Daily Archives: January 19, 2010
Jon Heyman of SI.com reports the Dodgers and relief pitcher George Sherrill avoided arbitration and agreed to a one-year, $4.5 million deal, plus incentives.
…why, as a Mets fan, do you care: because, from what i can gather, the Reds might have been delaying talks with teams about RHP Bronson Arroyo because they prefer to trade RHP Aaron Harang, for whom they would pick up part of his salary in an effort to bring back a better prospect…
…the Dodgers and Reds had been deep in talks about harang, but the Reds were hesitant to make a move with sherrill in the deal until knowing exactly what his 2010 contract would be… and so, maybe sherrill’s deal will help dislodge trade talks, one way or the other, for harang… and so, if the Reds determine harang is immovable, maybe then they’ll begin to be more serious in possibly trading arroyo…
In report today for MLB.com, Peter Gammons said everyone in baseball understands that the Mets did not insure Carlos Beltran’s contract.
…i actually don’t think this is as big of a deal as it sounds, or, at least it isn’t unique…
I e-mailed Maury Brown, from the Biz of Baseball, as well as Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus, both of whom I trust and respect when it comes to medical and contract news in MLB, and they said:
Carroll: It’s impossible to insure a pitcher beyond three years. I’d assume that it’s the same for position players. I’d guess maybe 10 percent of contracts are insured. Maybe.
Brown: My understanding is long-term contracts are becoming exceptionally hard due to risk.
…by the way, in talking with people connected to the team and to the player, as well as in the organization, i get no sense there is a riff between beltran and the Mets… instead, it sounds like there is a BIG riff between the Mets and Scott Boras, and maybe even between beltran and boras, as some people believe he put his client at risk…
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In a post to Twitter, Buster Olney of ESPN.com says the Angels are in on free-agent RHP Joel Pineiro.
Last week, Jon Heyman of SI.com said the Mets and Dodgers are also in on Pineiro, as are the Nationals and Cubs, according to MLB.com.
…last week, here, i said the Mets will be watching Ben Sheets when he auditions for six to 10 clubs today… my guess is, most every team will hold off on signing pineiro, Jon Garland, Jarrod Washburn, etc., until they can see sheets in action…
Earlier today, @LJWiener32 said to me on Twitter, “The Mets need to forget Benjie Molina, and take his money and sign both Ben Sheets for one year and Joel Piniero for two years.”
…i agree… the problem is, sheets and pineiro likely want more money and years than that, or at least more of a commitment, and there are several teams interested in their services… and so, it’s not like the Mets can just kidnap them and give them what they want, whether the players like it or not… they have to negotiate, and beat out other teams, who also have needs for 2010…
…from what i understand, the Brewers are very interest in both sheets and pineiro… i have to think the Angels will pony up, since they still haven’t replaced John Lackey, who left them for Boston… the point is, there are enough teams interested and enough pitchers available for these guys to manipulate the market…
…i know the Mets and pineiro have been talking… i also know the Mets have serious interest in sheets… they also like John Smoltz for the bullpen, and as a fill-in starting pitcher… the problem is, other teams like these guys as well…
Buster Olney of ESPN.com believes free-agent C Bengie Molina turned down the Mets most recent offer, and so the team has started to focus more on free-agent RHP Joel Pineiro.
According to Olney, if Molina does not sign with the Mets, the Mariners could make the most sense for him.
…i’m actually pretty lost, and confused, with where the Mets and molina are in negotiations… the last two weeks, there has been a buzz around both molina and the Mets suggesting a deal was inevitable, but he remained a free agent and no actual news every went down… in fact, WFAN’s Mike Francesa teased news one day, then had nothing, and later in the week said he was under the impression the Mets would ink molina to a contract, but it never happened… in addition, i have not heard his name mentioned very much over the last week… this is not to say negotiations are off… it’s just, obviously, things are not as clean and inevitable as people though, i guess…
…from what i understood, the Mets offered molina a one-year deal, probably worth around $6 million, with a team option for a second season… molina wanted three years guarenteed… and so, the Mets essentially said, ‘Fine, go get a better offer, and when you do, show it to us and we’ll beat it,’ assuming, in the end, they’d be forced to guarentee two years, which would effectivly be a comprimise, and that would be that… and so, i assume molina has been busy shopping… who knows, maybe he found a better deal, and now it’s up to the Mets to match or beat it…
To follow Olney on Twitter, click here; to read his daily blog for ESPN.com, click here.
In a video segment for NESN.com, Peter Gammons said the Red Sox and Jason Bay agreed to a four-year, $60 million extension last June.
However, after Bay took his physical, ‘an MRI showed a problem with both knees, Ownership then wanted to pay two years, he had to prove his health to make it four years and he wouldn’t sign.’
The Mets signed Bay to a four-year, $66 million, with a vesting fifth-year option.
…ok, so, if boston was only offering a two-year deal, how did the Mets end up guaranteeing four… the Mets were fearful they were bidding against themselves, and i have to think maybe they were… that said, had it been known that bay could he bad for, say, a three-year deal, other teams most certainly would have gotten involved… and so, while, technically, the Mets might have bid up two additional years than the next closest official offer, in all likelihood, if they wanted bay, they eventually would’ve offered four years and $66 million any way, i would think, in other to beat out the other three-year offers… in the end, i think bay got what he was worth…
To hear more from Gammons, including his thoughts on why the league may soon institute an independent panel of doctors, check out NESN’s video clip, here.
Marty Noble of MLB.com thinks the Mets should reassess their need for free-agent 1B Carlos Delgado, now that OF Carlos Beltran will miss at least the first month of the season.
According to Noble, “There are more right-handed starters than left-handed starters, so it would be an asset to have genuine power in the middle of the order while Beltran is rehabbing.”
Last night in the Puerto Rican Winter League, Delgado was 0 for 1, but he walked twice and scored a run, while acting as his team’s designated hitter.
According to Douglas Price, on Twitter, Delgado hit a 385–foot pop out to the warning track in right-center field; and, though he later scored on a double, he looked sluggish around the bases.
Delgado, who has just one hit in his last 11 at bats, is batting .280 this winter with a .379 OBP, with one extra base hit and two RBI in eight games.
Speaking of winter ball…
Free-agent 1B Michel Abreu, who played the last three seasons in the Mets minor-league organization, was named the Puerto Rican Winter League MVP, during which he hit .351 with 12 HR and 42 RBI in 36 games for Arecibo.
In a post to Mets Merized Online, Ed Leyro argues that the Mets should retire No. 17, in honor of Keith Hernandez.
…it’s a tough call… he was on the Mets for six seasons, and they traded for him… so, in terms of ‘great Mets,’ i can understand the argument against him… but, i would do it… i would retire keith’s 17 and Mike Piazza’s 31, if for no other reason than it acknowledges the significance of two players from the generation i grew up watching… is each player a no brainer… i don’t know, maybe, maybe not… but, what’s the difference… they’ve earned it in terms of stature, significance and how they each helped to re-shape the franchise… and, more important, they are remembered as being ‘great,’ and ‘influential,’ and since perception is often reality, i don’t really care about service time and stats when it comes to this specific subject…
…speaking of honoring people, from what i can tell, having talked with people connected to the team today, the Mets are getting very, very close to announcing some sort of news about this type of off-field stuff, though i doubt it has anything to do with retiring numbers…
…in fact, i wouldn’t be surprised if we hear an announcement today… so, stay tuned…
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