Daily Archives: January 30, 2008
In a post to their Braves blog for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, staff editors ask Braves fans to submit their thoughts on the Mets trading for Johan Santana from the Twins.
The first comment, by ‘Notre Don’t,’ reads…
“I hope the Mets also acquire an egg. That way they can put it in their shoe and beat it. Mets stink.”
…i have absolutely no idea what that means…
…i sense he isn’t happy, though…
Hot Foot’s Anthony De Rosa has joined SNY to begin writing 
GiantsFootballBlog.com, a blog about the NFC Championship New York Giants.
…he and i worked together to get the blog to look and function a lot like MetsBlog.com, so you should be very familiar with how it all works…as you know from his work here on MetsBlog and on Hot Foot, anthony is a terrific blogger, he’s a hard worker and i look forward to his coverage of the Giants…
…even though i am a Jets fan…
…sorry, nobody’s perfect…
Tagged SNY |In report today at ESPN.com, Buster Olney writes…
“An official with knowledge of discussions between the Twins’ front office and Johan Santana told 1050 ESPN New York’s Andrew Marchand that when Santana gave the list of teams he was willing to waive his no-trade clause for, the Mets were on top of his list…Santana communicated to the Twins that if he had the option of any team he could go to, the Mets would be his first choice.”
On December 8, in a post to MetsBlog.com titled Buzz: Santana Wants to Be On the Mets, I wrote…
…having talked with a variety of people over the last few days, from what i can gather, santana prefers to be on the Mets, where he can a) be in New York City, and b) get out of the hitter-dominant American League…the Twins are well aware of this, and are willing to accommodate his request, while also trying to maximize the level of talent they get in return…
…for what it’s worth, among the other outstanding insight he brought to the table, ESPN 1050’s Andrew Marchand had been suggesting this on air over the last few weeks as well…
…and so, here’s the thing…
…yesterday, despite what i wrote roughly six weeks ago, along with these ‘more credible sources,’ WFAN’s Mike and Maddog repeatedly insinuated that santana would never want to play for the Mets, adding that he must be disappointed to be going to Queens…they actually reiterated this yesterday, in the moments after the trade was complete…
…it’s one thing to ignore the truth, or not even bother to learn it, it’s another thing to be ignorant and flat-out disrespectful…
…the most absurd part is that, today, you can bet Mike Francesa will come on air and act as though he knew the Mets would get santana all along…bet the farm on it, folks…
For what it’s worth, during a broadcast in early November, the show’s co-host, Chris Russo, said…
“Yankee fans hate me saying it, and so does St. Louis, but, [Boston] is the best baseball town in America…
(However), it’s not the best baseball town in America when the Red Sox aren’t in the mix, St. Louis and the Yankees are. I mean, New York is.”
…well, if that doesn’t speak volumes about how his radio show views the Mets, i’m not sure what does…
…seriously, why does the biggest talk-radio show in New York City feature a San Francisco Giants fan and a Yankees fan…wfan, it’s not 1945…it’s no wonder a majority of the city is loaded with anti-Mets talking points…of course, the Mets do not help themselves with the silly slogans and odd marketing choices, but if the team is as concerned with its identity as i know they are, they should seriously reconsider their relationship with WFAN when it expires after next season - or at least their relationship with the show’s drive-time hosts…
Tagged WFAN |…well, now this is rich……
In a post to the excellent Phillies blog, Beer Leaguer, Jason Weitzel writes the following in 
response to news that the Mets had acquired Johan Santana from the Twins…
“The sounds of our “small splashes” never sounded so small. This is a tidalwave, causing a flood that will submerge the rest of the National League East for six or seven years. Baseball’s best pitcher belongs to the Mets, set to anchor the rotation for years to come while canceling out our best hitters head-to-head…Introducing the winner, and new champion, of the 2008 off-season, and possibly much, more more: Johan Santana and the New York Mets, who’ve stuck it right up the Phillies’ butts.”
…wow…where’s Jimmy Rollins when you need him, jason…by the way, the comments that follow are equally as priceless…
For more reaction out of Philadelphia, check out Jim Salisbury’s report in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
During last night’s edition of SportsNite on SNY, I relayed a bit of fan reaction towards the Mets and Johan Santana, while also pulling two reader’s comments from MetsBlog.com.
To watch, click play below…
…i was either really tired, or the lights were bad, because, wow, i look like death warmed over…i guess the last two months were a lot longer than i realized…jeez…
Also, to watch the Star-Ledger’s Dan Graziano comment on the trade, go to 
.
According to La Velle ‘the real deal’ E. Neal III, in the Star-Tribune, citing ‘sources,’ the Mets are expected to give Johan Santana a six-year deal that would pay him about $130 million.
…now, santana is under contract for this coming year at $13 million – after which he is eligible to be a free agent…nearly every new york-based report has said the Mets will not dish out a contract that guarantees more than five years…yet, the Star-Tribune expects it to be six…
…i wonder if the two sides will rip up this current deal, and start from scratch with a new deal, so the six years technically begins this coming season…i guess we will know soon enough…
By the way, the Star-Tribune also writes the following…
“According to a person familiar with negotiations, Santana and his agent, Peter Greenberg, gave the Twins until the end of the day on Tuesday to get a deal done or Santana would invoke his no-trade clause and remain with the Twins through the 2008 season.”
…nice job, johan…as i kept saying, he was in the driver’s seat all along…he finally forced the issue and it happened…
…oh, and i can’t stop using that 1986 Topps Santana Card i created…i love it…expect to see in every post today…i hope you don’t mind…
…also, for what it’s worth, i created that graphic five days ago, so i would have it ready to go when a deal went down…and, yes, i was so afraid i was jinxing it…phew, to say the least…
In the Bergen Record, Bob Klapisch writes what he believes to be the definitive story on how the Mets ended up getting Johan Santana from the Twins.
By the way, according to Klapisch, the Mets owe a big-fat thank you to the Yankees for stepping aside at the last minute, as he writes about yesterday…
“The Twins called the Yankees and admitted surrender: Phil Hughes was no longer a prerequisite…Instead, the Twins asked for Ian Kennedy, Melky Cabrera and a top prospect. Would the Yankees still be interested, Smith wondered? The Yankees considered the idea, but only briefly and not seriously…The Twins had waited too long…The Red Sox, in lock step with the Yankees, had essentially backed out, too…That left the Mets, who after hearing from Smith didn’t allow themselves to be bluffed.”
…didn’t this same story essentially get written after the Mets signed Pedro Martinez (because the Red Sox passed), and after the Mets got Carlos Beltran (because the Yankees passed)…frankly, i’m not even sure why it matters…
…it’s really amazing to me, though, that even when the Mets do something great, the best they can do is a back-handed compliment from the mainstream press…
For more on Brian Cashman’s generous, wonderful gift to the Mets, check out the New York Post, Daily News and Newsday, in which Ken Davidoff and David Lennon write…
“According to one person familiar with the situation, the talks heated up Monday night and Guerra was not added until yesterday…once Guerra was included, the Mets told the Twins it was their ‘best and final’ offer…If Minnesota had balked again, the Mets were prepared to walk away from Santana, with one team official describing Plan B as Kyle Lohse and Plan C as Livan Hernandez. Fortunately for the Mets, it didn’t come down to that.”
…fortunately…man, you can say that again…
…seriously, had the Mets lost out on santana, especially to the Yankees, then had to sign lohse, there would have been no need to knock down Shea Stadium with a wrecking ball because Mets fans may have done it on their own…
Mets 3B David Wright, talking to reporters while receiving an award at the Baseball Assistance Team last night…
“When I think of an ace, I think of someone who you know is going to get you a win every five days. There’s not many of those guys. Johan is one of those guys – you know, that every fifth day, he’s going to eat up innings. He’s going to win…To have one of a handful of those guys I would consider an ace, it’s going to be pretty special…Not only what he brings on the field, but for our younger pitchers to develop under a guy like Johan, a guy like Pedro, you can’t ask for a better situation…He seems like a great clubhouse guy. If it’s true, we’re gonna welcome him with open arms.”
Mets LHP Billy Wagner, as quoted in the New 
York Post…
“What we lacked last year going into the season was that excitement and I think this truly puts us back into that top five in baseball…I think (the Phillies) are still ahead of us…I honestly think it’s really tight at the top. I’m not going to put us ahead of them because we don’t deserve to be there until we achieve something.”
…absolutely…i was a bit critical of wagner’s comments from Monday, on SNY’s Mets Hot Stove Report, during which he said the Mets should be ranked third in the NL East…but, i hear what he’s saying…and, maybe i just feel better today because of the trade, but, the fact is, wagner is right…it’s only a trade…it means nothing unless this team can go out and actually win…
The Post also provides reactionary quotes from Phillies GM Ed Wade, Braves GM Frank Wren and an anonymous NL Executive.
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