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The Trade Deadline will be Friday, July 31.
Between now and then, I have a feeling we’re going to hear a lot of rumors connecting the Mets to A’s OF Matt Holliday and Astros OF Carlos Lee.
Holliday will be a free agent at the end of this season, and reports of Oakland suggest Billy Beane will look to get back at least two, quality prospects, including an infielder.
Lee, on the other hand, is due $18.5 million this season, as well as in 
2010, 2011, and 2012, after which he is eligible to be a free agent.
Lee will likely cost less - in terms of prospects – than Holliday, because a team like the Mets could bring on Lee’s entire salary in the deal.
The 32–year-old Lee is batting .319 this season, with nine HR.
He has hit roughly 30 HR and 100 RBI while batting around .310 during each of the last three seasons.
I think i would prefer Lee since he would cost less in prospects but that salary is high for him. I also would not make a tarde for Holliday unless he signed a long-term deal. We can’t give up prospects fopr a 2 month rental.
Lee is very intriguing to say the least. He would help A TON this year, but I get nervous about trading for a guy who’s not very old, but old, and slow to begin with.
No doubt he could really help replace the bat of Delgado, as well as fill a huge hole in the OF for the next few years.
Wonder if the Wilpons would be willing to take on his salary though?
I was of the belief it was a huge mistake not going harder after Lee going into 2007. His numbers as a producer and in run scoring situations are always incredible.
His contract is costly though, I’d want some relief on that.
I agree 100%. I liked him back then and I still like him. What I find most intriguing is how he always hits for a lot of power but manages to have ridiculously low strikeout totals.
Plus the fact that we’re low on Carlos’ now and his addition would bring us up to full Carlos power.
Its a Zen thing.
one can never have enough Carloses or Fernando’s
If you think between Putz, Delgado and Wagener, the Mets are going to lose a lot of salary. Putz has a 1 million buyout if he is not resigned. That will save 4 million from this year and potentially 7.6 from next years contract. Delgado is making 14 million and Wagner 10. That is 28 million dollars. Obviously certain players contracts will increase but that is a big savings.
The Mets could afford to give up prospects because they will have cash to spend next year but I don’t like the idea of trading top prospects for a rental. If we were to give up top prospects I want Halliday, Oswalt or even Peavy. Pitching wins, especially at Citi Field. The players mentioned are good but not great and I would not send top prospects for them.
Lee would probably be a knee-jerk reaction that would be a bad LT move. He is a disaster waiting to happen.
If he was a 1/2 year rental? Sure. Maybe even signed for 2010. But the odds of him being worth anything beyond that? Slim.
Holliday would be great as a rental, but not at the price Beane would hold out for.
But, it also raises the real question: Should they “gut” the farm for a shot at this year, even though the move isn’t likely to make the difference?
Or, just try to fight through the injuries, break in some prospects, and see what happens, even if it means focusing on 2010?
THe good GMs (think White Sox a few years back) look realistically at the big picture. The bad ones put on rose colored glasses (think: V. Zambrano) and make trades that hurt for years to come.
Speaking of Victor Z, rumor has it that the Rays are open to trading Kazmir. Maybe the Mets can offer them Ollie? Hey, he’s better than Victor Zambrano was!
They want to trade Kazmir because he keeps getting hurt. Oddly enough that was the reason the Mets got rid of him because they thought he was too small and would be injury prone. But they should have gotten much more in return then VZ. He was awful.
does lee have a history of injury’s or anything?
is there anything other then the fact he is in his early 30’s and not the slimmest of athletes to back your claim that he is a disaster waiting to happen?
Under what circumstances is Lee a disaster waiting to happen? He has been able to play 155 games plus every year with the exception of 2008 when he suffered a hand injury in August.
His contract is lofty but comping him to a Zambrano deal is absurd. With all trades there is risk, the size of that risk is largely financial here.
Ma. TV said it best (below) “He’s a year away from being a true DH trapped in left field.”
Think Sheffield, but not in as good shape!
Probably a much better option for a team in the AL.
Now, if he can (and will) play 1B, a slightly better option.
But man, that contract…
If the cost was minor (Gee + Duda? Guys that level), you might roll the dice. But if it bombs, you are screwed budget wise for a while.
He moves FAR better than you know, there is nothing about him that signals DH, and Sheffield did not begin DHing until he went to Detroit at age 37.
You are over dramatizing a possibility beause at the moment a lot of what the Mets touch seems to turn to poop, but a lot of those touches were risky from the get go. Alou, Pedro, Wagner, these were guys who already has injury histories, dead arms , dl stints and in Wagners case early career surgery.
the problem with a guy like lee is when you consider the expansive outfield of citifield, you add in a guy with lee’s physique at a point when he’s beginning to see the tail end of his prime, those last couple of years of his contract will make for quite an albatross.
plus it means we must trade church because there is no way f-mart goes anywhere.
Send Lee and Oswalt together.. we’ll take them both thanks.
now we’re talking. I know you’re playing, but I’ll play along….
I’m not that big into Lee mainly because of the commitment. and Im not sure why they would make a trade like this, but I’d be interested to see what that would take.
Niese is gone. Fmart would probably have to go in that. Probably not for one of them, but both? So Niese, Fmart, Church?, and then some real youngins.
Id rather keep Fmart and trade for Oswalt separate.
Lee is a very intriguing option, Matt. My only concern is his conditioning. He’s a year away from being a true DH trapped in left field.
That said, he is under contract after this year, so their is no risk of giving up prospects only to see him walk away like with Holliday.
The question is – Under this current economic market, is Lee’s contract too inflated? I don’t think so, especially since the Mets have (potentially) $40M coming off the books next year.
I’d try hard to keep Parnell, F-Mart, Wilmer and Holt as I think they’ll play key roles in the next year or so (maybe with Wilmer a little longer).
If the Mets take on his entire salary, I wonder if Houston would take a lesser package. Maybe a Jon Niese or Jenrry Mejia, Ike Davis or Reese Havens and Josh Thole package?
Maybe a little longer for Wilmer? He is no way going to be helping anyone for a long while.
Of Holt and Jenrry, the thing is at 19 the latter already has good command of his off speed stuff and ideally it is only going to get better.
Patrick, I agree. Wilmer is 17 and probably 3 years away. Although with the way the Mets push their prospects, he may be at Citi next week.
I agree about Mejia having better control of his off-speed and breaking stuff. My only concern is his size. He’s not a big guy and I wonder if his body can hold up over 200 innings in the majors. I saw him pitch at Brooklyn last year and he reminded me of Octavio Dotel.
Holt’s body is geared to heavier workloads. Look, anyone can be an exception and maybe Mejia is, but I still take Holt in the long run.
Basing it on body size is iffy at best, the whole notion that small frames can’t handle big league innings is entirely bogus and contrived.
Roy Oswalt is listed at 6′0″, he wishes he was really that tall. David Cone was listed at 6′1″, I stood next to him in 1987 I was in my early teens and just topping 6′2″, I was easily nearing half a foot taller than David Cone. Ron Guidry, Tim Hudson, Pedro Martinez, Johan Santana, it can go on an on, these guys are not exceptions to some rule they are just as likely to be as good as someone 6′2″ or 6′4″ etal.
Pitchers who can throw strikes, minimize their pitchers and change speeds deceptively and effectively can pitch innings. Those who cannot, they end up getting hit out of the league or hurt.
I dont think MrMustSee is counting on Wilmer for anything anytime soon…why even ask?
At Worst IMO, he follows Fmart’s path and that gives him a debut at age 20. He projects to be a different kind of hitter so his path may be quicker, but most likely longer. Young players like Fmart, Reyes, and Gomez were able to come up at young ages b/c their defense and athleticism can keep them afloat while their Offense comes along slowly. I dont think Wilmer falls into that category. He’s gonna have to hit before he gets up here.
I still think Wilmer ends up a right fielder.
1) He’s already outgrown shortstop.
2) He is not displacing David Wright, who plays Gold Glove-caliber third base.
3) Wilmer’s arm is too good to waste at first base.
I think it is high time everyone take a deep breath on a 17 year old who has taken a big leap back to earth this year.
I think Lee is the ideal guy to get, but he will be costly…Perhaps a package including someone like Niese, Gee, etc plus $3-$5M per year to offset the salary could get it done.
At the same time, there aren’t any big bopper type guys on the immediate horizon, and by bringing in Lee, you can put Murph at 1st, and use FMart in right. In terms of overall cost, the Mets are dumping some bad contracts, Delgado’s $12M, plus the $10M going off the books offset the cost of Lee..Figure you save another $5M by trading Putz/declining his option. Parnell hopefully sticks the 8th inning slot, and you are good to go. I would like to see them go after a #2-strong #3 to solidify the rotation, but that depends on what the team budget is…I’m sure it will go up next year.
After looking at some of the above comments, my package for Lee looks way too light…
Either of those would be a bold move, but the team’s biggest need right now is simply to get healthy. Getting swept by the Pirates stings, but it didn’t seem to me like the Mets were just one big bat away from turning the series around. The Pittsburgh series was a clunker. It stinks, but it happens. Let’s move forward and pick up 2 or 3 wins this weekend, hopefully get Reyes and/or Church back, and then see where we are after the Phillies and Yanks series’.
Perfectgame,
Have to say I agree with you. Before we start making trades let’s get some stability on the team, and some of our starters back. After that, if still looks like we need an impact bat, start looking into Lee and Hollday.
One guy I’d love to pry away from Houston is Berkman. Got to love a power/switch hitting first baseman. I believe he also started his career in the outfield.
I would rather the mets go after another #1 type starter to go with Johan. Oswalt, Peavy, Halladay, or Lee.
Then get Huff or Nick Johnson to play first everyday. I really dont see Murphy holding down that spot.
I rather have pitching for the Mets with their inconsistency than a hitter. I feel that Mets need pitching more.
I wanted to get our offense healthy first…and with that see what happens with Fmart.
Getting Reyes back is priority #1…and if he’s out, we need to know for how long…definitively.
I think we also need to find out what’s going to happen with Oliver Perez. He’s out pretty much all of June…but he’s a guy we really could use (effective that is). And if he can’t be or cant get healthy, than another solid SP is going to be needed.
Can I dream a little…what a squad this would make..
Reyes
Castillo
Beltran
Wright
Doc Holiday
FMart
Murphy
Santos
with sheffield and tatis on the bench…i like that lineup a lot.
But the problem I see is that IF we need a SP (and we might depending on how Ollie recovers) then what prospects/Ryan Church can be sent for a SP AND for Doc Holliday?
Thats what makes Lee an attractive commodity – The Mets don’t have to move any blue chippers to get him…They are far better equipped to take a hit on a contract than they are with prospects…Lee could lead to a truely dynamic lineup:
Reyes
Castillo
Beltran
Delgado
Wright
Lee
FMart/Church
Santos/Schneider
mixing metaphors, Doc is Halladay, the other is Matt
With our ball park and the Phillies offense and the Braves Starting Rotation…I think pitching should be our focus first in the trade market. If Church and/or Fmart are going to be unable to provide us with offense then we will need to look for an OF bat, but we need more time to figure that out. (Sheffield should not be counted on for the 2nd half of the season, I’m sorry, but we just cant count on a 40 year old starting every game and playing at a high level…it’d be foolish but not out of Omar’s realm)
Carlos Lee has a full no trade clause through the end of 2010; and according to ESPNs Jayson Stark, a club that inquired about Lee over the winter was told that Lee wouldn’t waive his no trade clause for anyone. Perhaps that was because of the team asking for him, but given these facts, it’s unlikely that he’s going anywhere.
you never know…It’s gotta be tough leaving a hitters park like Houston…but Houston is not a very good team so we’ll see if he changes his mind for a team with a chance (we have a chance, right?) lol
I’d welcome either of them with open arms.
Holt should go nowhere. He is the best, and closest, stud SP prospect they have, and those guys are almost impossible to find (if you don’t develop your own).
Mejia? A dark horse to come up to help the pen sooner than you might think. Entirely possible his future is like that of another scrawny SP with nasty stuff (some dude that has been in the yankee pen for the last 12 yeras, name sips my mind..)
Tejada also might be a good one to hang onto.
Flores and Marte? Way too young to really know.
It would be a giant risk to bring on Matt Holliday the way he has performed away from Coors Field this season. Oakland plays in a big park but Citi Field would pose even bigger problems for the slugger.
On the other hand, El Cabello(sp?) is the type of slugger in a Carlos Delgado mold, where the size of the stadium doesn’t matter a bit. This guy hits moon shots! The other reason Carlos Lee should be more intriguing to the Mets is in fact because of that lofty contract. So far he’s played up to it, and as Matt mentioned it shouldn’t cost the type of prospects b/c of the money the Mets will have to take on. On the Holliday front, there really is no financial undertaking, so Billy Beane will want top return for someone that isn’t performing like an elite outfielder. You can never trust that Billy Beane either; he’s excellent at picking apart a minor league system for unheralded gems.
Hard to imagine Mets make a push for Lee considering his age and huge contract. And I wouldn’t blame them if they didn’t.
Murphy and Niese would be too be much for Holliday. If A’s take Murph and a lesser pitching prospect, get ‘er done.
Holliday would be a wise choice. He is much younger and more athletic than Lee. That being said I don’t care what we give up. Prospects are just prospects. They haven’t proven anything. I’d take proven talent over projected talent anyday. We could have had Oswalt for Milledge a few years ago bet we would have loved to have seen that one! We still need to add a gritty Eckstein/Victorino type. I like the versatility in DeRosa but we need a guy who plays hard, will take someone out, can foul off 6 or 7 pitches and work a pitcher. We don’t have that guy!
The Mets probably only have the goods to pull one trade for a premium player this season. Considering the ballpark they play in and the state of the rotation, that one trade should be for a starting pitcher.
As for these two options, Holiday is a very run-of-the-mill outfielder outside Coors and Lee will cost far to much for the foreseeable future. 55.5 million for 3 years of an aging left fielder who should really be DH-ing now will most likely be very problematic for a team playing 81 games a year in Citi Field.
Save your remaining bullets for pitching Omar.
Lee is verrrrry enticing. He’s a hitting machine, and very similar to Gary sheffield but without all the health issues and age. Especially if he wont garner as many prospects, hopefully the mets will jump on the opportunity.
i like to add lee, personally.
delgado comes off the books this year, so does wagner. thats his $$$ right there.
we could then move murphy to 1B in the offseason and do whatever with the other corner OF spot with what we’ve got.
and if we could move castillo, i wouldnt be against it either.
no moving Luis right now, he is the closest thing the Mets have to a leadoff hitter
Aquiring Carlos Lee is looking real good right now to me. Not only for what he may be able to help this season, but down the road. I say this for two reasons. Number one, he’s not a free agent at the end of the season so he may be able to help for a few years to come. Number two, I think the Mets should always make an effort to get younger. I’ve stated a few times, with no amphetamines and no steroids baseball is a young mans game.
i dont see any scenario in which the metsies acquire holliday in a trade…perhaps they sign him as a FA in Dec(further diminishing their draft picks) but even that would be a stretch based on how he has played outside of coors
id jump at the chance to get carlos lee, he is servicable in the OF and his bat more than makes up for any lack of defense he might not have….lets call him Manny Ramirez Light( the uber producing LF, that is not linked to PEDs). He hits a ton and always seems to come up big when they need him, if you play him in left, beltran in center and leave f mart up to play right our outfield defense would be just fine
lee also replaces the booming bat this team is missing w the injury to delgado
Holliday would be a .240 hitter in Citi Field. He can barely hit in Oakland. I really hope someone in Queens looks at his “splits” page on baseball reference before pulling the trigger on a deal.