In a report for ESPN.com, Jerry Crasnick surveys 20 general managers, assistant GMs, personnel people and scouts, regarding eight off-season topics.
According to Crasnick, eight of the 20 insiders believe the Yankees will sign free-agent RHP John Lackey, 
while four believe he will sign with the Mets.
According to Crasnick, “Estimates on Lackey’s deal ranged from a low of three years, $36 million to highs of five years, $95 million and six years, $100 million,” and, “Most people figure he’s bound for the big stage in New York.”
…i know people have reported the Mets lack of interest in lackey… but, i don’t see it that way… i think they’re very much interested in him, and holliday… i don’t think the Mets have any interest in trading their top prospects… i think they feel, to get better, now and in the future, the best bet is to keep their youngest talent and sign free agents, knowing they will not lose their top draft picks if they do so… i’m not saying they’re going to go on a spending spree like the Yankees did last off season, but, if they did, i wouldn’t be totally shocked… i’m starting to think they’re willing to spend more money on new talent than people think…
Last year, also for ESPN.com, 10 of the 15 insiders he surveyed said Manny Ramirez would end up back on the Dodgers; 12 of 15 said CC Sabathia would sign with the Yankees; nine said the Rockies would trade Matt Holliday; and 13 thought Jake Peavy would be traded; all of which ended up happening.
This year, Crasnick also surveys the group on whether Matt Holliday is better than Jason Bay; where will Aroldis Chapman sign; where will Roy Halladay or Adrian Gonzalez be traded; and whether MLB should expand the use of Instant Replay.
{ 27 comments }
I’d love Lackey but I don’t want to overpay for him, Omar can’t just annouce, hey we want Lackey this is just like last year when the rumor was floating that the mets preferred Fuentes to Krod, now we have rumors that we prefer Wolf to Lackey, not saying we’ll sign Lackey but gotta play your cards close to the vest
Bengie Molina, Wolf, Nady, Holiday. Nady can split time with Murph.
Get these guys and we will be better , while not overspending on players who will break down in year 3 of a long term deal.
I liked you until you said Holliday. either Nady or Holliday, not both.
If there’s one thing Omar is good at, it’s playing his cards close to his vest – especially during the offseason.
I just discovered that Justin Duchscherer of the A’s filed for free agency. What are the thought about him?
Smartest thing the Mets can do is go the FA route. Sign Holliday and Lackey if they have the funds to do so. They don’t lose a pick and they will contend. I’d love to throw Harden in there as well but i think we will be lucky to get those two.
Yes they do have the fund. OMar said money isn’t a problem. There are two plans
Plan A:
Sign LAckey and Holliday. Sign Molina/Olivo or BArajas to a 2 year deal. Then sign Wolf or MArquis or GArland. Not HArden, Sheets or BEdard because they are injury prone and Omar said he won’t go near them.
Then, boost the bench and bullpen a little bit and MAYBE trade Castillo and sign Hudson.
PLan B:
Trade for Agon and sign Ankiel for LF. Sign LAckey and one of the other 3 pitchers above.
Get one of the 3 catchers above. Upgrade the bench and the bullpen and MAybe trade CAstillo and sign Hudson.
Which is better? A or B
Which is more realistic too? A or B
I say A. I agree about Harden but only to the extent i would stay away from him if he was your sole rotation acquistion. If you get Lackey you still have Maine, Pelfrey, Perez and Neise. There is a lot of upside to Harden. It really comes down to the price tag for the Wolfs of the world compared to the high risk/reward guys.
A is definitely more realistic, but I wouldnt do either one.
With the Mets money, they should be taking some chances on risk/reward guys like Harden and Bedard.
Wolf and Harden would be my preference. Marquis is incredibly mediocre and Garland is just as bad. But guys like Harden/Sheets/Bedard are totally worth a shot.
Of course, given Omar’s tendency to overreact to the previous year’s problem and ignore all else, expect him to stay away from any injury-prone players.
youre right about omar, he will favor a garland type over a harden type bc of the injury history. The Mets fix old problems and dont account for potential future problems. This is why we will probably not trade for a guy like uggla or cantu even though when combined with our current crop plus our other additions they could be very productive.
First of all, the Mets will lose second- and third-round picks for signing Type A’s. For a guy like Holliday, that’s no big loss. But if you act like 2nd and 3rd round picks don’t matter, then you don’t get to complain about the team’s farm system.
Under no circumstances should the team sign Lackey to a 4 or 5-year deal. He’s getting up in age, is injury-prone and has had the benefits of a great defense in LA. You can improve the Mets defense at a fraction of the cost and see Pelfrey turn into a Lackey-esque pitcher for much cheaper over the next 4-5 years.
I think so the Mets should sign him to a 5 year deal. i’d give Holliday a 6-7 year deal. Your right about taking the risk. Harden IS an ace when he is on his game. Hopefully, Johan will be Johan and getting about 10k’s a game. I would be shocked if Santana gets around 260-280k’s
if the Yankees sign Lackey why bother even playing the 2010 season. CC, Lackey, Pettitie Burnett in the playoffs would be unbeatable.
Because, Mets FAns can still buy those sick hats that come out with the team symbol on the them. And don’t forget about those rockin’ t-shirts! LOL!!!
NOw, seriously, who says a yankee can’t get injured like the MEts did. With that the YAnkees will be very beatable. I will laugh at YAnkee fans if that happened.
I actually agree with that, aj wasn’t great during the playoffs, and cc has a history of not pitching well in the playoffs although he did this year and aj has an injury history so who knows
Rotoworld had a post that a 3 way deal was being discussed…Mets get Lyle Overbay, Jays get Bradley, Cubs get Castillo.
Maybe Lackey will choose to pitch in a pitchers park like citi field rather than the wiffle ball park in the bronx. I am sure it will come down to money and years and the Mets will find themselves over paying. Not only a run at Lackey but Holliday to. Not sure I would do more than four years and option 5th year for Lackey. But know way should the Mets do 8 years for Holliday….Can’t stand Boras.
For Holliday 6 is good and an option for a 7th.
For LAckey, 5 is good and an option for a 6th.
Go check MLB Trade Rumors boys, possible three way deal to send Castillo to the Cubs, Milton Bradley to Blue Jays and Lyle Overbay to the Mets.
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/
The Mets would have to drop $200+ million this offseason for Holliday and Lackey…while still leaving bench and bullpen questions unanswered.
I would be shocked if they signed both guys.
The Yanks just reminded us all that pitching wins. Omar should get as many quality arms as possible.
Omar said that he wants to stay away from injury prone guys like HArden, Sheets and Bedard. That leaves us with MArquis, Wolf and GArland. I think that LAckey and HArden would be good for pitching and we CAN still sign Holliday.
I just don’t think the Mets spend that much money this offseason.
Maybe I’m wrong because they’re in such a tough spot with the holes they need to fill and the nightmares of the last three seasons weighing on their minds. One more bad season and Mets fans will revolt!
In my opinion, they have to get either Lackey or Halliday. Then maybe swing a deal for another LF.
They should get both LAckey and Holliday no only because they have to because they can.
trade for a 1b, switch up 2b, sign holliday, sign wolf, resign Putz
This is exactly what I wanted from Day 1. I would love for the Mets to sign Holliday, Lackey and even Wolf/Marquis. Why trade away prospects when we can get exactly what we need in the FA Market. It’s win/win…
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