Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post talked to free-agent RHP Jason Marquis, who feels he is a ‘perfect fit for the Mets.’
Marquis was 15–13 with a 4.04 ERA in 216 innings pitched for the Rockies last season, 
during which he struck out 115 batters, walked 80, and got twice as many ground balls as fly balls.
…to his credit, he has been pretty consistent over the last few seasons… i mean, since 2004, he’s essentially been the same pitcher… and so, i think it’s fair to expect he could win, say, 12 games or so for the Mets, have an ERA in the low 4.00s, make 30 or so starts, get himself in to the sixth inning every night, while leaving one or two guys on base per inning, and basically being your run-of-the-mill, back-of-the-rotation starter, no better or worse than, say, John Maine… and so, if the Mets goal is to put a body in the rotation who is likely to be healthy and from whom they know what to expect, for better or worse, marquis can certainly be that guy… i just don’t know that he should be that guy…
…from what i can gather, like Jon Garland, Randy Wolf, Doug Davis, and Joel Pineiro, teams are likely to offer marquis something around a two– year deal, worth roughly $8 million or so per season… i am sure one of the guys will be able squeak out a three-year deal, and i fear it could come from the Mets…
…in an ideal world, i like marquis on a one-year deal… i mean, if he wants to return home, and he would ‘love to pitch for the Mets,’ as he told Jeff Francoeur a few months ago, according to the Post, how about jason takes a home-town discount… i love the idea of local guys pithing for the Mets… i think that’s good for the brand, and for the fans to rally behind… but, it shouldn’t be the driving force to sign someone… and, i am pretty sure the Mets agree… regardless of where he was born, in the end, i’d rather wait and see how the overall market for starting pitching shakes out before rushing to sign a guy coming off a very good year…
According to published reports, the Mets rejected a deal from the Cubs during the Winter Meetings last off season that would have swapped Marquis for Aaron Heilman, who was instead traded to the Mariners for J.J. Putz.
To read direct quotes from Marquis, speaking about the Mets and Citi Field, check out Hubbuch’s entire report, here.
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I like Marquis a lot cause he is very consistant and eats a lot of innings which will cut down the innings the pen throws. If they don’t have to over pay him than he would be a great pickup but they most def. can’t stop there. They still need to get and get a top #2 SP and a big bat.
I am hearing a lot of rumors on mlbtraderumors.com that they Mets might be able to land AGon by sending them Maine, Davis, Tejada and Holt. I think that they will have to put another peice or two in the deal but if they are looking to do a deal like that and send Maine packing than Marquis would be a great fit(healthy, consistant, ground ball pitcher and innings eater).
Is this from the comments section of MLBtraderumors? Cause that’s not gonna get AGon.
You know, honestly I would say I don’t care who they fill out the back end of the rotation with, but after this year it looks SO much more important. I’m not sure I’d give someone like Marquis a shot or if I take a shot with higher upside guys, like Sheets. But, do the risks outweigh the rewards on guys like that? I dunno. You know what you get with Marquis. Tough call.
I do know one thing though: if it was between Marquis or Piniero, I’d sure as hell take Marquis any day.
There’s a part of me that really wants to see Ike Davis develop as a Met. I know Adrian Gonzalez would be ideal for the Mets and he’s young and healthy, but I loved that we as fans were able to see Wright and Reyes grow into all stars and they were home grown talent. By most accounts, Davis is moving along the same path.
But obviously, if they land A Gon, Davis (and Murphy) is not really needed, so it would make sense that he would be part of any package for Gonzalez.
If Marquis wants to play so badly for the Mets, he’d take a 2 year deal at a reasonable rate. Or better yet, a 1 year deal with a club option for 2.
Of all the potential back end of the rotation fillers, Wolf seems the best fit. He’s a reliable lefty that could pose problems for all those lefty bats the Phillies trot out there. Plus he’s proven to be a gamer and knows how to pitch in the postseason.
Why not go after Lackey and Marquis. Marquis has been very consistant and reliable over the past 5 years and would be a great #3 in our rotation.
This rotation needs a solid, proven #2. I believe that John Lackey is that man. However, I’m impressed by Marquis and his home/away record is enough for me to say bring him in as our #3. The guy wants to pitch for us, so why not kick the tires. When it comes to Marquis/Pinero, it’s pretty much a wash. I’d even give the edge to Marquis.
I believe the proposed trade for A gon came from a marty noble mailbox
marquis is fine but not a number 2
Agreed
Of course Jason Marquis wants to play for the Mets. He’s not very good and Minaya’s probably one of the few GMs with deep pockets who’s dumb enough to sign him.
This kind of desperation and campaigning by Marquis is so lame. If he loves the Mets so much, come here for the minimum. This is all an act by him to try to get the biggest deal.
And words like “consistent” and “innings-eater” arent necessarily good things. In his career, Marquis has been consistently mediocre. And innings-eater is just a meaningless term. What does it mean? He’ll go 6 innings and give up 7 runs like Livan? Give me good pitchers instead. They tend to go long in games too.
You’re right. Consistently winning 12+ games, every year for the past six years isn’t what we need at all. Nor do we need a pitcher who has logged 190+ innings in those same years. And his home/away stats are virtually identical, so you can’t talk about the “Coors affect” either. I’m not saying Marquis is a #2, he’s not, but he’s better than Pelfrey, Perez and Maine. And yes…more consistent than all of them.
Winning 12+ games = meaningless
Jason Marquis’ numbers are all below league average, although last year was slightly better due to a career year.
His K/BB rate has been well below league average since 2005. His K/9 and BB/9 have basically been below league average since 2005. And his WHIP is right at league average over that time.
So if he wants to come here super cheap for one year, fine. But to give him a multi-year deal for any kind of money when he’s a replacement-level pitcher doesn’t make sense.
And if you think he’s going to be better than Pelfrey over the next 2-3 years (especially if the Mets finally get Pelfrey a competent defense up the middle), I just don’t know what to tell you.
Exactly why I said he’d be a solid 3 for us, not 2. He’s won 15 games twice in the past six years, 14 games once. How’d Pelf do last year? Pelf is a life long 3 guy as well, any delusions that he’s a future 2 are outrageous.
Santana
Lackey
Marquis
Pelfrey
Perez
One of the top rotations in the NL, if it were to happen.
Agreed. Maine can go to the bullpen to pitch the 8th inning. Two birds. One stone.
if it works out that marquis says he wants to play for the mets and because of this life long desire, he will accept a one year discounted deal with options, just to prove he fits in with the team….can you imagine the kind of instant fan favorite this guy becomes? that’s the kind of player we all love…i just wonder if the union and his agent allow that to happen? i also wonder what happens the first time he walks in a go ahead run.
I like Marquis, he pitched okay at Coors Feild and He WANTS to come here. He is not the number two starter we need but hes a start
Marquis is the second coming of Steve Trachsel. No more, no less.
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