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According to the Daily News, the Mets have expressed 
interest in free-agent LHP Jon Lieber.
Lieber’s agent, as quoted by the Daily News…
“We’ve been in contact with the Mets, but as we sit here today it’d be wrong to suggest something is imminent.”
…as the report suggests, multiple reports during the last week or so have linked the Mets to lieber, Bartolo Colon, Freddie Garcia and Kyle Lohse…
…my sense is that colon leads the list…in fact, from what i can gather, the team has been monitoring him quite closely as he pitches in the Dominican Winter League…although, during the Winter Meetings, there was a lot of buzz connecting the Mets and garcia, who will not be major-league ready until mid-summer…
…if a deal for Joe Blanton or Johan Santana cannot be worked out, meaning Mike Pelfrey, Phil Humber and Kevin Mulvey are all in camp, i have no problem with bringing on a veteran to round out the competition…however, i’m totally against locking in a pitcher like lohse, who may be seeking as much as a four-year deal – whereas colon, garcia and lieber will likely sign for far less of a commitment…
…regarding lieber specifically, like i suggested a few weeks ago with free-agent Josh Towers, i believe he’d do well in Shea Stadium, since he induces a ton of weak pop-ups…
In seven appearances at Citizen’s Bank Park for the Phillies last season, the 37–year-old Lieber had a 5.26 ERA, compared to a 4.19 ERA while pitching seven times on the road.
He missed the final 13 weeks of last season after having a ruptured tendon surgically repaired in his left foot.
According to previous reports, the Royals, Astros and Reds have all expressed interest at various times during this off-season.
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I hope KC lands him. I would love to see them make another splash.
Ah Plan B.. or in this case more like Plan F…
He’s probably the most consistent of the group the Mets are looking at. I wouldnt mind his throw strikes mentality rubbing off on Perez, Pelfrey, et al as he would be a pleasant change from the avoid all contact mentality that was Glavine most times..
Funny you say that about Pelfrey. Now that I think about it, Pelfrey reminds me a lot of him, minus the control. I think Pelfrey is going to be good. Just watch.
If Pelfrey could throw ANYTHING other then a fastball for a strike on a consistent basis.. he would be just fine.
See his Atlanta start.. where he DOMINATED…
But he has never been able to prove that he can do this.. and his lack of growth in this area is why his trade value is what it is….
That’s exactly my point. It isn’t that his stuff isn’t very good. It’s just commanding his pitches. His fastball seems to have so much movement on it. Once he finds himself as a pitcher (he’ll probably be on Kansas City by then), he could be really good.
I just threw up.
Lieber and Towers….yeah that will get it done. Pepsi T shirt launch gun… READY, AIM….FIRE!!! Got to be kidding me…
Maude Flanders, RIP
Remember, No foot longs….
Well, he doesn’t have a history of arm trouble. Not a bad option. One year at 3 mill?
Lieber is the worst option. Id rather have duque in the rotation..
SOMEONE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE KILL ME.
37 and coming off surgery?
pass
-3
wrong!!
37 and coming off surgery = give him the 4th year
“Josh Towers, i believe he’d do well in Shea Stadium, since he induces a ton of weak pop-ups”
Anyone who induces weak pop-ups will do well anywhere. Great analysis!
Especially in Oakland.
Weak popups….memories of Mike Bordick’s time here.
Hey, who knew he’d peak with his first Met ab?
Mike Bordick. The guy was talented. He actually made us weep for the days of a powerful Rey Ordonez bloop single.
Um…Josh Towers? He hasn’t done well anywhere…why now? He is a minor league pitcher at best.
I like Lieber a lot better than the other options, but not near 10 million X 4.
I am still overly optimistic that the Mets will have Santana on their opening day roster. He is proven unlike, Pelfrey, Huber, Mulvery, Gomez and Martinez.
I still believe the Twins told Omar we have a good enough package, but they are still waiting for something better.
You must live in a world of gummy bears, unicorns, and free h0okers that look like pam anderson… Nothing like clinging onto a make believe scenario and wishing so bad for it to be true. I’m guessing your a relig!ous person too…
If they are looking for someone to pitch innings he certainly isn’t the guy. He is rarely able to pitch a full season. Okay, maybe they can give him a shot to compete with Humber/Pelfrey/Mulvey if those guys are still on the team, but at what price?
Lieber isn’t as bad as it seems. He got smoked as a reliever last year and after he was put back in the rotation, he was much much better. I bet his ERA as a starter last year was much better than the overall. He would probably produce just as good as Livan or Silva would, for much less the cost and years.
I don’t disagree with your opinion. But I get the feeling he can’t succeed in NY.
Didn’t Lieber actually do pretty good in NY his first go-round? I remember him out-dueling some guy named Pedro in game 2 of the ‘04 LCS. Then he had basically one bad inning in game 6. Not saying I want the guy at this point in his career, but this is a case where i feel the “can he play in NY” question is moot.
So let me get this straight….
Instead of trading for the best pitcher in baseball who is 29 and has never had any major injuries or surgeries, we are going after a 37 year old who is off an awful and injury-plagued season and recovering from surgeries?
Only the Mets…
Your comment would mean the Mets could get Santana if they wanted, but are choosing to go after Lieber instead. I don’t think it’s that cut and dried.
They could. They’d have to give up a lot but you get what you pay for.
I have a question. How come Josh Fogg is never in the discussion? He did okay at the Lauching Pad.
Probably because he has a career 4.90 ERA and has never thrown 200 innings in his life. Livan is better than Fogg.
get santana and lieber cause we’d probaly have to give up pelf/humber/and mulvey maybe keep one
santana
pedro
maine
perez
lieber
Duque——pen
You are all going to think I’m crazy…. but I love the idea of signing Bartolo Colon, considering our situation. I think Santana isn’t going to happen, and Colon is a former Cy winner. If we sign him for an incentive laden 1 year deal, I think he can really help the team. Don’t mistake me, I would prefer Santana, but if Santana is out of the picture, we should shoot for Colon over Lieber, Garcia, or Lohse.
As long as we don’t have to pay him by the pound
I think its safe to say the Mets aren’t getting any pitcher that is worth the while. How can you even possibly spin Lieber as a positive influence on other guys…throwing strikes, etc. They guy makes the Mets no better. Thats what were looking for here. Improvement, a better team, a stronger team.
Jon Lieber leaves the mets exactly where they are….mediocre.
Their prospects are not highly regarded, and hence….they can’t land any big fish. It really is as simple as that.
This opening day rotation is a ticking time bomb.
And while pitching is obviously our biggest flaw, alot of us, including myself….are starting to overlook this weak offense.
Jose Reyes, David Wright, Carlos Beltran.
I count 3 players out of 8 in the lineup that are capable of being consistant threats at the plate, while remaining healthy (for the most part).
There is absolutely no reason I should believe Alou won’t be out for at least 2 months, Delgado will hit .225 if were lucky, Castillo is injury prone, and I’m not going to put my money on big bopping Church and Shneider.
So I know pitching wins….but this offense is certainly nowhere near what it was 2 years ago.
AMEN. We are the 3rd best team in the NL east and probably the 6th best team in the NL overall… I would actually be shocked if we made the playoffs with the team as it’s currently constructed. The only meaningful game that will be played in Septemeber will be the last game of the season before they tear the ‘ol dumpster down.
Great point. Lat year, I remember telling many people to taper their expectations with regard to Beltran and to expect a year with production somewhere in between his 06 and 07 numbers. I love Chavez, but I tend to believe his numbers in 06 were an aberation. Castillo doesn’t strike out, but he has NO POWER whatsoever. In one of his better seasons (2000), he had only 17 RBIs. While that’s improved, he’s no longer the basestealing threat he once was. Delgado is on the decline…I hope he rebounds, but all indications point elsewhere.
All things being equal, I think Church is a nominal upgrade over Green. Overall, outside of David Wright and Reyes, the line-up is nothing to brag about.
Only as a flyer for the 5th spot if we trade off much of our farm depth for Santana.
I wear a size 10.5 ring. Reserve my 2008 World Series ring, please!
If I have to have a retread, I’d rather have Colon.
Lieber is really not a bad option. He’s old, but he’s been consistently solid throughout his career; he’s recovering from a foot injury, not arm problems; he has a good walk rate and a solid strikeout rate; he’ll benefit from leaving a brutal hitter’s park and being put in front of the Mets’ defense. He’s way better than Kyle Lohse, and he won’t require a long-term contract. Whether or not we get Santana, picking him up as a fifth starter would be a smart move.
Livan has steadily declined for three striaght seasons. What a lousy move. There’s a reason he’s still looking for a job – he’s crispy.
What does Livan Hernandez have to do with my post?
ARE WE ALL SERIOUS? this is an outrage to think that adding these guys can justify two of the worst baseball off seasons ever. i blame us, mets fans for buying into omar and freds desire to be a champion team. once again we the fans get teased while the owner ges his $. anything short of Santana is a joke.
Lill Wilpon gives guys like me a bad name…jeff
Please forget Lieber…he’s way past done. Signing Lieber would be nearly the equivalent of letting Lima, Sele, or Lawrence be your #5 starter.
As for Freddie Garcia, this guy has always been solid, with the exception of his 2nd year in the majors and last season, he’s always managed to log in over 200 innings every season…in the Amercian League.
Garcia in my opinion would make a nice “buy low-high risk-reward” project…assuming he can be had cheap. Perhaps he’s a better bet than Prior.
Bartolo is another “buy low-high risk-reward” player. However, he’s been hurt for two seasons in a row, barely logging in 150 IP in that period. I would think he’s a higher risk since his bread and butter pitch (fastball) has slowed down significantly, thus indicating he’s having continuous arm trouble. However, Pedro now averages 88 MPH and is still effective…go figure.
Leiber was a slick signing for the Yanks in 2003…knowing he would not pitch in 03 because of surgery, they wrapped him up for two years and in 04, he proved effect for them. Fast forward 3-4 years, its safe to say his best years are possibly far behind him.
All things being equal, unless the Mets can land Johan or a similar stud, Garcia-Colon and the kids should vie for the final rotation spot. It can’t be any worse than last year…I hope.
How can you compare Jose Lima or Aaron Sele, who have been awful for most of their careers, to a guy like Lieber, who has had a long and consistently successful career as a 3rd/4th starter?
I’m not making comparisons based on their career numbers, rather I’m comparing them as they are today.
Lieber in the last two season has went:
2006- 9 Wins -11 Losses
2007- 3 Wins – 6 Losses
How do those numbers justify his signing?
As far as Sele/Lima, they weren’t totally awful earlier in their careers…they are awful now.
Sele’s best years:
1997- 13 Wins – 12 Losses
1998- 19 Wins – 11 Losses
1999- 18 Wins – 9 Losses
2000- 17 Wins – 10 Losses
2001- 15 Wins – 5 Losses
If those are awful numbers, then perhaps I’m easy to impress.
Lima won 16 games in 1998, 21 games in 1999 and 13 games in 2004.
The point of my post was not to compare careers, but rather compare them today and what they have to offer. If we go by career numbers, Sele would be the one to go with. Today, all of these pitchers are in the downside of their careers. The MEts can’t sign someone with hopes that they can catch lightning a bottle.
Garcia is the only pitcher who’s not that far removed from his last good year, hence the reason why I said he may be the best bet…assuming his injury has completely healed of course. However, I may be wrong…
If you are seriously evaluating pitchers based primarily on their W-L records….. well, all I can say is, I’m glad you aren’t our GM.
I was going to say something similar. I am not disagreeing with Bronx overall but you can’t compare the most meaningless stat in all of baseball as the basis of your opinion. Wins and losses are more of a team stat.
most meaningless stat for a pitcher.
Dude, no one is evaluating pitchers based on their W-L record. I brought their records to the mix just to dispprove your point.
Aside from W-L records, please tell me how Lieber, based on his last two seasons can help the Mets.
In 06, Lieber pitched 168 innings, gave up 196 hits and ended up with an ERA of 4.93…opposing batting average of .291
In 07, Lieber pitched 78 inning, gave up 91 hits and ended up with an ERA of 4.73….opposing batting average of .293
At this point of his career, he has very little to offer, hence the comparison to other disasterous Met signings who also enjoyed decent careers.
All indications point to Lieber taking up another roster spot that would be better suited for one of the youngsters.
Lieber was pitching in a brutal hitter’s park the last two years. 4.73 isn’t a great ERA anywhere, but at Citizen’s Bank Park, it’s about average–the equivalent of a 4.30 ERA at Shea. If he comes back okay from his foot surgery, there’s no reason to believe he can’t be a solid fifth starter.
Unlike guys like Lohse, Lima, and Sele, whose performance has swung around wildly from “decent” to “AWFUL” during their careers, Lieber has always been consistently decent. A guy like Garcia or Colon or Prior might be a bit better if healthy, but they aren’t going to be healthy.
Okay, we’re getting somewhere…perhaps comparing Lieber to Lima was a stretch, but again its completely hard to justify signing Leiber at age 37-38, coming off surgery, and coming off two very mediocre years. As far as pitching in a horrible park, he pretty much averaged the same numbers both home and away (slightly better away) for the last three years.
Sele’s story was the same. The Mets had no business signing him or considering him as a spot starter. He was actually pretty decent early in his career…I would say more effective than Lieber, yet the Mets made the mistake in signing him. His contribution to the team was negligable. Same goes for Brian Lawrence. Lima was thrown into the mix for dramatical purposes.
The main question here is whether Lieber, based on his most recent performances can positively contribute. Based on his numbers the last two seasons, his age and injury…I don’t believe so. In my opinion, the roster spot is better served for the kids.
Leiber is a decent flyer guy for the fifth spot, meaning a 1 year (or 1 + option) at most. If he doesn’t work out, hey, it’s only money.
Assuming they don’t make a big (ie Santana) deal that wipes out the pitching prospects inthe farm, the 5th starter is basically someone that needs to replace Glavine, keep them in games while “eating innings”, and most improtantly, keep a rotation spot warm until one of the prospects is ready.
If Leiber is healthy and the Mets sign him, I might feel more comfortable with him in the rotation and Pelfrey refining his stuff in AAA (ditto for Humber and Mulvey), or possibly the pen, and being ready to step in when theinevitable Duque injury hits.
It is entirely possible, if the Mets don’t add an “ace”, that they could finish the year with at least 2 or 3 different guys in the rotation than they start with, but in this case, that might be a positive sign!
Do I really have to watch Lieber in a met uniform? Could they just get Colon to lose 30 pounds and give him a shot. Or just do nothing. A negative move isn’t going to make anyone feel better.
http://www.lookoutlanding.com/story/2007/12/19/41228/178
Take a look at that write-up. I found it pretty interesting. It’s a comparison between Carlos Silva and Josh Towers. For all the people knocking down Josh Towers, he might very be a better pitcher than Silva, who was considered the best starting pitcher among the free agent market this offseason. Towers also obviously does not come at the commitment or price that Silva was given by any means.
He’s like 70. Who wants Johan when Jon Lieber is available?!?!
o yeah heres the answer to r pitching problems