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EB from New York sent in the following e-mail…
“The Mets act as though they are a small-market team, while setting attendance records and starting their own network. I can’t understand why the Mets do not take fliers out on players like Jennings, Colon and
Garcia, sign them to two year contracts on the cheap and see if they pan out. If the team is unwilling to spend the resources in prospects, than spend financial resources.”
…as best i can tell, the Mets only have two available spots for their 25–man, Opening-Day Roster…
…however, due to his Rule V Status, if Steve Register proves worthy, he’ll be guaranteed a slot in the bullpen, as well – leaving just one open spot for either a new starting pitcher, another reliever or an extra player for the bench, which only has four players as of now…
…knowing that players like Octavio Dotel, Mark Prior, Kyle Lohse, Carlos Silva, and others, will seek out a guaranteed contract, with some also looking for long-term security as well, it’s just not possible for the Mets to sign them all…additionally, come mid-season when a player in the bullpen is struggling or a valuable pitcher hits the trade market, the team will want a bit of flexibility to make a move, which will be less possible with every guaranteed contract it dishes out…
…so, yes, when it comes to resources, i understand your point…however, it’s not just about resources, it’s also about seats in the dugout, which unfortunately are not infinite – not even for the Yankees, who are considered the richest team in sports…
hey matt,
this comments section is messed up.
How so?
It must not be accepting points.
+10
haha
every time i try to post something longer than a paragraph, it won’t go. then it says i’m duping.
matt, you should comment more in the comments section, i’d like to hear your responses.
He probably won’t because he does’nt want to deal with the aggrivation of typing a looong post only to have it turn into about 3-5 minutes that he can never get back in his life….cough cough
+1,000,000,000,000
ok, at least giving points is working.
Kinda like the Wilpons opening up the purse for Carlos Silva for 4 yrs and $44MM, only to have it turn into 4 years and 44MM that they will never get back…
Obviously, the Mets can’t sign them all, but taking on Prior still seems like a no-brainer. If I’m not mistaken, when he’s on the DL, he doesn’t count towards the 25 man roster. In his case, it’s just money, and I’d agree with EB. Otherwise, they have to be a little bit picky in signing any of the names he mentioned.
Why can’t the Mets sign prior to a huge minor-league contract loaded with incentives? Isn’t that better than a team giving him a smaller major league contract?
Because he’s likely to want a guaranteed Major League contract, and there are a few teams that have the roster space to try it out.
Who spells Delgado at 1st ??? Easley???
yes… or Manderson
ryan church?
sHAWN gREEN
So If I am reading this correctly… We are going into next year with at most one (or two) other players then what we had last year.
No, they already got rid of 6 guys (25%) of the team.
Glavine, Green, Mota, Sele, Milledge and Loduca.
Church, Sneider, Register are new. + 3 holes to fill.
yes, yes.. for some reason I was starting from right now and not including them.. thanks for correcting me
Omar is that you?????? Sounds like Omar speak, “We are very pleased with our team right now.” Which is code for we have no plans of doing anything …………..Wait we are going to raise ticket prices even though we are giving you an inferior product. We lost Glavines 200+ innings we need to replace that. Right now if the season started tomorrow we arn’t even as good as the team that choked last year.
I would love to be able to rip your demoralizing post apart but I can’t because what you say is true… ugh Omar wake the f up
I don’t mean for it to be demoralizing, but Omar’s lack of action is killing me!
me too.. I don’t want Omar to do something for the sake of doing something but some hope would be nice. Church and Schneider does not do that. We replace Milledge with an older, slower, more experienced Milledge who for this year alone my be an upgrade and replaced Lo Duca with better defense and not as much offense (yes he has a better OBP). We have lost pitching (albeit mediocre) in Glavine but replaced him with no one and the only bullpen help we’ve gotten is a minor leaguer with a BAA of .278 in AA. I am not saying that he will not help because the bullpen is a puzzle from year to year and this may be the year for him IDK.
He would say that either way, I would hope, so the price of whatever he plans to do doesn’t go up.
Even a better reason to go after a guy like Prior. He isn’t supposed to be ready until about June 1 anyway, so they sign him and he goes on the 60 day DL, thereby not taking up a roster spot.
Besides, the 25 man is only an issue on opening day. Body count tends to sort itself out in ST. A couple of injuries, and they will be wishing they had more players, not fewer!
If the signings work out and it creates a log jam, that is a good thing. It means you have more quality guys deserving a spot then you have spots.
So, someone with options goes down, the most marginal guy gets cut, or ideally, you trade off some excess.
It seems that everyone is short pitching. Doesn’t it seem logical then, that if the Mets end up with 7 SPs ready to go, they couldn’t trade 1?
Now, I don’t want to sign all the trash like Livan. But, injury guys that won’t be ready opening day are worth a flyer. Same with a Silva, and to a much lesser extent, Lohse.
Anyone can be traded. Heck, the Phils traded for Lohse last year!
Signing Prior though could be a huge coup for Omar if his arm is finally fixed and he comes close to realizing his potential.
Right now, I would actually be fine if the signed Silva and Prior, and pretty much kept all the prospects. If a few things break right, 2008 will be fine, and they will be loaded for 2009 (for the team and trades).
They are going to need a lot of tradable chips next off season to fill holes. best to hang onto the ones they have and let them develop.
“Right now, I would actually be fine if the signed Silva and Prior, and pretty much kept all the prospects.”
AGREED. I wish Omar would make both of these moves now (before both are gone).
Yup. And best of all, if Santana or Bedard ends up falling into his lap, he can still grab them.
Right now, they seem like the only 2 logical moves (pending the Twins actually doing something).
Best of all, Silva and Prior are 28 and 27, so prime ages for pitchers. Unlike Livan and Colon who are way on the downside.
since you mention prior. im curious if he could ever be slotted in the bullpen as a closer somewhere down the road like the cubs wanted to do with kerry woods? or is that just too much to ask considering the arm issues.
Listen some people like Omar’s moves this year ….but , am I missing something?? Is’nt his job on the line this season? If it is , he certainly is not acting like it….If he held Fmart out ot the Twins deal to get Santana…maybe he has a job lined up after he gets canned??? I just dont get a sence of urgency , and yes I know its only December…but, its like Deja Vu , with the collpase . everyday we kept saying we were still in 1st..until BAM…not in 1st ….now were saying its only December, until BAMM!! Spring training w/Pelf,Humber,Mulvey battling for the 4th and 5th spot(once Elduque goes down…..ohh my.
collapse*
Isn’t Pelfrey/Humber/Mulvey battling for the 5th spot a good thing?
Not if we had to trade Millz becuase we couldnt afford to rely on him to help us win the pennant…but we can rely on them?? WTF??!!
Please explain why Omar should have a sense of urgency on players that are not being signed by other teams either. I see the Mets have been asking about every player available basically, which to me says he is doing more than other owners on these players. The ones that already signed didn’t seem like good fits.
You can’t have it both ways. You say you know it’s only December, yet he should be overpaying for deals TODAY because you are afraid that he will lose out, based solely on your memory of how the collapse felt.
Can we please withhold judgements on how Omar handled the free agents that are still free agents, and the players available in trades that aren’t traded yet, until the dust settles and he makes whatever moves he is going to make?
Matt,
I think the team needs a right handed veteran bat Mench or Miles. A fifth starter- Jennings and a quality reliever -Dotel.
That means they may need to make some tough decisions on other players. But adding just one guy to the same team, even if Church is an up grade and Schiender lowers the staff ERAs is a asking for the same results.
are you talking about aaron miles? he is 5′2″ for crying out loud. we have easley and castro. i personally do not like gotay and would unload him. he hit some early in the year but he is not a good hitter. he is slow handed and error-prone in the field. and he gets caught stealing a lot.
Thank you for your support among the record 3.85 million Mets fans who came out to Shea Stadium in 2007. Our entire organization looks forward to a return to championship excitement as we approach our final year at Shea in 2008, and we hope you will be part of it.
Omar and our baseball staff are aggressively exploring every opportunity to improve the team – through trades, free agent signings, or player development. Our Ownership is committed to provide the resources to build upon the nucleus of our ballclub – All-Stars Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes, and David Wright; and a pitching staff anchored by Pedro Martinez, “El Duque,” 15-game winners John Maine and Oliver Perez, and All-Star closer Billy Wagner.
We all hope to conclude our year-long salute to Shea in 2008 with a Championship celebration. Throughout the season, we will commemorate the history of the ballpark with unique promotions, special events and return visits by many of your favorite Mets.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH LMAO!
Not to mention that signing them to a guaranteed contract puts them on the 40 man roster and knocks someone else off with the chance of losing him. Didnt someone say the name “Jesus Flores”?
just please do something so I know you are alive Omar.
throw a El Presidente bottle out your office window ar Shea!
Met’s Hot Stove HAHA, should be called easy bake oven.
That is an istant CLASSIC right there!
Ouch!
So, we got OP and Maine and question marks.
World Series?
World Series?
What World Series?
The only way these guys get to a World Series is to buy a ticket!
Reminiscent of Jim Mora’s “playoffs” tirade…
thank you
i don’t consider pedro a ? he pitched fine last year. he will be stornger next year. i have no reason to believe that a stronger shoulder will break down in the first year.
Pedro stops being a question mark when he’s 11 and 4 at the all-star break.
So when he, OP and Maine have over 10 wins heading into August, can we stop hearing about how “Omar never does anything?”
Fire Isiah!!!
fire isiah!! fire isiah!
can anyone take me a knicks game? wearing my steve francis jersey and starbury women sneaker-shoes. i love new york.
First of all:
Steve Francis jersey: nuff said.
Starbury sneakers: who came up with the name Starbury for him? Don’t you have to be a good player to get a nickname?
Lastly,
Fire Isiah!
How about Step On Marbury?? …..
haha, well i actually found the francis jersey at marshall’s for like 5 dollars, so I HAD to get it. haha, so much fun.
Yeah, I don’t get Starbury (step on marbury is much better) – but the sneaker-shoes are adorable.
Tina can you pitch?? lol
I’m a girl, I don’t pitch!
How bout some “Fire Willie” or better yet, “Fire Omar” chants come June and the team is looking up at Philly and Atlanta with nothing to show from the offseason excep a church, a register, and a catcher.
A church, a register, and a catcher walk into a bar………
Let’s not go crazy with a Fire Omar and Fire Willie chant just yet. Although, those guys are very lucky that Isiah still has a job.
Once again, I ask you this. How does a guy lose an $11MM lawsuit (sexual harassment nonetheless) and keep his job, regardless of how bogus the suit was?
So before you go on this Fire Willie and Fire Omar tirade,
a) let them prove they can’t win here (they have had 3 winning seasons); and
b) remember that nobody is running around with m-80’s, spray bottles of bleach, threatening to “…show you the Bronx…”, or harassing someone at the workplace.
Sorry, but failing to make the postseason for consecutive seasons when you are the odds on favorite, is not winning. If you want to judge by +.500 season, then you don’t understand the concept of winning.
Confucius say team with one big splash much harder to flush than team with many little splashes.
lol clever
With the Mets cash, they can afford to sign Colon, Garcia, and whoever else to a 2 year deal and if they blow up, just release them and they are no longer on the 25 man roster (who cares about 1 million or 2 owed, it’s not our money, at least anymore once I give it to the ticket guy) or trade them to someone for a minor leaguer. But the Mets seem to think as a small town team and don’t want to do this. This team, honestly, blows!! Unless Omar really thinks he can get Sanatana and expects to add $25 million to the payroll so he is holding off on signing other guys, I have no idea what is going on.
But then what do I say to Yanks fans instead of, “…you guys signed Jon Leiber to a 2-yr contract when you knew he was going to miss the 1st year rehabbing!!!”?
Like the players on the 25 man and 40 man roster right now are so valuable. Please, there is som much dead wood in the Met system you could compete with the San Diego fires.
It is time to do something radical, and that doesn’t mean trade for some project pitcher who can’t throw strikes and arm blows out. That is why Omar gets paid, to make the team better.
The Mets’ bench already has five players:
Marlon Anderson
Ramon Castro
Endy Chavez
Damion Easley
Ruben Gotay
In addition, the Mets will carry 12 pitchers most likely. There are two spots up in the air in the bullpen, one if Duaner Sanchez is healthy. That spot will be filled by either Joe Smith or Steven Register if the season began today.
Why can’t people realize that this team IS better? Better than the team that was in first place for approximately 97% of the season last year?
A full season of Castillo at second base (well maybe not FULL season, but close) with a clean knee, makes our lineup better and improves our defense up the middle.
Scheider behind the plate, provides better defense up the middle and improved pitch calling.
Church is a vast improvement in RF defensively and provides a decent bat, certainly an improvement over Green.
Pedro might not be reliable, but he’s certainly still a #1 and an improvement over Glavine.
Duaner Sanchez will hopefully be able to return to form, and Show can start the season healthy.
Sure there are question marks, but show me a team that doesn’t have them?
For the majority of the season, we were a sub .500 team in a weak division. It turns out that April and May were the anomaly. As such, this team is not better. We’ve got back a questionable Pedro and lost a 200IP Glavine. We lost 50 BA points with Schneider, and basically stayed the same in RF. We are not the defending anything.. we are also rans, and if you remember, Atlanta was hot on our trail. This team, had it made the playoffs, would have been swept by the Rockies as well. And the chief rival now to get into the WS is Arizona, who has a 1-2 punch of Webb/Haren. We would lose to them RIGHT NOW going into next year against them. I see nowhere that this team has improved or has a better shot at winning a championship than last year. AND.. if that is the case, why dump your 22yr old prospect that doesn’t help you win now? Abyssmal offseason, just like last year. Get ready for a long one boys (and tina).
The emailer had a good point- and while I’m not imploring the Mets to sign EVERYBODY (aka I’m not saying they should take fliers on 4-5 pitchers and just hope one or two pan out)…but there is no good reason why they couldn’t afford to take a chance on 1 or maybe even 2 guys. For example, with all of the Mets resources and the way they are rolling in money now – why not just blow Prior away with a 2 year deal for 10-15 million? If he stays on the DL for two years, they can afford it- no big deal- they have incredible revenue streams right now that will only increase. So yes, worst case scenario, Prior gives them nothing over these 2 years But the upside is tremendous- and there is no reason a supposed BIG MARKET team like the Mets shouldn’t do this- especially since their rotation is so questionable. Start acting like a big market team for once in your life, Freddie Coupons. This makes a lot more sense than throwing 35 million at g*rbage like Lohse or Silva.
My lord, I actually agree with a FMM post! Although you could have left off the line “start acting…”
It makes me sad.
I still love us, but we need to make a move. A really big move. And getting Kyle Loh-she doesn’t count.
Hopefully Johan won’t be traded and we can throw all the money at the world at him come next off-season.
I may not know what it is like to be a GM, but I know when a GM has a track record of building winning franchises from the bottom up, Omar certainly does not fit that description. Seems like there are other GMs that are capable of identifying quality talent in the draft and through trades. The next can’t miss amateur Omar drafts will be the first.
I agree we don’t have realistic shot at getting Santana. But we do need to get off our butts and sign a free agent. We need a starter.
i just dont get why our chances to get him are that slim. other than the red sox and yankees who is in this thing? not to mention i think minnesota has to trade him bc honestly if they dont their compensation will be on par with if not WORSE than what we got for glavine leaving, is that really all they want. if the sox and yankees are bent on not uping their offers is it really impossible to get him even if we unload the farm? and heilman?
Funny, most people say the farm is stronger at the lower levels, just thin on top.
Anyway, you can’t project the farm 3-4 years out. Those kids are 16-19 now, and a real crapshoot. Plus, there are a couple of more years of drafts and international signings (plus trades) to come.
*in the world
Because 1st the TWINS are going to wait until trading dead line to trade him. That way they have a chance to negotiate an extension.
2nd Omar or Wilpon is not gonna part with that many dead presidents.
3rd No way they give that many years to a pitcher 6 or 7 that it will take, no way.
Because our prospects aren’t good enough for the Twins. People don’t seem to realize the Twins have one of the best farm systems in baseball, they don’t need our second rate prospects. Thats why when they were in talks with the Yankees and Red Sox the names you heard were guys who were basically slam dunks. They had already played and proven there talent translated to the big leagues and could possibly be starting before mid-season. It’s also why with us, according to rumors, it’s Reyes or bust.
They want proven players not developmental ones. The difference between walking away with some sandwich draft picks if Santana walks in free agency, and walking away with prospects who are 2 years away, probably isn’t that big in their minds.
but the twins wont hold him until the deadline bc hes said he will decline any mid year trade. and if it really is money holding up the deal than omar is at no fault for this offseason and its obvious that wilpon doesnt want a winning team. its really sad how fans have to put up with owners that simply dont care about their fans beyond their wallets.