Daily Archives: November 19, 2006
ESPN 100 out of Chicago is reporting that the Cubs and free-agent OF 
Alfonso Soriano have agreed to an eight-year, $136 million contract, reports ESPN.com.
…wow…and great…the sooner he is off the market, the happier i am…i know the mets have no interest in signing him, but, as a fan who dislikes his style of play with a passion, i am glad to know he will soon be locked up, and not by the mets…
At his blog for ESPN.com, Buster Olney presumes that by acquiring OF Moises Alou, the Mets will no longer make a push to acquire Red Sox OF Manny Ramirez.
…fine…who needs the distraction…
…having alou in this team’s lineup, considering how well he hits left-handed pitching, makes it the best in the national league, and more than enough to get the job done…it’ll be well-balanced, quick and patient, and perfect for Shea Stadium…i dig it…
…what’s more, the offense is fine as is…the team needs a bit of an upgrade on the bench, and a player to ride shot-gun with Jose Valentin at second, but that can be dealt with later…with alou on board, Omar Minaya can now set his mind squarely on upgrading the starting rotation…
In the Daily News, Bill Madden writes that the the Mets are prepared to ‘open the vault’ in their pursuit of free-agent LHP Barry Zito.
…zito and his agent, Scott Boras, are said to be seeking a seven-year deal worth roughly $15 million per season…the mets, according to the buzz around new york, see him as being worth around four-years and $10 million per year…odds are, should zito sign in new york, it will be a for a deal similar to what Roy Oswalt signed in houston last season, more like five-years at $15 million…
…the thing that will make this tricky will be if the Rangers or Padres or Dodgers step up and meet boras’s top-dollar asking price…
According to multiple reports, with varying sources, the Mets and free-agent Moises Alou remain close to agreeing on a one-year deal worth as much as $9 million.
The Daily News, SI.com and FOXSports.com note the deal will have an option for 2008.
SI.com notes that Alou turned down a guaranteed two-year deal, from the both the Indians and Rangers, in favor of a one-year deal, plus an option, from the Mets.
…nice…party at shea, everybody…come on over…
Alou, 40, batted .301 with 22 homers and 74 RBIs for San Francisco last season.
More importantly, he hit .349 against left-handed pitching
According to Steve Popper in the Bergen Record, citing a Mets official, the deal could be agreed upon as early as today.
As most all newspapers point out, the acquisition of Alou most certainly marks the end of Cliff Floyd’s time in New York, while putting Lastings Milledge directly on the trading block.
At his blog for the Daily News, Adam Rubin writes, “the next step appears to be trading Lastings Milledge to address starting pitching.”
…read rubin’s post, as he relays a funny story about the mets minor league team locking milledge in a bathroom a few years back…priceless…
At his latest column for SI.com, Jon Heyman notes that the A’s are very interested in signing free-agent OF Barry Bonds.
…i would love to see this guy get bounced from the national league…
Heyman writes: “The buzz at Thursday’s owners meeting in Chicago is that they are about to make a play for him.”
…hey, ‘the buzz at,’ such and such, that’s my line…
…just kidding…
…keep up the great work, jon…you’ve been on fire lately, man, and we all appreciate it…
Heyman also reports on the West Coast’s pursuit of free-agent Jason Schmidt, the negotiations between Boston and Daisuke Matsuzaka, and a long, long list of other interesting hot stove tidbits…
