Daily Archives: November 25, 2009
The Chicago White Sox have signed Andruw Jones to a one year contract for $500,000.
In addition, Jones can earn another $1 million in performance bonuses.
According to Bruce Levine of ESPN, the 33 year old Jones is not being considered as a starting outfielder, as the White Sox are looking at him to solidify their bench.
…amazing…i remember when Andruw was absolutely dominating this league, and he looked as good as anyone i had ever seen in center field…i thought for sure he was on a path for the hall of fame, and now he is relegated to bench duty, trying to stay in the majors…
For more on Jones and the White Sox, check out ESPN here.
In a report for FoxSports.com, Ken Rosenthal explains why the offseason intrigue begins for real next Tuesday, Dec. 1, i.e., the deadline for teams to offer salary arbitration to their own 
free agents.
Rosenthal believes the Dodgers are unlikely to offer arbitration to free-agent 2B Orlando Hudson as there is a chance he could accept it and be rewarded more than he might earn on the open market.
…this is good news for the Mets, since he is a Type A free agent… and, although the Mets cannot lose their top draft pick under any circumstance, they can lose their second… and so, since so many people believe the Mets are eying hudson to replace Luis Castillo, it would be nice to see these draft pick issues not be a concern…
To read of other players who Rosenthal thinks might be, or might not be, offered arbitration, click here.
Speaking of second baseman…
In a post to Amazin Avenue, Eric Simon runs a statistical comparison of all available free-agent second baseman.
Yesterday, the Mets named Terry Collins their new Minor League Field Coordinator.
According to Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News, in addition to be revered in Buffalo, where the Mets have their Triple-A affiliate:
“Collins has field coordinator/farm director experience with the Dodgers. He knows talent. He’s organized. He’s passionate. And he’s an outside voice who can come in and give the Mets a new view in the wake of the Tony Bernazard fiasco.”
Harrington also explains why Collins could be considered a potential replacement for Jerry Manuel, should the Mets ever make a change.
Similarly, in a report for Newsday, David Lennon refers to Collins as ‘another manager in waiting,’ considering, “He interviewed for the Mets job before Willie Randolph was hired.”
Mark Bowman of MLB.com believes the Braves will wait to see how free-agent 1B 
Adam LaRoche is treated on the open market before deciding whether to offer him a new contract.
…from what i can gather, laroche likes it in atlanta, where he has done quite well, twice, for them…
In an interview with WFAN last week, SI.com’s Jon Heyman said the Mets are not considering LaRoche among their potential options for first base.
Instead, Heyman believes the Mets will bring in a platoon-type first baseman to split time with Daniel Murphy, because they feel 1B prospect Ike Davis is one year away from the big leagues.
…from what i can tell, the Mets will keep in contact with Carlos Delgado this winter, much in the same way the kept in contact with Pedro Martinez last off season, i.e., they’re interested, but he’s not their first choice…
…frankly, i still see delgado signing with a team in the American League, like the Orioles, where he can play with zero pressure, DH to rest his hip, and no longer deal with the New York media…
Speaking of first baseman…
Jeff Blair from the Globe & Mail in Toronto believes there is a 90 percent chance the Blue Jays trade 1B Lyle Overbay at the Winter Meetings.
Earlier this month, FoxSports.com said the Mets approached the Blue Jays about acquiring Overbay as part of a three-way deal that could have sent Luis Castillo to the Cubs.
Mets C Omir Santos beat out O’s C Matt Weiters to be the starting catcher on the 51st All-Rookie team from Topps.
…that’s awesome for omir, who has been in professional baseball for nine years…
The 28–year-old Santos hit .260 with seven HR, 40 RBI and a .296 OBP in 96 games for the Mets.
“He has played extremely well for us for a period of time,” Jerry Manuel told reporters, at the end of the season. “How that would manifest itself over the course of a year is still somewhat unknown.”
…i think santos showed he can be a .250 hitter, whether he’s a starter or a back up, complete with a few hot and cold streaks to sway opinion… he puts the ball in play, and keeps the line moving, but he is border-line useless when behind in the count… also, he is a much better hitter against right-handed pitching than left-handed pitching… interestingly, santos ranks as the fifth-best defensive catcher in baseball, according to Beyond the Boxscore… i think he’s fine on defense, but i believe the Mets would like to have someone to turn to on the roster who is better…
Wieters hit .288 with 15 doubles, nine HR and a .753 OPS in 354 at-bats.
The rest of the Topps rookie team is as follows:
- Giants 1B Travis Ishikawa
- White Sox 2B Chris Getz
- White Sox 3B Gordon Beckham
- Rangers SS Elvis Andrus
- Marlins OF Chris Coghlan
- Pirates OF Andrew McCutchen
- Orioles OF Nolan Reimold
- Braves RHP Tommy Hanson
- Phillies LHP J.A. Happ
…by the way, when i was a kid, my dream job was growing up to design baseball cards for Topps… i’d still like to take a crack it, actually…
Yesterday, the Mets announced the addition of a 60s-inspired, home retro jersey for 2010, which you can see here.
According to the outstanding UniWatch, Paul Lukas wonders why the Mets needed to 
issue a press release to announce the jersey, when they could easily have just written:
“You know that pinstriped uni we never wear? Next year it’ll be beige instead of white.”
Lukas also takes issue with the team referring to the new uniform as ‘retro,’ because, unlike the original 60s version, this current model has the black drop shadow, and so, he says, “The Mets can’t even do retro accurately.”
…he is right… it is the essentially the same uniform they’ve been wearing, just in cream… as for the black or the shadow… i used to like it, now i don’t… the problem is, if you look at the list of top selling items from Mets.com, the black shirts and jerseys are always near the top…
…so, as much as i might dislike it, it probably doesn’t really matter what i think, considering i own one official Mets jersey, and i bought it in 1986…
The Daily News believes the Red Sox are putting on a full-court press to acquire RHP Roy Halladay from the Blue Jays.
…i do not think it is a coincidence that we hear reports of the Red Sox pushing hard for halladay, right around the time Buster Olney of ESPN.com is saying, repeatedly, that the Padres will not be trading Adrian Gonzalez…
…i mean, i think it was obvious the Sox wanted gonzalez, but, if he can’t be had, they might as well use those same prospects, such as Clay Buchholz, to get halladay instead…
…also, if the Red Sox are hot for halladay, it will only be a matter of time before the Yankees get involved, if they aren’t involved already… like i wrote the other day, from what i understand, the Blue Jays believe they can easily get Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain and Austin Jackson or Jesus Montero from the Yankees for halladay… so, it stands to reason these two teams will bid up the price to a level the Mets and most teams can’t compete with…
… lastly, the buzz from Los Angeles suggests, if halladay is traded out west, it will be to the Angels not the Dodgers… the thing is, if halladay is traded to the Angels, it will be because he backed off his desire to sign a long-term extension, instead, choosing to hit the open market following next season… otherwise, if he insists on a contract extension, like Johan Santana did to the Twins, halladay is far more likely to be traded to the Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, Phillies, Braves or Cardinals, not all of whom intend to pursue him…
…frankly, the way i see it, the Mets only have a chance to acquire halladay if a) the Blue Jays refuse to trade him to a team in the AL East, and b) halladay demands a contract extension in exchange for waiving his no-trade clause…
According to Ken Davidoff, in a report for Newsday, “If you’re a free agent and you haven’t heard from the Mets, you might want to make sure your cell-phone service hasn’t been canceled.”
Davidoff quotes a team official as saying, “We’re keeping all of our avenues open,” as they wait to let the market come to them.
…earlier in the week, here, i wrote:
“It’s early in the off season, the Mets have some money to spend, there are a lot of options and different ways to go, with more free agents likely to hit the market in four weeks, and so there is no point in rushing to make a move for the sake of making a move… In short, I believe the Mets are simply keeping their options open, which is exactly what they should be doing.”
…i also get the sense the Mets have more money to spend than is being portrayed in the media, especially by those writing for the Daily News… this is not to say the Mets intend to spend every available dime, i.e., go on same silly, Yankee-like spending spree just for the sake of spending, but i do think they are more capable than some reporters are being led to believe…
…the Mets have options, and it sounds to me like they have an idea of what they’d like the team to look like on Opening Day, but there are a variety of ways to get there, not just one, which is what i think davidoff is suggesting… i think this may be because there are a lot of comparable players available, but i also think it might be part of a larger negotiating strategy…
…lastly, i believe Omar Minaya has been charged with changing the look and feel of the team, because the Mets know it is unrealistic to expect fans to fork over good money to support the exact-same team that failed them three years in a row… this does not mean a total overhaul… not at all… but, where there is an opprtunity to move on, or simply make a laterral move for the sake of changing faces, i would not be surprised to see them switch it up… and i hope this happens…
For more on the team’s off-season strategy, and specific players they might pursue, check out Davidoff’s report, here.
The Mets have released games and pricing for their 15 Pack, which you can read more about at Mets Police.
In a post to Hot Foot, Andrew Beaton agrees that John Lackey is the best available free-agent pitcher, but he is not that much better.
…i agree, andrew… i like him, but i think i would rather two pitchers from the next group, then one of lackey… nevertheless, from what i can gather, 
the market is such that lackey will likely have to sign a four-year, $60 million, instead of the big-time, A.J. Burnett type contract he is seeking…
Bryan from Mets Lifers is selling Mets t-shirts.
Phil Hopps of Mets Merized asks, “Who fits the Mets better? Adrian Gonzalez or Miguel Cabrera?”
…i don’t know, but, i prefer Scarlett Johansen over Jessica Alba…
Lastly, Aaron Yorke of the Daily Stache asks, “Why not Milton Bradley,” who he acknowledges is a ‘lunatic.’
