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David Lennon of Newsday says that Omar Minaya received a favorable impression from their meeting with the agent for John Lackey when they met with him this past week, and intend to heavily pursue him this winter.
Lennon says that Lackey wants a deal somewhere in the $100 million range, but Lennon says that figure might be too high for the Mets given the other problems that need to be addressed.
…i think that trading for Roy Halladay would give the Mets one of the best 1-2 punches of this generation and there is no question that he and Santana are the best pitchers in baseball…but my gut feeling is to go with Lackey, who is a year younger than doc, playoff tested, and a top tiered pitcher, and save the trade chips for a younger position player that can be established as a cornerstone, such as Adrian Gonzalez…it’s not to say that Gonzalez will be made available and it doesn’t mean that if he is available the Mets can or will land him, but if they trade for Doc they will likely have to sign him to a Santana like deal, pay him the bulk of the money from the contract after age 36, deplete their farm system and it will limit their ability to sign and trade for other players that they undoubtedly need, which i feel will limit their ability to win over the next three to five years…to me, Halladay would be ideal if the Mets were one player away from being a championship team, but right now, they aren’t just one player away…
Lennon also says that the Mets interest in possibly bringing back Carlos Delgado is their reason for their new focus on Chone Figgins who can be used both in the infield and outfield, but Lennon also says that bringing in Figgins means that the Mets would not pursue either Jason Bay or Matt Holliday.
…i am not one of the Delgado supporters at this point, but this is a scenario that could work, at least for a year, although if they bring in Figgins, i feel they still have to find a durable and reliable power source other than Delgado and be forced to hold on to Luis Castillo…
For more on Lackey, Delgado, Figgins, and Castillo, check out Lennon’s article in Newsday here.
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No thankyou to Delgado. He is very good but, he is old now. He should be a DH not in the NL anymore. I would want Holliday a lot more than Figgins since I don’t even want him and I agree with Halladay. Halladay will want a 6-7 year extension and that is wat too long. Lackey is a very good pitcher who I would want to go after. Then for 2nd base, I’d trade for Phillips who would also bring more power into the line-up.
Reyes
Phillips
Beltran
Holliday
Wright
F-Core
Molina/Barajas/Santos
Murphy
P
Santana
Lackey
Wolf
Pelf
MAine/Perez
If LAckey costs too much, Pineiro, Harden, Sheets, Bedard.
Ok. At least Omar seems to be conisdering more options than just getting Hudson. I would not mind getting Delgado for another year (if healthy) but I don’t think Figgins is an answer unless Castillo gets moved. I would prefer the Mets and trade for Adrian, sign one or two of Bedard, Sheets, Harden, Marquis, Pineiro, Wolf. Also, look for a 2nd tier LF instead of one of the big guys.
Yes, but with Agon he would cost too much prospects. For LF Ankiel is good. Or go with my post which is above.
Lackey
Figgins
Molina
and trade for Lance Berkman
This works imo, and the trade chips won’t be as costly as trading for Halladay or Adrien Gonzalez. Although by the time you pay Figgins and Berkman you might as well have out bid everyone for Holliday
I’m not entirely sold on Figgins playing LF, where you need someone who can cover ground. As an IF Figgins is hard to gauge in that respect. Playing him at 2B and Pagan instead of Castillo might be a better arrangement in the end.
Couldn’t agree more with you Matt about bringing in Lackey and then working hard to trade for Gonzalez. I’d much rather back up the truck for A-Gon then for Halladay, since Doc is going to cost a fortune to get under contract and I’d be wary about giving a 6 year deal to a 33 yo pitcher with a boatload of innings pitched. I would love nothing better than to somehow get Gonzalez in here.
Yeah but who would we trade for him. Would we re-sign him. Then we can get LAckey and Wolf for pitching. Sign a cheaper LF like Ankiel. Sign Molina or BArajas for catcher and since we can’t trade for Phillips, trade CAstillo and get a bullpen guy and a bech guy in return. Sign Hudson.
I would gut the farm to get Gonzalez, but that’s just me.
I think my idea is the best (not to be rude or anything). Omar should look at LAckey and Holliday first. If we can’t get LAckey get Wolf and Pineior or Sheets or HArden or Bedard. Then sign Holliday or BAy( I think Holliday has a better chance coming to the MEts). So now you have your biggest holes finished. For catcher it is really simple. Molina or BArajas is the answer. Trade for Phillips for 2nd and lastly try to boost the bench and bullpen a little.
Molina would cost a pick; barajas would not
I know.
Bringing in Figgins and the same sorry crew of losers is unacceptable, Omar!
That is not changing the spirit and mix of this “team”.
Just not good enough.
(yes, I’m hot!)
I agree. Figgins is NOT what we need.
get Phillips & Arroyo; Bay and Marquis / Wolf then Delgado at an incentive laden deal makes a lot of sense. He won’t clog up the works for Davis and if Davis is ready mid-year you could move Delgado if he’s doing well.
Castillo for bench (ex DeWitt)
Sign Barajas, avoid Molina as he is older, a Type A, and is more expensive.
Sign Marquis, a Type B
Reyes
Phillips
Beltran
Bay
Wright
Delgado / Evans ->Davis
Francoer
Barajas / Santos -> Thole
Santana
Arroyo
Marquis
Pelfrey
Perez
Arroyo over Harang doe to Harangs arm issues
Phillips / Arroyo will not cost the farm due to salary dump nature; maybe FMart, Niese, and Havens / Tejada
Bay over Holliday since he has more power and should be cheaper and shorter
All this should be at near budget and only one Type A so we get tokeep all the draft picks
Nice post. How about mine. Sign Holliday and try for LAckey if not sign Wolf and one of HArden, Sheets, Bedard, MArquis. Then trade for Phillips and Arroyo or HArang.
Sign Molina or BArajas. Trade CAstillo for a bench guy and a bullpen guy. Keep Murph at first.
Reyes
Phillips
Beltran
Holliday
Wright
F-Core
Molina/BArajs/Santos
Murphy
P
Santana
Lackey/Pinerio/Sheets/Harden/Bedard
Wolf/Arroyo/HArang
Pelf
MAine/Perez
C: Molina and Barajas have similar offensive +/-s. They both have sub .300 OBPs and have 15-20 HR power. Molina is better, but wwe are not talking about Piazza here. Molina is 26 vs. 32 I think; regardless Molina haas a ton more games at catcher. That is the key. At some point catchers just stop. They rarely fade away; they tend to go off a cliff production-wise. Molina is close and would need 2 guaranteed years to sign. He would be at about $7M/yr vs $2.5M – $3M on a 1 + option. So in 2011 you have Thole and a a 7M bench catcher vs maybe $2.5M. Further you lose a pick with Molina and not with Barajas. So the incremental cost of Molina over Barajas just isn’t worth it.
1B: I am not a Murphy fan. He was the worst offensive 1B last year in the league, well maybe the second worst. I doubt he will improve much. He doesn’t have a track record in the minors. And, his cohort group (24yo rookies with poor offense during their first full year) typically do not improve much. Perhaps 1 out of 20 will; so you can find a counterexample but pay attention to the other 19. Bringing in Delgado for 1 year at 5$5
M offers large incremental improvement. If not, then there is Murphy / Evans. Given the other moves I can live with that for half a year. If Davis is ready there is the answer, if not there willo be a 1B available in June.
Philips is key. His offensive profile brings a lot to the table and allows for not having a 40hr guy. Hudson is not hte anwer; not even close. “If he were then the Dodgers wouldn’t be looking to acquire Castillo.
Castillo won’t get you both a bench guy abd a pen guy. Maybe a LOOGY is a better idea. LA has one and a bench guy is easier to find.
Lackey is Typa A so there is a pick; he is in his early 30s and would be north of 15M for 5/6. That is too expensive for someone with one or two really good seasons and a lot of missed starts. With Arroyo you get 2 or 3 years at 11M/yr and, while not a #2, hwe is a “3A”. MArquis over Wolf as Wolf is a Type A. People here in St Louis do not like Pinero and feel Marquis will win 15 with the Mets. He is a lot cheaper than Lackey and Lackey Santana. If Arroyo wasn’t in the mix then Marquis wouldn’t be a good fit in isolation.
Bay over Holliday since he is cheaper and the other moves cost money. Further, Bay is more of a pure power guy which is needed. Holliday would top out at about 28HRs and Bay closer to 35.
Totally agree about the HR thing for BAy and holliday. But since you have more money to spend, why don’t we go out and get Holliday. And I forget, won’t the HR totals drop since it is Citi Field?
I wouldn’t mind Phillips depends on what he wants, castillo needs to be moved to do any of that, there is no point in paying in that much to sit on the bench, i just can’t see it.
I like Lackey, like Halladay better but I wouldn’t jump off a bridge if we signed Lackey instead
Also, we can’t get Crawford unless we get power elsewhere – A. Gon? But do we have the chips to trade for both?
Unfortunatley in a perfect world we would, but I think the Mets only have one big trade in them. Be it Gonzo, Halladay or Crawford.
Absoultely NOT. I don’t even think we can trade for AGOn never mind both. That is why I think I should send my idea to Omar. LOL
Don’t forget, HAlladay will want a huge extension .
I know but I don’t have a problem with that
You wouldn’t have a porblem with a guy with 2-3 years left of his contract who would run out of gas when he is 37 or 38. AND. “but if they trade for Doc they will likely have to sign him to a Santana like deal, pay him the bulk of the money from the contract after age 36, deplete their farm system and it will limit their ability to sign and trade for other players that they undoubtedly need, which i feel will limit their ability to win over the next three to five years…to me, Halladay would be ideal if the Mets were one player away from being a championship team, but right now, they aren’t just one player away…”
Trust me, I felt the same way you did when I heard the MEts can get him.
Yes I don’t have a problem with any of that, nobody knows when Halladay will run out of gas and he’s a pitcher, not a thrower, he’s a smart guy with less than a 3.00 era in the american league and he can only get better comming to the national league. He’s 32 right now, not 42 and he knows how to pitch, i would rather go for him now and let his next three to give great years match up with johan and go for a championship or two then worry about the future. We can worry about that in 3 to five years and Jeff-y said money isn’t a problem, so let him pay for the pitching, pitching wins
Yeah your about pitching wins. But next off-season, guys like Webb, Beckett, Lee and Halladay will be free agents.
idk about webb but halladay if traded this off-season will most likely sign an extension, the phils are going to try to give Lee an extension and I doubt Beckett leaves the Sox
I understand your points about Halladay but at this point the organization is in a bad state, we need legit proven guys that can win. That’s what Halladay is, get him and it shows me we are serious, I am not interested in reclamation projects or injury risks, i want somebody who has done it before
Can ya help out an old guy here?
What is the significance or meaning of the capital letters were they don’t belong?
For example; “LAckey”?
Sorry, I’m not very hip and I live in the country….
in my case it is fat fingers and on an iPhone keypad
LOL. All my friends make fun of me like that. I’m not old or have fat fingers. I just type really fast and I hold on the shift too long. I also don’t re-read what I wrote. I am actually trying to do better at typing. And by the way, I’m in high-scholl, LOL.
thank you both.
I thought I was missin’ something!
LGM
Signing Lackey, Holliday and Molina do not solve all of our problems …
albeit, having Holliday and Molina deflect keeping Murphy at 1B, since Lackey, Holliday + Molina probably doesn’t leave any $$$$ to bring back Delgado (not that i’m an advocate of this).
trading for Phillips, Arroyo also doesn’t leave enough $$$ to sign Holliday, Lackey and Molina. for if we did, this should surely be the approved course of action.
we need to be in on the above, and monitor, since i believe that these can all be had for less than that what has been projected at this point. also need to add Sheets to the above …
but get rid of Castillo and sign Molina … then let the rest play out — just don’t get shut out …
Allright so if we don’t sign Lackey, we should Get Sheets, Pineiro, Harden, Bedard. Then sign Wolf. So then sign Holliday. Sign Molina only to a two year deal. Trade Castillo and trade for Phillips. Boost the bullpen and bench a little bit, then your done.
40 MIL is what has been reported …
so:
Lackey ~ 15
Holliday ~ 15
Molina ~ 8
Phillips ~ 8
Arroyo ~ 13
subtract ~ 6 for Castillo …
shows that we can’t do all the above …. even if we shed Maine, or even Perez (and pay some of his salary).
you can’t substitute 2 of Wolf, Pineiro, Marquis and Sheets either …. as together they will certainly go over the ~15 for Lackey …
the FO has to be creative … and get the biggest bang for the buck … and not sure how Figgins factors into this line of thinking.
these just merely list the best choices available …
What has been reported is that Omar said that money isn’t a problem.
Adds
Holliday-17 OR Bay-15
LAckey-15
Molina-5 OR Barajas-3
Phillips-8
Arroyo-13
Cora-1
Other Bullpen Guy-Beimel-2 OR Putz-5-6
Totals=61 OR 60.5
Subtraction
Castillo-6
Totals: 55 OR 54.5
Bay: 15m (Holliday (17m)
Phillips 6.75m – Castillo 6m
Arroyo 11m (per Cots)
Barajas 2.75m
Marquis 10m tops
Delgado 5m
—————–
$44.5m
Dewitt type for IF brings you to 45m. OF subs of Evans / Crawford and Pagan. Murphy and DeWitt or someone similar
They have a couple of guys to compete for the setup already on board:
Parnell
Maine
Feliciano (he was good and consistant against lefties and rightiss)
e
But didn’t you all hear from Omar. Money isn’t a problem.
I hope you’re joking because otherwise u see the purchase of swampland in your future. Seriously, if money was a minor concern then Castillo would be gone already and we would have eaten his salary. Further going hog wild on Type A free agents will lose draft picks which is what got the Mets’ farm system into it’s current state.
at this point there is no reason to just cut castillo and move on or whatever. he had a good year and he can net back something in a deal or he could be swapped for somebody else that has a bad contract or whatever, he has higher value that he’s had in a while. Last year maybe he should have been cut but there was a lot of years and money and left on his contract. The worst contract imo is ollie perez and idk, i think he can produce this year but he’s still being over-paid for what he does product. I don’t see how cutting him or trading him for nothing would help when we could ideally get him to product and slot him in at slot four or five in the rotation. He’d still be overpaid but it’s better than just dumping him and getting nothing back
‘reported’…………if only that could be verified….