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.
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{ 158 comments }
this is why I love metsblog almost as much a my father
I love Metsblog more than your father. Now, if your father was Gary Cole instead of Gary Coleman, then I might love your father more than Metsblog.
everyone loves metsblog!!!
if youre on facebook join the Metsblog group!
I dont see any metsblog group on facebook………
same where?
Oliver…..Perez……..?
from MLB.com
“The Mets, who have not gone to an arbitration hearing since 1992, have two cases pending with Ryan Church (offered $1.75 million and seeking $2.45 million) and Oliver Perez (offered $4,725,000 and seeking $6.5 million).”
I’d buy one more year of OP right now by offering to match his asking in price next year in return for another year at the same price. 2 yrs for $12.5 M or $6.25M per year
You have to remember who Ollie’s agent is–Scott Bora$, who’s going to want an extension of double that value–for 4 years, at least. (I’d give it to him.)
The time is now to try and sign any Boras client the team is interested in. Normally, I would say that, as a Boras client, Ollie will not give up any of his free agent years and will test the market next year. But, now, after the AROD debacle, and being fired by Kenny Rogers, Boras seems to be a little less “Boras-ish” this offseason. He is settling arbitration cases much earlier than usual, agreeing to long-term deals that give up some free agency years (like Carlos Pena). I don’t think he really cares what anybody thinks of him–he just sits around and counts his money–but I think he is maybe just treading water until he has more distance from this blow to his image. Strike now with Ollie–Boras may be back to his old tricks next offseason.
Scott might realize though, that:
a) the landscape is changing for pitcher contracts
b) by getting one more year guaranteed (08 and 09), he is giving OP some more time to grow into the pitcher he may become… thus giving him a chance to get a much much larger contract in 2 years.
Don’t forget, OP is a Boras client.
I don’t think we have to worry about Perez becoming the worth of Santana within a year and he won’t be getting an insane amount but that could change depending on how his year goes.
But the Mets will do what they think is right, they will come up with something if Perez does go to another team.
I dont think it would be wise to invest heavily in O. Perez. I think if a reasonable extension can not be reached, Omar should trade him at the deadline while Perez trade value is so high. That is why signing a low cost quality pitcher now would be wise. The likes or unlikes of a Livan Hernandez is an option. If Perez does get his extension as expected, we trade Hernandez at the break if he’s an excess pitcher. Wish we would of took a shot at Jennings though.
It would be tough to trade Perez unless Pelfrey has a big breakout year. We probably need Perez to start in the playoffs. It’s unusual for a contender to trade down.
At the end of the year, I believe El Duque and Perez’s contracts expire–leaving two holes. Let’s hope Pelfrey is ready for primetime, and the Mets resign either Perez or get Sabathia.
(Is there a site to see everyone’s contracts and years?)
Massey, I believe MLB4U.com has that stuff.
here is one more my fav. cots baseball contracts
While there may be a situation where the Mets might trade Oliver Perez or El Duque at the trade deadline, it will not be because A. They are worried they won’t be able to afford to keep him or B. just because they have too many pitchers. If Oliver Perez is having such a good year that the Mets are worried the Boras contract demands will be more than they are willing to pay, they will be happy. That’s because they will be happy to get such production from OP, and worse case scenario they will get two extra draft picks. After all, if OP is pitching well he will almost certainly end up a Type A free agent.
There is no reason a large market team like the mets should trade a pitcher of OP’s ability. I know you want a good farm… but if any of our prospects could do what OP would do… you would consider that prospect a major victory of you minor league system.
yea i’d be nice to lock him up but we got plenty of time i think we should get to work on a possible 5th starter and rh outfield but every met executive person should rest a week b/c spring training a month away and we got a long season ahead. they got wat we needed. lol
Omar might be waiting to see how OP does in spring training before talking extension. Iirc, Perez has never had 2 good years in a row. As a Mets fan, I like to believe that Peterson “fixed” whatever was wrong, but I gotta witness a change first.
I sure would love it if he pitched as well as he did last year and signed an extension, but it seems like a combination of the two would get expensive.
It would stink if Oliver Perez did have another good year and got whisked away by another team next year. A left handed, power arm like Perez is pretty rare to find. He’s still young and can be a pretty big key contributor to the Mets rotation for years to come.
I’m guessing the Mets will see how Perez holds up by mid-season and if he looks like he didn’t just have a career year, then maybe they’ll look into giving him an extension.
Don’t forget . . . Perez is a Boras client.
Yeah, and also don’t count out the Yanks wanting to sign him. I have a feeling if Perez gets to free agency, they will be in there to make life difficult for us.
Perez will not be a Met next year.. Count on it!!
he seems to like pitching here. We have a fan base that LOVES him (remember, he came from pitt… so we are really his first fan base). We have a great pitching coach. We can pay him as much as anyone. We have a good relationship with Boras. We have (arguably) the best defense in the game. We have (arguably) one of the best lineups in the game. We believed in him and gave him some major opportunities (not everyone gets to start a Game 7 in their career)
there are a lot of reasons to think that OP will be a met for a long time.
Maybe if the Mets don’t use Sosa so much, he’ll improve and remain steady in the bullpen and now he has Martinez and Santana he can get advice from.
that actually might be a key, it seems like overtime Sosa’s slider starts to fade, doesn’t have the same bite, but when that slider is on, its very tough to hit, so who knows, he’s definitely an intriguing arm to have in the pen when that slider is biting. Also, I always thought he should throw his fastball more. His slider almost works like a change up because he throws it with the same arm action and its about 8 mph slower, except with the break. When he got in trouble it was mostly because he was just throwing that slider over and over and it wouldn’t bite like it normally did or guys were just sitting on it. Maybe being around Pedro and Santana, guys who are the kings at setting up hitters to wiff at their offspeed stuff because of their fastballs will teach him something. Sosa can throw mid 90’s, he just either is afraid to or doesn’t have control of it all the time. We’ll see, either way, I like his arm.
I completely agree with you, I remember earlier on the season when he was having success, he had a sharp slider but he seemed to fall in love with the slider in many of his outings, which got him in trouble later on in the season.
It could’ve been the league catching up to Sosa or just that Sosa was being relied on so much down the gut of the season that his stuff started fading away, much like the entire bullpen.
It was honestly a horror show, the starters got knocked out early or they reached their pitch count during the 5th inning and the bullpen had to work 4 innings a day. I remember waiting for Glavine to win his 300th game in Milwaukee and the bullpen impoded.
Sosa isn’t used to going from the starting rotation to pitching very important innings for the Mets in the bullpen, so it probably took a toll on him. And as his slider and fastball got hit, his confidence faded.
This time spreading out the innings between Heilman/Sanchez/Sosa should do wonders for all of them and Wise could be another key ingredient to keep those arms fresh as well.
I think another key will be Willie actually going to his long man, now and then. In 2006, he used Darren Oliver a lot, and the bullpen flourished. Last year, he barely ever used Sele, and the Mets were constantly playing as if they were down an arm in the bullpen. As a result, the bullpen wore down and was terrible in September. For whatever reason, Willie refused to use Sele (I think Sele must have slept with his wife or daughter, or something), so, even in blowouts–whether the Mets were ahead or behind–Willie would bring in Heilman, Sosa, Feliciano, and they wouldn’t be fresh for when we needed them in a close game.
can you say bite one more time?
yeah bite me.
sorry but it seemes so open
i think we should go after colon or garcia. they would be cheap and a good number 5
I definitely think it’s worthy of consideration.
But does anybody think it would be worth it to see if we could still get Blanton? Of course at this point, I’m not willing to give up everything, but if we could get him for Pelfrey and 1 or 2 other prospects. I do it.
Blanton becomes your #4, but he has #2 or #3 stuff, he’s under 29 and is a lock for 200 IP+.
U go from a shaky El Duque to someone who’s rock solid. Our rotation could be the tops in the NL, if not the entire major leagues.
i hope this isn’t serious, this isn’t a fantasy team, you don’t just go out and make trades whenever you want, the A’s would certainly want back Pelfrey and Heilman plus others, and after giving up 4 prospects, you don’t want to give up more for someone who would be your #4 starter. Furuther more, he doesn’t have #2 stuff, he gets by with mostly #4-#3 stuff. Also, El Duque may be oft injured, but he gave us a lot of quality innings last year (150) with a .208 BAA and a 3.7 ERA. Sure he’ll get injured, but I’ll go out on a limb and say he’s the best #5 starter in the NL when healthy.
totally accurate. Duque was terrific when healthy. He will give us a minimum of 22-24 starts. That leaves like 10 for fill ins if necessary. Duque was terrific and was part of the reason we were so good early in the year
Remember, the Mets got Santana for cheap from the Twins solely because they were the only team willing to follow through and pony up the $140 million for him.
Blanton, because he’ll be making a rock-bottom salary for the next four years until free agency, may actually have a higher value on the trade market than Johan. A guy like Blanton or John Maine who makes $400,000 a year is a huge asset even if he isn’t an ace.
After this Santana trade, I’m VERY happy with using the kids to round out the starting rotation/bullpen. Mets do not need to trade for a Blanton or anyone else that would cost the Mets more prospects/MLB players.
I’m more than open in having Pelfrey and El Duque battle it out for the 5th starting rotation slot. Or any other guy down in the minor leagues that is ready to compete for a MLB spot. Maybe sign Garcia by mid-season to a incentive laden deal for a year with a option.
Mets don’t need to trade for Blanton, Billy Beane will want an arm and a leg for a #4 or 5 starter. Omar and the Wilpons did what they needed to do. Get an ace, sign some low risk bullpen arms, get a few odds and ends to fill out and help the Mets compete for the 2008 season. Mets are ready to go to war now with what they have.
Let’s not start wanting trades to happen just because you want the Mets to collect every single baseball player. You can’t fill the minor leagues with a Blanton/Bedard/Cabrera/Willis/King Felix and except to have a farm system left.
Omar already said… this is the team he is going to spring training with.. The mets are set
We’d almost certainly have to give up F. Martinez. Remember, Omar wasn’t willing to part with him even for Santana.
Even then a package of Pelfrey, F-Mart, Heilman isn’t enough, and I don’t know of anyone else who is tradeable that they’d want in return.
Neither would be able to help this team. One won’t be pitching at all until August and the other is batting practice fastballs that will get him crushed by MLB hitters. Signing a guy to move El Duque to the pen is pointless if they can’t give us quality innings.
both of them are hurt. and thats the mets biggest problem with the rotation right now is injuries (pedro and el duque both have health concers). plus garcia wont be ready until at least the all star break
We don’t need them. Going off of last year, Santana, Maine, and Perez will each start app. 32 games and Pedro and Duque will start 24 games each. Which leaves Pelfrey/Sosa to start remaining 18 games.
Some will argue we should go after Livan, but, 1) Duque ain’t goint to the pen, and 2) Pelfrey and Sosa would put up comparable #s as #6 starters.
I haven’t seen Livan Hernandez pitch until the postseason, he is a battler but his stuff is a far cry from what Pelfrey can do if he can mature and command and learn how to pitch in the big leagues. The only way to see what a guy like Pelfrey has is to let him pitch on his day and let Rick Peterson continue to work with him. He will learn, it just takes time. The Mets don’t need to sign or trade for anyone else for the starting rotation.
Santana/Martinez/Maine/Perez will all do their thing on the mound and Pelfrey will learn from each one of them and be able to discuss it with guys like Santana and Martinez and also work with Rick Peterson on Pelfrey’s days off.
It’s a good idea in theory. But those guys are still looking for way more than low salary, non-guaranteed contracts. You have be able release them if they stink and big money contracts deter that.
According to MLB Trade Rumors, the Astros are going to be looking at Colon pitch in the Dominican this wee. The item goes on to say that Colon has expressed an interest in pitching in the National League.
they can have him – ever notice he looks like armando meets jorge julio and mota. no el pollo loco resturaunt could contain him!!
I was interested in Colon at the start of the offseason, but several teams–the Mets included–have seemingly run away from him FAST. There are apparently big injury concerns with him that make him not worth the risk–especially since he is apparently looking for at least 2 years.
As for Garcia, the best case scenario is that he comes back in mid-season, but there is talk that he is out for the entire year. So, he is also not worth the effort.
Good that this is done and I believe that is a proper salary for him, considering the market and his performance and situation coming into this season. He had his moments, but he was inconsistent and it could be argued, I suppose that the Mets put him back on the map and hopefully Peterson and Co. contributed to him getting some of his stuff back. His numbers actually were kind of Trachselesque, except that Trax wouldn’t be flexible enough to use in the bullpen.
And I can’t go to bathroom between Sosa pitches, while I could between Trachsel pitches…even at Shea, when I would have to wait on line for a while. :)
I noticed something that I really enjoyed and want to share regarding Santana’s signing. At mlbtraderumors.com in the comments under the Santana signing article, many comments fit into one of two categories:
people writing about having seen him pitch in person last season and how amazing and special it was; or
people who live in or near NL cities excited for the opportunity to see him when the Mets visit their city. It wasn’t “woe is us” for having to face him, but excitement. From foes. Astounding.
I must of missed that, I just read a few fans that threw jabs at the Mets but that was before Santana’s physical that he passed when the contract situation was still going on.
damn i miss richie hebner he was a real talent – a little off kilter but a real talent
That is very cool, GravediggerHebner. I remember being at Shea for a doubleheader against the Dbacks. Brandon Webb made his MLB debut in the 1st game and absolutely dominated. Then, Randy Johnson pitched the second game and actually pitched like he usually did against everybody BUT the Mets, to complete the sweep. It was just awful. In the 2 games, the Mets did something like make 8 errors, strike out 25 or so times–just brutal to watch. But the excitement of watching Randy Johnson pitch at his best was still something special. It’s nice to see that we have one of those guys that other teams’ fans want to see pitch, even if he is likely to beat their team.
Nice. Ugly ERA, but the guy was Mr. everything last year. Hopefully, he’ll be excusively a bull pen guy this year and Pelfrey will be used as 6th starter. Having Pedro, Duque, and now Santana around can’t hurt either.
Lots of guys in the bull-pen, will we be seeing a “Running of the Bulls” at Shea.
I think the pen is a bit more clear cut than it would seem.
I’m not really sure why the likes of Stokes and Register were brought in, but barring some injury or terrible spring the pen should be: Wagner, Heilman, Feliciano, Sanchez, Schoeneweis, Wise, and Sosa.
Joe Smith, Ruddy Lugo, and Carlos Muniz are all on the 40 man roster with options so they should be sufficient in the even of injuries. Collazo may even have an option left.
Losing Stokes, Register, and Vargas shouldnt be a big deal.
How’s Duaner doing?
If we could get back to having Heilman, Duaner and Wagner to end games, that would be a great thing.
Then we could support them with Sosa, Feliciano, Schnoweis, Smith and El Duque as the long man/spot starter.
Pelfrey should be used to get a bona fide #2, #3. The main problem the Mets have had the last 2 seasons, is that the #5 spot has been an abomination. Guys who have been hurt, guys who have sucked and have sucked the life out of the bullpen. Get someone who you can count as much as you can count on your #1 guy and the Mets become unstoppable.
Also, anybody know how Padilla is coming along? He was great in ‘06.
he never pitched in 06, you probably mean 05.
we already have bonafide 2 and 3 starters and their names are Pedro,Maine,and Perez.Get a clue!
Padilla won’t be ready for spring training like Sanchez will.
What about having Pelfrey fight for a spot in the rotation this year? I think that’s the best bet for us. Let him earn his spot. I’d like to see the Mets stick with him, why trade him off? The rotation is fine with El Duque or Pelfrey as the 5th starter. It would be nice to see some homegrown talent on the team–or at least allow him to fight for opportunity.
You mean homegrown pitching talent on the team? What about Heilman? Joe Smith? Position players there’s David Wright and Jose Reyes. I’m sure Pelfrey will have an opportunity to earn a spot in the starting rotation and if not there, maybe the Mets will work him in as a bullpen guy first.
I know alot of people have a problem with putting starters in the bullpen because it’s a different animal but if that’s the best and only way to have Pelfrey improve and keep him at the Major League Level and talk to and learn from Santana and Martinez, then why not? He can also work on his pitches and command with Peterson too.
To talk to and learn from the likes of Peterson, Martinez, and Santana, are good reasons. Except throwing 3 innings once every 10 or more days does not help. As a long man you cant throw bullpen sessions because you never know when you’ll have to come in to pitch 3 or 4 innings. It is better for him to go down to AAA and throw 7 innings every 5th day to work on his pitches, build up his arm strength.
Absolutely, MudvilleNine. The problem with Pelfrey to this point is that he cannot command more than 1 pitch–or 2 pitches tops. There is talk of making him a reliever because he wouldn’t need more than 2 pitches as a reliever, whereas a starter needs 3 or 4. If they want him to be a starter, though, he needs to go to AAA and work on those other pitches.
Has anyone read SI Tom Verducci’s article on stability in the rotation. Interesting stuff, if our starting five give us 144 starts as I think they should (see above), we are on our way to the World Series.
The Mets are in a little different situation because they really only have Pelfrey to fill in.
If Pedro and Duque miss 10 starts at the same time they are a lot worse shape than if Pelfrey can pick up all 20.
but in general the presumed totals should do the trick.
Santana 32
Maine 32
Perez 32
Pedro 24
Duque 24 – 144
Pelfrey 14-18
Others 0-4 – 162
Don’t forget about Sosa. If he gets around 6 and Pelfrey 12, we’ll be solid. Can’t wait to see how it all plays out.
Willie never used Oliver or Sele as a starter once they were established as the long man, so I dont see Sosa being his first choice if a need comes up.
I’m curious to see how they handle Sosa in the spring. Seeing as he is probably the 7th best starter they have.
I do think that the Mets should have Sosa on a starters routine during ST so he is capable of going 5-6 innings, then moving him into a longman/spot righty duties. With his slider he would be the one righty in the pen who can dominate righties, I could see him taking the Bradford, Joe Smith role as well as being the long man.
That may be the presumed total for Pedro but I think he could do better than 24. Because if he gets hurt again then we have a big problem because I doubt it would just be a 1-2 starts that he would miss. However he came back stronger than before after the therapy so I don’t think he will reinjure it. And the 32 for the top 3 is pretty much spot on give or take a few and who knows with Duque, but maybe if his arm falls off he can start throwing with his leg, it would be just about the only pitch he hasn’t thrown.
I like the looks of that breakdown. Let Pelf gain some confidence in AAA, then step in when Pedro or the Duke needs a break. Hopefully they won’t be hurt at the same time or we’ll be kicking ourselves for letting Mulvey split.
When Pelfry was struggling last year, a lot of people suggested his stuff might be well suited for the Bullpen. So he may try to take a spot but end up in the pen or at AAA. Either way he is the best 6th starter option.
But even if El Duque and Pedro go down at the same time, I don’t think we will kick ourselves for getting Johan, even if it did cost us Mulvey…
I also think that Pedro is going to go more than 24 starts. I’m actually on board with Pedro going all of 32, and winding up 15-8 for the year. Let’s remember that Pedro has an ego that’s probably at least as big as that of Jimmy Rollins–he might not be as boisterous. But, Pedro does have an ego–and that ego will not let what happened to him in ‘06 and ‘07 happen again. Also, he’s going to have two dandy lefties under his wings, and he’s also enough of a professional to help those guys get better. (Ollie’s about the same emotional makeup as Pedro was, 10 years ago.)
El Duque gave us 20 starts in ‘06 and 24 last year, so I can see where you get his number.
to be fair, Delcos has the Sosa deal posted about an hour before Noble. He was the go to guy last year, but has seemed rather disinterested this winter… either way he had this story first.
Lets just lock up Oliver Perez before the season is over and not necessarily right now – maybe let him sweat it out a little and make him want that long term contract so bad that he works for it.
We cannot let him go because he is so talented and could be our number two starter for many years to come.
SHOW HIM THE MONEY OMAR !!!
QUESTION:
IF HE WAS A FREE AGENT RIGHT NOW (or after the 2007 season) – what kind of contract would he get???
Who knows? Maybe not much. If there was such a demand for mid-rotation pitchers why haven’t Lohse and Livan signed already?
I think the point is that very high quality pitchers are worth a lot like Santana.
Look at who will be available incl CC Sabathia.
Probably 8-10 million a year, because he has proved he can be the kind of guy that would earn 15 but he might only pitch well enough to justify 4-5. I think he will be the 15 million pitcher but with Perez nothing is certain. The 6.75 he is asking for is very reasonable and I think we should pay the man.
I think he should be extended right now. Because he has been so up and down, he might sign a reasonable extension for 3 years, just for the security aspect. He’s coming off an up year so there is a chance for a down year and he and his agent know this. He’d also have to weigh in the facts that he’s in New York and on a team that could make a run of WS appearances. Signing a 3 year extension only gets him to when he’s 30, with the chance to still hit free agency and more money if he can prove he can be a consistant winner. If he proves that, we can still sign him again. If not, those 3 years should give our low-level pitching prospects we believe we have, a chance to develop and maybe take over. What do you think? Sound reasonable?
Sign OP soon to a 4 year, 40M extension… If Carlos Silva, who is 3 years older than OP gets 4/44, then OP will get 4/60 on the open market…if not more.
The guy is a solid #3 lefty. He needs to get an extension.
Iid just say here ollie a4 year/ 50 mil contract and all the trampolines he want’s (u know he likes to jump over foul lines _ get it?)
Johan and now Jorge Sosa. were unstoppable.
BULLPEN BULLPEN BULLPEN now is our focus right?
it is quite clear that a good bullpen is as important as anything right now, even maybe a number five starter???
why is there no talk of Pelfrey being in the pen? could you imagine a guy his size coming in the 7th or 8th inning. I think Sosa is a good long reliever so keep him there. Make Pelfrey a dominating specialist kinda like Joba was last year!
Also, lets really bolster the pen and put el duque in there to rest his arm also. Maybe Heilman could be the 5th starter or atleast make it his job to lose.
Our only focus is our bullpen, so lets put Pelfrey in there and see it and him flourish……agree???
Why when you have 4 solid starters would you want to move one of the best bullpen guys in baseball to the starting rotation? I mean, with heilman in the bullpen with the others, this could be a dominating pitching staff.
I like the idea of Pelfrey in the bullpen but I do not think there is any room. I prefer Pelfrey as #5 and Duque in the pen. This won’t happen either. Pelfrey is going to AAA. The bullpen will be what it is below and as you can see, barring horrible springs or injuries, there is no room
Wagner
Heilman
Feliciano
Sanchez
Schoeneweis
Wise
Sosa
This is Pelfrey’s last option year, the Mets need to think about 2009 when it comes to him. At the very least the Mets will need to replace Duque in the rotation, at worst Pedro, Perez as well. So the thinking has to be making Pelfrey a 2009 starter. Its best for him to spend as much time as he can in AAA, or at least that seems to be the Mets position.
it makes no sense to swap Heilman and Pelfrey, then you end up with two huge question marks instead of one, nor does it make sense to swap Heilman and Duque…
my thoughts on the 5th starter spot.
1) with the top 4 starters the Mets can afford to let Pelfrey take his lumps on the big league level and still win. This could be the best way to develop him into a 2009 starter.
2) with the top 4 starters the Mets can afford to keep Pelfrey in AAA all year and fill in with whoever should a need a rise to replace Duque. This could be the best way to develop him into a 2009 starter.
of course its easy to assume they will use him as the first fill in starter while getting him as many AAA starts as they can. But it could go any of three ways.
If the Mets move Pelfrey to the bullpen, it will be a long term commitment like it was with Heilman. Unless the Mets sign another starting pitcher like Hernandez and move Elduque to the bullpen, I doubt they will go into the season without a strong backup starting pitcher, especially considering the health issues of Pedro and Elduque. I can see them moving Elduque and Sosa between bullpen and spot starter but not Pelfrey. Does this mean Pelfrey shouldn’t go to the bullpen? I am not sure. But if he goes, he will be going for the whole season if not longer, I am guessing.
No way should Heilman even be considered for the rotation. I know he still wants to start, but he has turned into a very good set-up man.
when i posted about Heilman being the 5th starter i did not think Heilman did as well as he did last season – a 3.03 ERA is GREAT i don’t know why it didnt seem like that. Maybe it was the 7 unearned runs that occurred with him in the game which seems like a lot.
so maybe he shouldnt start but i still like the idea of pelfrey becoming a dominating specialist and schoeneweis is….well, we all know – is he related to mota?
Pelfrey to the pen would be great somehow though wouldnt it???
Heilman is exhibit A when it comes to reasons not to move Pelfrey to the pen. Do you really want them to trade away or move to the pen every 1st round draft pick they have? It would ruin Pelfrey’s trade value.
They just traded away Humber and Mulvey and have nothing in the minors that can help the rotation this year besides Pelfrey. At the same time the pen is overcrowded with question marks who probably wont make the team anyway. Pelfrey would only be one more in that catagory.
When it comes to Pelfrey, we have to be willing to do without him for 2008 in order for him to be a strong part of the rotation core for the next 4-5 years. Otherwise 3 years from now people will be clamoring for the Mets to finally give Pelfrey a chance to start inspite of his solid work as a set up man…
Regarding Heilman, ERA can be misleading for relievers, especially if they frequently come on with less than 3 outs. It’s a lot easier to not give up runs with only 1 or 2 outs left as opposed to 3, which tends to lower their ERA than what it would otherwise be.
For his WHIP of 1.07 (which is excellent), I’m surprised he gave up so many runs (earned and unearned). He did a lot worse with runners on, which is why he seems worse than his numbers indicate.
I think Pelfrey would be good in the pen as long relief if he can get enough work (lots of Mets blowouts =D). I’m not sure if he’d develop faster there closer to Peterson or in AAA.
i’d rather have heilman there rather than ummmmm……
MOTA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Santana’s name is officially on the Mets Roster!!!
These Metsies are absolutely amazin’
CAn anyone explain why Sosa earns $2mm in arbitration, having thrown 112 innings, with a 1.33 WHIP and a 4.47 ERA, while Heilman throws 86 innings, for a 1.07 WHIP and a 3.03 ERA, and he only gets $1.2mm in arbitration? He needs a new agent!
Just a guess … it might have something to do with all the games that Sosa started.
Plus, I think he is one year ahead of Heilman in the process.
actually Sosa is two years ahead, this is Heilmans first year in arbitration.
players who are arbitration 3 get compared with other players who are arbitration 3, on so on.
Last year Sosa made 1.25 mil as a arb. 2 player, so I would say Heilman is doing quite well for himself.
well done.
I like Sosa as the long man /spot starter
Not sure why everyone thinks they need to do something else with the starting rotation and even a Righty bat in the OF
The Staff is set now
Santana, Martinez, Maine, Perez, Hernandez
Sure Duque and Pedro are likely to get hurt or need rest at some pt. So now you can put Pelfrey at AAA and let him develop even more and then give him the call. Vargas is the 7th options and Sosa in a pinch sport start
Things are fine in the rotation so let it sit. They don’t need Livan or Lohse to over crowd things
On paper a Righty OF bat makes sense but they really don’t have a spot for a bench player with Easley , Castro, Anderson, Chavez and then either Gotay or Valentin( like Jose if he is healthy even though I like Ruben)
Kevin Mench makes sense but whether we like it or not Church will get to play almost everyday and Easley will get AB’s vs. Lefties in RF and back up 1B for Delgado
No matter how we look at it we have:
1- THE BEST pitcher in baseball (SANTANA)
2- TOP 3 Shortstop in baseball (REYES)
3- TOP 3 3rd Baseman in baseball (WRIGHT)
4- TOP 5 Closer in the NL (WAGNER)
5- TOP 5 Bullpen in the NL (WAGNER, HEILMAN, SANCHEZ, FELICIANO, etc.)
6- TOP 5 Two thru Five rotation starters in baseball (PEDRO, PEREZ, MAINE, EL DUQUE/PELFREY)
7- TOP 5 Team in speed (SB’s) in baseball (REYES, WRIGHT, BELTRAN, CASTILLO)
8- TOP 5 Team in defense (2 gold glovers last year (WRIGHT, and BELTRAN) and Reyes and Schneider who can always be considered for the gold glove) in baseball
9- One of TOP 15 or 20 Prospects in baseball (F-Mart)
10- The BEST GM in all of baseball (Omar Minaya) who proved he can always figure out a way to improve this team. So if we need a missing piece in July he will get it.
In conclusion these 10 elements of this team give us a world series contender this year and for years to come.
LETS GO METS!
You forgot our bench, Alou (30 game hit streak), Delgado (HR hitter – 67 away from 500), top 5 stadium, and #1 fans
since when is shea a top 5 stadium? wtf lol
Sorry, I meant #1 stadium. Especially after we host the world series this year. Skankees can have their All-Star game for precious Skankee dump, Shea’s going out with a bang. World Series baby. Woo Hoo! (It’s SB sunday, I’m a bit excited).
yeah shea is a top 5 stadium — in guatamala
I think you were being sarcastic right? Our current stadium is a joke (even though I will miss the history there at Shea), and Delgado is on a deep decline, but I hope he rebounds in this contract ending year. Our bench is very solid although I wouldnt mind a HR threat like Kevin Mench to come off as a PH with pop.
Excited about the SuperBowl too. However the Mets are my first love so Santana is still on my mind today. Big Giant fan too and my prediction is Giants 34, Pats 31. Ticker tape parade Tuesday, and Johan Santana press conference on Wednesday. Tuesday we will show Johan what its like to celebrate a championship in NY!
Mench as pinch-hitter:
51 plate appearances, 1 homerun, .106 BA
As I’ve asked before, if he was non-tendered, and still hasn’t signed or heard to be signing with anyone, how good can he be?
maybe we can add this to the list…best overall centerfielder in the game…Carlos Beltran, just a side not to your list I guess…
Sorry I forgot to mention that. Yes we have arguably the best CF in the game as well. A five tool stud in Beltran. Face it. With Santana on board to fill the glaring hole at #1 we are set for great things.
amen to that brother – that catch in huston last year rivals may’s over the shoulder catch
what about beltran…pretty much the top center-fielder in the NL and arguably, one of the best in all of baseball
they better lock up ollie for lyfe.
jorge SOSA in the houseee. try not to blow anymore 10-6 leads, k?
lets go giantsssssss :) make history today.
tina i sent u a myspace request its under the name ed
thank you soo much! i’ll add you =) =)
thanx
don’t mind all the heavy metal stuff lol
all we need is to sign a back up first base man like Tony Clark (36) Ryan Klesko (37) Doug Mientkiewicz (34) only ones left. and another outfielder how bout Trot Nixon (34) or Kevin Mench (30) or Kenny Lofton (41) – Type B
hows about greenie? he’s kinda yin to church’s yang plus the religious debates between tohe 2 would be priceless!
I like Loften added to the outfield mix, but you’re right that 1B needs a real backup. Easley was great last year, but there’s really no reason to believe he’ll hit like that again. Can Loftin play 1B? It seems like they could really use another right-handed utility guy. Maybe swap Marlon Anderson for a right-handed counterpart?
I would take a look at Klesko if he were willing to serve as a bench player. His bat, when not counted on for middle of the lineup production, could be a valuable weapon.
didn’t klesko retire?
He’d be ideal if he were right handed.
crapple i think he only wanted to play on the left coast bcuz thats where his family is
if he could put up numbers close to darren oliver in 06 id be estatic
jorge sosa quit?? oopsie !-damn my new york public school edukation! but now in all seriousness since my p.c isnt hooked up right now and i rely on the kindness of friends too login thankgoodness johan is ours!!
I foresee a Jorge Sosa song on the horizon…
jorge – jorge jorge jorge jorrrrrrrrrrge jorgeeeeeeeeeee
think jose would be upset?
guys am i in the minority when i say that if omar and the wilpons f’ed this up they woulda been strung up like mussilini?
No. They would have been crucified.
could u imagine freds face when the lych mob appeared? lol
itd look like ur butt
come on now gary no need for harshness we are all brothers and sisters here
sorry im talkin bout the johan contract
I dont know about all this optimism… im still a mets fan. They may be great on paper (we were last yr) but will someone please tell the players to go out and play all the games this year? I m tired of winning the division in February– and losing in September.
I think they would be better off signing kyle lohse for 5th starter for 2 reasons.
1. He could eat innings and allow pelfrey to stay in the minors to learn how to pitch.Which also allows El Duque to go to the bullpen.
2. It takes him off the market for the phillies, who are also looking for pitching help.
no loshe !!
id rather bring back charlie puleo pete falcone rich rodriguez and mike (beanball) torrez!
Here are Johans stats vs the NL 182.2 IP, 16-4, 191 K, 2.27 ERA, 0.91 WHIP YUMMY!
(13-3) with a 1.96 ERA in 142 IP, with 93 hits 31 ER’s allowed, 37 walks given and 133 K’s overall vs the NL East YES!
whatchu talkin ’bout gary!! lol
all i know is i was at outback downing the fosters during the 2 hour extension refreshing metsblog on my cell phone & watching espn when they announced it me and a couple of other drunks where screaming and high fiving (my wife pretended like she didn’t know me lol!
btw guys the mets took down the citi feild construction cam !!)
those r johan stats vs the nl east on his career! BTW MY NAME IS KINTA KUNTAY
so ure the real kuntay??? im really haywood jablowmee
My optimistic (yet not altogether unreasonable) prediction/aspiration for wins by the Mets rotation is 75, broken down as follows:
Johan – 20 wins
Pedro – 15 wins
Perez – 15 wins
Maine – 15 wins
El Duque – 10 wins
How does that sound to everyone?
i agree da bronx but i feel maine andd o.p can have 17 win seasons but u r right there with el duke and pedro
The one thing I am positive of is that the win totals will not work out exactly like this. Things are never that neat. Maine and OP could certainly win more, but they might win less. But if they get 75 wins out of the five, I will be happy.
Looks like Sosa will be the long man out of the pen. Anyone who thinks its a good idea to put Duque in the pen as a long man is an imbecile. Duque cant take pitching every 5 days let along possibly pitching potentially 3 or 4 times a week. Forget Livan and Lohse they are BUMS, I guarentee the Mets start the year with who we have now as long as everyone stays healthy.
I think we can all agree their is potential and depth now that a #1 starter like Santana is here
I agree that Pelfrey starts in AAA and gets the call up if someone goes on the DL
Vargas is not that bad if they need a extra arm and Sosa can spot start
I am confident with Maine and Perez and Duque and Pedro are veterans
Can’t wait for the Spring
Another reason they wont put Duque in the pen is his 6.5 million dollar salary. After doling out 150 million Wilpon will be going on the cheap as much as he can. 6.5 million means starting rotation period.
To the poster above, you can forget about Sabbitha next year the mets wont be going for huge contracts like that two years in a row. If pedro stays healthy this year the mets need to give him a 2 year extension. I dont have alot of confidence in resigning oliver perez either, especially if the arbitrators votes against him coming up.
could u imagine what our rotation and b/p wouldve looked like without johan? i shudder at the thought of loshe as our 5th starter but thats neither here nor there omar gots da trade lube and fred found the combo to the safe and we are in the drivers seat baby!!! damn i need a beer
gil whats with the negativity? look we just dictated the market for starting pitchers it was bound to go this high eventually and we came out of it with the best pitcher in both leagues we might and we might not go after cc but remember we have salary coming off next season and i think the wilpons will get a bit braver if we have a high sucesss level
What negativity? I am simply looking at the situation we have now and some of the stuff i have read is rediculous. Either they aren’t listening to what the Mets have been saying or they know little about how baseball operates.
im sorry man i misunderstood your post
lets go met!!!
Keep dreaming about Sabbitha, I just dont think it will ever happen.
i never said we were going after cc i just meant hey if the front office’s philosiphy has changed that drasticly then maybe cc or tex mor that matter
next year the mets NEED to sign sabathia, trade for Brandon Webb &Felix Hernandez, the mariners have gotten sick of him and we can get him straight up for Gotay….
and if anyone out there really thinks like the above statement please go be a yankees fan or do us all a favor and only post on fantasy baseball websited from now on…or mike and the mad dog
No reason why we cant sign Texiera next year though. Delgado and Alou both come off the books. We replace them with Texiera and F-Mart. Delgado and Alou salaries equal to or maybe less than what Tex’s salary will be and F-Mart obviously is dirt cheap. Possible?
I heard Tex bought an expensive house in atlanta. He might be settling in there. I would not count on getting him next year.
Just about 1 Hour to Super Bowl 42! Go Big Blue!
Texiera will be a Brave or Oriole in ‘09, he has more or less come out and said so….give this one up ASAP…also mean come on, we can not do this Yankee garbage and sign an all-star to every frickin position, it worked bad for them, we need to have guys that fit, not guys like Texiera who are”me-first” guys.
Tom Brady eats children ….disgusting…he is a terrible human being, the only person worse is Belichek who sold his sleeves to the devil.
Well, Giselle Bundchen is someone’s child so while you’re technically correct I wouldn’t describe that as terrible, but regarding Belichik I’m with you.
there is a winter league game on now (525pm)
Jorge Sosa and Anderson Hernandez are one the PR team.
Anderson is hitting .143 with 1 RBI for the series.
Sosa’s playoff stats are: 5.43 ERA 12hits in 8innings
yeesh…
Yeah Im wondering when we are going to just give up on Anderson Hernandez. If there are roster problems in the future he better be DFA’d before someone like Gotay or even Pagan. He is a worthless hitter with a good glove. Not someone you need on the bench as a pinch hitter.
If you’ll excuse me now, I have to go crank up “Let’s Get Retarded,” make some guacamole, order a pizza, flush my toilet and beat my wife. Someone has to keep these generalizations going…A little help?
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