Daily Archives: December 1, 2009
The Yankees will not offer arbitration to free-agent OF Johnny Damon, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
…from what i can gather, the Yankees would like damon back, but for around two years, say, no more than $10 million per season, and not on a three– or four-year deal like he is seeking… i expect we will see rumors connecting the Mets to damon at some point, featuring years and numbers that make zero sense, since it seems to happen every off season when a Yankee hits the market, just like the case with Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte and Jorge Posada, all of whom flirted with the Mets a few years ago and then returned to the Bronx…
…i don’t doubt people’s sources… it’s just, sometimes i think rumors of the Mets having interest in players like damon might just be Omar Minaya throwing a bone to Scott Boras, helping him drum up interest in his lesser client, all in an effort to curry favor in negotiating for a bigger fish, like, say, Matt Holliday… or, maybe that is what i hope is going on, because the thought of damon in left field for the Mets is not what i had in mind when thinking about next year’s team… not at all, in fact…
Damon, 36, hit .282 with a .365 OBP, 24 home runs, 36 doubles and 82 RBI, while batting second for the Yankees, between Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira.
…in the end, i feel like the Yankees will be the only team willing to pay damon more than the two-year, $19 million deal Bobby Abreu got from the Angels last month… and so, eventually, they’ll figure out some sort of agreement… but, damon needs leverage… so, enter talk of a four-year deal with the Mets…
The Mets did not offer salary arbitration to Carlos Delgado and Fernando Tatis, both of whom were Type B free agents.
…the buzz around delgado continues to suggest the Mets have interest, and will keep in touch 
throughout the off season… but, like i have said before, i have to think he would prefer to move to the American League where he can DH and rest his hip…
…had the Mets offered arbitration, there is a good chance, given his age, service time, career numbers and last few seasons, that he would have been rewarded close to $10 million, which was not a risk worth taking in hopes of snagging a compensatory draft pick should delgado sign with a new team…
The Mets did not offer arbitration to Marlon Anderson, Gary Sheffield, Elmer Dessens or J.J. Putz, as well.
…again, this does not mean these players will not return… the Mets can still negotiate a new deal with these guys, and, in some cases, like with dessens, they probably will…
This post will be used to log players who the Mets might have interest in, and who have been offered, or not offered, salary arbitration…
For instance…
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Braves will not offer arbitration to 1B Adam LaRoche, who is a Type B free agent.
RHP Jason Marquis, who is a Type B free agent, has been offered arbitration by the Rockies, according to Inside the Rockies.
The Blue Jays offered arbitration to C Rod Barajas, who is a Type B free agent, according to the Boston Herald.
Blue Jays RHP Roy Halladay will rule out nothing,” writes FoxSports.com in their Hot Stove blog, while quoting the player’s agent as saying:
“Every situation will be looked at on its own merits.”
…i hope this is true… i mean, it should be true… the thing is, though the agent doesn’t say so, i would think this means he will be looking for a pretty serious long-term extension from whomever he is traded to, because, if he’s willing to go to any and every team, such as the Mets, he’s going to want to know what their plans are for the future, and it will not just be to a team like the Yankees or Red Sox, who he probably assumes are more of a guarantee to win in the short term…
This morning, Buster Olney of ESPN.com said Halladay will not approve a trade next season once he reports to spring training.
The Rays announced the acquisition of C Kelly Shoppach from the Indians.
…and so, i have to wonder if this means the Rays will look to trade or non-tender C Dioner Navarro, who will likely earn $2.5 million the next two seasons, after which he can become a free agent…
Navarro, 25, hit .218 last season, but .295 in 2008, with around eight home runs and 40 RBI in roughly 115 starts during each of the last three seasons.
Last season, he hit .279 against left-handed pitching, while Omir Santos hit .283 against righties.
To read more about the Mets catching situation, or lackthereof, check out Ted Berg’s post at Ted Quarters.
…and yes, that’s a picture of navarro with Coco Crisp in a headlock…
The Rays have acquired C Kelly Shoppach from the Indians for a player to be named later, according to Mark Tompkin of the St. Petersburgh Times.
…wow, good thing the Mets don’t need a catcher…
…oh, right, they do…
Original Post, 2:45 pm:
Ugh. Why? Because, like Michael Baron wrote this morning, I, too, just don’t understand why the Mets are so interested in free-agent C Bengie Molina.
In a post to Circling the Bases, D.J. Short compared Molina to Shoppach, who might have been non-tendered later this month, making him a free agent.
Shoppach will likely earn around $3 million next season, and is arbitration eligible through 2011, after which he can be a free agent.
Yes, I like the the simple idea of getting 20 home runs out of Molina and Omir Santos, adding a type of power-balance to the lineup that most teams do not have. However, 
that’s it, that’s all he does… and, it’s not like we’re talking Mike Piazza-type production. Instead, we’re talking about a guy who just hit 20 home runs for the first time in his career… at age 36.
Frankly, I do not know of any one who wants Molina on the Mets other than the Mets.
I agree with Ted Berg, who said in a post to Ted Quarters:
“Shoppach’s not the world’s best defender behind the plate, but neither is Molina. And Shoppach is six years younger. He might not have Molina’s Major League track record, but he’s almost certainly a better bet moving forward.”
Last September, here, I wrote, “Minaya’s biggest talent may also be his biggest weakness, in that he’s a terrific Patchwork GM… In other words, though he will always do whatever is necessary to fix the big problem of today, and do it well, I am not sure he recognizes what might need to be fixed tomorrow… and so it feels like, to me, that he and the roster are always unprepared.”
To me, this Molina Situation is the perfect example the Patchwork Philosophy, in that he is, again, trying to plug a hole with an obvious, overt solution, with minimal upside, instead of doing what is best for the future.
In a post to Mets Citi Blog, Brian DePersis asks, “Why do the Mets over-value mediocre role players?”
Similarly, Adam, the Brooklyn Met Fan, says, while he is happy to see Alex Cora return, “I have to admit, I was slightly taken aback by the $2 million dollar price tag.”
…these guys make a fair point, as did Ted Berg yesterday, at Ted Quarters, in that, if the Mets have any sort of budget, if they only have so many dollars to spend, why give $2 million to cora, when it’s likely no other team would have matched this…
…the thing is, the Blue Jays signed infielder Alex Gonzalez to a one-year, $2.75 million deal… the Red Sox were willing to give him $3 million… and so, i have to think cora could have found another one-year deal, some place, paying him, say, $1.5 million, or half of what a player like gonzalez got, who, by the way, put up roughly the same numbers… the point is, if the Mets really wanted cora, for whatever reason, i understand them guaranteeing a bit more money to get it done… that said, is cora that necessary…
In a post to Twitter, SI.com’s Jon Heyman joked that Cora will get $50,000 for playing baseball, and $1.95 million for being ‘a helluva nice guy.’
…i have no idea how to price character, or if it’s even worth anything in a clubhouse… it might be… it might not be… i am not a major league player, and i only know what i saw… from what i could tell, cora helped in the clubhouse, he was usually in good spirits, he supported his teammates, he talked to everyone, answered questions, worked with young players on how best to manage the long season, and so on… but, is that worth $2 million, which might end up being needed to sign a catcher, or a left fielder, instead, i have no clue…
…i also have no clue whether the Mets have that tight of a budget… i mean, if they sign everyone and anyone, plus cora, and still have money left over, then what do i care how much they pay a guy for his golden personality…
…to me, guaranteed years is a far, far bigger deal than the dollar value of the contract… and so, i can’t for the life of me figure out why the team felt it necessary to include a vesting option, based on 80 starts, to bring him back in 2011… i just can’t believe another team would have been willing to do this, and i am not totally sure why the Mets felt compelled to do it as well…
Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports says the Dodgers are not likely to offer arbitration to Orlando Hudson.
If Hudson, a Type A Free Agent, isn’t offered arbitration, the Dodgers would be ineligible to receive two first round draft picks from whatever team he signs with.
…i think the Mets are trying to figure out a way to bring Hudson in, but obviously they have to find a way to deal Luis Castillo first, which they have been trying to do…this is certainly good news for the Mets should they somehow manage to acquire Hudson, but i feel the Mets should look to fill their other holes first at this point…
Tagged Orlando Hudson |
Ken Davidoff of Newsday says the Mets top choice for catcher is Bengie Molina, but are still exploring trade options to fill their need behind the plate.
Davidoff says the Giants are likely to offer arbitration to Molina, which means if the Mets were to sign him, they would have to surrender their second-round pick to San Francisco.
…this is the exact reason why i think this is a bad move… Molina will be 36 next season, and they would essentially be trading their ability to stock their farm system with talent for an aging veteran who, at that age, i have to wonder if he can be depended upon for a full season behind the plate…
Although the Mets apparently like Molina Davidoff says the Mets are aware of the need to upgrade their farm system and are wary of surrendering too many draft picks this winter.
…so they recognize the need to stock their farm system, yet he is their top choice…i think, in the end, the organization would be better off going with what they have, and adding Henry Blanco to the mix rather than surrendering draft picks in this particular scenario… i hope they make the right move on this one and pass on Molina... he is probably the most productive option out there and he has proven he can handle hitting in a big park, and i could be wrong about his durability, but with few exceptions, catchers simply don’t last at this age and i’d hate to see the Mets acquire him and have issues keeping him healthy and productive, all while having to surrender youth…
For more on the Mets catching situation, check out Newsday here.
Update, 12:48 pm:
Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer says Brian Schneider signed a two-year, $3 million deal with the Phillies, which does not have an option for 2011.
Original Post:
Mandy Housenick, in a post to her blog for The Phillies Files, says Brian Schneider has signed with the Phillies.
In two seasons with the Mets, Schneider appeared in just 169 games and hit just .244 with 12 home runs and 62 RBI, as he was plagued by various leg and back injuries right from the start in 2008.
…Schneider is probably better suited to be a backup catcher at this point in his career, so this role suits him well…
Todd Zolecki of MLB.com says Schneider’s contract is for two years, and an official announcement from the Phillies is expected later today.
…that’s a little surprising, although if he is healthy i expect him to be a solid backup to Carlos Ruiz, but given his injury history the past two seasons, that seems a bit risky…then again, the Phillies haven’t made too many bad personnel decisions in recent years…
Last month, Troy Renck of the Denver Post said the Rockies were interested in bringing in Schneider as a backup to Chris Iannetta.
← Older posts
