News: Mets Acquire Trot Nixon

June 13, 2008 at 22:44 pm · 108 comments

by Mike Nichols

Following tonight’s game, Omar Minaya announced the Mets have acquired OF Trot Nixon from the Diamondbacks for cash or a player to be named later.

Nixon was batting .309 with a .437 OBP, 15 2B, 10 HR and 31 RBI in 181 at-bats for the D-backs Triple-A Tucson affiliate.

He hit .288 after the All-Star break last season, and reached base safely in 67 of 98 games.

…i like the move…i will like it even more if he replaces Robinson Cancel on the roster…

According to Minaya, Nixon will join the team tomorrow and be ready for the game.

added to by Matthew Cerrone

i like this guy…he’s a tough, hard-nosed player, who can hit from the left side, who was won in the past, and who’ll play solid defense…but, most importantly, he’ll bring a little grit that i believe this team is need of

{ 108 comments }

NYCESQ June 13, 2008 at 10:45 pm

WONDERFUL MOVE.

HOFMets57 June 13, 2008 at 11:12 pm

Agreed. Hopefully, Trot will convince Delgado to get his ‘jersey dirty.’

fivepointspro June 13, 2008 at 11:15 pm

I hate this MOVE ANOTHER MID-30’s player… boy does omar suck………………..

losmets5 June 13, 2008 at 11:26 pm

You’re like the only person who deosn’t like this move.

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:31 pm

yea but for this cost, i dont see any reason not to take a chance. He should be an upgrade over nick evans, tatis, and aguila and certainly robinson cancel and casanova.

fivepointspro June 14, 2008 at 1:21 am

LOL do u even know why he’s in AAA???????

WHY would D_BACKS keep this suck “HIGH TALENT”

VETERAN on their farm system??????

Dude this is a joke, we pick up left over crap from other team and wish to give them another chance… I have never seen a GM where he strickly goes to veterans for HELP…..

I CAN SEE HOW THE VETERANS HAVE HELPED THIS TEAM……

WHAT A JOKE!!!!!!!

We Were Throwbacks June 14, 2008 at 1:57 am

It’s a joke that:

a) You clearly don’t understand baseball to know just how Trot’s winning ways will positively help this team and

b) You can’t spell the word “strictly”, not “strickly”. Don’t worry guy, you’ll learn that in 8th grade this upcoming year.

You, sir, are a joke.

chew13 June 13, 2008 at 11:14 pm

Good Move Omar

WHARFDOG1966 June 14, 2008 at 12:32 am

I KNOW THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH Trot Nixon BUT AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO FEELS THAT Luis Castillo CAN’T HIT THE BALL OUT OF THE INFIELD. HOW MANY TIMES HAS HE RALLY KILLED A DECENT INNING. I WOULD BET THAT HE HAS COST THE Mets 12 TO 15 GAMES. HOW SAD IS IT THA A 32 (SUPPOSEDLY) YEAR OLD PROFESSIONAL BALLPLAYER CAN’T HIT THE BALL ON A LINE DRIVE INTO THE OUTFIELD. HE WALKS AROUND LIKE FRED G. SANFORD (THE G STANDS FOR GIMPIE). IS HE ONE OF THOSE PLAYERS THAT COMPLETELY RELIED ON STEROIDS??? IT TRULY SEEMS TO BE THE CASE. ISN’T THERE A YOUNG WELL ADJUSTED SECOND BASEMAN SOMEWHERE IN THE MINORS THA HAS A LITTLE POP IN HIS BAT???

I HAVE NEVER SEEN A PLAYER WHO FLIES OUT MORE TO THE CATCHER, FIRST BASEMAN AND THIRD BASEMAN THAN DELGADO–ENOUGH ALREADY–GET A NEW 1B ASAP!!!!!!

rogasm June 14, 2008 at 12:33 am

STOP YELLING AT ME!!!

nrmax88 June 14, 2008 at 3:32 am

Dont expect to be taken seriously when you type in all caps. And Castillo cost this team 12-15 games? Ha. Funny.

soma138 June 13, 2008 at 10:46 pm

Did the Mets trade for Miranda from Sex and the City?

khmustache June 13, 2008 at 11:33 pm

SERIOUSLY!!! HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT NAME!!!

NY Cuban June 13, 2008 at 10:47 pm

In a day mired with negativity…this was nice cherry on top of the 7-1 win.

I don’t think its the missing link, but its a start.

dcatmets41 June 13, 2008 at 11:03 pm

Not bad, he also reunites with Pedro who of course he won with. Nothing wrong with a dirty uniform either. Put it this way, the move cant possibly make it worse right?

WHARFDOG1966 June 14, 2008 at 12:33 am

I KNOW THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH Trot Nixon BUT AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO FEELS THAT Luis Castillo CAN’T HIT THE BALL OUT OF THE INFIELD. HOW MANY TIMES HAS HE RALLY KILLED A DECENT INNING. I WOULD BET THAT HE HAS COST THE Mets 12 TO 15 GAMES. HOW SAD IS IT THAT A 32 (SUPPOSEDLY) YEAR OLD PROFESSIONAL BALLPLAYER CAN’T HIT THE BALL ON A LINE DRIVE INTO THE OUTFIELD. HE WALKS AROUND LIKE FRED G. SANFORD (THE G STANDS FOR GIMPIE). IS HE ONE OF THOSE PLAYERS THAT COMPLETELY RELIED ON STEROIDS??? IT TRULY SEEMS TO BE THE CASE. ISN’T THERE A YOUNG WELL ADJUSTED SECOND BASEMAN SOMEWHERE IN THE MINORS THA HAS A LITTLE POP IN HIS BAT???

I HAVE NEVER SEEN A PLAYER WHO FLIES OUT MORE TO THE CATCHER, FIRST BASEMAN AND THIRD BASEMAN THAN DELGADO–ENOUGH ALREADY–GET A NEW 1B ASAP!!!!!!

mikey June 13, 2008 at 10:48 pm

good move, it is nice to have outfielder play in the outfield

MetsFanInVegas June 13, 2008 at 11:37 pm

Word.

dominicanboy08 June 13, 2008 at 10:48 pm

the socuting report on nixon:

Trot Nixon is considered the inspiration for the expression “Boston Dirt Dogs”. The signature is that of a “scrapper”, a player who hustles and isn’t afraid to get dirty to win a game

source:wikipedia

I like that!!!!

hsimms June 13, 2008 at 10:50 pm

He’s younger than Leon “Trot” Trotsky and Mojo Nixon. Good move.

Two-By-Four June 14, 2008 at 12:43 am

Just to be on the safe side tell him to stay out of Mexico.

IsiahRandolph June 13, 2008 at 10:54 pm

is trot nixon the savior? no, of course not. but given that he cost us nothing, he is an upgrade to robinson cancel. hes a scrappy guy and is not shy to get on his teammates and talk to the media. hes a proven leader, winner, and fan favorite. he will add depth to our bench, no doubt. i like the move, plus it shifts a little focus away from willies job status. also, looks like omar wants to shake things up with roster moves and maybe not managerial decisions

JerryKoosman June 13, 2008 at 10:54 pm

…and younger than Pat Nixon, too!

But he’s still 34……

hojo20o9 June 13, 2008 at 10:56 pm

Cowboy up!

K-Hern June 13, 2008 at 11:14 pm

oh man…. I forgot that… hahahaha

ness589 June 13, 2008 at 10:58 pm

I like the move. It’s not gonna kill our season (that’s already happened). Just gives the media one more guy to talk to which I’m sure Wagner and Wright will enjoy.

aznJoe June 13, 2008 at 10:58 pm

well we finally got the replacement for old Shawn Green and that is Trot Nixon. NOt bad omar, not bad. thank god it is just for cash.

IsiahRandolph June 13, 2008 at 11:00 pm

nixon is not going to be a starter. hes going to be an extra bat off the bench, a clubhouse guy, and a spot starter until church/alou get back

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:12 pm

umm…whose going to start over him? Endy? ok maybe him, but than what about LF? Alou and Church will be out for at least two weeks. When Church comes back then Trot can platoon in LF. And if Alou ever comes back, then trot is a nice bat off the bench. Until then, I don’t see this guy not starting. If your gonna start nick evans for a week then why not trot nixon.

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:13 pm

ok fair enough you did say “spot starter until then”

youknowwhatimsayin June 13, 2008 at 11:14 pm

Nixon will play against righties, with Chavez going back to his rightful place on the bench.

Alou should not even be in the thought process. He cannot be relied on right now. If Alou and Church return, you can platoon Alou and Nixon.

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:28 pm

if/when Alou is healthy, he plays most days. Obv gotta be careful with him. But that guy can hit against anyone. Prolly could hit from a wheelchair too.

hojo20o9 June 13, 2008 at 10:59 pm

Now DFA Delgado and we are moving

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 11:00 pm

He is actually doing much better. Unless we can get Dunn then Delgado has to stay until we are out of it completely.

garykeithron June 13, 2008 at 11:03 pm

i agree – he’s been playing very well the past few games…getting some solid hits and hustling

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 11:14 pm

And he is hitting over .300 in June with a .400 OBP.

jbinva June 13, 2008 at 11:26 pm

And he had a SB tonight!

Gasface77 June 13, 2008 at 11:51 pm

Yeah, enough with the Delgado bashing for a little while. I mean, look at the numbers, besides Reyes, he’s been our best hitter for the last few weeks (sad).

ALeatherGlove June 13, 2008 at 11:00 pm

Meh…at first blush you notice the name and say he’s got to be better than Tatis or Anderson, but he probably won’t be. His power completely disappeared after 2004 (hmmm, I wonder what could possibly be the cause) and his OPS the past two years was pretty awful for a corner outfielder.

IAmKeithHernandez June 13, 2008 at 11:02 pm

Can’t compare him to a regular corner OF. You gotta compare him to who is in our corner OF right now.

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 11:03 pm

More likely that he started to miss a ton of games. Even in 2005 he had 13 HR in 400 AB’s. If you extend that to an entire season thats not that far off from what you expected. He just could not stay healthy. So now Alou has a DL platoon partner.

thekid024 June 13, 2008 at 11:05 pm

He had back problems starting in 04, I think thats as likely an explanation as anything for his drop off in performance.

Ludacrispat June 13, 2008 at 11:40 pm

The guy is better than Endy Chavez, Fernando Tatis, and Marlon Anderson.

Good move considering it cost it relatively little to nothing.

uppertank June 13, 2008 at 11:05 pm

He had a big years in 2001 & ‘02 Hmmm….

DMSMets June 13, 2008 at 11:13 pm

2001 and 2002 was also the only two seasons where heplayed 140+ games…maybe thats an explanation

DMSMets June 13, 2008 at 11:06 pm

Nice move, IMO. I have always liked Trot…hope he helps us!

jejac77 June 13, 2008 at 11:07 pm

Nice move! I went to GOOGLE Trot Nixon and went to Wikipedia which already reports the trade – “from the Diamondbacks for cash and Aaron Heilman.” Can anyone confirm this?????

jejac77 June 13, 2008 at 11:11 pm

Just went back to Wiki and it now says a player to be named later. Sorry for the buzz.

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 11:11 pm

Don’t trust Wikipedia. You can go on and change it right now. I put something in there about Alou a while ago.

khmustache June 13, 2008 at 11:38 pm

dude..one of the posters on metsblog posted that…

Gina June 14, 2008 at 12:10 am

They clean incorrect stuff up pretty quickly though. it’s really not any less accurate than most media outlets. or any other encyclopedia.

metsthebest June 13, 2008 at 11:07 pm

Well I’d rather have Nixon as a starter than Tatis, not that Tatis is not good, but I’d rather have Tatis or Marlon Anderson in the bench cause they are super subs. Nixon brings in attitude and leadership.

thekid024 June 13, 2008 at 11:10 pm

Tatis is not good.

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:15 pm

he’s actually better than I thought he’d be. I though he was gonna be real washed up but he’s got some quickness I never knew he had. Yes, his bat isn’t great, but for a 7-8 hitter ehh, it could be worse.

youknowwhatimsayin June 13, 2008 at 11:16 pm

Agreed. He’s played hard, and may have some use as a right handed bat off the bench (but we already have Easley for that), but he’s an awful OF.

Marlon, Tatis, or Chavez can’t play every day.

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:24 pm

fair enough…he also isn’t an OF, he’s been an IF for the majority of his career. he only has i think a few dozen career games in the OF, in the majors. But all the more reason why he shouldnt need to be in the OF.

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 11:10 pm

He is mashing RHP in the minors right now. 10 HR in 136 AB’s with a 1.113 OPS. I would say that is worth a call up. LOL.

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:20 pm

Val Pascucci has 12 HR’s and 40 RBI’s with a 1.002 OPS…according to your logic I’d say thats worth a call-up too.

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 11:22 pm

But Nixon can actually play defense. Every report I have heard on Val is that he is strictly a PH. Nixon brings a lot of other things to the team too like the imaginary “gritt”

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:24 pm

plus experience. fair enough.

TenTonHammer June 14, 2008 at 12:09 am

Jesus Christ.

Nixon started for a World Series Champion. Pascucci can’t hack it in the majors.

nrmax88 June 14, 2008 at 3:38 am

If Pascucci was a corner OF he would have been called up. Again, this is a solid move to get a guy capable of being a starter for 2-3 weeks. He isn’t great, but he is a vet and can probably hit situationally and get some runs in from 3rd which we have stunk at. Should be similar to Shawn Green. Just keep him away from the lefties.

koosman June 13, 2008 at 11:23 pm

The big move that will turn the season around. Now where is my kool-aid…

JNGordon June 13, 2008 at 11:24 pm

Just returned from B-Mets game in New Briatain CT. Mets win 3-2 in 10……Nick Evans looked poor, with three pop ups. Tim Lavigne was overpowering in the 10th. Stuck out the side around an error. Was looking forward to seeing Dan Murphy, but he wasn’t in the game. Did he get called up (or down) to New Orleans?

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:26 pm

Good looks on the info.

Fmart injured? I know he was at one point but unsure on how long he was gonna be out.

metinDC23 June 14, 2008 at 12:06 pm

He has a minor injury (bruised shoulder I think)

djstue June 13, 2008 at 11:28 pm

keep nixon and aquila on the roster… and we’ll be fine… anderson and chavez look great tonight. OP was amazing. Today was a good day. Let’s Go Mets!

Metsnumba57 June 13, 2008 at 11:30 pm

Good move

41 franchise June 13, 2008 at 11:34 pm

Worth a gamle. But be forwarned he has been injured alot over the past 3 seasons. Hopefully he isn’t another Alou.

Two-By-Four June 14, 2008 at 12:57 am

Alou has an mtbf of 3 at bats. I’m not sure anyone else can reproduce that. :)

Andrew June 13, 2008 at 11:39 pm

It’s a good move, but how ’bout a quality righty bat off the bench? The Mets have so many left-handed hitters already.

miker94 June 13, 2008 at 11:40 pm

bottom line is that omar did SOMETHING! that’s all we’ve been asking for months now. sending the same lineup out all year, with no firing of any coaches, etc. is obviously not working. all we want is that managment at least makes an effort to change things and this is a great first start. hopefully there are more changes to come, either by subtraction or addition.

adam11216 June 13, 2008 at 11:47 pm

agreed. tonight just felt a little different, even aside from the win. willie was relaxed like we haven’t seen him in a year.

adam11216 June 13, 2008 at 11:46 pm

off topic: aaron miles pitched a perfect inning for the cards tonight!

41 franchise June 13, 2008 at 11:56 pm

Rather see him then Heilman-hey how about him FOR Heilman-scrappy 2b thatw e could use and we don’t ahve to see Heilman blow anymore games.

Yeah Aaron for Aaron

nrmax88 June 14, 2008 at 3:40 am

With all due respect, and remember I am sayen with all due respect, that idea aint worth a velvet painting of a whale and a dolphin getting it on.

gd84 June 13, 2008 at 11:50 pm

Newsday is saying Chris Aguila is being sent down to Triple-A New Orleans…

WHY ARE WE WASTING A ROSTER SPOT WITH CANCEL!!!???

41 franchise June 13, 2008 at 11:54 pm

So castro will be the 2nd heaviest catcher on the team?

starz31 June 13, 2008 at 11:58 pm

the only reason i can see is that castro can be a righty bat off the bench behind easley…so if used we have someone behind schneider. I still think its a waste, but castro isn’t a bad bat off the bench even though we could prolly find an upgrade over that bat.

Ceetar June 14, 2008 at 1:41 am

who would you rather DH in Anaheim, Castro or Easley/Tatis/Anderson?

SuicideWatch June 14, 2008 at 8:46 am

ummmm…Troy Nixon

41 franchise June 13, 2008 at 11:53 pm

Now if Omar would only get rid of either Delgado or Castillo that would be an improvement. Talk about addition by subtraction.

I know someone will say Castillo has a good OBP and plays good defense blah blah blah. One of the worse decisions made by Mets brass to sign this guy on par with Staub for Lolich.

Fact is we are now stuck with him for 3+ years and he is playing on one leg AND he can’t hit the ball out of the infield lefty to save his life. Unless we release him he is ours for a long time.

Ceetar June 14, 2008 at 1:41 am

because we’d be winning right now with Gotay or Easley as our everyday second baseman? Surely not.

nrmax88 June 14, 2008 at 3:42 am

Exactly. I love the people who act like Castillo is the Mets problem. He is fine. We signed him for 4 years, thats just because we wanted him for this year. He is making 4 million a year, if anything the Mets eat 9 million and give him to some team to pay him 1 mil a year. Its hardly an albatross. Castillo has actually been okay.

keystonetom June 14, 2008 at 8:58 am

C’mon give Lolich a break. Some of the restaurants had banner years when he was here!

IsiahRandolph June 13, 2008 at 11:54 pm

willie is on the hot seat, so hell have to use wright every day until he finally comes off it. but id like to see tatis get a start at 3rd and give wright a much needed day off.

as for this move, ive said this once and ill repeat it again: im happy. nixon makes our bench semi-respectable, and he has some intangible qualities that youve gotta love. he also has a nice connection with pedro, which will help him become “one of the boys” on the team. any word on when pagan will return?

41 franchise June 13, 2008 at 11:58 pm

Add Millar to the mix too. We could have the beginnings of a 2004 Red Sox reunion in Flushing(and don’t forget that Omar will try his best to have Manny be our LF next year too.)

SuicideWatch June 14, 2008 at 12:52 am

Yes, I definately believe Millar will help this team…he’ll at least push Delgado.

WestCoastMets_since86 June 14, 2008 at 12:38 am

NICE MOVE – Mets need a guy who has a winners attitude and willing to do the work to get it done and put some pressure on….Robinson Cancel??

SuicideWatch June 14, 2008 at 12:51 am

I like the move, but he’s ANOTHER lefty bat. The Mets need a righty bat….I thought righties were easier to find.

TheIcon June 14, 2008 at 1:32 am

Love the negative comments on here. Keep them coming.

Good move by Omar. In this market, this is what you are going to get. The Mets don’t have the chips for an Adam Dunn. The Mets can’t completely clean out their farm system. They have to keep one eye on the future. As I said in another post, I think the Mets have started to change their organizational philosophy by drafting college players who will develop quickly and help the Mets in a couple of years.

Getting back to Nixon, I’m sure he’s going to have a lot of motivation to prove himself. The Mets can still turn this around and if Nixon can contribute here and there, all the better.

TenTonHammer June 14, 2008 at 1:55 am

I love people begging for Adam Dunn as if he’s the missing piece of the championship puzzle These are the same guys who will be crying for his head each time he whiffs in a big spot. As much power as he has, he K’s about as badly as Ryan Howard. He’s not a superstar in any sense.

nrmax88 June 14, 2008 at 3:44 am

No, but he is certainly an all star and a great player. But you’re right, he would probably get killed here. I think Dunn or Burrell is a met in 2009 though.

Mr. Bananagrabber June 14, 2008 at 2:41 am

I like the move. But you know what else is a great move? Getting the new Fleet Foxes album. Because holy hell is it awesome. And, I’m well drunk. Also a good move.

Jmiles June 14, 2008 at 2:47 am

A good stopgap move.perfect-no.better than the current situation-Yes-he’ll give them some innings and be better than the current bunch of “who the hell are these guys” that are currently residing in right and left field.
In the major leagues you have to get production out of left field and so far the Mets have gotten none.

lawgotham June 14, 2008 at 7:18 am

FInally, a reserve who actually is an outfielder by trade. Perhaps we can do without a third string catcher.

By the way, third string catchers became extinct once teams started carrying more than 10 pitchers. Good grief, 7 relievers is abominable. And Willie, please, use Vargas as a long man…not 1 inning a game, three games in a row.

Oops, getting off topic…

ho-go June 14, 2008 at 8:22 am

Uh, the name John Valentin ring a bell? This is a sign of desperation rather than a good sign.

RPsJacket June 14, 2008 at 9:25 am

But they are desperate in the OF, so it fits.

keystonetom June 14, 2008 at 8:34 am

World Series here we come!

metsfanmurph June 14, 2008 at 9:09 am

This is so unlike Omar to sign a player well past his prime

wrightstuff08 June 14, 2008 at 9:31 am

on another note, the Philthies win 20-2 over the Cards. they are red hot.

RPsJacket June 14, 2008 at 9:24 am

What else could he do? As long as the cost wasn’t too high, its a good move. We can replace a guy who NEVER hit major league pitching with a guy who has at least done it before.

I think there are other moves coming over the next month – I’m not sure Omar’s hands are tied as much as people think. Sure, there isn’t much in the minors but we have arms in the pen that I think have good value to a contender and we may be able to get a player younger than Nixon in return.

We know Omar likes a challenge, it doesn’t get any more challenging than this.

zen June 14, 2008 at 10:06 am

pedro said he’s a “grouch.” the media will be happy. the players aren’t supposed to enjoy their job…like the media.

nixon fits the mets…over the hill and often injured. they had no options so why not give it a try.

Elastic June 14, 2008 at 10:37 am

Another aging “proven veteran” in decline, that gives me goosebumps of anticipation just thinking about it. Whoopie!

iknowmets June 14, 2008 at 10:43 am

time to bring on jason bay or adam dunn

petercast41 June 16, 2008 at 10:52 am

Trot Nixon? This guy wasn’t that good when he was good! This team stinks of desperation. Nelson Figueroa, Fernando Tatis, Brady Clark, Chris Aguila, Robinson Cancel, Abraham Nunez, and soon Raul Gonzalez< This is what happens when you neglect a farm system, or let Tony Bernazard run it.

NCMetsGuy June 13, 2008 at 10:59 pm

I take responsiblity for that one. LOL. I can’t believe that people actually use that site.

AlreadyMissShea June 13, 2008 at 11:01 pm

I use wikipedia to find out about stuff that I’m interested in, but not TOO interested in. Stuff like movies and TV shows. I would never rely on it for anything that I really needed to know about. I hope people don’t use that site for things like medical advice. Any kid with Internet access in his parents’ basement can make any change to any topic they want.

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