SNY.tvBLOG NETWORKSCHEDULESTATSSTANDINGS VIDEO Headlines:

Matthew Cerrone

Outfield: Mets and Dodgers talk Andruw Jones
By Matthew Cerrone - Dec 29, 2008 5:01 pm

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

419 Responses to “Outfield: Mets and Dodgers talk Andruw Jones”

  1. wadehead9 says:

    oh.
    my.
    god.

    NO!

  2. enterkrod says:

    i want manny

  3. NickA33 says:

    Wait, wait, wait. So you’re telling me we won’t even LOOK at Manny Ramierz but we’re willing to take on Andruw freakin’ Jones?! Are you serious?!?! C’mon man. This has GOT to be a joke. I’m physcially ill…

    • ravi3 says:

      This is a non story…Onley doesn’t say that the Mets/Dodgers are indeed talking….rather, he BELIEVES they are….two very different things.

      • TugTheMan says:

        agreed. much to do about nothing. aint gonna happen, but people will go crazy as if its gospel.

  4. rockets212 says:

    WHY OMAR WHY!!!!!!!

    YOU WERE HAVING SUCH A GOOD OFFSEASON SO FAR DON’T SCREW IT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  5. enterkrod says:

    manny manny manny

  6. Metfreak says:

    OK OK lets all calm down this is just a rumor because if not God help us ALL

  7. belikmike23 says:

    If we got rid of Castillo and brought back Jones would anyone be happy? It seems people say get rid of Castillo any way possible, so if this is a Castillo-Jones swap, the only problem I see is Church losing his outfield spot.

    • NickA33 says:

      Per Olney’s article…”But it’s unlikely that the Dodgers would have interest in Castillo, because they have a young second baseman in Blake DeWitt, and Castillo does not play a lot of different positions.”

      So, a$$uming we’re NOT trading Castillo for Jones, what’s the point of the trade? Great, we’ll get another aging bum on the team. He and slappy can be BFF…

  8. enterkrod says:

    if we end up getting jones and not looking at manny…all the happiness of acquiring krod and putz and getting rid of the other clowns will turn into bursts of tears

  9. bkfitz says:

    Don’t believe it. Olney always makes stuff up. Rosenthal is the most reliable reporter on rumors. If he said Minaya has no interest in Jones or Pierre, believe it. Olney is full of it,

  10. RetireNumber17 says:

    What, is Ellis Valentine not available?

  11. calzone45 says:

    FOR THE LOVE OF GOD….NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

  12. bigchart333 says:

    and let the spew of venom against this move/posting begin…

  13. Tully says:

    This makes no sense at all unless Castillo is involved. NONE

  14. Krodamet says:

    juan peire in left!!!!
    hes can cover there!

    there not gonna get jones but peire yeah!!!!!!!!!!!
    t
    rade castillo and one prospect for peire and go get hudson

    • reillys5 says:

      i would rather have jones ..as much as i hate him…than pierre! pierre has 3 years left on his contract, jones only has 1…jones for castillo paves the way for the mets to sign hudson, they might not do it if they acquired pierre

  15. mr.metlover says:

    Let’s hope this one is false. I know it had come up not too long ago but was immediately shot down as an ugly lie.

  16. gipper82475 says:

    NO
    NO
    NO
    NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!

  17. NYCESQ says:

    I sure hope he is full of it.

    If we did get Jones, and didn’t bother trying to sign Manny…I would not buy season tickets. I’d be content with watching my team, on my big screen. I would still love the Mets, just wouldn’t pay the insane prices to see them. Just my opinion. Then again, they probably won’t miss me at the games.

  18. enterkrod says:

    lets just get manny and lowe…manny 1 or two years..lowe 3 years

  19. chavezfan21 says:

    If they are going to trade Castillo, it may work out to be a good trade. Castillo is useless and Jones still has a shot to reclaim some of what he was in Atlanta.

  20. carmine_riccardi says:

    Most of me still believes that buster the yankee homer will forever spew this kind of crap just to make the mets look bad. Then the rest of me realizes that minaya isn’t exactly smart… dear god please let this be buster making things up. Please.

  21. seth1280 says:

    This is what I call high risk, high reward, which is not worth the risk unless LA pays 12 million of those 15. I personally think A. Jones was a non-caught person in the roid era. He has not hit a lick since the testing got better.

  22. guierllNO MOta says:

    either you have to take garbage like Silva, Jones or Juan Pierre to get rid of Castillo….PERIOD.

    I love how the same people who post about getting rid of castillo as a necessity are the same ones who whine about the return you get for that piece of trash.

    I am glad the FAN doesn’t come in so great up here so I don’t have to listen to these yahoos on the radio as well as read them on metsblog. These idi-ots really think we are gonna get an allstar for castillo….one of you defend your position so that we can mock you….please.

  23. Krodamet says:

    he had a fluke season!!!!!!!!

    beltran in center
    church in left
    jones in right

    and the backups
    the’ll have the best backup OF

  24. ksuth says:

    Jones for Castillo straight up.

  25. One Day This Team Will Kill Me says:

    1)There is no way Omar takes on Andruw if it isnt for Castillo
    2)If it is for Castillo there is no way Andruw Jones plays in right field over Church unless he comes into camp in tremendous shape and tears the cover off the ball.
    3)Would you rather waste $18 mil over 3 seasons for a washed up player or $15 mil over 1 season that will get cut if he doesnt turn it around?

    Obviously this makes no sense if it isnt for Castillo, but if it is, I know im in the minority, but I love it. If this goes down Orlando Hudson is a met, probably for a backloaded contract. If Andruw turns his career around Omar is a genius. If he doesnt, hes still a genius because he moved the payroll to effect one year instead of three and he will address the outfield at the trade deadline if need be

  26. Krodamet says:

    what team needs a 2nd base!!!!

  27. Kranepool Grounds Out To 2nd says:

    Ummm….the last time we tried having two Gold Glove centerfielders play together in the same outfield, they knocked melons diving for the same ball! Bad idea!!!!!!

    • x-nady says:

      True, but I wouldn’t worry about that. Jones always runs just fast enough where he doesn’t have to dive. In fact, I can’t even remember the last time I saw Smirky McSmirkstein leave his feet for a ball.

    • Krodamet says:

      wasnt tht beltran and cameron

  28. Chris Alvino says:

    Even if the Mets do not send Castillo, if the Dodgers eat at least 90 % of what Jones is owed, then why is everyone so down on this deal? He would cost us close to nothing. My mind is boggled over why this would not be a decent move for us to make, especially considering that our LF contingent consists of Murphy and Tatis.

    This would not necessarily take us out of the Manny sweepstakes either. Imagine the Mets got both of them and used Church in a bigger trade, perhaps for a young starter. I doubt that Church gets dealt, but it is possible.

    Then we could platoon Murphy and Jones in right and give Tatis starts in left when Manny needed a break.

    Reyes
    Castillo
    Wright
    Manny
    Delgado
    Beltran
    Jones
    Schneider

    Not awful. If Castillo is dealt, then maybe Hudson in that two hole. Who knows… the bottom line is that Jones gives the Mets a potential power righty stick if he comes back to a shell of his former self. It was only 3 seasons ago that he drove in 130 runs.

    • x-nady says:

      Beltran wouldn’t be batting that deep. i would say, in the #2 hole if castillo is still with us, or batting cleanup with many protecting him. Beltran would hit 40 Homeruns! But I just don’t see this deal happening if Castillo is not moved somehow.

    • TugTheMan says:

      then, it all depends which prospects the mets give up for jones. dodgers are not going to eat 90% of his contract and not get any good prospects in return.

      once again its never ever gonna happen.

    • carmine_riccardi says:

      because andruw is spoiled, overweight, overcompensated and a washed up player perhaps? Not sure what all this ‘last year was just a bad year’ talk is about but the braves were smart enough to see the writing on the wall (or more aptly, the BK wrappers in his locker) to let him go sign elsewhere. His defensive #’s are down, he can’t run at all anymore and literally has ZERO desire to change his swing to go the other way. He’s an uncoachable mess… and he refused to play anything but centerfield last year, so why would he all of a sudden change his mind? Is that the kind of cancer you want on this team? It’s one thing if you’re rehabing a players abilities and skills, I don’t want us messing with a player who needs a mental rehab as well.

  29. I think if Manny will take 1 yr deal 20 mil..with 5 mill inincentives MVP/HR /RBI stats.. would be good all the way around..he will play hard to make the extra cash..and for a new contract ..he will mash everything… then just sign lowe and pedro (i think he would help keep manny focused and who knows maybe he pitches well…trade castillo somehow and sign a guy like Grudzy…add a cheap lrp ..and maybe cora/uribe …and maybe take on a mulder / garcia proj… anyone disagree??

    hmmm…

    Reyes
    Beltran
    Ramirez
    Delgado
    Wright
    Church
    Grudzy
    Castro/Schneid

    You talk about balance??? Now thats a line-up…

    Johan
    Lowe
    Pelf
    Maine
    Pedro/Niese/Garcia/

    Def not the best 5 in the NL..but an upgrade from last year…

    Pen…already sick no need to fill in…

    anyone else have trouble with this team??
    Oh yeah the Wilpons…..

  30. Krodamet says:

    would u people rather have castillo (nightmere) for
    3 more years or jones who had a fluke season ( not to mention he was a mets killer), here for only 1 YEAR! and i dont think jones will do bad manuel will straighten him up! and Ho Jo will too!

  31. SantanaClause says:

    STRICTLY DEFENSIVLY Church in right, Beltran in Center, Jones in Right there will be NO flyball hits in the outfield.

    • Krodamet says:

      lol how can church and jones play right field?
      do u mean church in left

      • x-nady says:

        I don’t know why you mess with a good thing and Move Church out of RIght field. I guess with the new field, there really is not familiarity problem. But still, I would think Churchie is a better fielder than Jones. I would say, jones goes to Left.

  32. metsrbest says:

    The one thing that I am confused about in the whole Manny deal, is that if Omar has FULL AUTONOMY, why can’t he offer Manny a contract?

  33. Ho, Ho, Ho says:

    The Mets shun Manny but are linked to A. Jones…..why am I not surprised?

  34. stickguy says:

    Hey, I can get back on the jones for Luis bandwagon! I thought that one was done and buried.

    It really does only make sense if it is basically jones for Castillo, or if they Dodgers eat a ton of salary. And I don’t know if the commish will let them kick in 12mill!

    So they can take Luis and cut him, accomplishing the same thing basically as just cutting Jones……

    So yeah, either its castillo for Jones or it doesn’t make sense.

    Maybe they can trade Wagner for him!

  35. enterkrod says:

    i would like seeing jones in a mets uniform ALONG with manny..lol..that would be a mets team

  36. Krodamet says:

    hey look at this dodgers are desperate to get jones out we r desperate to get castillo out!!

    good reason for a trade maybe they will do better for another team

  37. Agees Catch says:

    No one wants an injury prone 2B who only hits .245.

    game – set – match: his career would be over if he didn’t have such a large contract

  38. nostradamus says:

    1. matt, i am truly proud of you re: manny. you are in danger of becoming an enlightened mets fan :)

    2. a jones is DONE. listen, slappy castillo can be accommodated in the mets lineup that has manny in it. are the wilpons really this stupid, cheap and stubborn? when exactly do they plan on “making it up to the fans?”

  39. tjones28 says:

    I don’t understand how people would accept this. And I really don’t know how people think that they could acquire Andruw Jones and then sign Orlando Hudson.

    By trading Castillo for Jones, you are bringing an addition $9 million onto the 2009 payroll. Where is this money for Hudson coming from? He’s going to get probably at least $9-10 million himself…

  40. Agees Catch says:

    If Castillo had a year left, then maybe a team could justify the deal. Talk about a pair of cement shoes. 6 a year for this clown? One of the worst move in NYMets history. Why would the Dodgers want to take back more money?

    • x-nady says:

      Everyone seems to forget, that the Castillo signing may have had a significant influence on Johan choosing the Mets. Other teams had better prospects, but Johan could have blocked any trade. Remember, the only reason we got Johan, is because he wanted to play for the mets. I believe his best friend Castillo had more to do with JOhan’s decision than gets credit for.

  41. enterkrod says:

    what dont people get?..mets have the money…they just dont want to spend it like the skankees do

  42. Krodamet says:

    if people want castillo out u got to scarifies!

    u cant get an all star player for a crappy one it doesnt work that way

    you got to give more to get more
    maybe not money wise but skill and age

  43. Krodamet says:

    it was omars fault for signing castillo

    im not saying omar is not good gm im saying that was a stupid deal

  44. enterkrod says:

    im getting bored of reports talking about rumors but seeing nothing get done…i know the krod putz deals…but there is a left fielder out there..a few starting pitchers…LETS GO OMAR

  45. twofours44 says:

    Andrew Jones is a peice of poop. I do not think that he is better than a Murphy/Tatis platoon. He will be getting booed out of NY by mid May. For anyone who thinks this is a good idea, did you see Jones play at all last year? He is crap (not to mention being a fat toad)

  46. Krodamet says:

    would u people rather have castillo (nightmere) for
    3 more years or jones who had a fluke season ( not to mention he was a mets killer), here for only 1 YEAR! and i dont think jones will do bad manuel will straighten him up! and Ho Jo will too!

  47. Agees Catch says:

    No to the O-Dog! Read the last three letters “d-o-g” He’s on the Castillo career track. He’s losing range, has only moderately more pop than Castillo, and no one wants to sign him! Except Omar!. Deals that looked good in 2006 or 2007 aren’t that good anymore. I’d rather let Wiggy play 2B. At least he has some pop from the right side

  48. That guy who traded Kazmir says:

    NOOOOOOOOOOO I can NEVER cheer for Andruw

    I hope this is purely speculation. Manny is the true solution. Omar knows it, and we all know it. SIGN MANNY

  49. EdH says:

    I’d rather have Bobby Bo come back than AJ. Is he still alive?

  50. Krodamet says:

    38 not 28 sorry

  51. Philnym31 says:

    MLB Trade Rumors now saying the Dodgers are interested in Bobby Abreu as well as Adam Dunn, while looking to move Andruw Jones or Juan Pierre to free up room.

  52. BigDaddyKirk says:

    If this is true, Omar clearly needs to go. Even if we can unload Castillo in this deal, it makes no sense at all. Jones is garbage, and does not add the bat we need.

    • The Captain says:

      is obviously an attempt by Omar to manipulate negotiations with some other FA. Omar is very intellegent and couldnt shoudnt wouldnt have any interest in Andrew Jones who is currently a horrible player, and lets face it, lacking the steroids that aided his sucessful past.

  53. ags412 says:

    This actually makes sense. The Mets might prefer Jones over Ramirez for three reasons. A.) Anything to get rid of Castillo, B.) The Dodgers would eat at least half of that $15 mil, meaning it’s Jones for $7 mil vs. Ramirez for $20 mil, C.) Ramirez would have to play all the time, whereas Jones could play part time. The Mets still like Church and Murphy a lot, but they need insurance in Tatis and potentially Jones.

    I think we’d all agree Castillo for Jones would be a big win for the Mets.

    • Krodamet says:

      dodgers dont need castillo well they dont want him
      whats next!? =(

      • Kalihan42 says:

        I think both teams would have to look at this as giving up an undesirable contract for an undesirable contract. I don’t think there is anyone who would argue we should trade any real talent for Jones.

        Whether they want Castillo/ have space for him or not, this might be their only way to unload Jones.

        • Coolpapabell says:

          I wonder ifthey are try to work a third team into the deal? I can’t put my finger on who, but Catillo goes to the third team while the Dodgers get a middle reliever or a box of tacks, while the Mets get Jones.

          It leaves a nasty taste in my mouth, but it coud happen.

          • Kalihan42 says:

            Thats possible. My guess, most likely that both teams want to unload someone, but niether are fond of what they are getting in return and the deal stalls before it gets out of the gate.

    • Tidewater says:

      In your Ramirez-Jones comparison fails to mention the fact that although at around 7 million Jones is much cheaper, he stinks. 7 million for those Dodger or last year in Atlanta numbers is awful, and money tossed away. Even with all the anti-Castillo sentiment, at least Castillo got on base at a .355 clip last year — 99 points higher than Andruw.

      This makes no sense in any form.

    • Angryredmenace says:

      Your right, the Dodgers would eat half of Jones contract and then pay the rest of Castillo (sarcasm).

  54. HotPocket says:

    hey omar, i’ll play a corner outfield slot for the league minimum. sign me instead of trading for jones’ corpse and dead knees.

    • Krodamet says:

      i had a hot pocket before very hot ..
      when i found out about this rumpr it fell on my leg im sueing! jk

  55. nostradamus says:

    omar/wilpons: might as well just re-sign moises alou

  56. Krodamet says:

    isnt he 40 and doesnt he get injured alot

  57. JorgeNews says:

    I actually like this Andruw Jones thing. It’s has high reward potential. I mean, if Omar can get them to eat some of the money AND take Luis Castillo, then we are done in 1 year with the commitment. And if Andruw gets his stroke back he has 30+ HR potential….

  58. uppertank says:

    I can see it now…Mid July…Andruw Jones and Marlon Anderson battling it out to reach the Mendoza line.

    • ExileInLA says:

      mid-July: Andruw Jones & Marlon Anderson battling to COMBINE to reach the Mendoza line. O-(

      Serious comment: high risk, potentially high reward. Andruw has got to realize that he’s out of MLB without a monster turnaround. If he has anything at all, he’ll show it this year.

      What if it’s Delgado + Castillo for Jones + Jason Schmidt + one young stud from LAD (Kemp, Loney or Ethier)?

      LA gets its power bat in Carlos, and dumps Schmidt (who is expected at Spring Training after all his surgery/rehab, but is still risky), and we swap problems (Jones for Castillo).

      NYM gets a project in Jones, and a young stud bat from LAD to play either the other OF spot or 1B (depending on who it is). Then, Murphy/Tatis moves to 1B from LF if needed.

      It costs the Mets $9mm in 2009 (CD $12mm + LC $6mm = $18mm, vs Jones $15mm + Schmidt $12mm = $27mm), but saves them the $12mm on Castillo in 2010/2011.

      Then, if Schmidt is healthy, he’s a #3 starter behind Lowe but ahead of Pelf & Maine.

      • christian warrior says:

        I just don’t understand why there are so many who just want to dump Delgado on someone.

        And your proposal in particular would just give me ulcers.

  59. Houston Mets Fan says:

    I bet they take Castillo and pay some of his baggage….Jones is a defensive upgrade in right…slide Church to left, and use Murphy for 2nd. This allows you to get two starters.

  60. enterkrod says:

    or trade castillo for jones..sign lowe and manny..

  61. nostradamus says:

    this is an appropriate time for wise met fans to laugh like tom hanks in “money pit” when the bathtub fell thru the floor

  62. Agees Catch says:

    By the logic of signing Castillo to get Johan, we will be spending 26 million a year on an Ace in 2009.

  63. Krodamet says:

    peirre over jones any day

    for some reason the wilpons dont want manny
    idk why maybe hes not a good team mate bc of time in boston.

    trade castillo, angel pagan for pierre
    its like ur loosing nothin.

    • steve333 says:

      I’d definitely rather have Pierre than Jones. This one would at least be palatable.

    • Aquadealer says:

      Yes we need 3 years of Pierre. Some of you people need to get a clue

      • Krodamet says:

        hes like endy but better bat

      • nostradamus says:

        pierre, jone, dunn, abreau = all bums that would make NO difference in the standings….nor would they make the rest of the lineup better just by being in it. lol. SIGN MANNY if you are serious about getting to the world series with a teaam that can actually finish the job!

        • metsextreme says:

          Nostradamus, how many times do you type THE EXACT SAME THING on Metsblog? and how does someone like Abreu and Dunn not make a difference? Dunn hits 40+ homers a year and has an OBP of like 380, and Abreu is a steady .290 hitter 20 homer 90 RBI buy that has shown he can handle NY pressure. If you think Manny is going to play like he did for dodgers those last 2 months, your crazy,,,, He was playing for a contract and a contract only, the slug does not care about anyone or anything else besides himself. Yea Manny will make a difference, a BIG difference in the clubhouse,

        • Tidewater says:

          Can somebody please spell Abreu’s name right? There’s only one “A” and it comes at the beginning of the name.

  64. djstue says:

    Good grief Charlie Brown.

  65. Krodamet says:

    we should of put castillo in the johan trade!

  66. gregf1106 says:

    How can you not like it? Its like an expiring contract in basketball, if he doesnt work out, hes gone after one year anyways. I dont remember who said it but Church would not be displaced, he’d go to leftt, which he can do, he played all three outfield spots for the nationals. The key to this thing is Castillo of course, if the dodgers want him and what moneys would change hands if any. If castillo does go to LA and hudson comes abroad it looks good
    reyes ss
    hudson 2b
    wight 3rd
    beltran cf
    delgado 1st
    jones rf
    church lf
    schnieder c

    murphy
    tatis
    castro
    evans or marlon anderson
    cora or miles? i like miles better

    you can swap jones and church at anytime in the lineup. id like it if castillo goes. if not, then you hope winter ball helped jones

  67. steve333 says:

    Is Omar this freaking dense!?
    Just let Castillo go then. Just dump him and eat the salary.
    NO JONES
    NO MANNY

    I’d rather see them sign Dunn then either of those 2 cretins.

    • christian warrior says:

      About the only thing you said that I agreed with is dumping Castillo.

      The rest if it was just silly.

  68. Agees Catch says:

    No one is so desperate to part with a bad contract that they would be willing to take back Luis Castillo. If he were a free agent today, how much would he get? I’d bet 2-3 million tops. Most teams would be inclined to give a AAA kid a shot.

  69. Krodamet says:

    hahaha ……..

    new years eve….channel 5 news

    11:59….
    5 4 3 2 1
    breaking news the mets sign manny
    happy new year!

  70. Krodamet says:

    bring castillo down to AAA or sit him like marbury

    • Tidewater says:

      You can’t send him to AAA. He’s too veteran and would have to approve the move, which he never would.

  71. sabermetrician says:

    This is incredible
    NO to Andruw Jones, he’s horrible.

  72. djstue says:

    Okay, the shock has worn off.

    Castillo for Jones, straight up. Then we can put Murph where he belongs- right side of the infield.

    We still need Manny. Who else here is really confidant with Church? He was not the same player after getting his bell rung.

  73. Krodamet says:

    new york mets our team our time

  74. uppertank says:

    “Playing for Aguilas Cibaenas, Jones is hitting .188 through five games with three singles and eight strikeouts in 16 at-bats. Jones has twice struck out three times in a game and has yet to collect more hits than strikeouts in the same game.”

  75. Krodamet says:

    ITS A RUMOR

    THERE WAS A YANKEE RUMOR OF GETTING MANNY DID IT HAPPEN NO

  76. Krodamet says:

    I THINK THERE GOING TO DISCUSS THIS ON SNY SOON WATCH THAT THEY KNOW WHT THERE TALKING ABOUT

  77. Krodamet says:

    loud mouths is on on sny

  78. Krodamet says:

    lets hope we sign someone that wont be like bret farve going down the stretch

    collapsing late in the season…….we dont need tht again

    • enterkrod says:

      you do realize that the mets have collapsed the past two seasons…with everyone they have on the team right now…you saying that doesnt really matter…they dont need to sign someone to collapse again…they need to sign someone that will not help them collapse..manny

  79. Krodamet says:

    i emailed loud mouths about andrew jones lets here wht they have to say if they get my message

  80. metsforlife says:

    If Castillo is not the player traded for Jones than please just shoot me now! Can you imagine what it will be like at CitiField if Jones hits like he did last year or even the year before?? This guy is a hated Brave! Also, at this point is he a better defender than Church? He was always a guy that looked like he was not hustling ,even when he was the best CF in the game. WOW!!

  81. christian warrior says:

    For everyone who thinks that Manny would be a bad influence on the younger Mets like Jose Reyes, could you imagine what it would be like to have a guy like Andruw Jones hanging around? Jones still has immaturity issues to this day.

  82. Krodamet says:

    manny would be a good influence
    if manny comes he gets to beat on the red soxs in 2 exhibition games

  83. enterkrod says:

    if the dodgers get either dunn or abreu..expect jones to be a met next year…thats my feeling

  84. Krodamet says:

    eagals vrs giants 2nd round

    lets show philly how good ny is

  85. paulrubin says:

    It never sounded as though the Mets were serious about bringing Murphy over to 2B so let’s look at a potential big picture as follows:

    Jones & Castillo get swapped with the money for 09 made even for the Mets. Jones is given the opportunity in the spring to find his 30 homer bat and gold glove. Church slides to LF though he demonstrated he’s quite capable as a RF so that makes no sense since Jones is a CF who’d be playing out of position. Mets then have to import Orlando Hudson for 2B at at least $8M per for this to make the slightest sense.

    I don’t see this as a smart move, sorry. Andruw Jones in his prime had a lot of upside. Andruw Jones after two crappy seasons? What’s his upside? 30 homer and a .250 bat with his speed gone? There’s not a lot of upside there over Tatis/Murphy with F-Mart waiting in the wings. There’s a better chance of Castillo regaining his value as a second baseman than Jone regaining his as a corner outfielder. There would have to be some other component for such a deal to even begin to make any sense.

    • Wanny Backstra says:

      I’m not necessarily advocating for this deal but Tatis/Murphy does not have the same 30 HR and 100 RBI upside that Jones has (best case scenario for Jones). You have to think it unlikely that Jones can still reach that but he’s still young enough to find it.

      Plus, even slow, he’s a better defender in the OF than either.

      Also, FMart is not a factor in this problem. He’s not part of the 2009 plan and Jones would be gone after this deal.

      If it is true that LA is paying most of the bill, Jones is low risk/extremely high reward.

  86. Krodamet says:

    i want 06 to be back and i dont want heilman to pitch that inning and give up a hr.

    then the mets would of went to the world series and won it all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    2009 better be better than 2006

  87. shea says:

    NO NO NO NO NO….

    ..way.

    I’d rather keep Castillo and hope he somewhat improves than have Jones.

  88. enterkrod says:

    i just dont understand how they can see about getting jones and not even attempting to look at manny

    • Krodamet says:

      the wilpons dont want him but i think its a trick

      mets keep quiet pretend wilpon dont want him then get him like the yankees did with tiexera

      • enterkrod says:

        i know that and everything…but i just mean..wilpons dont want manny because of his suppossed attitude..yet they will look to trade for jones who has been awful the past two years..that doesnt make sense to me..meanwhile we can get manny for one year

  89. Krodamet says:

    yeah i agree but people change in a year
    he under went knee surgery and was out most of the season he could be better in the nl east but maybe not for the mets

  90. IWantManny/Krod4Christmas says:

    i want the dodgers to sign adam dunn so badly, just so the wilpons may be handed manny in their laps, because IMO boras will not let manny go to DC

  91. Krodamet says:

    church is better than jones
    church did good until the concussion but hes over tht its the offseason

  92. Krodamet says:

    must read:

    LOS ANGELES — The Mets have talked to the Dodgers about acquiring outfielder Andruw Jones, according to an ESPN.com report.

    According to the report, the Dodgers would be required to pay most of the remaining $21 million salary for Jones in 2009, the final year of his two-year contract. Earlier this month, Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti said several clubs expressed interest in Jones if the Dodgers paid most of his salary.

    If the deal is consummated, Jones, a 10-time Gold Glove center fielder, would shift to right with Carlos Beltran remaining in center field. Ryan Church played most of the season in right field for the Mets in ‘08.

    Jones is coming off the worst season of his career, when he hit .158 with three homers and 14 RBIs. He reported to Spring Training admittedly out of shape, underwent right knee surgery at midseason and went home in September while the Dodgers were making their stretch run to overtake Arizona and win the National League West.

    In addition to Jones’ availability, Dodgers outfielder Juan Pierre has asked to be traded if he is not a starter. The Dodgers are unlikely to deal any outfielder until they either re-sign Manny Ramirez, or are successful finding a big-bat replacement for him. They have free agents Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu on their radar.

  93. nyj0126 says:

    The Dodgers would have do to plenty more than eat half of Jones’ salary. There’s two scenarios that can play out. One, the Dodgers would have to eat at least 18-20 million of Jones’ salary between next season’s salary and bonuses. He’s due 22.1 million between next season and those bonuses. If LA eats 19 million, the Mets can send Marlon Anderson to LA. That’d mean that the money being used towards Jones would be the 2 million the Mets saved by trading Schoenweis to ARZ and 1.1 million in Anderson’s ‘09 salary.

    The other plan would be to swap Castillo and Jones if LA’s willing to cover the difference of what Castillo and Jones will make over the rest of their contract. Castillo’s due 18 million, so Jones is due 4.1 million more.

    That still may not be enough though. I’d say to send Marlon Anderson 1.1 million salary over to the Dodgers with Castillo. Then ask the Dodgers to send 7 million with Andruw Jones. Overall, it’d really be like the Mets paying 1 year/15 million for Jones along with getting rid of Castillo opening the door to sign Hudson. The 3 or so million saved in this trade can be used towards signing Hudson.

  94. GregB says:

    the thought of that smirking a-hole in a Met uniform makes me ill.

  95. Philnym31 says:

    “Jones’ performance so far this winter has been no better than his performance last summer, when he hit just .158 and struck out 76 times in 75 games.

    Playing for Aguilas Cibaenas, Jones is hitting .188 through five games with three singles and eight strikeouts in 16 at-bats. Jones has twice struck out three times in a game and has yet to collect more hits than strikeouts in the same game.”

  96. IWantManny/Krod4Christmas says:

    hey omar no fluke he batted under .150 last year and under .250 the year before. stay far away

  97. Krodamet says:

    i just want hudson
    i want spring training to start
    only 59 days till ST

  98. nyj0126 says:

    Many people don’t realize that Castillo actually could work in the Dodgers system if he’s traded for Jones and Manny’s not re-signed. DeWitt can play 3B. Blake can play the corner OF positions. They could use a platoon of Pierre and Castillo keeping Castillo’s legs fresh.

    A few days a week:
    2B – Castillo , 3B – DeWitt, LF – Blake

    The other few days a week:
    2B – DeWitt , 3B – Blake , LF – Pierre

    If the Dodgers were just going to eat 18 million of Jones 22.1 million, why not just take Castillo? It’s better than nothing (okay, maybe not). But they could just cut him if they don’t find use. But a change of scenary in a platoon type system could work.

    • Philnym31 says:

      The Dodgers resigned Casey Blake earlier this month. He will be their starting third baseman.

      • Kalihan42 says:

        I think his point was that Blake can play the OF as well so there are some other options that LA can do.

  99. enterkrod says:

    i still want manny

  100. aussieyankee says:

    Has it been mentioned that Jones had as many homeruns as Castillo? Or the correlation between Jones declining numbers and the increase in drug testing?

    • Wanny Backstra says:

      You should also mention the increase in lung cancer and increased consumption of cucumbers.

      There’s as much proof of that correlation as there is of Andruw’s PED use.

  101. Krodamet says:

    i strongly dont agree with this:
    4 reasons why should he stay< i still dont a gree with this

    1) History

    In 1999 and 2000 Luis Castillo had tremendous years at the plate, batting .302 and .334 in each respective year. The following year, 2001, Castillo’s average dipped down to .263. (Sound familiar?) The next SIX years he batted over .300 multiple times, and his worst of the six years was an impressive .291.

    Last year he had a down year. History shows he is at least CAPABLE of picking himself up and getting back to the Luis Castillo of old, the Castillo that Omar Minaya signed with high potential.

    * B/R Ticket Guide
    *
    New York Mets Spring Training Season
    on Sun, Feb 1, 2009 TBA

    No Tickets
    *
    New York Mets @ Baltimore Orioles
    on Wed, Feb 25, 2009 at 1:05PM
    Tickets from
    $30
    Find Tickets
    *
    Florida Marlins @ New York Mets
    on Thu, Feb 26, 2009 at 1:10PM
    Tickets from
    $17
    Find Tickets

    Powered by FanSnap.com

    2) Pressure/Promise

    Last year, Castillo struggled with injuries. Also, he seemed to struggle with conditioning as he appeared out of shape when he returned, and the New York media was all over it. I personally believe Castillo realized his mistake and vows to fix it. He clearly wants to stay in New York and will certainly work hard this offseason to try to restore his old ways.

    3) Patience

    With RBI machines Carlos Beltran, David Wright, and Carlos Delgado behind him in whichever order, Castillo is a very patient hitter who is willing to take many pitches and try to draw walks. Also, he adds a notch of speed (when properly conditioned) to the top of the lineup to go along with Jose Reyes. If Castillo can get his average back up and combine it with his patience, he could drastically improve the Mets’ offense.

    4) Money

    Let’s face it…Omar Minaya did what he had to do in Las Vegas—he spent $37 million on K-Rod and traded for J.J. Putz. That was clearly the primary concern of the team. Instead of factoring in the $18 million of Castillo and trying to find someone else while still paying Luis, we could give him another shot and spend the money on a need for now like a starting pitcher.

    • reillys5 says:

      i believe number 3 – patience – is one huge reason i want him out – if i have to watch him work the count to 3-0 then WATCH 2 straight batting practice fast balls square down the middle of the plate for strikes..then either strike out, ground out, or ground into a double play i’ll go nuts! get slappy knees out of here!

    • houstonpete0 says:

      I had no idea Luis posted on here! Hey Luis I have seen enough slaps at pitches you are beat on. Let us move on and you do the same. Please talk Omar in to getting you out of town. Ill pay some of the contract to get you out of NY!

  102. nyj0126 says:

    I won’t be disappointed if the Mets and Dodgers swap Castillo and Jones abiding the Mets don’t have to pay extra money. But if we take Jones at anything more than 2 million (or perhaps even take Jones period) without Castillo being involved, I’ll be disappointed. It’s not like I expected a good corner OF to come to the Mets this off-season (although Manny would be nice) because of the pitching needs. But they could do better than this.

  103. Krodamet says:

    hhaha i was reading this online

    Castillo is mvp for the last 2 mets collapses

  104. nyj0126 says:

    KRodamet – Castillo has 3 years left on his contract. But that’s still tough. I know Jones can provide better in one season than Castillo can for 3.

    This is why I’d like to see the Dodgers eat a little more than that 4.1 million that’s the difference. Maybe take Marlon Anderson off our hands and give the Mets another 1 or 2 million. If the Mets were buying out Castillo, it’d cost 15 or 16 million anyway. Personally, I’d rather see a swap with Jose Guillen but Kansas City didn’t appear to be interested. Maybe the Mets can get something going with Detroit for Nate Robertson who’s due 17 million over the next 2 years. Maybe they’d trade Palanco to Arizona for Jon Rauch as their closer.

  105. metsfan1 says:

    The only way that this trade works is if we dump Castillo. If the LAD do not want him because they are set at 2B, why would we want Jones? He was awful the last 2 seasons. If he put up good numbers, the Braves may have tried to retain him. I understand the ?? around Church but to replace him with Jones makes absolutely no sense. At least if they got Manny, then you can say we are filling LF and with a good RF in Jones, Beltran can shade to LF.

  106. Krodamet says:

    hello

  107. stearnsfan12 says:

    This boggles the mind. I don’t know if thats even corrrect grammar but my mind is in a state of utter shock over hearing this on the ESPN. I can’t understand why the Mets would do this unless they had a deal in place that centered around moving Church or forwarding Jones to some other team dumber than the Mets are. Getting rid of Castillo is a fine plan but for a guy who can’t even hit in the Winter League he is playing in? Someone quoted stats, and while I admit I haven’t checked them, I would bet they are accurate. I wonder if the Mets are throwing up smoke signals or have some sort of deal in place for a pitcher which would include getting rid of Church? I hope not as Church is far superior to Jones. Wonder why he went south when the steroid reports started to gain fame? Maybe he was another user that lost their edge.

    The Mets need an upgrade in this lineup. I don’t trust Tatis and Murphy all the time. This team hit poorly with RISP and thats where they need to improve. Make a move, do something, but get a proven masher in there to protect Delgado in the lineup. I don’t know that the answer is Manny, but I do know its not Andruw Jones. For the love of God.

  108. Krodamet says:

    pray manny comes here!

    pray hudson comes here!

  109. nyj0126 says:

    Although the Putz trade added to the Mets payroll, the Mets got rid of 1.2 million in Heilman (who was arbitration eligible) and 2.05 million in Endy Chavez (who they replaced with Reed who’ll make like one-third of that). If you threw the 2 million the Mets saved on Schoenweis too, it’s like the Mets only added 250K to 1 million on their bullpen (Joe Smith and Sean Green were both minimum). So there’s still plenty to sign a decent lefty reliever. Going back to your question about 3 years of Castillo vs one year of Jones, it’d be better to have just one year of crap. Cut your losses so Murphy, F-Mart and others eventually won’t be blocked from playing.

  110. nyj0126 says:

    Where does is say the Mets are getting rid of Ryan Church? He’s not being included in any deal. Not with the Dodgers at least. The plan would be to move Jones to RF and Church to LF. Church has played plenty of LF in WSH. Jones is able to cover more ground so that’s why it’d make sense to put him in RF.

    • Krodamet says:

      there will be no balls on the ground in the out field if u have those 3

    • Wanny Backstra says:

      Who says that is even the plan?

      It would make the most sense that Jones earns his time to split time in RF with Church and in LF with Murphy too.

      If the Mets are only going to pay him a few million there is no pressure to guarantee him anything.

      There’s plenty of room for he and Church to co-exist. And if Jones is in shape and motivated to resurrect his career, he’ll find his way into the lineup.

      • nymgb44 says:

        Except, judging by the smirks on his face whenever he’d make an out last season, he has no interest in ressurecting his career. He’s getting his money. It doesn’t matter what team it’s coming from.

  111. Krodamet says:

    boo the wilpons

  112. nyj0126 says:

    I don’t think it makes sense if Castillo’s still a Met though and they’re not at least breaking even or financially benefiting from this deal.
    We already have an older right-handed hitting corner OF platoon type player who’s actually productive (Fernando Tatis). He could platoon with both Murphy and Church. Jones alone for himself is not worth much. He wouldn’t even be that useful as a defensive replacement because Beltran’s an awesome fielder.

  113. nymgb44 says:

    I have a theory. What if the Mets are taking Andruw Jones off of the Dodgers hands in exchange for an unopposed run at Manny Ramirez? The Dodgers could follow up on today’s rumors by getting one of Dunn or Abreu and dumping Jones while the Mets get Manny. I know it’s not likely, but still…thoughts?

    • Wanny Backstra says:

      An agreement by one team to another to not pursue a free agent would likely violate the collective bargaining agreement and just about every antitrust law ever written in the United States.

      • nymgb44 says:

        True, but I’m sure it’s been done before and we just don’t know about it.

      • nymgb44 says:

        Plus, it makes a freakish amount of sense.

        • Wanny Backstra says:

          So are you proposing that Ned Colletti called Omar or met him somewhere near the Brooklyn Pier and said “we’ll bow out of Manny, but you gotta do me a favor… you know, I scratch your back you scratch mine? know what, I’m sayin’? I’ll stay away from da first thing, but you gotta take the other thing from and i’ll pay a few points on top of it.”

          I highly highly doubt it.

  114. metswillwinitall says:

    ok even if castillo was involved in this trade i wouldnt approve of it. The mets have a young talented guy in murphy and a solid hitter in tatis both platooning in left. While church in right is a great defensive outfielder and before his concussion he was the all star of our team. Our corner outfielders may not be great but its pretty solid espacially if church stays healthy and murphy keeps doing what he continued last year. So i definetly dont like this deal, i say focus our money on our rotation and then go for orlando hudson. Realistically the only chance we snag manny is if he goes for a 1 year 18 to 20 year mil deal and if all that happens we will definetly be the team to beat

    • nymgb44 says:

      The problem with Orlando Hudson is that he’s just not that good. His range is weakening, his bat is only going to give you .300-10-60 at best, and he hasn’t played a full season since 2006, in which he played 157 games. That was the only one. I don’t want Hudson on this team at all. Sign Manny, sign Lowe, and leave Slappy at second base.

  115. Krodamet says:

    mets record in 2009

    96-66

  116. Krodamet says:

    why dont we send castillo down to the minors!

  117. Krodamet says:

    mets need to believe like in 06 when we were behind we came back late

    our formula

    solid pitching + solid fielding+good hitting= championship team
    we just need balance

    last year we had some what hitting
    but no bullpen
    how is tht balanced

    • reillys5 says:

      we had a lot of hitting last year…ok they scored 5 runs in the ast 3 games…but if the pen didnt blow 29 games in which the bats gave them the lead, they would not have been in that position

      we need to add a bat but we also need to sure up pitching first

  118. METSCITI says:

    To make sense of this potential move:
    It is very possible the Dodgers are looking to move Blake to the OF to fill their OF hole, DeWitt back over to 3b, and Castillo in at 2b

    In that scenario this trade would really be Andruw and Hudson for Castillo.
    In addition to this: this also would take the Dodgers out of the market for Manny, leaving the possibility of us landing him on a 2 year 40 mil-ish deal

    • nymgb44 says:

      Hudson requires at least 3/30, if not more. How can we afford that, Lowe (3/42?) and Manny? I don’t think we can. That’s nice, but it’s impossible. Besides, Hudson is vastly overrated anyway.

  119. nyj0126 says:

    I don’t see Manny settling for 1 year/18-20 million. He’s too stubborn to accept that after turning down 2 year/45 million. He’ll probably eventually just sign with the Dodgers. Maybe for a little more. By the way, I’d love it if the Mets went 96-66. That was the Mets record exactly 10 years before 2009 and they made the postseason that year with that one game playoff over the Reds.

  120. metswillwinitall says:

    i think minaya would feel horrible with himself for sending 24 some million dollars to the minors because omar knows the fans will be down
    his neck if he does that

  121. nyj0126 says:

    Metsciti – Yup, that would be true. I don’t know if they planned on Blake being an OF, but it doesn’t change his offensive approach. DeWitt can play 3B. The only problem with this move is it leaves Juan Pierre out of the picture, but he could be used in a three way platoon with Castillo and Blake to keep everyone fresh. And occasionally Pierre substituting for Kemp and Eithier.

  122. nyj0126 says:

    The Mets just need to be confident. They need the raw skill to dominate though. They didn’t have that with the bullpen last season. But the rest of the team was as solid as you could get. The Mets have gotten rid of a lot of the ”poisons.” Castillo’s really the last piece that has to go for that reason.

    The Mets need to have an attitude like the Knicks during the 90’s. They need to be tough. They need to grow a sack and throw at or behind Cole Hamels. Except do a better job than Shawn Estes with Roger Clemens.

  123. nymgb44 says:

    They also need to get rid of Marlon Anderson, Duaner Sanchez, and Brian Schneider, although the latter isn’t really practical at this point.

  124. nyj0126 says:

    They aren’t getting rid of Duaner Sanchez. He’s only got one year left on his contract before he hits free agency so the wouldn’t be able to acquire much back for him. There’s no guarantee Duaner Sanchez or Brian Stokes make the roster. They have to compete to earn their role. Bobby Parnell may make the team. If O’Day can get healthy, there’s a chance too.

    • nymgb44 says:

      I just want to see Rocky Cherry on the roster, if only for the novelty. That name is just so awesomely hilarious! Rocky Cherry? Really, Mrs. Cherry? You named your son Rocky? Good for you.

  125. nyj0126 says:

    I don’t see Marlon Anderson making the 2009 Opening day roster with out injury or multiple injuries to other OF, regardless of his contract. I don’t see why Jeremy Reed and Angel Pagan wouldn’t be back up OF with Fernando Tatis (who’ll cover 1B & 3B) too. Nick Evans may even be preferred over Marlon Anderson barring an injury. So I don’t think we have to worry about Anderson there.

    As for Brian Schneider, what other options are out there? He’s above average defensively, but can’t hit. Maybe sign Pudge? I don’t know how much more productive he’d be. But for one year, why not? The Red Sox have been mentioned to be interested with Schneider.

  126. nyj0126 says:

    There’s no way the Mets can afford Lowe, Hudson and Manny. If the Mets trade Castillo for Jones, they’ll plan on using Jones as a starter. Or at least in a platoon with Murphy. And leaving Church in LF with a possible platoon with Tatis. So there’d be no room for Manny, beyond not having the money.

    Signing Hudson’s more realistic. It will take at least 3 years. It may not take 10 million a year. Maybe 8 or 9 million. It may take a 4th year depending on how committed the Nats or Giants are to making at a run at him. The main reason why I like the Castillo-Jones swap is because it gives us a good chance at geting Hudson who’s arguably the second most valuable player out there offensively to Manny. That’d be because the Mets aren’t too hot on Dunn.

    • nymgb44 says:

      Have you seen Orlando Hudson’s stats? Here are guys not named Manny that are more valuable offensively than Hudson:

      Adam Dunn
      Milton Bradley
      Pat Burrell
      Jason Giambi
      Bobby Abreu

      That’s just off the top of my head. I’m sure if I looked I could find more.

  127. sabermetrician says:

    This won’t happen. It’s being discussed, but ultimately won’t happen. I think we’ll sign Lowe for around 3/40, and if we dump Castillo we’ll get Hudson for around 3/24. If we end up keeping Castillo we’ll get a better left fielder. We’re not getting Manny, Andruw Jones, Milton Bradley, or Jose Guillen even if we dump Castillo.

  128. nyj0126 says:

    Rocky Cherry is a funny name lol Any back up reliever has to be betted than Carlos Muniz so I’d be open to giving him a chance… even just for that

  129. nyj0126 says:

    better*

  130. youthmovement says:

    What if the trade is Jones and a starting pitcher for Ryan Church?

  131. brye65 says:

    You gotta be kidding Andrew Jones. They do that deal i’m done with this team. It proves that we got an idiot GM to go along with 2 pieces of garbage for owners. If they can trade for Jones and not sign Manny. That’s BS. It wouldn’t be so bad if the went after Magglio Ordonez who probably can be had. Church is already a liability. What are we going to have 2 liabilies on the corners. Omar you do this you should just resign now!

    • nymgb44 says:

      We have two pieces of garbage for owners IF we don’t get Manny, but our GM is one of the top ten in MLB. Do not bash Omar Minaya for one trade. Who knows, Buster Olney could just be making stuff up.

    • reillys5 says:

      dont be a fan then ..go root for the skanks across town

  132. nymgb44 says:

    That starting pitcher better be Chad Billingsley or Clayton Kershaw or there’s no deal. Think I’m crazy? That’s how bad Andruw Jones is.

  133. The Captain says:

    Here’s the only way I can digest this idea.
    Straight up Castillo, his total contract, plus some no name minor leager ( ) for Andrew Jones, his total contract and Clayton Keyshaw.
    Mets dont want Ramirez, but Dogers want him badly and free up some cash to get him.
    Keyshaw steps into the Met rotation for years to come.
    Then Mets get Hudson who im not crazy over, but everyone else appears to be.
    Jones who I hate (but contract year is it?)starts doing roids after his drug test in early july, so he can start juicing@that point, and has a monster 2nd half.

    • nymgb44 says:

      I would love that. Kershaw is a monster. Here’s your trade:

      Mets get: OF Andruw Jones, LHP Clayton Kershaw
      Dodgers get: 2B Luis Castillo, 1B/OF Nick Evans

      • youthmovement says:

        Kershaw has too much upside for that. We would have to live with Castillo, but I’d be willing to do that to get Kershaw. Live with Castillo for two months and when he doesn’t produce, deal with a replacement then.

        • nymgb44 says:

          Fine. So who goes to LA? Just Evans (or someone of equivalent value)? Or more?

          • youthmovement says:

            I say send them Ryan Church and Dillon Gee. Church can play right away and Gee is low level good prospect and you know the Dodgers always like their young pitchers.

          • The Captain says:

            Well the reality of the trade is simply a purchase of Keyshawn, it’s just an idea but Keyshaw has so much potential, think he’s only 19 yrs old, and probably many years remaining on his contract. If anyone is familiar with the Mets farm system, I figured we through in 1 or 2 minor leagers to create a diversion as we steal Clayton Keyshaw.

  134. sabermetrician says:

    Omar probably asked about a swap of bad contracts. The discussion evolved into trade possibilities and end with…nothing happening. There’s just not a match outside of Castillo for Andruw, and we’d really get it stuck to us if the Dodgers didn’t throw in lots of $$.

  135. nostradamus says:

    mets dont need ohud. with manny, the lineup can tolerate slappy castillo…..with murph spelling him and manny.

  136. youthmovement says:

    Kershaw makes practically nothing. Sign Lowe and a middle infielder. Live with Castillo for now. Take Jones and that bad contract. Then next year you have Jones, Wagner and Delgado’s contract off the books. Our pitching is set, you make the anticipated move of Murphy to 1B and platoon with Evans, and now you have some serious cash for a big hitting OF (Holliday?)

    • nostradamus says:

      hey, that soulds like a plan….a plan to nail down second place *eyes rolling*

      SIGN MANNY!

    • nymgb44 says:

      I don’t know…I’d still rather have Manny. And if we don’t land Manny, we’ll probably end up with Holliday at the trade deadline anyway.

  137. sabermetrician says:

    Why would you take Jones? Your plan suggests taking on more contract just to dump more.

  138. JulianP says:

    castillo/manny > jones/hudson

  139. sabermetrician says:

    Lay it out boys and girls. Wishlist (more appropriately, realistic NEEDS list):

    Lowe
    Wolf or Redding
    Ohman or another RP
    LF – still not sure who

    • nymgb44 says:

      Manny
      Lowe
      Shouse/Ohman
      Redding

    • reillys5 says:

      lowe
      sheets (if he gets hurt slate neise in..why not? hes nasty!)
      manny
      ohman
      miles

      it is a different list if we rid of castillo for a decent right handed left fielder with pop

      then it wud be

      lowe
      sheets
      odog
      ohman

  140. metswillwinitall says:

    i think thats realistic but how bout we go for burrel

  141. metswillwinitall says:

    what i dont get is why everybody keeps saying lowe a reliever and manny i mean sure i love manny but come on there is no way we can afford many if we get lowe

  142. sabermetrician says:

    I would love to have Manny Ramirez, but given that the Wilpons do not want him here, even if he’s affordable, can we compete and win the WS without him? I think so…

  143. metswillwinitall says:

    we can definetly win it all without manny just get lowe and a 5th starter and we wouldnt need to worry bout a big bat if our pithching shuts them out

    • sabermetrician says:

      I agree with that. I do think that we need another utility infielder, and a RP, but our main concern has to be Lowe and a 5th starter. I don’t think we’re too far off. Just remember 06. We were the best team that year, we just ran into a hot Cardinals’ team. We’re better than that 06 team right now.

    • nostradamus says:

      wrong. manny is THE key. hear me now, believe me in october.

  144. metswillwinitall says:

    exactly we just got to put the team together and get their confidence
    up

  145. sabermetrician says:

    I agree…I’m going to believe that whether we get Manny or not. Odds are we’re NOT getting Manny. It’s better to just leave that alone. There are countless possibilities for this team this offseason.

  146. Metsfan81177 says:

    I can only see doing a deal for Jones if the reason is to get rid of Castillo. If Castillo isnt involved, the trade should not even be considered

  147. Gina says:

    Umm even if Castillo is involved this makes no sense. We might as well just sign Dunn, he’d at least be useful for the same price.

  148. ryankobayashi says:

    I’m completely disgusted by this post. Andruw Jones?!!! Who’s next…Chipper? Yadier Molina? At least Castillo hits .260!

  149. longislandmetsfan says:

    The thing that is most bothersome about this report is that it specifically says that the dodgers would NOT be interested in castillo…(its like the writer read our minds as we were reading it) because a mutual dumping of garbage would be the only way this made any kind of sense, and they would have to pay the difference between the 2 losers also…the fact that this point was specifically highlighted blew me away more than the actual rumbling of jones’ name…and matt hit the nail on the head by saying he was “confused” as to how in the hell we could be having a conversation about this bum, and not even entertain the thought of manny…..well said matt…

  150. Philnym31 says:

    UPDATE:

    On the Mets’ website, Marty Noble has an article saying that a trade for Andruw Jones isn’t happening.

    Thank God.

  151. enterkrod says:

    we are going to get manny

  152. enterkrod says:

    and if we dont i say we all form an alliance to whack the wilpons

  153. longislandmetsfan says:

    I’m trying really hard to read into this one, read between the lines for something that I am missing, or how it can possibly be smoke for some other bigger picture, but cant find anything…this one has me seriously bothered….

  154. Gina says:

    Even if we’re dumping Castillo’s contract do we really want to pay a guy 12 million this year to be absolutely horrible offensively? He’d be a worse option than pretty much every outfielder we have now. We’d probably be better off with Castillo at second and Dunn/Burrel the platoon in lf than someone else at second and Jones in left field.

  155. enterkrod says:

    MANNY RAMIREZ MANNY RAMIREZ

  156. nymgb44 says:

    Hahaha…oh Buster. What would we do without you and your crazy speculative rumors and “crap you make up all by yourself”? We can a$$ume that every article that Buster writes not mentioning the Yankees and/or Red Sox is fabricated, considering those two teams are the only ones he follows.

    • Necciai27 says:

      Yep. Who can forget Buster speculating on Aaron Heilman and/or Lastings Milledge to the Oakland A’s for FOUR CONSECUTIVE YEARS?

  157. enterkrod says:

    i wish omar could just make some moves already…im bored..lol

  158. nymgb44 says:

    He already did. He signed K-Rod and traded for J.J. Putz. We’ll probably lock up Lowe between tomorrow and Thursday, and then focus on a 5th starter, another pen arm or two, and (hopefully) a serious upgrade in left…(hint hint)

    • enterkrod says:

      yeah i know he did..im just talking about after that..its been a very very quiet off season minus those two acquisitions…if he wants to make a splash..like you said…lock up lowe/5 starter (redding?) and i like the hint hint..lol..

  159. nyj0126 says:

    I don’t know what’ll happen with Manny. But I do know that Orlando Hudson could be a Met if we can get rid of Castillo. Who’d be interested in taking him for even 1/3 to 1/2 of his contract though?

    Pitching has to be the concern. The competition out there for Perez isn’t all that good either. He may just settle for one or two years so he can test the market in a year or two. A rotation with Lowe and Perez in it with Santana, Pelfrey and Maine would be powerful.

  160. sabermetrician says:

    Last year Luis Castillo’s value to the team was $2.3 mil. There would be takers for 1/3 of the contract. We’d be foolish to pay for $12 mil of the remaining $18 mil though.

  161. enterkrod says:

    i just want to see manny and lowe in a mets uniform..if we can get perez at a deal then sure..

  162. sabermetrician says:

    As a comparison, Andruw Jones’ value to the Dodgers last year… negative $1.6 mil. That’s right, he should have paid the Dodgers $1.6 mil just for the right to play.

  163. enterkrod says:

    who i really wish we could get is josh hamilton

    • sabermetrician says:

      I love Josh Hamilton, but if you’re dreaming why don’t you dream about Manny? He’s better than Hamilton.

      • enterkrod says:

        oh you have no idea how badly i want manny on the mets…however im just talking about hamilton is really good..obviously not as good as manny but he puts up some numbers..lol..AND he is only 28..so i would love manny on the mets however if hamilton was ever on the trade market im going after him hard

        • Gina says:

          He’ll likely never be on the trading block, and if he was. You could go after him as hard as you like. You wouldn’t get him. You might as well try and trade for Albert Pujols or Chase Utley.

          • enterkrod says:

            if omar was smart and he was on the trading block..he should go after him…and obviously he wont be on the trading block…thats the IF part..i know it would never happened..not a big deal…

          • bucknersankles says:

            YOU CANNOT BEGIN TO EVEN MENTION JOSH HAMILTON WHO HAD A SOLID YR, OR CHASE ( WE’RE M F- ING CHAMPIONS ) UTLEY IN THE SAME SENTENCE AS ALBERT PUJOLS, WHO ALREADY IS ONE OF THE MOST DISTINGUISHED AND TRULY ELITE PLAYER’S IN BASEBALL HISTORY.
            THERE ARE ONLY 2 PLAYER’S IN THE MAJOR’S WHO COULD COMPARE TO ALBERT THE GREAT……….. ALEX RODRIGUEZ AND MANNY RAMIREZ PERIOD.

  164. nyj0126 says:

    The Giants have been talking about signing a second basemen. If they can shed some of their own payroll (Aaron Rowand), maybe they’ll settle for Castillo. It’s not like they haven’t commited themselves to aging IF before. They just signed Renteria after relying on guys like Aurilia, Durham and Vizquel.

    Offer Castillo (3 year/18 million), Wagner (11.5 million included next season’s buyout) & Anderson (1.1 million) to SF for either one of those things:

    1) Aaron Rowand (4 year/48 million) … The Mets shed 30.6 million in a waste of 3 players to get Rowand who could bat second, move runners over and play good defense. The Giants would save 17.6 million in this trade. In their eyes, that may be like getting Renteria for free (who recently signed 2 year/18 million).

    Or

    2) Barry Zito (5 year/101.5 million) … I wasn’t going to mislead any of you. It’d require the Giants to eat at least 35-40 million of that. Subtract the 30.4 million and 35-40 million the Giants may pay from that 101.5 milion and it’s like signing Zito 5 year/31-36 million. He still may be able to be a solid back-end starter who could do well with a change of scenary.

    • sabermetrician says:

      You wouldn’t be able to trade Wagner. There’s the physical examination required by the CBA and there’s no sense in any of that possibility. If we could get Aaron Rowand for Castillo, while we pay some of Castillo’s contract…now there’s something. We pay $4-$6 mil toward the remaining contract of Castillo’s and take Rowand. That would be a deal.

  165. ArtVandelay91 says:

    MLB.com’s Marty Noble heard from a person familiar with the discussions between the Mets and Dodgers that “nothing is ongoing and nothing is going to happen.” The clubs had preliminary discussions about trading Jones for Castillo during the Winter Meetings, but nothing is in the works now.

  166. enterkrod says:

    lol…you are a little late..lol..

  167. nyj0126 says:

    The Astros have also been interested in decreasing their payroll so trading for Carlos Lee could be an option if they’re willing to take Castillo or eat some of it.

    Lee’s due 74 million over the next 4 seasons. The Astros may not even ask for much back if they can just get rid of his contract. They probably wouldn’t see much value in Castillo already having Matsui and Tejada, unless they traded one of them.

    • sabermetrician says:

      They still see themselves as competitive. Dropping payroll and a firesale are two different things. This is not a possibility.

    • Mr. Mets Butler says:

      We should have signed Lee two years ago when we had the chance. Instead Omar settled for Moises Alou. What a nightmare that turned out to be!

  168. nyj0126 says:

    I’d be interested in Rowand but the Giants gave him way too many years. He wouldn’t hold the same financial value as a corner OF, but that shouldn’t underestimate his hard work ethic that’d help this clubhouse.

    If the Mets gave the Giants 6 million with Castillo, it’d be like giving Rowand 9 million a year over 4 years. That may be worth it. I don’t think the Giants would need to take on Anderson or Wagner in that scenario. I guess the Zito scenario wouldn’t work out though with the Wagner deal since they aren’t able to waive the physical exam.

    • sabermetrician says:

      I actually give you kudos for this idea. Getting Aaron Rowand, who is overpaid, for Castillo and some cash is a really nice alternative. I’m surprised this hasn’t surfaced with some writers.

  169. mr.metlover says:

    Just heard that nothing is in the works on mlbtraderumors. I think this waiting game for something to happen is causing old rumors to come back again. Come on Omar… get the Lowe done deal before 2009!

  170. metslover5 says:

    WHAT THE HELL!!!!!!!!! We are going after Andrew and not Manny!!!! OMFG!!!!

    Though if Andrew comes back and has a good year it wouldn’t surpise me…… the dude was amazing a couple of years ago…

  171. sabermetrician says:

    Another thing I like about the suggestion to get Aaron Rowand from the Giants is that he is exactly the personality type we need. He’s gritty and he always gives his all…as we all know too well. (That ball had triple written all over it).

    • enterkrod says:

      yes it did..may have been in the park..if he misses and falls..you never know..lol..that was such a nice catch..lol

      • sabermetrician says:

        Really an unbelievable catch. My respect for him immediately quadrupled…and my hatred for him also quadrupled.

        • enterkrod says:

          lol..absolutely..when he caught it i was like OHHH MY GOD UNBELIEVABLE…and then i immediately got really angry at him

  172. TugTheMan says:

    8:12pm: MLB.com’s Marty Noble heard from a person familiar with the discussions between the Mets and Dodgers that “nothing is ongoing and nothing is going to happen.” The clubs had preliminary discussions about trading Jones for Castillo during the Winter Meetings, but nothing is in the works now.

    3:50pm: According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, the Dodgers and Mets have discussed an Andruw Jones trade. Jones is still owed $22.1MM, and the Dodgers are “highly motivated” to move him. Olney says it’s unlikely the Dodgers would have interest in Luis Castillo, however. If the Mets wouldn’t be sending a bad contract back, I’d imagine they’d want the Dodgers to pay approximately $20MM. Olney says the Mets would use Jones in right field – Ryan Church’s position this year.

  173. enterkrod says:

    the more i think about it the more angry it makes me that manny is out there for the taking and ownership wont budge…COME ONNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    • sabermetrician says:

      Let it go…he’s not coming here. The Aaron Rowand suggestion is much more valid of an idea at this point. We all wish we could get Manny, but it’s not happening.

      • enterkrod says:

        i just want to see a shake up to the lineup…if anyone thinks that the murphy/tatis platoon is going to work you must be nuts cause they may be good…i love murphy..but tatis i dont know..and for murphy this will be his first full season.you dont know how he will perform..i would like anyone at this point..rowand i like him..anybody in left field

        • sabermetrician says:

          I’m with you. I don’t trust the Murpy/Tatis tandem. I would really love Manny, but the Wilpons have blocked that. I like the Rowand idea. Or potentially one of the surplus Yankee outfielders.

  174. metslover5 says:

    MLB.com says this isn’t happening….. WHY CAN’T WE JUST OFFER MANNY?!?!?!?!?!

    • sabermetrician says:

      Let it go…he’s not coming here. The Aaron Rowand suggestion is much more valid of an idea at this point. We all wish we could get Manny, but it’s not happening.

  175. mr.metlover says:

    I guess it’s time to stop wishing for it and just see where the chips may fall. Right now the main concern is getting SP, which should be done in the next few days. Unless Omar can somehow use his cunning and charm to change the minds of the Wilpons, we will most likely seeing a Tatis/Murphy platoon in left on opening day.

  176. pokermik says:

    As a 40-year Met fan living in SoCal, I got to watch a lot of Dodger games last year. Andruw Jones was the absolute worst excuse for a Major League player I have ever seen. He was constantly swinging off-balance at pitches well out of the strike zone. Most of his 14 RBI (in 209 AB) were on weak ground ball outs to short, driving in the runner from third. To top it off, he would not even show any emotion, just walk back to the dugout without a care in the world.
    Please let this be a mistake. It is too sick to be a joke.

  177. enterkrod says:

    i think its just that i would like to see just a headline of mets looking into manny..anything…just to get a little excited thinking about manny coming..that would be awesome

  178. enterkrod says:

    then again..it would get all of our hopes up and it wouldnt happen..lol

  179. mr.metlover says:

    Agreed enterkrod. I mean, if we’re at the point where fabricated stories about horrible trades for Andruw Jones are popping up, why not throwing us all a bone and just make sh** up about Manny at this point! LOL.

    pokermik, turns out the trade rumor was just a farce.

    • enterkrod says:

      lol…exactly…there have been rumors about jones coming…hell even when there was an apparent suitor offering pettitte a 3 year contract..everyone on here started thinking it was the mets..lol…someone start a story about manny coming to new york..and post it

  180. Darth Manuel says:

    Of all the things I’ve ever seen or heard!

    My goodness gracious. This had better be a joke.

  181. mr.metlover says:

    Just posted on mlb.com, Wilpon goes from “no” to “we’ll see” about Manny Ramirez. Also, Mo Vaughn is looking for a comeback in NY.
    HA!

    • enterkrod says:

      HAHAHAHAHA…ohhhh man…lol..i first read that and my heart skipped a beat..lol..good job..you got me fired up only to be sad in the end

      • enterkrod says:

        BY the way…you know people on here is reading that post and going onto mlb.com to check it out..lol..thinking its true

  182. Knuckler says:

    An outfield of Beltran, Rowand, and Church would have to be by far the best defensive outfield in all of baseball. It would be ideal for the new spacious outfield at the Citi. I likes it!!

    • sabermetrician says:

      That would be an incredible defensive outfield. I really like the idea.

      • Knuckler says:

        Just saw some video of him gunnig out a runner at home over at MLB,com. I must say that he would definate add some “GRIT” to this team.

        Reyes
        Murphy / O-Dog
        Beltran
        Wright
        Delgado
        Rowand
        Church
        Scheider/Castro

        Looks pretty good to me.

  183. mr.metlover says:

    I have to ask though, was the sadness due to the “Ha” part or the “Mo Vaughn is looking for a comeback in NY.” I guess that part gave it away. Although these days, one never knows.

  184. mr.metlover says:

    It’s almost like the Onion article from a few years back with the headline “Yankees Sign Every Player in Major League Baseball”
    I mean, it’s still funny but a little too close to the truth at this point.

  185. enterkrod says:

    i think 60 percent was the “HA” part and 40 percent was the mo part..lol..haha

  186. nymgb44 says:

    Offseason hopes:

    1) Sign Derek Lowe to three-year, $42 million deal

    2) Sign Manny Ramirez to two-year, $46 million deal

    3) Sign Randy Wolf to two-year, $18 millon deal

    4) Sign one of the following players: Brian Shouse, Will Ohman, Joe Biemel, Eddie Guardado, Ron Villone, Ken Takahashi

    5) Sign one of the following players: Aaron Miles, Alex Cora, David Eckstein, Jerry Hairston Jr., Juan Uribe, Jeff Kent

    • enterkrod says:

      i like that and i hope you are right..then we will be on the road to the world series

    • sabermetrician says:

      Let’s take Guardado, Kent, and Eckstein off the list and change Lowe to 3/40, and I’m with you. I’m just trying to save Fred $2 mil.

      • enterkrod says:

        i wouldnt be surprised to see tomorrow early morning or afternoon that the mets made a deal with lowe already

        • sabermetrician says:

          Yeah, I think it will be tomorrow or the next day. It’s funny because we all kind of take that as already happening and we’re ready to move onto Manny.

          • enterkrod says:

            lol..that is true…kind of talking as if lowe is already on the mets…lol..keep your fingers crossed..again im starting to get tired of talking about manny…i stopped commenting because the whole teixeira thing was driving me nuts because it was taking forever…and i figured everything would be dwindling down by now and people signing but noo..well lets hurry the hell up..lol..sign manny announce lowe to the mets..lol..and lets play ball

  187. nyj0126 says:

    It really feels like all of the resentment many of us shown towards the idea of Andruw Jones becoming a Met sparked the Mets to be uninterested in Andruw Jones in a matter of a couple hours lol

    • enterkrod says:

      lol..you bring up a good point however i wish we can do that about manny…we all keep talking about wanting him and the bastards wont budge…lol..

    • sabermetrician says:

      LOL…true. Or maybe Omar looked at his stats from LY.

  188. mr.metlover says:

    I think Omar’s gonna make it dramatic… maybe interrupt Dick Clark’s Rockin’ Eve by flying in overhead in a helicopter just as the ball is dropping to announce Derek Lowe for 3 years/40 million.

  189. dudley69er says:

    Has anyone noticed that Matt Cerrone and the boys are taking a long time to catch wind of certain things? It seems like I’m founding out information hours before it’s posted here.

    • sabermetrician says:

      Yeah, I’ve noticed that. Matt was getting things pretty fast, but the last two weeks or so it’s slowed down considerably.

      • enterkrod says:

        lol..you know i realized it too..but i got caught in the manny talk i forgot to post it…we should all be the head honcho for this site because we all seem to know everything hours before matt posts it..lol

  190. sabermetrician says:

    Well guys I have to be in the office early tomorrow. May you all dream of Manny and wake up to Lowe.

    • enterkrod says:

      lol…lets hope so!!…be sure to get your hopes up in the morning and turn the radio on only to hear lowe saying how happy he is to be a new york met and omar saying he is going after manny now

  191. mr.metlover says:

    But thankfully not A Jones!

  192. Joe D says:

    This rumor was debunked a couple of hours ago.

  193. ulysses says:

    mlbtr…

    8:12pm: MLB.com’s Marty Noble heard from a person familiar with the discussions between the Mets and Dodgers that “nothing is ongoing and nothing is going to happen.” The clubs had preliminary discussions about trading Jones for Castillo during the Winter Meetings, but nothing is in the works now.

  194. phukthephills says:

    i think lowe is still gunna take some time…noone is in it for him but i think boras will wait it out and see if any other teams offer for him..also i think omar will wait to see what the cheapest price they can get him for is

  195. metsfan1 says:

    If the Mets have anything to announce in the near future, I wouldn’t doubt that they do it on New Years Day. Why? It would signify the turning of a new leaf but more importantly it would give MLB Network a chance to cover the story without competition on its launch day. The Mets obviously are looking for 1 or 2 pitchers and possibly an outfielder. Somehow I think the Mets are players for Manny even though they say they aren’t.

  196. nyj0126 says:

    I do expect the Mets to be players for Manny too. Ultimately, I see the Dodgers re-signing him because he’s the only team who’s shown interest in him. They’re the only team out there who’s seen him positively influence their club. If the Dodgers sign Dunn or Abreu, I could see the Nats or Orioles signing Manny to a 2 year deal at around 40 million knowing that may be all it takes to sign him. There’s been talk of the Reds liking Jermaine Dye too, so I think they’d be willing to offer at least one year. If the Mets aren’t fired up to sign Manny, then the best thing they can do is wait for LA to make the first move. Once they’re out the same way how Boston and the Yankees are likely out of the Lowe race, the price drops.

  197. mistermet says:

    sell the team

  198. LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

    Anyone know anything about the two Cubans– Marti and Gomez–who just defected? According to news reports about the 2006 WBC (was out-of-country during the tourney and didn’t catch much of it) and Serie National, they’re pretty decent…

  199. zen says:

    breaking.

    omar to punch mets fans in the face.

  200. enterkrod says:

    i think mets are going to sign manny..

  201. Flushing_is_Burning says:

    no thanks! get manny or no one else

    • dbest138 says:

      no one else? manny isn’t coming to flushing ! the mets should focus on trying to pickup xavier nady .I think he can be had cheap.beats the hell out of the nine hundred pound 190 hitting, cry baby andrew jones”

  202. enterkrod says:

    i agree with you flushing..there is no reason to not sign him..other than ownership not wanting him which i think is stupid..how can you NOT want him?..and i dont want to hear he is a headache..

    • Louis shud b a det lion says:

      Manny quitting on the Sox last year is a good reason to stay away although I think he’d be ok I would love to have him but i wish they would have went after Dunn…..

      i agree with going after Manny just playing devils advocate

      • enterkrod says:

        manny quit on the sox because he wanted a new contract and didnt get it..now im not saying he should have been a big baby about it…but he is one of the best hitters ever…he should get something..i think he would be awesome in new york…he would be hilarious…we all loved pedro can you imagine manny?..hahaha…that would be really fun

        • Louis shud b a det lion says:

          oohhhh it’d be great hahah just hope he would stay happy with his value having decreased so much but he is one of the best hitters ever and the pressure never seems to affect him which frankly i think is a risk we should be willing to take given the outcome of the last two years…

          • enterkrod says:

            exactly…i just think there are more positives that come out of signing him than there are negatives…but then again im not in the clubhouse with them so i dont know what goes on…but i think if something happens like the last two years…omar should not be blamed but the players AND the wilpons..omar does everything possible..especially getting krod and putz..and he most likely will get lowe..reshaped the pen so far..not his fault if something happens again this year…

        • bucknersankles says:

          YES,IT WOULD BE FUNNY, WE’D LAUGH ALL THE WAY TO THE WORLD SERIES.

  203. LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

    If the Mets were going to get Manny, they would have gotten it done at midseason last year (the hole in LF was there then, too). Whether it’s Jeff or Dad, SOMEONE up top doesn’t want Manny on the team. It seems that it’s the sort of hard-and-fast opinion that no amount of price-dropping will change.

  204. LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

    BTW: Adam Dunn costs no draft picks to sign, since he wasn’t offered arb. (Just tossing that out there.)

    • therealsince86 says:

      If the Mets wanted Dunn they would have had gotten him midseason last year. The hole was there then too. Whether it’s Jeff or Dad or Omar Someone does not want Dunn on the team. It seems that price or picks do not matter.
      :)

  205. enterkrod says:

    i want to see a shake in the lineup somhow someway..tatis/murphy in left and castillo at second WILL NOT get it done…murphy looks like he will be ok..but not david wright or jose reyes…and i hope tatis can prove me wrong but i dont see him having the kind of season he had last year…we need a a big bat in the order…

  206. enterkrod says:

    i still see the mets getting manny..no matter what anybody says..i see omar talking to the wilpons who are STUPID for not wanting him..and getting them to agree to sign him

  207. cver says:

    I have a question and I want to stress that this is a question – and that I have no info that supports this – I don’t want to make an ugly false rumor about a guy:

    Has Jones ever been linked to roids or is he at least a candidate for having had his numbers fall off due to possibly, although certainly unproven, going off of some sort of performance-enhanced substance?

    • ulysses says:

      i never heard anything about that. would i be surprised? probably not.

    • LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

      Nothing substantive… but the lack of smoke doesn’t necessarily eliminate the possibility of fire. (Was a Jones fantasy owner last year, and did a LOT of digging in an attempt to figure what was up there.)

  208. nyj0126 says:

    It’s not that Manny is a headache. But he’s like a family member you’re having over your house. You’re alright with him for a day or two, but by the third day he’s worn out his welcome. In baseball teams, a year or two is cool, but three means he’s worn out his wlecome and will be too old.

    If the market shapes up to the Mets signing him to a 2 year deal at a little less then what the Dodgers offered, than they’ll probably go for it. Although I may not agree, I can at least understand if they say no to three years. It’s not about money. But if Manny’s going to cost 40-45 million (the same price as Lowe), then why not?

    Getting both Lowe and Ramirez may not work in the economic plans of the WIlpon’s though. We’ve never heard of a spending ”limit” to the Mets off-season.

    If the Mets signed both of these guys, they may not finacially be committed to signing another left-handed reliever or a 5 SP. I’d rather take Manny over Marquis, Ohman or who ever else… But Fred Wilpon may not.

    It’s Wilpon when it’s Santana, K-Rod and Lowe (hopefully)…

    But it may be coupon when it comes to Manny.

    So many things have had to go right for the Mets to be in position to be able to sign Manny to a 2 year deal. Along with getting K-Rod with incredible timing to both Wagner’s injury and a sluggish economy that’s dipped his price… To not take advantage of this opportunity will be as poor of a decision as the time the Mets wouldn’t give Vladimir Guerrero 5 year/73 million in 2003-04 off-season because of ”back concerns.”

    That contract would have expired after this season. I hope his average of 149+ games, 570+ AB’s, 31+ HR, 113+ RBI, a BA never lowing than .303 and rocket arm over the life of his contract would have ”justified” his contract. Ironically, the market for players that off-season was shot similar to now (although the housing market was booming back then lol). 73 million for a player of his magnitude wouldn’t even get you 4 years anymore…

    What’s the difference between now and winter 2003-04 though? Omar’s the GM. Whether the Wilpon’s like to admit it or not, we all know Minaya’s the one who controls this team. Who was our GM back then? Duquette? lol Of course he wasn’t going to sign him… That’s why he works on MLB.com now. At least Steve Phillips got us to the world series. I guess that earned him ESPN.

  209. nyj0126 says:

    Even though they’re both not American, Jones and Castillo may make great presidential candidates in the ”rich party” because of how lazy and incompetent they are lol

  210. nyj0126 says:

    Even if Jones had used steroids, it did nothing to justify the contract he got. I originally thought he signed 2 year/18 million with the Dodgers last off-season. I got no idea what the Dodgers front office is looking at sometimes. People think they were so smart for trading for Manny at the deadline even though that should have been common sense lol It’s too bad Wilpon doesn’t see it the same way. That gives us the right to question his dedication to winning. The Steinbrenner’s though? They’d love to have Manny, but they’ve spent so much they don’t even got room for him lol I would never like for the Mets to be like the Yankees, but I’d like a little more common sense. I guess we’ve all learned something with the last couple years though. Besides the players (and Willie), ownership is more to blame than Omar.

    • ulysses says:

      well as with the yankees, it seems the culture of baseball has changed for whatever reason. Younger teams seem to be doing better. I mean the phillies have some young players, so do the red sox. I mean I may be wrong and really bored surfing for hot stove news but i think the times of buying up free agents has changed. I wouldnt be surprise dif the yanks missed the playoffs in their division… but if they make the playoffs, god help their opponents haha.

      • enterkrod says:

        if the yankees end up not making the playoffs which i hope they dont..they will DIE..i think there is a lot of pressure on them to win and win now..hence signing three players for over 400 MILLION dollars…i would love for them to lose out on the playoffs again…

        • ulysses says:

          yea but you cant blame them for spending money though. I think the players will be blasted more than the organization.

          • enterkrod says:

            yeah thats what i mean…players are going to die..it would be great if this happens..lol..however you can blame them for spending that much money because they are going to end up putting a salary cap on..

    • RodKanehl says:

      Ypu woudn’t like the Mets to be like the Yankee? They are in all respects but one… Both in NY; Both have new parks; bioth have TV stations of their own; both are riichest team in their league; one difference; Yankees have a full commitment to win Mets have a limited comitment to win.

  211. enterkrod says:

    i agree with you nyj..if they can get manny for a discount like they got krod..bring him on board..however i dont know about 3 years…he will be going on 40..the guy can still hit but still..thats a little bit long..i still think they will sign him though

    • therealsince86 says:

      I would easily go 3 years. I would rather have
      2 cheaper years with 2 option years with large buyouts but…..

    • reillys5 says:

      enterkrod change ur name to iwantmanny because all i read on this is how much u love and want this guy on the mets..u have convinced me ..do me a favor call the wilpons and knock sense into them !

  212. enterkrod says:

    ABSOLUTELY..thats what i put up top..if the mets crumble like they did the past two years..its not omars fault..its obviously the players fault but its ownership…omar wants manny..he would jump in there if they said go for it..but we can blame the wilpons if it doesnt work..

    • therealsince86 says:

      I keep hearing this but how do we really know Omar wants Manny? The Wilpons have not really said no to him very often. Is it possible that Omar just does not want him?

      • enterkrod says:

        omar wanted to sign him at the all star break

        • therealsince86 says:

          You mean trade for him?
          We have no proof that is true. Omar has never said I want Manny but they won’t let me.

          • enterkrod says:

            yeah my bad..i realized it after i posted it…im just too tired to fix my mistakes…there have been articles linking omar to manny…read any article about the mets and manny and omar/wilpons…they all say the same thing..omar likes him wilpons dont…

          • therealsince86 says:

            It very well could have been that Omar was never willing to trade any top prospects for him.

          • therealsince86 says:

            But all those articles are just speculation. How many times has he been linked to the Mets and the trade never happened. From Milledge to now. I just think that the media speculates that Omar loves Manny but has no substance to it.

          • RodKanehl says:

            If Omar would be making that statement he’d be on ESPN with Phillips very quickly.

  213. enterkrod says:

    i dont know…you could be right..either way…im bored of speculatiin already and want to read some news…lol…

    • therealsince86 says:

      I know it stinks but the best thing right now is just to be patient. The market is leaning in the Mets favor right now. Lets just hope Omar knows what he is doing.

      • enterkrod says:

        ohhh yeah…absolutely..i mean..if it all plays out right…mets can sign anyone they want..well ok maybe not anyone but you know what i mean

  214. ulysses says:

    i tried posting a link from the post during the allstar break but its still under moderation…

    just google “new york mets attempted to trade for manny ramirez” and click the first link from the nypost. THERE’S THE PROOF.

    • therealsince86 says:

      Right and that article said exactly what I said. That we have no proof that it was the Wilpons not wanting Manny. The only thing we have is what we have before. Omar did not want to trade Milledge for Manny and did not want to trade Fmart for Manny.

      • ulysses says:

        you said,

        But all those articles are just speculation. How many times has he been linked to the Mets and the trade never happened. From Milledge to now. I just think that the media speculates that Omar loves Manny but has no substance to it.

        i was just saying that omar did want manny. But i agree with not trading for him during the allstar break. And I don’t think they should sign him now, unless its for one year, and even then it’s risky. i just think church can bounce back this year because he’ll be healthy and a concussion like he suffered can happen to anyone on the field. it’s just one of those things. I think if they focus on the pitching, they can look for help during the season in the outfield.

        • therealsince86 says:

          therealsince86 says:
          December 30, 2008 at 12:05 am
          It very well could have been that Omar was never willing to trade any top prospects for him.

          My point is that the media likes to say that Omar would do anything for Manny but the Wipons won’t let him.
          When in fact it maybe that Omar would like to have Manny only under the right terms.

        • RodKanehl says:

          Comparing Church to Manny is a recipe for continually not making the playuoffs.

  215. enterkrod says:

    but thats what i dont get..i mean if it wasnt a price tag they couldnt meet..no one is giving him anything…they can get him at a discount…why arent they going after him?..are they just waiting for lowe first and then pounce on manny? i mean we can speculate this all night…i think like thereal said..we have to be patient and its falling into the mets favor right now

    • therealsince86 says:

      I still think the Mets will get involved but if not then it’s clear that SOMEONE on the Mets does not think he is worth the money. We just may never know if it’s Omar or the Wipons.

  216. enterkrod says:

    yeah..again..im just bored..lol…but it will all come out..just be patient…i think its just annoying that there he is for left field and nothing.lol..its kind of like you want to yell go get him…i know i do

    • therealsince86 says:

      I think Manny is the best solution but as long as Omar improves the offense somewhere and gets 2 SP I will understand why.

      Now if we get just Lowe, let Niese start and make no offensive upgrades I will be insane.

  217. LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

    Anyone like Willy Aybar (formerly of the Rays) as a utlityman/potential Castillo replacement? A LOT cheaper than Hudson (which means we can sign two big-ticket options at SP and/or corner OF), and he’s been above-average at three defensive positions (3B, 2B, 1B) over the last couple of years.

    And at LOOGY… has anyone mentioned Denys Reyes (Lefties have OPS-ed .500-.550 against him over the last four years)?

    • therealsince86 says:

      As far as I could tell the other day the Rays still have Aybar and intend on using him.
      We won’t get Hudson unless Castillo’s gone so that money is not counted on SP anyway.

      • LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

        Was skipping over a few steps in my thought process– Aybar (even as a 2B jobsharer) would provide an upgrade over 2/3-to-full season of Castillo at a fraction of the Hudson price.

        And I THINK Aybar’s contract with TB was a one-year deal, sans vesting.

  218. enterkrod says:

    yeah if omar can improve the offense SOMEHOW…ill be happy..like i said..i think i just want to see a new fresh face in the lineup…we reconstructed the bullpen…need an improvement in the lineup..manny or no manny..so be it..obviously i would love manny..but life will go on..lol..just someone else…

    • therealsince86 says:

      I know I would jump for joy if somehow we traded for Molina and traded Schnieder/Castro for a LHRP. At least that would be an improvement somewhere. I just can’t see going with so many question marks on offense.

      • enterkrod says:

        yeah..i mean..omar feels THAT comfortable with murphy/tatis in left..castro/schnieder catching and castillo playing 2nd?..i like murphy…but lets get real..hes no wright or jose…i mean…we need someone…

        • therealsince86 says:

          The bigger question mark to me is Delgado.
          We scored a lot of runs with Church out and Schnieder/Castro and Casitllo stinking it up. Not to mention worse players in LF than Tatis and Murphy. But if Delgado goes back to early 2008 form we are doomed.

          • enterkrod says:

            that is a good point…although i dont think it will be the case…i think he is going to be fine…but you never know…thats why manny would be good to backup delgado..lol…he fits so perfectly into the lineup..lol…i think im starting to go nuts..

  219. LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

    *Also… Aybar’s just 26, and has as-yet-untapped offensive potential. (Mind you, even if he never improved beyond what he already is, he’s worth 2-3 wins of MARCEL value more over a full season than the Castillo of the last two years.)

    • therealsince86 says:

      Again, where is the link that shows that he is a FA?

      • therealsince86 says:

        From what I can tell he was still arbitration elligible and they offered it to him.

        • ulysses says:

          i cant find anything saying he is signed…

          From the looks of it, castillo is here for a while. Is March here yet?

          • therealsince86 says:

            He was arbitration elligible. He has not signed yet. I think they offered him arbitration, however.

          • therealsince86 says:

            “The Rays have five remaining players eligible for arbitration, and the hefty raises that typically come with the process: infielders Willy Aybar and Jason Bartlett, reliever Grant Balfour, outfielder Gabe Gross and catcher Dioner Navarro.”

            This was posted in the article saying that they decided not to tender Gomes at the deadline…..

      • LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

        You’re right… misread something earlier. He’s not quite free. :)

        Just got overeager looking for cheap upgrades– just because we’re a big-market team doesn’t mean that we can afford to overpay everywhere.

        So, about Reyes…

      • LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

        Ick. Grudzy’s, like, the same guy as Castillo, right down to the increasingly-iffy defense. (Except he hasn’t quite had his steep drop-off yet– the OBP is slightly lower, the slugging not quite as anemic. Also, he’s paler. :))

        And I don’t mind Eddie. It’s just that, if we’re going to have a LOOGY, he may as well actually be a lefty-killer; Reyes’ (and Ohman’s) numbers against southpaws are much better than Guardado’s (or, say, Beimel’s).

        • therealsince86 says:

          If we could get the healthy Castilllo then I am fine with that too but….. Grudzy is similar to Castillo only that he was healthy last year. We are not going to get anyone better, cheaper.

          As for the LOOGY, why does it have to be a LOOGY and not just a normal LHRP. Yes Guardado’s LH numbers are not as good but he has shown over his career the ablility to get LH and RH out. I really would love to see a bullpen without specialist in it. If not then Green and Feliciano need to be the only ones.

          • LeiterMilnerFasterStronger says:

            Last year aside, Feliciano is reasonably effective against both lefties and righties. I suppose that, with divisional opponents like Utley, Howard, Ibanez, Chipper and McCann showing significant splits over the last two years, I feel comfortable having the one bonafide specialist from the south side.

            (In my mind– and on the stat sheet– I count Putz, K-Rod, Stokes, the aforementioned Pete Happy, and a healthy Duaner as guys without significant split differences.)

  220. therealsince86 says:

    Don’t care much about Reyes. Get Everyday Eddie Guardado. Should be cheaper and gives us even more experience.

    As for 2B Grudzy would work just fine.

  221. enterkrod says:

    anyone but castillo…i would rather have kaz matsui out there..lol

    • gomets019 says:

      For all tht talk of manny being a cancer, on the surface he would seem to fit our clubhouse better than L.A’s or Boston. His defense is quite bad, but still better than Tatis, Murphy, Dunn, and Burrel. He would indeed cost us a second round pick this year but net us a 1st rounder and a sandwhich pick next year as he would certainly be type A again. He could and should cost a lot but he sells tickets and draws viewership to sny. He would guarantee the playoffs. He would scare the crap out of the Phils, and maybe even put the NY spotlight back on the Mets, despit everything the Yanks have done this offseason. There is just no good reason not to sign manny if its just for one year. Even if you made him the highest paid player in baseball. It amkes sense. That said, everyone claiming the Mets finish third without him are insane. We have an excellent team regardless. Off topic, but I remember Jerry manuel saying he may bat Castillo lead off next year to get him going. Brilliant. I’m surprised that no one else seemed to pick up on this.
      Castillo
      Reyes
      Beltran
      Manny
      Delgado
      Wright
      Church
      Castro/Schneider
      SICK!

  222. nyj0126 says:

    I am skeptical of the course that’s reported this. It’s not like it was Mets.com. Or even Matt on here. Or ESPN. I’m not sure if MLBTraderumors.com did either. The Newark Star Ledger (it’s better than the Post and Impacto Deportivo, but…) reported this.

    I do believe Omar wants Manny. But I think this is an issue more about money and priorities than it is the Wilpon’s. The priority is pitching which the Mets still haven’t solved yet. And the Wilpon’s just may not have the money after that Wall Street scam…

  223. nyj0126 says:

    That was in reference to the report of Omar wanting Manny, but the Wilpon’s not for personal reasons… Maybe we’ll all be shocked. But Manny’s starting to get the polarizing Barry Bonds treatment. He can’t say he hasn’t given people reasons though.

  224. nyj0126 says:

    Who’d ever think it’d come to the point that we’d want Kaz over Castillo lol Valentin was okay a couple years ago because he kept Reyes in check. Ever since the Mets moved Alfonzo back over and got Alomar though, they’ve been cursed at second base.

  225. nyj0126 says:

    The Rays will spend more than the Marlins will. Maybe not much more, but they’ve shown more committment to some of their players. Their new ownership has signaled this. Gomes hit .188, so the only thing he was good for was his mohawk.

    Earlier in the off-season, I read a report that said Chad Bradford was offered to the Mets as a salary dump. They probably wouldn’t want much in return. But one year for an effective pitcher who pitched well for us in ‘06 is worth it. It’ll allow the Mets to not rely on Duaner Sanchez so much.

  226. nyj0126 says:

    For what it’s worth too, Takashi Saito is available… There’s a lot of incentive to signing him. He had 39 saves and a 1.80 ERA in ‘07 & a 2.49 ERA with 18 saves in 2010. Signing him to like a 1 year/4 million deal may be worth it. The reason why he couldn’t agree to a deal with the Dodgers because LA was only willing to guarantee 2 million.

  227. stickguy says:

    Man, the OF rumors keep going, and going…

    I think manny comes to the Mets if the market falls totally apart, and he ends up going for a 1 year deal (to try again next year), or at best a 1 year + option (and you know he loves options!), maybe mutual.

    A 1 year deal is perfect for the Mets. Manny will stay focused all year, playing for another contract!

    As to Jones, call me crazy, but I think he will have a rebound year. he did hit 41 HRs 2 years ago.

    Supposedly he dropped a bunch of weight and is hitting well in winter ball. So maybe the problem last year was him being too bulky, starting bad, and just not being happy/comfortable?

    Not crazy to think that he could dedicate himself to getting back into playing shape, and if he feels “loved” on a new team, rediscovering some of what he used to be?

    He really isn’t taht old, and AFAIK never had any ntable injuries, so something had to explain the huge decline last year.

    I would still rather have Andru for 1 year than Pierre for the next 3.