Daily Archives: January 28, 2010
…from what i can gather, tatis will earn around $800,000, with incentives that can pay him around $1.5 million…
Updated at 6:41 pm:
The Mets have re-signed free-agent Fernando Tatis to one-year deal, worth less the $1.7 million he earned last season, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post.
Tatis hit .282 in 340 at bats for the Mets last season, with eight HR, 21 doubles and a .339 OBP, while hitting in to 13 double plays in 125 games.
Original Post at 4:06 pm:
Jayson Stark of ESPN.com says the Mets are monitoring the progress of RHP Chien-Ming Wang “closely”.
Wang’s agent, Alan Nero, says his client is throwing without pain and four or five teams have expressed interest in Wang, and Stark says in addition to the Mets, the Cardinals and Dodgers have expressed an interest in seeing Wang throw.
On Monday, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports said Wang would begin throwing off a mound in the next week or two, which you can read about here.
However, Stark says the Mets would prefer to acquire a pitcher who can pitch a full season.
…i wonder if the Mets think John Smoltz can pitch a full season at his age…
…i don’t think the Mets could lose by signing Wang…if he’s healthy, he would be a great asset as he as a ground ball machine…he hasn’t pitched a full season since 2007 when he won 19 games for the second consecutive season, but in that year’s division series against Cleveland he melted down…
Wang, who underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery on July 29, made just nine starts and 12 appearances last year and went 1-6 with a 9.64 ERA in 42 innings pitched.
Ken Davidoff of Newsday says there has been “increased momentum” towards a deal between John Smoltz and the Mets.
According to Davidoff, the Mets have yet to make an offer to Smoltz but have expressed enthusiasm towards signing him, and Smoltz is encouraged by the Mets interest.
Davidoff believes Smoltz might be seeking a one-year, $4 million deal.
In a post to Twitter, Jon Heyman of SI.com says the Mets are interested in him not just as a pitcher, but as a tutor as well.
…i think his knowledge and experience would definitely rub off on their current crop of starters…i realistically wouldn’t have too high expectations from Smoltz as a starter, mostly because i feel his arm is a ticking time bomb…
…that said, if he’s healthy, he certainly would provide depth and leadership, and like Davidoff points out, gives time for Jon Niese to recover from hamstring surgery in the minors…
In October, just one day after the season ended, Mets GM Omar Minaya and COO Jeff Wilpon spent one hour in studio talking with WFAN’s Mike Francesa.
“What happens this year between free-agents and trades, and whatever Omar wants to do to get us back to being a Championship-caliber team, will be up to Omar,” Wilpon said in October, acknowledging that his team will continue to have one of the highest payrolls in baseball.
“We’re going to be aggressive, we have to be, whether it’s in trades or free agents,” Wilpon added. “We are in a results town, in a results business.”
In addition, he said, Minaya and his staff will always work to build a team around ‘pitching, speed and defense,’ and so Ownership built a ballpark with that in mind; because, as Minaya pointed out, it is easier to win when playing ‘National League baseball,’ and when pitching strong.
In terms of acquisitions, Minaya said he intended on looking at the trade market this off season, ‘to see how we can change it up,’ because they could not just limit themselves to the free-agent market.
Similarly, Wilpon said he felt the team had ‘two or three holes,’ all which Minaya could fill through a combination of free-agent signings and trades.
In the end, Wilpon said the team would not make a big-ticket acquisition just for marketing purposes, or in an effort to sell tickets, concluding, “The team will be as aggressive as it has been in the past.”
…seriously, what is Peter Gammons’s grind against the Mets and Jason Bay… jeez…
Last week, Gammons said on NESN that Bay and the Sox agreed to a four-year, $60 million deal last June, but it was pulled by the team due to concerns surrounding Bay’s knees and shoulder.
Bay then told WEEI radio in Boston that the Red Sox simply changed their mind, despite two independent doctors declaring his knees and shoulder as being more than fine. In fact, Bay explained, the medical records were so clean, there was no issue getting insurance on the deal.
Today, however, in a radio segment, also with WEEI, Gammons said, “The Mets were the only team that were in on Jason… There were serious physical concerns that were there. Dr. Gill thought it was a tremendous risk to be giving him a four-year contract.”
…what… is… the… difference… he’s on the Mets… he’s not on the Sox… both guys need to let it go…
The Brewers will sign free-agent OF-1B Jim Edmonds, the team’s GM told the Journal-Sentinel.
The 39–year-old Edmonds last played in the big leagues during 2008, when he hit just .229 with 20 HR, 55 RBI in 111 games.
He is a career .252 hitter against left-handed pitching, spanning 1,700 at bats.
Meanwhile, the Royals are considering free-agent starting pitcher Erik Bedard, reports the Kansas City Star.
Earlier this week, on MLB Home Plate, Jim Duquette said he would be surprised to see Bedard pitching in the big leagues before the All-Star Break, as he is still recovering from shoulder surgery.
Lastly, free-agent OF Timo Perez – yes, that Timo Perez – signed a minor-league deal with the Dodgers, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com.
Perez has not played in the big leagues since 2007, when he hit .389 in 29 games for the Tigers.
…and i’m sure every one of those 35 hits were off an ill-timed drag bunt…
… the Mets have expressed interest in free-agent RHP Josh Fogg, according to people connected to the team…
Fogg, 33, had a 3.74 ERA in 24 relief appearances last season for the Rockies, during which right-handed batters hit .176 against him.
In response to my question on Twitter, D.J. Short from NBCSports.com said, “Fogg got pretty lucky (.197 batting average on balls in play). Can’t strike anybody out, mediocre control.”
…i think fogg needs a strong defense behind him… otherwise, it’ll be a long day… also, he should no longer be considered a starting pitcher, and so i hope he’s being looked at for the bullpen…
…for what it’s also worth, he worked quite well with free-agent C Yorvit Torrealba last season…
In a post to his blog for the Daily News, Bill Price sets Under-Over odds on a variety of potential words, likely to be used by Mets GM Omar Minaya during his interview tonight.
For instance, Price sets the Under-Over on how many times Minaya will say, ‘healthy,’ at 15.
…hmmmm, i’ll take the over… way, way over… you know what i’m saying…
Price lists seven other bets, and offers up six questions he would like see asked by Kevin Burkhardt, such as, “We were told pitching and defense were the priorities to help build a team that could win at Citi Field? To this point, you’ve added no pitching and no speed. Were you lying to fans, are you out of money, or do players just not want to come here?”
To read the rest of Price’s post for the Daily News, go here.
Original Post at 10:11 am:
Minaya will be a guest tonight on SNY’s Mets Hot Stove, which airs live at 7 pm.
Keith Law puts Mets 20–year-old RHP Jenrry Mejia at No. 23 on his Top 100 Prospects list for ESPN.com, with Mets 18-year-old SS Wilmer Flores checking in at No. 43, 1B Ike Davis at No. 64, and OF Fernando Martinez at No. 73.
In regards to Mejia, Law writes:
“He has top-of-the-rotation stuff… His fastball sits at 93-96 and will tick higher, and the ball sometimes shows natural cutting action toward left-handed hitters. His changeup is his best off-speed pitch… His curveball is very inconsistent… he has to work on staying on top of the ball, and the finger injury reduced his already below-average command. That said, he’s 20 and has shown he can get advanced hitters in Double-A out. If the Mets slow him down a little and let him spend all of 2010 (and maybe some of 2011) in the minors to improve his command and the consistency of his changeup and curve, they have a chance for a No. 1 or No. 2 starter.”
Law believes Flores can be a power bat, who will eventually be best fit to play first base or outfield.
In fact, Law points out, “of players with at least 400 at-bats in the Sally League in 2009, only one hitter had fewer strikeouts than Flores.”
In regards to Davis, he says he has ‘raw power,’ especially against right-handed pitchers, but, ‘he doesn’t hit left-handed pitching at all,’ concluding, “A full year in Double-A/Triple-A to work on pitch recognition and on improving his approach against left-handers is probably critical for his future as an everyday player, but he has a chance to be an above-average one if he can shed the “platoon player” tag with more reps.”
Yesterday, also on ESPN.com, Law ranked the Mets at No. 15 in his list of the league’s top systems.
According to Law, “It’s fashionable in New York to bash their system, but productive international scouting continues to bail out their draft efforts, which are repeatedly hamstrung by Ownership’s refusal to exceed slot in the first few rounds.”
Bill Ladson of MLB.com says, “Orlando Hudson‘s price is still too high for the Nationals, who are considering other options.”
Original Post at 10:04 am:
Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com believes there are six teams with interest in Hudson.
According to Rosenthal, ‘The Nationals, Twins, Reds, Tigers and Rockies are among the teams looking for infield help,’ and, ‘The Mariners could add an infielder if they trade 2B Jose Lopez.”
Lopez hit .272 with a .303 OBP and 25 HR, 42 doubles and 96 RBI last season for the Mariners.
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