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Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors says free-agent relief pitcher Chad Cordero ‘is ahead of schedule,’ and will 
audition for teams this week, according to a baseball source.
During the Winter Meetings in December, Bill Ladson of MLB.com said Cordero intended to meet with the Mets, Cardinals, Rangers, Tigers and D’Backs while in Las Vegas.
In a report from November, Ladson claimed that the Mets, Angels, Rangers and Tigers had shown interest in Cordero, who had surgery in July to repair a torn labrum.
He missed the second half of last season, but is expected to be ready for Spring Training.
“Cordero’s first choice would be to sign with the Angels,” Ladson explained, “because he is from Anaheim and grew up an Angels fan.” However, he added, “Cordero also wouldn’t mind having a reunion with Mets general manager Omar Minaya.”
The 26–year-old Cordero has yet to finish a season with an ERA above 3.36 in his six-year career, during which he has been successful 83 percent of the time in save opportunities, while striking out 292 batters in 320 innings.
I would def take a chance on this guy. Imagine having 3 closers in our bullpen? From big weakness to big strength.
And I hold out hope that Wagner recovers ahead of schedule and slots in the pen in the end of Sept…THAT would be insane!
took the words out, but as of now we need another lefty.. helloo everyday eddie..
If we sign Cordero we do not need another Lefty. All 3 guys at the back of the bullpen will be able to get anyone out. Feliciano is more than enough as a lefty specialists with 3 pitchers of this caliber in the pen and healthy.
If he comes cheap, I would take him. If Wags came back by Sept 1st……that would be a sick ‘pen.
sign please.
thank you kindly.
on paper it sounds like a good idea to have 3 closers but can a closer come in and pitch the 7th effectively? the 7th and the 9th innings are very different, don’t know how many closers could make the adjustment
Agreed. I’d rather have a good 7th, good 8th and a good closer than 3 good closers for 7-9.
btw, don’t we need a lefty?
I don’t have any idea what this means. You’d rather have a good 7th, 8th, closer, then 3 closers for the 7th, 8th and 9th?
Wouldn’t that be the same thing in principal? If you have 3 good closers, who pitch the last 3 innings, then you would indeed have a good 7th, 8th, and 9th?
I am so confused by what this means….
relievers who have roles, as opposed to a groups of 9th inning closers.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking a closer can pitch anytime anywhere.
Why not just collect 9 closers and throw a shutout every game?
All of the specialization of the bullpen is ridiculous. Teams are losing games in order to keep people in their “roles.” Teams used to have five man bullpens and starters that pitched 7, 8, 9 innings and got the job done.
This nonsense about a guy with dominant stuff being unable to get it done if a save isn’t on the line is so frustrating. I’ve seen it happen, don’t get me wrong, but I think relievers as a whole need a collective kick in the pants.
I totally agree with you.
“What’s my role?” they ask. To which Jerry should say, “Your ‘role’ is to get people out when I call you into the game!”
I agree that it’s frustrating to see a guy with dominant stuff be ineffective in non save situations, but with some guys it may not be something they can control. Wagner, for instance, is very small relative to other MLB pitchers and needs to put in as much energy as he has all the time. According to him, a lot of that energy somes from the adrenaline rush he gets when he comes into a big situation. In a non save situation, he may not get the same rush and this could cause him to still be an effective pitcher but not as dominant as he usually is. I’m not saying this is the case for all or even most other closers, but might be something that contributes to this phenominon.
The 1990 Reds would like a word with you.
Granted, that was nearly 20 years ago. . . .
It was nearly 20 years ago, but people are the same, aren’t they?
I really think specialization is killing part of baseball for no real reason.
Omar, Please stay away from often-injured
and/or currently rehabbing players.
Sign Abreau now and keep talkin’ to Lowe
and Ollie. But hurry,its gettin’ late early.
Pitchers and catchers in 5 weeks.
fongalou:
did you just say sign abreu?? as in, the guy from the yankees abreu..????
he meant to say sign manny
Well even I have to accept Mannys not gonna
be a Met And unless someone can provide
a better,more realistic and available corner OFer option for us,you could do alot worse than Abreau for LeftorRight.
The thing with Abreu is that he can’t play defense in any stadium that has walls, which would be all of them.
Alex, sorry to tell you, but if we upgrade in LF it’ll be Abreboo. Dunn or Manny are as likely as you getting that laptop.
Thank You!–Yes, we know,we know Abreau
isn’t an ideal fit BUT at the cost(2ys/20mil?)
Abreau would be a real nice 2hole hitter
and no doubt very helpful to our goal—
Getting back to the playoffs.
“Pitchers and catchers in 5 weeks.”
Big smile just crossed my face.
I’m on a new Metsblog campaign: the correct spelling of Bobby Abreu’s last name. Say it with me folks, A-B-R-E-U.
There is no second “A.”
Thank you for your time and support.
No, it’s spelled A-B-R-E-B-O-O. Abreboo!
NOOOOO. Sign both Lowe and Perez, then flip Niese to the Yanks for Nady.
wow, just wow.
Not a bad idea.
Cordero is an easy decision. Then you can trade one of the Sanchez/Stokes guys if need be.
Krod
Putz
Cordero
Feliciano
Green
Stokes
Sanchez/Parnell is a good pen. You don’t have to have another LOOGY as some of those guys have good splits both ways. Example for a career Cordero has as good or even better numbers against LH. Putz numbers are good as well. Thus if Cordero, Putz and Krod were all healthy you would not be pulling them out for a LOOGY anyway.
Great idea if hes healthy and gonna stay
healthy.However, we really do need to stop
with the pie-in-the-sky hopes and prayers
while trying to win a Championship.
Right, but why would they sign him if they did not at least think he would be healthy? Not to mention, there are not a lot of bullpen guys out there and we are not going to shell out 5 million for a quality reliever. Faced with a guy like Matt Wise or Cordero for the same price, I choose Cordero.
If healthy, why would Cordero sign here
to pitch in the 6th or 7th when theres a good
chance he could close for The Angels?
The Angels have a closer, Brian Fuentes. And they have young guys that could close.
No kidding! Really! Fuentes already lost his
closers job once and The Angels kid has
about as much closing experience as Kunz.
And is certainly no lock. I’m sure though you
knew what I meant.
Orlando Cabrera is willing to play second base because he is trying to drive up demand for his services. He’s not the answer, but just wanted to throw it out there.
The guy can hit for sure.
case, i called my wife and she said she’ll get my laptop next week… hintety hint…
Alex, so if call my wife, will I get my new car too?
lol, to be honest, go for it man… maybe she’ll tell you next week as well!!! lol..
Since his OPS+ is usually lower than Castillo’s, I’d have to say that Cabrera’s hitting ability is not so sure.
A guy who does not hit for power has no business with OBPs in the .320s or .330s.
he did SO alot but he does have a +84 OPS.
And Luis Castilo has an OPS+ of 77 in a horrible season and an OPS+ of 96 the previous season. Cabrera had an OPS+ of 96 or more once in his career.
How is he better than Castillo?
His OPS last season placed him 14th among 18 SS with enough bats to qualify for a batting title. At second base he would have been 15th out of 17 with the at bats.
He’s not a good hitter.
Never mind, I was thinking Peralta from the Indians.
Stole my thunder!–Omar,cant move Luisachesandpains anyway but Cabrera
would be an excellant addition both on the
field and in the clubhouse.Additionally,this
is a guy who could hit 2,6or7 and has plenty
of experience @2B and is a winner!
How exactly is he a good hitter? Is it his career .322 OBP? I don’t want a guy with a .322 OBP (.334 last year) batting second. And I sure as don’t want a guy with a .399 slugging percentage (.371 last year) batting 6th!
And how do his 33 games played at 2B constitute “plenty of experience?”
Umm because before being converted to
short he spent for first couple seasons in the
minors playing mostly short.
So I guess his seasons of 80,86&96rbi
mean nothing? Near as I remember he
hit anywhere 1through6 for the Expos.
And certainly has been a better baseball
player than LuisAchesandPains.
Not quite.
He played a total of 32 minor league games at 2B (135 minor league games total).
Dont know where you got that from backman
but Cabrera played alot more than both those
numbers at both 2B and in the minors.
His RBI totals don’t mean nothing. But they do mean next to nothing.
His career line of .274/322/399 and OPS+ of 86 v. Castillo’s 292/367/355 and OPS+ of 93 suggest he’s not decidedly better than Castillo if he’s even better at all. Certainly, for a second hitter I’d prefer a guy who can get on base as opposed to a guy whose power advantage may result in 6 or 7 additional home runs.
Cabrera drove in a lot of those runs batting in positions he a) had no business batting in and b) will not be batting in with the Mets. In the two hole he drove in 195 runs in 1800 or so at bats. Castillo drove in 160 in a few more at bats.
So the RBI difference is not so big.
Castillo’s line as a two hitter: 299/376/370
Cabrera’s: 286/338/395
If your beef is that Castillo has been hurt then there’s nothing I can do about that. But Cabrera is not a good hitter and the Mets would be better off taking a chance that Castillo can get healthy and return to form.
Fong:
Those numbers concerning Cabrera’s games played come from baseball-reference.com.
Check it out yourself.
All above are doing a good job breaking down OCab the player, so I’ll touch on the “excellent addition in the clubhouse” aspect:
By multiple reports, all his teammates, his manager and his coaching staff hated him and were basically taking turns holding each other back from killing him last season. He alienated himself from most of the organization through his words and deeds. Not exactly a clubhouse plus IMO.
I wonder if the Mets will pursue. Omar has always wanted this guy. Might be worth taking a chance if we can get him for cheap.
can we please say NOOOOO to as my boy case said: ABRE-BOOOOOOOOOOO
If he drops his price, he wouldn’t be a bad 2 hitter. Gets lots of hits and steals bases.
case please no.. i rather see dunn..
As would I but the Mets don’t want Dunn. They could have had him for almost nothing during the season and showed no interest.
well trs, to be fair arizona gave up a pitcher for him.. we weren’t gonna do that..
And Omars already indicated he didn’t think
Dunn is a good fit.
And at this point say yes to who Alex?
Manny, not happening
Dunn, not happening
Wiggy not happening
Who else is there for LF?
honestly, the platoon of tatis and murphy looks very fine to me right now.. do not wanna see this guy here.. period.. watch how good the yankees will be..
yeah, and I’m sure the quarter bil spent on
two ace SPers would have nothing to do with
it. Right?
I wouldn’t consider Burnett an ace and anything close to a sure thing at this point.
Plus they are going to have a healthy Wang, Jorge, Matsui for a full season as well.
there is bobby abreu, fernado martinez, angel pagan, daniel murphy for left field
and if the mets do sign cordero they will have the best bullpen
Is it a coincidence that after he left phillie they got better and based on what the yankees did they’ll be better after he left?.. think not..
Is it a coincidence that the Mets were not as good when Trax and Zambrano left? Think not, we need them back.
Thank you. this ain’t the NBA.
when hampton left we were better right..
This arguement makes no sense whatsoever. You can’t tell me that Tatis/Murphy would put up similar numbers to Abreu. In baseball numbers are numbers. It is the stat king of the sports world. Abreu would come in and hit .300 with a high OBP and a lot of steals.
Cordero should not be viewed as a closer. Coming off surgery he may be no better than Sanchez was last season.
oh yeah?
watch omar give him a 3 year deal..
At best.
Yes to Cordero; signing him may come down to who is willing to guarantee major league money.
Let him come back slowly. Extended spring training or something, and then, when he’s ready, since we have our 8th and 9th innings covered, you can slot him in spots earlier. As we have seen, you can never have enough bullpen. If he gets healthy and is good, we might even have, dare I say it, excess to trade?
I would love to have him But what is Omar’s bargaining chip with this guy (aside from possibly money)?
What is Omar going to tell him? “Chad, we have a prime time closer and a prime time set-up man, but if you want to slot in as the 7th inning guy, then we will take you.”
Other teams might be willing to offer him either a closing role or a set-up role. The Angels, however, also appear to have their 8th and 9th inning guys locked in. So who knows?
I would love to see Cordero sign here as a reclamation project and also see a lefty signed on the cheap.
Minaya is moving quite slow for a guy that has multiple holes to fill. Backup infielder, possibly 2 starers, one or two more relievers, and I hope and OF.
money will work. And given that he is coming back from a major injury, I expect he is looking more for the opportunity to get healthy and prove he can still be effective.
This will probably be a ST deal, so in essence he is pitching for his next (closer) contract. he already proved he can do the job, just has to prove he can still pitch.
Also, the SP is holding up the works (the big name guy).
A back up MI, last arm in the pen, and the #5 starter aren’t a hot priority for him, and quite often those spots might not get filled until ST.
I’ll give you the need for an OF, but who really knows what is going on there?
Minaya is moving just fine. He made an offer the day after new years. Just Boras/Lowe didn’t like it. So until someone else makes an offer, or one of the lower level pitchers signs we are all in a holding pattern.
Now when you go out there and look at it. Philly has no more money, they can’t possibly. They took Burrell’s money and signed Ibanez, and gave Jamie Moyer a raise. They have 4 pitchers under contract with the 5th being kendrick/Happ. They also have 8 players, that’s right 8, who are arbitration eligible this year, Most notably Howard who will get another raise, and Hamels. Combined those 2 can get closet to 10-15 million in raises. The others are all key elements of the team who will command 1 million or more raises. Jayson Werth, Shane Victorino, Ryan Madson, Joe Blanton, Chad Durbin, and Greg Dobbs.
Atlanta might be the only other team, and they are reluctant to spend 12 million a year on another starting pitcher. Remember they did just pickup Vasquez. The Brewers just publicly announced theyare interested in Derek Lowe, but only at a modest price.” Melvin said, “We’re not in on him.”
No matter what Boras is saying, there is no real market out there for him. He has no other offers. He is going to keep shopping him around, but will come to realize the only place to go is the mets for 12-13 million a year (which is a 3-4 million per season raise)
As for Abreu… did the Yanks not win because of Abreu? Was he the cancer for the Yanks? Is he the Stephon Marbury of the MLB?
To say that the Phils got better once Abreu left and now the Yanks will get better without Abreu is a bit of a stretch. With the Phils, I can almost buy it, but I think the emergence of Ryan Howard and Utley as superstars, along with the rise of Cole Hamels, had a little more to do with it.
As for the Yanks, if they win a WS, I’ll bet that Burnett, CC, and Tex will have a bit more to do with it than the departure of their former 3 hitter, Bobby Abreu.
There is almost no chance this guys signs with us.
Omar please avoid players a few months post surgery. Thats all.
Cordero was a solid closer/rp when he was healthy, and i would be lying if I wasn’t somewhat interested, but i would sign for cheap if you can get him for that, it’s possible though because he is coming back from surgery…we’ll see