.”
Johnson, who did not make San Diego’s post-season roster, missed 22 games last season due to a shoulder injury.
…i’m intrigued…he sounds like Jay Payton, quite honestly, but with a higher ceiling…
Meanwhile, the 29–year-old Adkins was 2–1 with a 3.98 ERA in 55 relief-appearances for the Padres last season, his second full season in the major leagues.
He allowed no runs in 41 of his 55 appearances.
…once again, Omar Minaya dumps two valued pitchers, with limited value to him, for two younger, equally, intriguing players, who he has control over for many years to come…this is becoming his patented move…
