Monthly Archives: October 2007
Yesterday, in a post to his blog, 38 Pitches, free-agent RHP Curt Schilling put the Mets and Phillies among 12 teams he would be interested in signing with, though the Red Sox remain his first choice.
This morning on ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark told the show’s hosts that he would not be surprised to see Schilling sign with the Phillies because a) Schilling would love to be the guy who brings a ring to the first team he ever played for, b) he would benefit from pitching in the National League, and c) Phillies GM Pat Gillick loves to over-pay pitchers in exchange for a one-year contract, which Schilling could certainly accept.
Schilling, 41, is 26–15 with a 3.92 ERA in his last 55 starts, spanning two seasons while pitching for the Red Sox in the American League.
Tagged Phillies |LHP Glendon Rusch missed all of last season due to a blood clot in his lung.
According to his agent, West Coast Sports Management, Rusch will throw a bullpen session for Major League organizations this Friday in hopes of making a comeback.
…good luck, glendon…actually, if nobody picks him up, i’d like to see him give it a go with the Mets again, sort of like when the team brought back Bill Pulsipher a few seasons ago…i love a good comeback story, even though they rarely pan out…
Rusch’s best season was in 2004, when he was 6–2 with a 3.47 ERA in 32 appearances for the Cubs, 16 of which were in relief. However, he was 12–16 with a 5.45 REA over the following two seasons.
…hat tip to MLB Trade Rumors for the link…
RHP David Riske declined his $2.9 million player option with the Royals for 2008 and has declared free agency.
The 31–year-old Riske has made 393 relief appearances during his eight-
year career, during which he has a 3.40 ERA while opponents have hit .231 against him.
He had an ERA below 3.00 last season for the first time since 2003.
…my sense is that he will get offered the standard three-year, $10 million deal that seems to go to his level of pitcher in the open market of late…
…i know there will be people who scream for the Mets to sign him…the thing is, i can’t shake this bad feeling about chasing relievers around the league, hoping they duplicate the previous season’s success, all while locking them in to long-term deals, which the Mets said they were against last off-season, as a justification for not re-signing Chad Bradford, but which they gave to both Guillermo Mota and Scott Schoeneweis…i just don’t trust any one reliever any more, and certainly not enough for more than one season…
…nevertheless, if the Mets are going to dish out yet another long-term contract for a relief pitcher, riske is a good of a choice as any, since he has at least been somewhat consistent over his career…of course, his name contains the word ‘risk,’ so forgive me if i remain cautious…
According to Wallace Matthews, in a great column for Newsday, Scott Boras is aiming his spin on Alex Rodriguez in the direction of the Mets, citing how his client will do wonders for SNY ratings and attendance at Citi Field.
Boras, among other comments, as quoted by Matthews…
“You can’t count Alex against payroll because he pays for himself…This is not a baseball decision, it’s a business decision. The Mets are in a rare situation where they can add a player of Alex’s performance and he doesn’t cost them a thing. To me, this is an easy, easy call.”
…i’d like to see boras run a political campaign one day…he is so good at creating a market for his client, and whipping the team’s fans in to a frenzy…i have spent the better part of two days making posts and linking to words about the Mets and a-rod, none of which are based in fact, and all of which are just rumor and innuendo, yet it keeps happening and will continue to happen…this is not an accident…he is great at using media to spin, disseminate and control the message, all while setting the terms of the discussion…frankly, the way this thing is getting started, i would not be shocked to see a-rod in the White House, instead of playing baseball next season…
According to Peter Abraham, at his blog for the Journal News, Joe Torre is ‘likely’ to bring Larry Bowa, Don Mattingly and Lee Mazzilli on to his coaching staff with the Dodgers.
…i will hate to see lee go, if it happens…it was a rough start for mazz on sny, but he really grew in to the role and i found myself eager to get his opinion after every game, which was always equal-parts passion, honesty and intellect, and his rapport with Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling was always entertaining, as well…nevertheless, he’s a baseball guy, and i’m certain he’s eager to get back in the dugout, and so if he does end up leaving for los angeles, i wish him the best of luck…
According to Mark Hale in the New York Post, the Mets have interest in free-agent C Jorge Posada.
…as they should…i mean, he’s the best catcher on the open market…the problem, however, is that he is rumored to be seeking at least a three-year, $40 million deal, which a) is a lot for a 36–year-old catcher, and which b) is a contract the Yankees have already reportedly offered to him…
In 144 games this past season for the Yankees, Posada hit a career-high .338 with 20 HR, 90 RBI and a .426 OBP.
Posada has played in at least 137 games during each of the last eight seasons.
…i have looked at posada’s stat line a lot so far this off-season, and what keeps sticking out to me is not that he hit a career-high .338 this last season, it’s that he couldn’t crack .277 during each of the previous three years…not that these are shabby numbers, especially for a catcher, it’s just that i worry about him taking a sharp nose-dive, be it physically or statistically, which is realistic given his age and the historical decline of catchers…i guess i am just tired of the Mets signing free agents who are on the back-side of their career…
Meanwhile, during his weekly appearance on SNY’s Daily News Live, FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal told the show’s host that Paul Lo Duca is as good as gone from the Mets.
However, Hale quotes Lo Duca’s agent as saying…
“Omar reached out for us and let us know that the Mets were interested in bringing Paul back. And we’ve had some preliminary discussions, but nothing in substance.”
According to Rosenthal, the Mets will likely look in to free-agent C Yorvit Torrealba, among others.
In yesterday’s Denver Post, Troy E. Renck noted that the Mets and Marlins have interest in the 29–year-old Torrealba, who hit .256 during the World Series for the Rockies.
In 113 games for the Rockies this past season, Torrealba hit .255 with eight home runs and 47 RBI, while striking out 73 times in 396 at-bats.
…as i have said before, though, i still think the Mets will first look in to acquiring a catcher via trade, all while stalling on lo duca and monitoring the availability and interest level of torrealba, as well as posada, who i have no doubt will eventually re-sign with his Yankees, while using the Mets as leverage to get the best deal…
Tagged Paul Lo Duca, Yorvit Torrealba |Yesterday, the Mets held their organizational meetings, which aims to formulate an off-season game plan based on a collection of issues facing their future.
…for what it’s worth, the team is giving no official word from the meeting, simply telling reporters that they are in evaluation mode, essentially flipping over every possible stone in advance of next week’s GM Meetings in orlando – as they should be doing…
As such, in Newsday, David Lennon writes…
“Team officials refuse to say they are officially in the race for Alex Rodriguez, but they won’t declare themselves out, either.”
…like others, the sense i get from people commented to the team is that money will not be the issue…the decision is wrapped around a) does he want to play in new york, b) do the Mets want him from an on-field, in-clubhouse perspective, and c) what do they do with Jose Reyes or David Wright, and what impact will such a move have on their development…
Most reports center around whether or not Wright will switch positions to accommodate Rodriguez,
Yesterday, in a report for the Bergen Record, Bob Klapisch wrote: “Early indicators suggest the Mets are leaning toward a full metal jacket courtship of [Rodriguez], pending David Wright’s blessing.”
According to Klapisch, team officials plan to talk with Wright about the idea of switching positions, though they had yet to do so by Monday night.
Meanwhile, according to Adam Rubin in today’s Daily News, the only message given to Wright from the team so far has been for him to stop commenting publicly about whether he will or will not move positions.
…for what it’s worth, i talked with two independent scouts yesterday, both of whom believe wright will be a disaster at second…however, they each think he’d do quite well at first base due to his quick feet and soft hands, with one scout saying, ‘If Kevin Youklis can do it, Wright can do it.’…
In a post to his blog, 38 Pitches, free-agent RHP Curt Schilling lists the Mets among 12 teams he would be interested in signing with.
…this is wild…first off, schilling has a blog, and is writing to it about who he is interested in playing for, while operating in an open market…i am very eager to see how this all plays out…as for the blog itself, it’s great…in the linked-to post, curt breaks down the process of actually filing for free agency, such as how to fill out the paper work and notify the commisioner’s office…
The Dodgers and Joe Torre have agreed on a three-year deal, according to Pete Abraham’s blog for the Journal News.
Tagged Yankees |During his weekly appearance on SNY’s Daily News Live, 
FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal told the show’s host that Paul Lo Duca is as good as gone from the Mets.
Also, Rosenthal believes Tom Glavine will eventually end up pitching for the Braves next season - and while the Mets may look to re-sign free-agent 2B Luis Castillo, in his opinion, second base will not be a difficult position to fill.
Tagged Paul Lo Duca, Tom Glavine | ← Older postsNewer posts →
