Daily Archives: February 14, 2010
According to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the Cardinals are ending their pursuit of free agent RHP Chien-Ming Wang.
As a result, Mike Puma of the New York Post believes this furthers the likelihood Wang will sign with the Nationals, though he will not be ready to pitch until May.
…i think this analysis is a very good indication on how good David Wright is and helps me to believe even further he is going to have a bounce back 2010 season…i’m surprised, in a good way, he stacks up so closely to such a great player and in a lot of ways, exceeds what Mike Schmidt had done through the same age despite such a down season last year…
…i think 81-90 is a realistic range for this team even with their shortcomings…they have a very strong core group of players and perhaps the best pitcher in baseball, and if they’re healthy, i believe they will be contending for a playoff spot this season…
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Carlos Delgado is not retiring, but will not accept any of his current offers, even though he has Major League offers available to him.
Delgado’s agent, David Sloane, told Rosenthal Delgado will continue to workout and possibly sign mid-season, saying:
“Every year, teams have issues — somebody gets hurt, somebody doesn’t perform. And then they need a bat…When that happens, Carlos will be available. We’re confident someone will sign him. It’s just a matter of who and when.”
For more on Delgado, check out Rosenthal’s report for FOX Sports here.
…i think the biggest challenge with this idea is coming up with unique characters to run the race…i thought the subway race and the airplane race were fun at Shea, and perhaps, if they feel they need to do something, that’s all they really need to do…
Mike Puma in today’s New York Post lists four questions the Mets must answer to have a successful 2010 season.
Puma wonders if David Wright will regain his power stroke from 2008, or should the Mets expect more of the same at Citi Field, and better power on the road.
…the least of my concerns going into 2010 is how Wright will be…last year was definitely a disappointment, but i’m not sure Citi Field had much to do with his lack of power, considering he hit for very little power during the WBC and Spring Training, and hit five home runs at home, and five on the road during the regular season…
In addition, Puma wonders whether or not Daniel Murphy is the answer at first base, whether or not Jason Bay is worth what the Mets paid for him, and whether or not both Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel will survive past Memorial Day.
…one of the key questions Puma forgot to ask was whether or not its realistic to get rebound seasons from Mike Pelfrey, Oliver Perez, and John Maine…the Mets can be competitive only if their rotation is productive beyond Johan Santana, and of course Johan remains healthy…i look at teams like the Rangers prior to 2009, and for years they had high-powered offenses with no pitching, and were non-contenders, and all of a sudden they get productive seasons out of guys like Kevin Millwood and Scott Feldman, and they remained in contention for much of the season last year…even if the Mets get big years out of their position players, i don’t think it will be enough if their starting pitching doesn’t hold up…
For more on Puma’s four questions about the Mets, check out the New York Post here.
Brian Costa, in today’s Star Ledger, says while the Mets have the talent to be competitive in 2010, a lot needs to go right for a successful season.
Costa says the Mets failed to acquire many complementary players this off-season, leaving them with a thin level of depth at a lot of key positions, therefore the Mets must avoid injury in a lot of places, and manage their injuries better.
…this is one of my key gripes this winter…it wasn’t that the Mets didn’t sign high priced star power, because as Costa points out, they have a ton of star power, but they did very little to address their major league depth by upgrading not just the bench, but upgrading at key positions and their rotation in order to get continued production in the event of an injury…injuries are inevitable, whether they last for a day, a week, a month, or longer, and the good teams are in a position to still be productive enough when they occur, and i have to believe part of why the Mets have managed their injuries so poorly over the past few seasons is because they did in fact recognize they couldn’t get adequate production to compensate for their losses…but again, why not address that need which i feel is one of their biggest needs, besides their rotation…
…of course, no team can survive what happened to the Mets last season, because a team can only have so much depth anyway…
For more on this, plus a further rundown of the Mets in 2010, check out Costa’s report here.
…i personally see Ike Davis at Triple-A Buffalo to start the year, unless he underwhelms during the month of March…there have been some to suggest that Davis could make an impact at the major league level in 2010, but i think it would be foolish to rush him as they did with Fernando Martinez, especially since they acquired Mike Jacobs…both need a full year at Triple-A where there is some certainty for them and they can play everyday, and focus on honing their skills, rather than trying to stick…
