Daily Archives: July 30, 2009
Jon Heyman of SI.com says it doesn’t seem like the will Rays will make a trade before tomorrow’s 4 pm deadline, though they have been trying hard to acquire Indians C Victor Martinez.
That said, according to NY Baseball Digest, the Mets, Rays and Indians may be discussing a three-team deal that would send Martinez to the Rays.
The Mets (49–52) lost to the Rockies (55–47) tonight by the score of 4 to 2 in Citi Field.
For a full recap and boxscore, click here.
The Least You Should Know:
- Jon Niese was strong through six, and was getting ahead of hitters quickly. In the seventh however, Angel Pagan took an imperfect angle on a double off the bat of the pitcher, Jorge De La Rosa. Fernando Tatis saved a run with a stellar diving grab, but it was all for naught as Clint Barmes then hit a two-run shot to left, putting the Rockies up 3-1. Niese finished off with four earned runs on eight hits, three K’s and four walks.
- Brian Stokes relieved Niese and promptly allowed an RBI triple to Troy Tulowitzki, putting the Rockies up by three.
- In the first inning, Angel Pagan was overly aggressive and got caught trying to score, which killed a potential rally.
- In the seventh, Tatis homered off the second deck’s facade in left field, but it wasn’t enough.
Misc., Etc., and other Observations:
- The Mets’ streak of 5 wins and 27 scoreless innings allowed ended tonight.
- Sean Green and Bobby Parnell pitched very well.
- Heading into the weekend, I’m feeling much more confident with how the Mets have been playing, but am trying to keep my expectations tempered.
The Mets start a four-game series with the Diamondbacks tomorrow night, with Livan Hernandez (7-5) squaring off against Doug Davis (5-10) at 7:10 p.m.
Tagged Regis Courtemanche |
In his recent Under the Knife report for Baseball Prospectus, injury-expert Will Carroll writes:
“Carlos Beltran is coming back. That was always the plan, but how he’s going about it speaks a lot to where he might be in the future. Beltran has decided to accelerate the pace of his rehab, hoping to come back towards mid-August… Beltran made the informed decision based on the near certainty that he will need microfracture surgery and could miss much, if not all, of the 2010 season. He’ll do everything he can to avoid it, but that’s the worst case scenario and he’s willing to give it a go. His success will be based on pain tolerance and management, as well as Jerry Manuel’s ability to spot him in and out. It’s unlikely he can play CF, though no one has said much about where he will actually play. It’s a calculated risk that Beltran and the Mets are taking. Given the success – or lack thereof – with microfracture in MLB, it’s a big risk and perhaps Beltran’s last hurrah.”
…wow… i mean, wow… there was some buzz around the Mets a few weeks ago suggesting beltran and his agent, Scott Boras, might look for a contract extension this winter, though he’s under contract through 2011… i would think this could have serious implications on such a plan…
Carroll also reports on injuries to Gil Meche, Roy Oswalt, Francisco Liriano and other players from around the league.
From what I can gather out of Cleveland, the Mets and Indians have been in contact.
The Mets are interested in Martinez, but I do not believe any hard offer was ever on the table – though this, again, may just be a matter of semantics.
The thing is, the Red Sox and Rays like Martinez as well.
“The Mets are trying to be creative, because they refuse to trade those top guys,” someone close to the team told me, which I assume means Brad Holt, Fernando Martinez, Jennry Mejia, Ike Davis and Wilmer Flores.
For what it’s worth, I believe the Indians might accept Jon Niese, Flores and Holt for Martinez, but that is an educated guess.
In the end, from what I can tell, the Mets do not feel pressure to make a trade before tomorrow’s 4 pm deadline.
They are confident in their prospects, and they’re also confident they will get Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes, Carlos Delgado and Billy Wagner back 
during August, which is a lot more than any other team will acquire in trade. Plus, they seem comfortable with what the waiver wire might make available in August.
Basically, having talked with people around the team, I believe the Mets are buyers and are looking for a creative way to get a bat, i.e., the in-season, offense version of last December’s three-way trade that brought on J.J. Putz.
In short, the Mets seem to have no interest in over-paying with top prospects when they are essentially set to acquire four All Stars in August.
The second opinion from Dr. Andrews confirmed the initial report by team doctors that said John Maine has weakness in his shoulder.
The Mets said Maine will continue to rehab in St. Lucie.
Meanwhile, according to SNY’s Pre-Game Live, Brian Schneider had a cortisone shot in his left knee yesterday, which is why he is not starting in either of today’s double-header.
…this would also explain why the Mets promoted Robinson Cancel today from Triple-A, to have the other catcher…
SI.com’s Jon Heyman said on SNY that the Indians might have offered C Victor Martinez to the Mets, and Omar Minaya turned it down.
…ok, but, that would also mean they might not have been offered martinez…
…i mean, before i even consider reacting to this, i need to know who the Indians wanted…
Prior to today’s game, Minaya did say, “I even turned down a couple of trades yesterday,” while noting he has talked to teams about ‘big-time players.’
Last week, Heyman said Minaya rejected a deal from Blue Jays GM JP Riccardi for RHP Roy Halladay, in return for OF Fernando Martinez, Bobby Parnell, Jon Niese and 17–year-old SS Ruben Tejada.
Update, 6:54 pm:
Joe Demayo of NY Baseball Digest believes the Indians wanted Mets pitching prospects Brad Holt and Jennry Mejia.
…maybe… i don’t know… from what i understand, the Mets have been in contact with the Indians and Rays… that said, the Indians are said to be looking for major-league ready pitching… this is probably why they requested Clay Buccholz from the Red Sox in a deal for martinez… i just can’t see how two youngsters, like holt and mejia, who have only been in Double-A for a month or so, are guys the Indians see as ready for action… i would think they’d have been more inclined to ask for Jon Niese and holt, and probably a hitter as well, but that’s total speculation…
Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus believes the Phillies will eventally get a final chance before the deadline to trade for Blue Jays RHP Roy Halladay, and they still have the prospects to make it happen.
…you know what, they should just do it… don’t get me wrong, i hope they do not… but, they should… i mean, they’re most likely going to be in the post season… and, to be able to throw halladay, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels in a short series would be difficult to beat… plus, that city is full of savages… so, if this is their chance to win back-to-back titles and be considered the best team in the history of that city, they should do it… because, if they lose this season, then lose next season, those fans will turn on them and that will be that…
That said, for now, according to Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports, it is a two-team race between the Dodgers and Red Sox for Halladay.
Tagged Phillies |Update, 4:26 pm:
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates are close to trading both LHP John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny to the Cubs.
yesterday, Joe Demayo of NY Baseball Digest said the Mets and Yankees had shown interest in Grabow.
Update, 3:52 pm:
The Orioles traded LHP George Sherrill to the Dodgers for prospects 3B Josh Bell and RHP Steve Johnson, according to MLB.com.
Following today’s game, Jerry Manuel 
explained, “The key for us is starting pitching and good defense.”
Manuel said he is happy with his current starting rotation, particularly the way Mike Pelfrey, Oliver Perez and Livan Hernandez have been pitching.
In the batter’s box, he said, “Once you begin to get two-out hits, once you begin to manufacture runs… they see the results of that and they feel good about it. They feel good about hitting a sac fly with a guy on third… Guys are confident.”
The Mets (49–51) conclude their four-game series against the Rockies (55–47) tonight at 7:10 pm, with Jon Niese (1–0, 4.08 ERA) taking on LHP Jorge De La Rosa (8-7, 4.78 ERA).
Angel Pagan will bat leadoff for the Mets, followed in order by Luis Castillo at second, David Wright, Jeff Francoeur, Fernando Tatis in left field, Daniel Murphy at first base, Angel Berroa at shortstop and Omir Santos behind the plate.
…i wonder why the switch to hitting murphy sixth, as opposed to clean-up, where he has been doing quite well the last few days… i get giving Alex Cora a rest, especially since it’s a double-header, despite what jerry said yesterday… but, murphy seemed just fine where he was, regardless of whether there is a left-handed pitcher on the hill…
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