Daily Archives: December 29, 2008
Buster Olney of ESPN.com believes the Mets and Dodgers have been in talks about OF Andruw Jones.
Jones will earn around $15 million in 2009, after which he is eligible to be a free agent.
The Mets intention, Olney explains, would be to play Jones in right field.
I know you’re thinking it, so…
According to Olney, “It’s unlikely that the Dodgers would have interest in Luis Castillo, because they have a young second baseman in Blake DeWitt, and Castillo does not play a lot of different positions.”
In early December, Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com wrote, ‘‘The Mets have shown interest in trading for Dodgers OF Juan Pierre,’ which Omar Minaya denied the following day.
SI.com’s Jon Heyman later acknowledged the Mets had been in talks with the Dodgers, but did not specify who was involved.
The 31–year-old Jones hit just .158 with three HR in 75 games for the Dodgers last season, after hitting just .222 with a .311 OBP and 26 HR for the Braves in 2007.
…i’m confused…if this is accurate, how can the Mets be interested in jones, but not Manny Ramirez…i mean, if castillo is involved i get it…i totally get it…but, if not…i’m super confused…
Jayson Stark of ESPN.com says the Dodgers have been in contact with free-agent OF Adam Dunn, who has also drawn interest from the Cubs, Nationals, Mariners and Orioles.
According to Stark, “The Cubs had believed to be Dunn’s top choice before the Dodgers entered the mix.”
…this is interesting…because, if the Dodgers end up with dunn, what happens to the market for Manny Ramirez, since, as of now, the Dodgers seem to be manny’s only suitor…
…again, like i said this morning, if the market for manny crashes, and he’s open to a one-year deal, i don’t know how the Mets will justify ignoring him…
Marty Noble of MLB.com believes the Mets will make offers this week to at 
least two starting pitchers, if not three, from a group consisting of Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez and Randy Wolf.
According to Noble, ‘the Mets still view Wolf as a fall back alternate to the other two,’ with Lowe still the team’s top priority.
Noble also reports on the team’s plan for the bullpen, which does not include Joe Beimel, and may not include an additional left-handed reliever, according to Omar Minaya.
Tagged Oliver Perez, Randy Wolf |In his latest post to ESPN.com, Buster Olney takes a closer look at the dwindling market for free-agent OF Manny Ramirez.
According to Olney, the Angels, Mets and Yankees have all said they are out of the bidding on Ramirez, who is unlikely to draw interest from the Phillies, Blue Jays, Cubs, Tigers, Cardinals, Braves and others.
Olney adds that some GMs are concerned that if Ramirez signs a short-term deal that he believes is worth less than he thinks he deserves, he could end up being ‘unhappy,’ and, ‘As the Red Sox can attest, that didn’t work out so well in the end.’
Omar Minaya has been unable to convince ownership to sign Ramirez, Dan Graziano recently wrote in the Star-Ledger, and so he will not be on the Mets, according to people familiar with the team’s thinking.
…i actually believe ramirez will end up returning to the Dodgers, because, as i have said before, he needs Hollywood as much as Hollywood needs him…however, while i agree with graziano, if this continues to drag out, and there is a chance of ramirez signing a one-year deal, the Mets have to get involved…they have to…
Last week, in a poll on MetsBlog.com, only nine percent of more than 7,500 voters said they did not want Ramirez on the Mets, while 49 percent would go so far as to guarantee him a two-year deal and 29 percent would give him a three-year deal.
Last week, Ben Shpigel of the New York Times said the Mets could ask Johan Santana to sit out of the World Baseball Classic.
“He should be O.K., but we’re going to be conservative,” Omar Minaya told Shpigel. “If we have a little bit of doubt or concern, we’d rather have him not play. We’re pro-Classic, but we always have to be mindful and protective of our players.”
Santana underwent surgery in October to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. In December, he told reporters he will be ready for spring training.
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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe believes the Mets are the front-runners to sign free-agent RHP Derek Lowe, over the Phillies and Red Sox.
Speaking of starting pitchers…
According to the Boston Herald, the Red Sox and free-agent RHP Brad Penny agreed to a one-year deal that could be worth up to $8 million.
Penny joins Josh Beckett, Tim Wakefield, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jon Lester in Boston’s starting rotation, shifting Justin Masterson back to the bullpen.
…penny’s deal is guaranteed, and for decent money, and so i have to think this means they do not have the same serious interest in lowe as the Mets…which is not to say the Sox will not sign him, but i take this as a good sign for the Mets…
Penny missed the end of last season with a sore right shoulder.
In November, the Los Angeles Times wrote, “Several club officials have questioned the severity of the shoulder problems… and blamed his 6-9 record and 6.27 earned-run average on what they called a poor work ethic.”
