Daily Archives: February 5, 2008

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Stats: Mets In Winter Leagues

by Mike Nichols on February 5th, 2008 at 5:07 pm

Several Mets currently on the 40-man roster, as well as, other non-roster invitees have participated in various winter leagues this off-season.

Here is a rundown of how each player performed this winter.

  • OF Endy Chavez, .476 (10-for-21), 2 RBI, 1 3B, 2 SB in six games
  • 2B Ruben Gotay, .261, 12 RBI, 6 2B in 115 at-bats
  • 2B Anderson Hernandez, .174, 12 RBI, 4 2B, 4 SB in 126 at-bats
  • RHP Jorge Sosa, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 8 K, 1 BB in 7.2 innings pitched
  • LHP Willie Collazo, 3-3, 3.20 ERA, 30 K, 14 BB in 59.0 innings pitched

Non-Roster Invitees:

  • SS Anderson Machado, .077 (2-for-26), 0 RBI in 16 games
  • C Gustavo Molina, .261, 12 RBI, 6 2B in 115 at-bats
  • 3B Fernando Tatis, .229, 1 HR, 11 RBI, 6 2B, 1 3B, 5 SB in 140 at-bats
  • C Raul Casanova, .286, 1 HR, 15 RBI, 3 2B in 98 at-bats
  • RHP Joselo Diaz, 4-2, 2.75 ERA, 50 K, 19 BB in 55.2 innings pitched
  • LHP Ryan Cullen, 0-1, 5.87, 3 K, 2 BB in 7.2 innings pitched

For a full statistical breakdown of each player, check out MLB.com’s Caribbean baseball coverage.

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View: Fan Reaction to Santana Trade

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 2:32 pm

Last night on SNY’s Mets Hot Stove Report, I talked about fan reaction to the Mets acquiring Johan Santana, and the impact he may have on how people cope with last season.

To watch the one-minute segment, click play below…

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Note: Rickey, Franco, Cone and HOF

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 2:08 pm

According to MLB.com, Rickey Henderson, John Franco, David Cone and Mo Vaughn are among those who are expected to make their Hall of Fame ballot debuts in 2009.

…jeez, add Bobby Bonilla, Vince Coleman and a pack of firecrackers and we’ll be all set…

…by the way, several people have e-mailed me to point out that, assuming Roger Clemens does not return to baseball, and Mike Piazza does not latch on to a team, they may both be eligible for the Hall of Fame at the same time five years from now…which will be very interesting to watch…

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Note: Policy for the Comments Section

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 1:22 pm

The comment section on MetsBlog.com is made available so you can provide your own insightful, relevant commentary to a post made to the site’s main page.

I highly encourage you to challenge me, the team and to engage in an intelligent, thoughtful discussion about the initial post.

However, if you attack a fellow reader in any way, such as calling people names like ‘idiot’ and ‘jerk,’ your comment will be removed. If you make a random, unrelated comment for the sake of writing to this blog, your comment will be removed.

Swearing, racial slurs, violent remarks, hateful comments and irrelevant babble are not welcome on this site and will be removed.

If a reader repeatedly violates these rules he or she will have their posting privileges revoked.

According to a recent survey, the overwhelming majority of this site’s readers prefer to see comments that provide additional insight about the subject at hand.

Additionally, comments that appear on MetsBlog get linked to its search-engine results, and can trigger other company firewalls – thus jeopardizing our readership, the future of this site and what has essentially become my career.

In turn, I am working to create a wide-open message board that can be utilized for all sorts of discussion, with very little restrictions.

Believe me, I realize that you have a right to express your thoughts in public – and I support that. However, the comments section on any blog is a privilege, not a right – there is a significant difference between the two.

Therefore, please contact me if you notice a reader who is violating these guidelines (which you can always find in the left-hand column of this site).

Hopefully in time, with tighter rules, and your help, the comment section can return to a safer, more intelligent, well-mannered environment.

Thanks for understanding, and I appreciate your support…

Matthew Cerrone
MetsBlog.com

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Note: Mets to Announce Mystery Musician

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 12:45 pm

According to a team press release, the Mets will announce on Thursday the name of the mystery artist who is scheduled to perform a concert titled ‘The Last Play at Shea,’ i.e., the final concert at Shea Stadium in its final year before the Mets move into Citi Field.

Last September in Newsday Glenn Gamboa reported that Billy Joel will be the final performer at Shea Stadium, “Doing a string of concerts there before its planned demolition after the 2008 Mets season.”

my friend continues to lament that joel sings with a british accent, despite being from new york, which i never understood…i can’t tell if he’s serious, or just joking around…

…frankly, i’d prefer the last performance at shea to be when Taking Care of Business blares from its speaker following a World Series celebration…but, maybe that’s just me

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Quote: Be Ready, This Will Come Back to Us

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 12:26 pm

Last night on SNY’s Mets Hot Stove Report, Mets COO Jeff Wilpon talked about his team’s negotiations with Johan Santana.

Wilpon, when asked if was surprised by how long Santana remained on the trade market, said…

“Well, we didn’t know how long it was gonna take, but Omar told me back at the Winter Meetings, he and Tony Bernazard told me, ‘Listen, be ready, this will come back to us.’ So, I bet them a pair of shoes, and it’s gonna cost me with those guys…They promised that it would come back. It did come back, and we just waited until it looked they were really ready to make a deal. And when that showed itself, Omar came back and said, ‘Listen, we’re gonna put this kid Guerra in the trade.’…From that point, we would never had made the trade if we didn’t feel confident about signing him.”

by the way, i am trying to learn more about what, ‘It would come back to us,’ means

To watch Wilpon’s entire segment, click play below…

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Read: MetsBlog’s Q&A with Kevin Mulvey

by Evan Drellich on February 5th, 2008 at 8:02 am

i was able to speak with RHP Kevin Mulvey, one of the four Mets prospects traded last week for Johan Santana, on friday evening after word got out that the Mets and santana had reached a new contract…

Mulvey, the Mets top pick in the 2006 draft, went 11-10 with a 3.32 ERA and 110 strikeouts in 151.2 innings for Double-A Binghamton last season.

…double-a pitching coaches and scouts i spoke with while covering the 2007 b-mets unanimously agreed mulvey will be a major league starting pitcher in the near future, though likely not an ace…

He finished the season with 13 shutout innings in New Orleans.

Evan Drellich: What’s going through your head after the trade?

Kevin Mulvey: I still have the same answer that I’ve always had, I know that I have no control over what happened and I look forward. Hopefully I’ll have the opportunity that everybody’s telling me that I have to go into spring training and try to make the team.

Evan Drellich: Have you been informed that you’re in contention for a major league roster spot with the Twins?

Kevin Mulvey: Well, they didn’t tell me whether I would make the team or not, but they told me I’d come into spring training with a chance, you know? Anybody in spring training has the chance to make the team.

Evan Drellich: What are your final thoughts on your time with the Mets?

Kevin Mulvey: I never played for the New York Mets, but I can say that the Binghamton Mets fans were great. I never played in New Orleans, but on the road it was a lot of fun to play in a Mets uniform at the Triple-A level.

I have nothing but great things to say about every single coach that I ever had in the brief Mets career that I had, I have nothing but good things to say about the organization and the front-office people. They’re a first-rate organization, they had a lot of class, they treat people well. Obviously they’re doing a good job—the Mets are a very successful organization, both money-wise and on the field—and I have no bitterness toward them at all.

Evan Drellich: Though you were just one part of the package the Mets put together for Santana, is it in any way a compliment to you to be traded for one of baseball’s best pitchers?

Kevin Mulvey: I can’t say if it was a compliment or not a compliment. I can say that, as of right now, the Mets needed a front-line starter and Johan Santana was available and they did what they needed to get him.

...best of luck in Minnesota, kevin…


…added to by
Matthew Cerrone

…first off, hat’s off to evan for being able to reach mulvey, who i am certain was getting inundated with phone calls from friends and family as news of trade became public…

…i’ll say this, during the Winter Meetings, i was very impressed by the number of people inside baseball who spoke so highly about mulvey, especially the Twins and A’s…so, good for him, and i hope he goes on to have a great career

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Buzz: O’s talk 1-yr Deal with Lohse

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 8:00 am

In a post to his blog for the Baltimore Sun, Roch Kubatko writes that the O’s have talked with both Kyle Lohse and Steve Trachsel.

According to Kubatko, Baltimore likely discussed one-year deals with both pitchers.

Yesterday, in the Chicago Tribune, Phil Rogers wrote that the Phillies and Mets could wind up in a bidding war for Lohse. Meanwhile, last Friday, in a report for ESPN.com, Jayson Stark wrote that the Mets continue to express interest in Lohse, even with Santana in their sights.

However, during a conference call to announce the acquisition of Johan Santana, which you can read more about by clicking here, Mets GM Omar Minaya told reporters that this is the team he will go to spring training with.

…as i wrote yesterday, i have no interest in seeing lohse signed to a long-term deal, but i’m intrigued by what he could do for the roster if he can be had for just one year…

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Read: Q&A with Twins Fan about Santana

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 7:53 am

In a post to Mets Today, Joe conducts a quick Q&A about the Johan Santana trade with Seth Stohs, the outstanding Twins fan and blogger from SethSpeaks.net.

In regards to Santana, among other comments, Stohs says…

“The Twins made a smart move and one they had to make. I also think that the players that the Twins received from the Mets will all have a very positive impact on the Twins. I think Gomez and Humber will already help the team in 2008. Mulvey could be ready by July and Guerra may be the biggest impact of all of them.

“The problem is that names like Jacoby Ellsbury and Jed Lowrie, Phil Hughes, Jon Lester and Melky Cabrera were mentioned as possibilities. Those guys have names that the average Twins fan has heard of. They haven’t heard of the Mets guys as much. But the reality is that the upside of the new Twins is pretty exciting!”

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Buzz: O’s and M’s Agree on Bedard Framework

by Matthew Cerrone on February 5th, 2008 at 7:46 am

According to the Baltimore Sun, the Orioles and Mariners have agreed to the framework of a deal that will send LHP Erik Bedard from Baltimore to Seattle for five players, including OF Adam Jones.

in the days after the Mets traded for Johan Santana, i was sent several e-mails from fans wondering if the Mets could turn around and trade Fernando Martinez, Aaron Heilman and Mike Pelfrey, among others, to the O’s for bedard…

…man, talk about killing your minor-league system…

…anyway, obviously that was never going to happen, if for no other reason than the O’s have been asking for a starting outfielder throughout the entire off-season, such as Reds OF Jay Bruce, Dodgers OF Matt Kemp and jones, who is better than any prospect the Mets could have ever offered