Daily Archives: February 2, 2008
According to MLB.com’s Marty Noble, the Mets and RHP Jorge Sosa settled their salary arbitration case Saturday with a $2 million contract.
Sosa, 30, had sought $2.75 million, while the Mets had offered $1.7 million. He was 9-8 with a 4.47 ERA in 112 innings pitched last season.
…by the way, this was my favorite quote from the conference call earlier this afternoon…
Mets GM Omar Minaya, on what’s next…
Tagged Omar Minaya |“We’ve been good on paper, but we haven’t won. This shows our fan base and our players that we care about winning. Our goal is to win a championship. We put in our part to get this done. This is a commitment to our players. Now, what we need now is a commitment on their part to get it done.”
The Mets will hold a conference call at 4:30 pm EDT to announce the official acquisition of LHP Johan Santana from the Twins.
…i will be on the call, and will do my best to provide a few key notes while it is in progress…
…Update…4:28 pm…
…let me just say, ‘thank you, Internets,’ because i am on the road right now…i couldn’t get home in time for this call…so, i am pulled over, at a rest stop, sitting in a parking space, huddled in the driver’s seat online with my laptop and the conference call on speaker phone on my cell phone…
…Update…4:46 pm…
Omar Minaya, Jeff Wilpon and Peter Greenberg are on the call, Johan Santana is not.
There will be a formal press conference with Santana at Shea Stadium on Wednesday, Feb. 6.
According to Greenberg, after the Twins, the Mets were Santana’s first choice. He told the Twins he would not stand in their way of getting the best package of players from wherever Smith needed to send him, but the Mets had always been his top choice, followed by either the Red Sox and the Yankees.
Minaya said there was a point during the negotiations when he worried that a contract would not get done, as they were ‘very far apart,’ with only an hour left to go. He asked for the extension, it was granted by the Twins and the commisioner’s office and they were able to agree on a contract. According to Wilpon, they were confident they could sign him, and there was no way they would have pulled the trigger on the trade if signing him was in doubt.
Greenberg said this was one of the most unique negotiations he had ever been apart of, especially with the added element of checking his watch every fine minutes.
According to Wilpon, the extension was needed to work out the final $5 million of the deal. In theory, explained Wilpon, Santana came down $5 million, while the Mets gave up an additional $5 million, for the two sides to meet in the middle on the final total.
Minaya called Santana, “A true, number-one starter.” He is happy to had added as much pitching and defense as he did this off-season, since it is what he believes is necessary to win a championship.
According to Minaya, it was Greenberg and Wilpon who did a great job working out the contract’s details in the final hours.
Minaya says he entered the winter saying he wanted to acquire a font-line starting pitcher, and though he was tempted at times to sign a free agent, for fear he’d be unable to replace Tom Glavine, something told him to be patient with Twins GM Bill Smith.
After the winter meetings, Minaya bet Wilpon a pair of shoes that Santana would become available again and that the Mets would have a chance to get him.
Last week, Smith called and said, “I want every one’s best offer,” and since he would never trade Fernando Martinez, Pelfrey or Jose Reyes, he offered up the four prospects and Smith accepted.
According to Minaya, it was very hard for him to give up on Humber, Gomez, Mulvey and Guerra, ‘but we need to win now,’ he added, and since the only way to acquire an ace was via trade, he had to do what was necessary.
Minaya says this is the team he will go to spring training with.
According to the Mets, Johan Santana has passed his physical.
Kuff and the Buttheads are back with another song dedicated to the Mets, this time they serenade Johan Santana…
…thanks to Robert B for the link…
Yesterday, in a report for ESPN.com, Jayson Stark stuck in the following bit of buzz…
“Once the Santana trade is done, expect the Mets to swoop into the free-agent market to add an outfielder…One name they’ve kicked around: Kenny Lofton.”
In 136 games for the Rangers and Indians last 
season, the 40-year-old Lofton hit .295 with 26 extra base hits and 23 stolen bases.
…i keep hearing other fans talk about how the Mets need a power-bat off the bench, who can play outfield, and who can hit lefties so to spot Ryan Church from time to time, because, apparently, people believe church is unable to hit left-handed pitching…
…yes, church struggles against lefties last season…but he hit lefties about the same as righties the year before, and in 2005, he hit .367 against lefties in just 28 games played…so, it’s not like he’s incapable of hitting lefties, i think he just struggled against them last season…though, time will tell…
…nevertheless, i think the Mets are pretty excited and committed to church as an every day player…as they should be…regardless of who is on the mound against him…
…that said, my sense is that they’re looking for a guy more like lofton, then a guy like, say, Kevin Mench…i think they prefer on base percentage, speed and defense…which is probably why lofton’s name is being ‘kicked around,’ like stark says…
Since 1995, Lofton has been in the post-season every year except 2005 – when he had the misfortune of being on the Phillies.
…from what i can gather, the Mets Clubhouse Stores have begun ordering Johan Santana Mets Jerseys and t-shirts…
…by the way, i believe the team put in an order to start printing these early last week…jeez, man, talk about your potential jinxing…i mean, that’d be like running an ad for playoff tickets before actually clinching the…oh, wait…sorry…
…Update…12:01 pm…
…the stores are telling customers that the shirts and jerseys will be in stores on Monday…i guess when $150 million is on the hook, there is no wasting time…nor should there be…
According to multiple reports, Johan Santana and the Mets agreed to a six-year, $137.5 million deal, with a $18.75 million club-option for the 2014 season with a team buyout.
…like teddy said, “Pay the man his money,” and they did…
In the New York Post, Mike Vaccaro believes that, by signing Santana, the Mets finally have their soul back.
…it had to be done…as i had been saying, if you want an ace, and i mean a real ace, this was the price the Mets would have to pay: lots of prospects and lots of money…period…or, instead, we could have collectively hoped and prayed that one of Mike Pelfrey, Phil Humber, Kevin Mulvey or Deolis Geurra would turn in to santana…this way, though, it’s a guarantee…
In a report for FOXSports.com, Ken Rosenthal explains…
“The top starting pitchers — Santana, Jake Peavy, Carlos Zambrano, Roy Oswalt — rarely make it to the open market. Indians lefty C.C. Sabathia figures to be the next exception, and he likely will hit the jackpot as a free agent, surpassing Santana. Rest assured, that deal will be stupid, too. The Mets, though, need not apologize for this dramatic step.”
In the Bergen Record, Bob Klapisch leads by writing…
“For three days, the anxiety was thick enough to clog a Met fan’s pores, although there was never any doubt the deal — the steal — of the decade would end in a handshake.”
…believe me, bob, there was doubt…at least among Mets fans…seriously, you should see my e-mail’s inbox…oh, baby…i lost count of the number of fans who threatened to no longer watch the Mets or baseball if the Mets botched this…
Klapisch continues on by asking a variety of questions associated with the deal, such as, “Was there any chance the deal could’ve collapsed?,” and, “What are Santana’s strengths? Does he have any weaknesses?,” among others.
Rosenthal also adds…
“The Mets need his presence, and not simply on the mound. Starting pitchers rarely are leaders, but Santana could provide an authoritative voice in the clubhouse — something the Mets lacked during their historic collapse last September. At the very least, his addition will shift the tone of spring training away from last season — no small psychological benefit.”
…exactly…not that santana needed to be acquired for public relations purposes…but, damn, he sure will help…
…i have had the chance to talk with lots of people over the last few days who know santana, or played with or coached him, and i keep hearing words like, “bulldog,” “focused,” and, “great teammate,” which is always nice to hear…
