Daily Archives: December 15, 2009
Buster Olney of ESPN.com believes the Cardinals are standing firm on a five-year offer to free-agent OF Matt Holliday.
Last night, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote:
“Though both parties refuse to discuss details, the deal is believed worth around $15 million-$16 million a season for up to eight years, making it the most lucrative ever offered by the Cardinals… The proposal exceeds the average value of the seven-year, $100 million extension the Cardinals and first baseman Albert Pujols negotiated in February 2003.”
According to Olney, the Cardinals believe there are not a lot of teams bidding on Holliday.
…i think what might be going on here is, the Cardinals have an amount of money they are willing to commit to holliday, especially knowing they will soon have to pay up for pujols… and, they must be leaving it up to him, as to how the deal is structured, or how many years it covers… so, whether it’s a five-year deal with options, for more money per season, and a lot of it up front; or, whether it’s an eight-year deal, for less money per season; is up to him…
In November, Jon Heyman of SI.com said Omar Minaya is extremely interested in Holliday.
Instead, the team reportedly offered a four-year, $65 million deal to free-agent OF Jason Bay, because, according to the team’s data, his production will translate better in Citi Field.
Yesterday, the Phillies acquired Roy Halladay; and John Lackey signed with the Red Sox.
Here’s the thing, though, if the Mets wanted Lackey or Halladay, they didn’t get them; and so it would mean they failed, either because of a lack of will or prospects, both of which is difficult to accept. On the other hand, if Lackey or Halladay were not in the Mets plans, and it was a conscious decision to not pursue them, that is just as confusing, because they should have been pursued. The reality, though, is that, regardless of the team’s interest, neither player wanted the Mets… period, end of story, negotiations over before they even started.
According to people aware of his situation, Halladay was not going to approve a deal to the Mets. He might have approved a deal to the Red Sox, Yankees or Angels, but he was not going to sign a contract extension. He wanted to pitch for the Phillies. So, debating whether to offer Jose Reyes to Toronto, or wondering why Omar Minaya didn’t ‘make an effort,’ is not fair. He did make an effort. It just didn’t matter.
The same can essentially be said about Lackey, who had always been eyeing the Red Sox, Mariners and Angels.
And so, I am not necessarily disappointed about Halladay or Lackey, or where they ended up. Instead, it’s knowing either a) the Mets couldn’t get Halladay or Lackey, even if they wanted them, b) it’s knowing the Mets didn’t even want them, or, c) it’s knowing the players didn’t want the Mets.
In all three cases, I’m discouraged.
The Mets are holding their annual Kids Holiday Party in Citi Field right now, during which Jeff Francoeur will portray Santa Claus, while Jose Reyes, Bobby Parnell, Angel Pagan and Jon Niese will dress as elves.
The players will hand out presents to children from the five boroughs of New York City and sing holiday carols along with the students.
David Lennon from Newsday is in attendance, and live Tweeting from the event, which you can follow here.
According to Lennon, “Mets GM Omar Minaya talked with John Lackey‘s agent last Friday, and he planned to do so again today.”
However, as Lennon points out, “Obviously, Lackey wanted no part of Mets.”
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports says the Yankees are very interested in free agent pitcher Ben Sheets, but the former Brewers ace is in no rush to sign anywhere.
…i’d say that given John Lackey and Roy Halladay are no longer available, the Mets might be in a position where they need to take a look at Sheets and evaluate the risk…he is extremely talented and has a great track record when healthy, but that’s the key…he missed all of 2008 recovering from surgery after nearly signing with the Rangers last winter…if healthy, he can be exactly what the Mets need…of course i think what they really need is someone they can simply count on for quality innings…
Update, 12:23 pm
by Michael Baron:
Jerry Crasnick of ESPN a source close to the negotiations says no deal is iminent as Scott Boras is looking for “something that they’re not finding”.
Original Post, 12: 18 am
by Matthew Cerrone:
Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch believes the Cardinals tweaked their offer to free-agent OF Matt Holliday, which will keep him in St. Louis for ‘at least eight seasons.’
According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post Gazzette, the agent for Matt Capps, Paul Kinzer, says the interest in his client has been enormous.
…not shocking, considering he is just 26 and outside of 2009, he has been a very good closer over his career…
Capps was not tendered a contract by the Pirates by Saturday’s midnight deadline, and has become a free agent.
Capps told Kovacevic he would like to be a closer again but is willing to prove himself if he has to.
…in a situation with the Mets, this could be another J.J. Putz situation where they could acquire him, let him prove his worth, and either flip him to a team needing a closer at the deadline in exchange for some missing links…this of course would require Capps to stay healthy, but as far as i know, there aren’t any injury problems going in with Capps…
According to Kovacevic, the Yankees, Rangers, Rockies, Marlins, Nationals, Cardinals, Orioles, Cubs and Diamondbacks have all expressed interest.
For more on Capps, check out the Pittsburgh Post Gazzette here.
update, 11:34 am:
Buster Olney of ESPN says the White Sox will pay Pierre $3 million in 2010 and $5 million in 2011, with the Dodgers picking up the remaining $10.5 million.
Original Post, 10:51 am:
Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports says the Dodgers have traded outfielder Juan Pierre to the White Sox for two minor league pitchers.
Brown says the Dodgers will pick up half of Pierre’s remaining salary.
Buster Olney of ESPN says the negotiations are complete, and Roy Halladay is currently taking a physical for the Phillies.
According to Jayson Stark of ESPN, in addition to receiving Halladay, the Phillies will receive $6 million from the Blue Jays, as well as pitchers Phillipe Aumont and Juan Ramirez and outfielder Tyson Gillies for Cliff Lee, who will go to the Mariners, and prospects Kyle Drabek, OF Michael Taylor and C Travis D’Arnaud, who go to the Blue Jays.
Jon Heyman of SI.com says Halladay’s three year, $60 million extension has two vesting options that could keep him in Philadelphia through 2015.
…amazing…the Phillies appear to be retaining their top prospect, Domonic Brown AND they are getting cash as well, all while receiving Seattle’s top pitching prospects and one of the best pitchers on the planet…i’d say this was well played by Ruben Amaro…
Jorge Arangure of ESPN.com believes the Mets, Phillies are Orioles are interested in free-agent reliever Fernando Rodney.
…he is seeking a three-year, $30 million deal, according to reports during the Winter Meetings… at the very least, i think he might get paid a bit less and for at least two years… also, i would think he’s looking to be a closer… and so, with all that in mind, i can’t for the life of me figure out why the Mets might have interest, unless they have serious concerns about Francisco Rodriguez…
In his first season as a full-time closer, the 32–year-old Rodney had 37 saves in 38 chances with a 4.40 ERA, while striking out 61 batters in 75 innings for the Tigers.
…this guy concerns me… he’s had shoulder and forearm issues… he has an outstanding fastball, yet he’s striking out less and less batters… he is probably better suited as a set-up guy, based on match ups, than as a straight, every-night closer… and if he’s being paid like a closer, he’s too expensive…
The Mets have interest in free-agent Chien-Ming Wang, who was non-tendered by the Yankees last week, according to Marty Noble of MLB.com.
He underwent season-ending surgery on his left shoulder in June, and is not expected to be back, pitching in the big leagues until May 1.
Wang’s agent, Alan Nero, told ESPN.com yesterday that, instead of signing a deal now, Wang might wait, complete his rehab, and audition for teams in spring training.
…there are going to be several teams interested in wang… but, what the Mets have going for them is location… it would seem to me, offering a comparable deal to what others will give, but being able to let him keep living where he’s living, will be a plus… i have been forced to watch a lot of Yankees games over the last few years, because of my wife, and i will say, i enjoy watching wang pitch… he’s very meticulous, and he’s all about commanding the inning, which he does well… last season, though, he was a mess… he was getting on top of his pitches, he had no sink on his fastball, and it threw off his entire game… but, he clearly was not feeling right… i’d love to see him on the Mets… and, i’m starting to wonder if the Mets should use the Red Sox method from last season, and go for wang, go for Ben Sheets, etc., and build a successful No. 2 starter out of many, on smaller, incentive-laden contracts…
Noble also believes the Mets have interest in free-agent relievers Matt Capps and Mike MacDougal, both of whom were also non-tendered last weekend.
…the Mets are seeking a set-up man, but not on a long-term deal… and so, it makes sense we will hear names like capps and macdougal, among others…
Speaking of former-Yankees…
The Angels and free-agent DH Hideki Matsui agreed to a one-year deal, worth slightly more than $6 million, according to the New York Times.
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