Daily Archives: December 4, 2009
According to El Universal, the Mets initially requested that Francisco Rodriguez refrain from playing in the Venezuelan Winter League.
However, Rodriguez’s agent talked to Mets GM Omar Minaya, and the two sides reached an understanding.
Rodriguez allowed one run and two hits in his first appearance this winter with Tiburones de La Guaira.
…from what i understand, it’s customary for veteran players under contract with MLB to rest a bit from the long season before jumping right in to Winter Ball… the Mets asked K-Rod to sit out, but he takes a lot of pride in playing for Tiburones de La Guaira, his contract with the Mets allows it, and so he’s playing…
Rodriguez had four blown saves and a 6.75 ERA in 29 appearances during the second half of last season.
…i’ll be honest, his 2009 season worried me a bit… i mean, had he had that second-half and the team was good, look out… people would be slamming him right now… but, it was a lost season, and so he kind of got lost in the wreckage…
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The Associated Press reports the Mariners and free-agent 3B Chone Figgins agreed to a four-year, $36 million deal.
According to FoxSports.com, the deal has a fifth-year option that could push the total to $45 million.
Last month, Angels reporter Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times said Figgins will likely land a five-year, $50 million deal on the open market.
…back then, i recall there is no way someone would commit this much money and time to figgins… but, i guess he was right… good for chone…
In 158 games this season for the Angels, Figgins hit .298 with a .395 OBP, 42 extra base hits and 42 stolen bases.
Original Post, 2:52 pm:
According to Rosenthal, the Mariners are very close to signing Figgins to a four-year, $36 million contract.
The following is from Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus:
…well, i’m intrigued, to say the least…
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According to Jon Heyman of SI.com, the Mets do not seem concerned about Chone Figgins signing with the Mariners, as they are more focused on free-agent 2B Orlando Hudson, leaving left field open for free-agent OF Matt Holliday.
Update, 6:00 pm:
Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com believes the Rockies are interested in signing Hudson.
According to Rosenthal, the Rockies tried to sign Hudson last off season, but he chose to sign with the Dodgers instead.
Original Post, 2:02 pm:
Jack Curry of the New York Times believes Omar Minaya’s top priority during next week’s Winter Meetings will be to try and trade 2B Luis Castillo so he can sign Hudson.
Update, 11:59 pm:
In a post to Twitter, Olney says, “The Yankees budget is set somewhere between the low $190s and $200 million.”
Original Post:
Buster Olney of ESPN.com believes the Yankees will reduce their payroll next season to roughly $185 million, compared to the $201 million spent last season.
In a post to MetsBlog.com last July, here, I wrote:
…in talking to people around the game today, there is a lot of chatter about how the Yankees are being pressured from investors to cut spending and start delivering a dividend for once… in other words, the Yankees are unable to spend like they used to, and the gravy train may be coming to end, not surprising in this economy… in other words, nothing can last forever, and there is no such thing as an unlimited budget…
…so, without them tipping the scales, and no one team going on a massive spending spree, it’s hard to image a player getting paid like CC Sabathia or Mark Teixeira did just one year ago… and so, i bet there will be a lot more trading, swapping of contracts, etc., than in previous years…
Nevertheless, Jon Heyman of SI.com believes the Yankees still intend to pursue Blue Jays RHP Roy Halladay, who is likely to cost some combination of Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain, Austin Jackson and Jesus Montero.
The Mets officially announced the hiring of Wayne Krivsky as a special assistant to GM Omar Minaya, the same position he held with the club in 2008.
To learn more about Krivsky, read this post from earlier this week.
Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com believes the Royals expect teams to ask about trading for OF David DeJesus and RHP Gil Meche, once the major free agents are signed by other teams.
…meche has a good sinker, throws a solid fastball… he reminds me of Mike Pelfrey… however, last season, he missed the final month of the season with a shoulder issue, and he missed a 
month to start the year with a back injury… it probably would not take much to acquire him, considering KC’s main motivation would be to dump his salary…
The 31–year-old Meche was 23–24 with a 3.82 ERA in his first 64 starts after signing a five-year deal with the Royals, but he was just 6–10 with a 5.09 ERA in 23 starts last season, during which opponents hit .281 against him.
He is due $12 million each of the next two seasons, after which he can become a free agent.
DeJesus will earn $4.7 million next season, he has a $6 million club option for 2011 or he can be made a free agent.
…dejesus is a very, very interesting player… he is quick and gets on base well, yet he doesn’t steal very often… also, he plays the game hard, especially when in the field, which is great, but it forces him to miss a lot of time…
The 2010 Bill James Handbook projects DeJesus will hit .285 next season, in 147 games, with 11 HR, 82 RBI and six stolen bases.
In a preview of the Winter Meetings, for MLB.com, Marty Noble writes:
“The Mets appear all but definite to use Daniel Murphy at first base, so that would preclude the return of Carlos Delgado and make left field the position for the power upgrade.”
…i really hope the Mets are not framing it simply as a ‘power upgrade,’ because that is not enough… i mean, i hope they also want the player to be a balanced, well-rounded, who is also strong on defense… also, by my count, the Mets sucked out roughly 55 home runs by off years from Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes and David Wright, all of whom will be back in 2010… and so, normal productive from these three players would have put the Mets in the middle of the pack among home runs by a team in the National League, as opposed to dead last…
…adding another 20 home runs, be it from Matt Holliday, Jason Bay or just growth and more production from Daniel Murphy and Jeff Francoeur would have put them fourth-best in the league…
…the point is, the fixation on power, power and power is very shortsighted, and, while it’s important, it’s not all that is important…
The MLB Winter Meetings begin next Monday in Indianapolis, and run non-stop through the Rule 5 Draft on Thursday afternoon.
In a report for ESPN.com, Jayson Stark previews the Meetings, and says people he asked believe the Red Sox are most likely to sign free-agent OF Matt Holliday.
Nevertheless, Stark writes:
“No one is exactly certain how much the they have to spend. But no team has more motivation to get back on the radar screen, and back into contention, than the Mets do. So if they get Holliday, Chone Figgins and/or John Lackey to take their money, and if they also sign a catcher, first baseman and second baseman, it will be tough for any team to out-checkbook that.”
Stark also writes previews the top five storylines of the Winter Meetings, writing about the most likely trade and most likely free-agent signing that will occur, as well as the developing Roy Halladay Sweepstakes, all of which you can read here.
To be honest, I bet the Mets first push hard to trade for a starting catcher, like Pirates C Ryan Doumit, D-Backs C Chris Snyder or Rays C Dioner Navarro, and then, if all else fails go to a free-agent starting catcher, like Miguel Olivo, Benjie Molina or Rob Barajas, in hopes they take a one-year deal.
Molina appears to be the most controversial name of the bunch, among media and fans, so I sent an e-mail to Grant, from the Giants blog, McCovery Chronicles, and asked for his opinion of Molina, since he watched him play every day for the last three season.
Grant sent back an e-mail, which said:
“The more I think about it, the more I think that Molina is one of the worst everyday players in baseball, which is hard to do when you hit 20 home runs as a catcher. But the on-base percentage is the league’s worst, and he’s certainly the worst baserunner in the game. I should preface this by noting that I don’t put a lot of stock into things like game-calling, handling a pitching staff, or all of the other unquantifiables that people use to attribute value to a catcher. I know that this isn’t everyone’s view, so your mileage may vary. I think Tim Lincecum would have won two Cy Youngs with Mike Piazza behind the plate. Others would disagree. That’s where Molina’s value would really lie.
“Personally, I’m done watching Molina. I’m tired of one-pitch outs, I’m tired of watching him stop at third when another Giant actually gets a hit with a runner in scoring position, and I’m tired of the organization believing that he’s indispensable. I’m not sure if I’d feel that way, though, if he were a No. 7 or No. 8 hitter. So, maybe I’m not being fair by misdirecting frustration that should go towards the front office for putting Molina in a position to frustrate.”
To read more of Grant’s opinion on Molina, click here.
For what it’s worth, in the last day or so, I reached out to people in the Giants organization, and was told pitchers on the team feel Molina is terrific at game-calling, based on their pre-game approach, and the team believes he did a fantastic job communicating and working the their pitching staff, from older pitchers like Barry Zito to youngsters like Lincecum.
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