Ken Davidoff of Newsday thinks Johnny Damon could be a good alternative to Jason Bay, should Bay not choose to sign with the Mets.
Davidoff believes the Mets could use Damon’s left handed bat, as well as his durability and positive energy.
…i think his durability and positive energy are the things the Mets would benefit the most from with Damon, but at this point in his career, i think his numbers are a little bit skewed considering his home ballpark as well as the people that surrounded him in that Yankees lineup…it’s not to say he wouldn’t be better than what they have now, and i suppose a short term commitment wouldn’t be the end of the world, but for all the critics against Jason Bay and Matt Holliday for their defense, i think Damon is that much worse as he simply has no arm…
Last season for the Yankees, Damon hit .282 with 24 home runs and 82 RBI in 143 games, and he hit .279 with 17 home runs and 42 RBI at Yankee Stadium.
Added to by Matthew Cerrone:
…like i said a few days ago, from what i can gather, a whole lot of things will need to go wrong for the Mets to pursue damon… that said, bringing in damon would be a HUGE mistake for the Mets… if for no other reason that they’d get absolutely roasted by every fan and every reporter in New York for a) obviously failing to acquire bay or Matt Holliday, and b) turning to a former Yankee, who they didn’t even fight hard to bring back… not to mention he’d probably get lost playing defense in left field, his arm would be comical and he’ll no longer have that short right-field wall to dump home runs in to…
...if the goal is to acquire a power-bat, damon will be a colossal failure… i’d rather Angel Pagan…
One word,……..NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ! If Johnny Damon dons a Mets uniform it’s quite likely I would throw up! Yuk,….what in the world is Davidoff thinking!
Only if he came on the cheap. One year contract etc. Then I would hope for a blockbuster pitching breakthrough.
I can dream can’t I?
I’d say Damon is about plan J.
Seriously I would rather run Murphy out in LF, than Damon!,…… Pagan, Nick Evans, Moises Alou,………..heck throw Alex Cora out there,….anybody BUT Johnny Damon!
¨Looks like Jesus, throws like Mary.¨
hahahahaha
Amen
NO,NO,NO,NO,NO!!!!!!
Damon would make a very nice number 2 hitter behind Reyes, but he won’t come cheap enough for the Mets. I think Damon has way overvalued himself in this market, which is why he’s no longer a Yankee. But he’s a smart baseball player, and could be a used tool on the team, but not at any sort of long-term commitment. I also think the new Yankee Stadium helped his HR numbers quite a bit.
Did u forget that we are stuck with a perenial #2 hitter already in Castillo! NO NO NO NO NO,…A MILLION TIMES NO! YUK!
I think you meant useful tool….although you nailed it by writing used.Take this guy out of yankee stadium and his power will be gone…he has no arm for citi left field…this guy is a used tool !
It’s ridiculous how lazy these NY sportswriters are. Now they want the Mets to take the Yankees castoffs because Damon’s a nice guy and they like writing about him. No thanks
Perfect post, Xavier. Happens every winter. We’ve already had to read how Matsui could have been a fit despite being totally unable to wear a glove, Wang will be a rumor all winter, and now of course Damon. You’d think the Yankee-loving press would realize that despite their big-name talent, the 2009 Yankees were the luckiest team in the history of ML baseball, getting production from guys like Damon, Matsui, Pettitte, and Posada who, by all accounts should have been completely broken down. That said, you can bet every one of them WILL be broken down the minute they leave the Bronx.
That the Yankees actually got their money’s worth over that moronic 4-year contract they gave Damon is one of the greatest coups in recent memory. Pity the team that gives him another one.
Why are we talking about Damonn??
No even Omar is talking about him. Please, the NY media is 100% Yankees .Just fint him a job in any newspaper or radio, but not with the Mets.
there are a number of diferent ways the FO could take this off season.
1, of course, was to pull a Yankees and balloon the budget up to $180mill, and make over the top offers to Holliday, Lackey, Gonzolez, and heck, maybe Bay too. Give them 6-8 years. Obviously, that ain’t happening.
the 2nd logical plan (which Omar described earlier, and they seem to be following) is to get a big bat for LF (likely a FA), and to upgrade at C and add some SPs. Lackey if reasonable, or else some of the 2nd tier FAs or through trades. SInce Lackey is gone, that leaves the garlands and maquis, along with the trade market (and Lee and Halladay were never really options it seems).
But, a 3rd plan exists. Assume that some a team caves and gives Holliday 7/140 (I can think of one that just might…), and another team steps up and does 6 years/100 for Bay (just suppose), so the Mets miss them both.
Well, unless a miracle trade comes through (and considering the other stated goal of letting the farm system recover some more), the next best option just might be to load up on 1-year vets and reclaimation projects, and try again next off season (with potentially a much better FA class) to add more LT studs to the core. It also buys a year to see if guys like Thole, Davis, F Mart and Neise are ready for the show.
in that scenerio, guys like Damon, Dye, any of the 1-year option catchers, Sheets (incentive laden deals to risk/reward pitchers), and plenty of others that could end up on 1 year deals (even if you overpay slightly to get no future commitment) all become viable.
If you get lucky, and they have 1 big year left (and they will all be playing for contracts to keep them interested), you get a very good team (just make sure the bench has young, althletic defensive replacements!).
If it doesn’t, you trade everyone you can at the deadline for prospects, and use them + the farm guys you kept (likely up and playing at this point) + next off season FA pool to put together the future LT team.
No trading of the stars involved either, but no LT deals to guys that are going to drag you down.
THE THIRD PLAN IS NOT AN OPTION IF THE METS PLAN TO SELL ANY TICKETS TO THEIR NEW BALLPARK!
The purpose of the team (and what the FO is supposed to be putting together) is to win as many games as possible. Not just trying to appease the fans by bringing in some names to make them happy.
And overall ticket sales will be driven by how many games they are winning.
Mets plans, doesn’t matter if is A, B, C, D, E,….etc, should NOT include Damon or any other old OFer. If they can’t sign either Bay or Holliday, they are better off with Angel Pagan as LFer.
If they can figure out a way to get Adrian Gonzalez and put Castillo in a Harang and Phillips deal, I would accept Damon batting 2nd. Otherwise, I would open my eyes and just get Bay or Holliday (who will be younger than Damon is now in their final contract year).
If the Mets were involved in a three way trade to acquire adrian Gonzalez, and able to use Castillo in a trade for Phillips and Harang, I still wouldn’t want Damon. He will be horrible at Left Field and would be a weak offense to the line up.
If Bay, Holliday, or a decent trade for a left fielder is not possible than Angel Pagan will be the final answer.
He would be lucky to hit 10 homers and he would be horrible at Citi, think of how many plays he looke dbad at Yankee, his range and arm are terrible.
If Minaya negotiates with Bay and Holliday, then all of the sudden ends up with Damon he should be fired!! He is old, he can’t throw, his range is limited, and his production was driven by the Stadium (.915 OPS Home vs .795 OPS Away).
I’m pretty sure the media would love the move, so they can pick on the Mets management everyday.
did we get the dh in the nl since the last time i looked…i will take pagan over damon any day of the week and i wish more mets fans would give pagan and santos a break…just because our stupid manager doesnt think they are any good doesnt mean its true…
,,,oops i said idiom (but with a t) manager and it didnt go thru…stupid works just as well and will probably be banned soon….
I’m not sure what I can say without getting banned for life
At this point I am just hoping for a fun team to watch next year, don’t have playoff expectations, just a fun team with us heading in the right directioon, is that too much to ask? And putting Damon in LF is not fun. Would rather see Pagan out there and see what he does playing 140 games. maybe he hits .295 with 15 HR, 15 triples and 25 SB and then we have a serious trade piece or a p[iece of our future and heck what if Murphy hits .290 with 18 HR’s and plays decent defense, than we have options heading into 2011 with trades, etc… and FA’s. I can’t see what we could do with the team and available options that puts us ahead of the Phillies in 2010, maybe a long-shot wild-card but wopuld rather take the baby steps in 2010 to be prepared to be a real contender in 2011.
im sorry, there is NO case for johnny damon
Damon’s defense is terrible and his power exists only in Yankee stadium and hes old. That said he is a good and a clutch hitter and for a year would probably be a nice addition to the lineup provided they could find some power for first base. He will not want to sign a one year deal though and I would not want the Mets to guarantee more than that.
A Damon signing would be pretty awkward for me; last Subway Series I yelled something in passing about Damon, and at the end of the game his wife, heavily inebriated, essentially assaulted me, only to be escorted away by security.
Well Johnny and Michelle, it’s all water under the bridge, I guess…
What a terrible idea, he can’t play defense and at the large citi feild he wouldn’t hit near as many ho
me runs, in other words he is the exact opposite of signing players to fit the ballpark
With all due respect to Mr. Davidoff or anyone else that believe Damon would be a good addition to the Mets, I believe they should be tested for PEDs. Damon cannot play defense, has a swing made for the Yankee Stadium short porch and, truthfully, is or is about to see any skills he possesses disintegrate. If people were upset early last season with the plan to have Daniel Murphy throw to Jose Reyes when trying to throw a runner out at the plate, they will be livid with Damon. Murphy’s arm is stronger and more accurate. Damon’s body will not stand-up in the National League. In the junior circuit, he had the luxury of being the DH on many occasions. He would not have that luxury with the Mets.
I will once again argue that if this team can’t get Bay, Minaya should make every effort to get Rick Ankiel. He can field, has the potential to hit and he would make it almost impossible to run on this outfield. He is also six years younger than Damon and would be a better fit on this club.
One question for the Damon lovers: If he hadn’t just played in the Bronx, would you really be this interested in him? I think not.