…i still don’t know how to feel about this…i’ll admit, i liked the idea of dotel potentially pitching for the Mets again, even if it was on a two-year deal…that said, it all depends on how the overall off-season plays out…i mean, no matter how i slice it up in my mind, dotel is far from a guarantee, and i can understand why he may not be worth gambling on for two full seasons…what’s more, i am always concerned about guys who have bounced from team to team, as he as…my hunch is that, avoiding him on that deal, is probably the wise move…but, time will tell…

The White Sox will be Dotel’s fifth team in five years, and the seventh team he has played with during his nine-year career.

Since 2002, pitching exclusively from the bullpen, against roughly 1,400 batters, opponents are batting .200 against Dotel, who has struck out roughly 30 percent of the hitters he has faced.

Last week, citing ‘a relative of the player,’ Impacto Deportivo reported that Dotel had reached agreement the same contract, but the report was immediately refuted by his agent.

According to Dotel’s agent, Dan Horwits, the White Sox are one of the teams in the mix for his services. However, he says, “All the rest of the stuff is inaccurate.”

This morning, Impacto Deportivo, reported that the White Sox and Dotel had reached agreement on a two-year, $11 million deal.

…well done detective cerrone…you questioned the validity of the earlier report by stating, “note that the source of this information is one of dotel’s relatives…this is not to say it is incorrect, but i will not consider him off the market until i see this reported by a second outlet…”

…added to by Matthew Cerrone…

…as i have mentioned in the past, i would not be surprised to see dotel on the Mets, since he’s exactly the type of additional arm they could use in their bullpen for next season…however, i don’t believe the Mets are inclined to give any relief pitcher a long-term deal during this off-season…of course, time will tell…

…thanks to Steve P for the link…

The White Sox will be Dotel’s fifth team in five years, and the seventh team he has played with during his nine-year career.

…if true, it suggests to me that Aaron Heilman will be on the Mets come opening day…because, the way i understood it, dotel was viewed by the Mets as a potential replacement for a guy like heilman, who could have been traded in a deal for a starting pitcher…that said, $5.5 million per year for two years is a lot of money for dotel…and, again, i just don’t sense that Omar Minaya and Company have any interest in signing a relief pitcher to a multi-year deal right now…which is wise…had heilman been dealt, dotel would have been my first choice, though…no doubt…but not for two years…

Since 2002, pitching exclusively from the bullpen, against roughly 1,400 batters, opponents are batting .200 against Dotel, who has struck out roughly 30 percent of the hitters he has faced.

…by the way, i just don’t know what to make of these sort of reports…note that the source of this information is one of dotel’s relatives…this is not to say it is incorrect, but i will not consider him off the market until i see this reported by a second outlet…

For instance, last week Impacto Deportivo reported that the Royals had reached agreement with RHP Bartolo Colon.

…and, as far as i can tell, colon is still very much a free agent…

…from what i can gather, dotel is seeking a two-year deal, and i believe the Mets have expressed interest in signing him…but not on a two-year deal…

…it would not surprise me to see him end up in queens…my sense is that the team still feels it may need one more established, hard-throwing reliever - and dotel, who has played well in new york before, could fit that mold…

…as of now, Pedro Feliciano, Aaron Heilman, Duaner Sanchez, Scott Schoeneweis, Jorge Sosa, Billy Wagner, and maybe Steve Register, are essentially guaranteed spots in the bullpen…the thing is, with Joe Smith, Willie Collazo, Carlos Muniz, and hopefully Ambiorix Burgos, among others, acting as possible options, not to mention Orlando Hernandez who could get bumped from the rotation, there is not a whole lot of room out there for a two-year guaranteed contract…

Since 2002, pitching exclusively from the bullpen, against roughly 1,400 batters, opponents are batting .200 against Dotel, who has struck out roughly 30 percent of the hitters he has faced.

…from what i can gather, the Mets remain oddly confident regarding their talks with the Twins about Johan Santana…the thing is, not much has changed on that front…which, frankly, i view as a good thing…

…at any rate, the buzz around shea continues to suggest that the Mets have interest in Freddy Garcia and Bartolo Colon…frankly, i sense they’ll end up signing one of the two starting pitchers to a one-year deal, because it only makes sense from a risk-reward stand point…colon, by the way, is getting a lot of good reviews while pitching in the Dominican Winter League…

Colon, who has been battling shoulder and elbow problems since 2006, has a career record of 146-95 and a 4.10 ERA in 306 starts.

…the buzz during the Winter Meetings had been that the Mets were the front runners for garcia, but were holding back until they knew how best to proceed in the trade market…

Garcia, 32, is rehabbing from shoulder surgery on his labrum and rotator cuff and should be ready to pitch by midseason.

During his nine-year career, he is 117-76 and has a 4.07 ERA – though he was just 1–5 last season for the Phillies.

…i also sense that the Mets continue to have strong interest in Octavio Dotel, but that may depend more on the future of Aaron Heilman than anything else…additionally, i feel any reported interest in Kyle Lohse and Livan Hernandez may be severely overblown, unless one of the two pitchers is willing to accept much less of a commitment than they’re demanding…

…lastly, there is not much of a buzz in Oakland connecting the Mets to Joe Blanton…honestly, it seems like the mini-market for pitchers, such as colon, garcia, blanton, etc, are all more or less waiting on Johan Santana…

…from what i can gather, dotel is seeking a two-year deal, and i believe the Mets continue to have serious interest in signing him…

…it would not surprise me to see the him end up in queens, since the Mets recently non-tendered Juan Padilla…my sense is that the team still feels it may need one more, major-league ready, established, hard-throwing reliever, and dotel, who has played well in new york before, fits that mold…

…as of now, Pedro Feliciano, Aaron Heilman, Steve Register, Duaner Sanchez, Scott Schoeneweis, Jorge Sosa and Billy Wagner are essentially guaranteed spots in the bullpen…of course, register or sosa could certainly be cut, i would think…the thing is, with Joe Smith, Willie Collazo, Carlos Muniz, and hopefully Ambiorix Burgos, among others, acting as possible options, as well, not to mention Orlando Hernandez who could get bumped from the rotation, there is not a whole lot of room out there for a two-year, guaranteed contract…

The Braves acquired Dotel at last year’s trade deadline in exchange for RHP Kyle Davies, only to put Dotel on the 15–day disabled list with a right shoulder strain just 10 days later.

He was was 2–1 with a 3.91 ERA in 24 games for the Royals before being traded and getting injured with the Braves.

Since 2002, pitching exclusively from the bullpen, against roughly 1,400 batters, opponents are batting .200 against Dotel, who has struck out roughly 30 percent of the hitters he has faced.

…frankly, i put very little stock in to what omar says in public, so this may or may not be true…nevertheless…

According to Kat O’Brien, at her blog for Newsday, the Mets and Yankees are among several teams who have talked with free-agent RHP Luis Vizcaino, who is seeking a four-year, $19-million contract.

Earlier today, at MLB.com, Jim Molony wrote that free-agent Japanese RHP Hiroki Kuroda could sign with the first team to offer him a four-year deal, adding that the Mariners, Mets, Dodgers and D’Backs are all offering him three years and $30 million.

According to a recent report from Yahoo! Japan, Kuroda is believed to be seeking a four-year, $45 million contract.

According to the Daily News, though, the Mariners have offered a fourth year to Kuroda, who could act as a starter or reliever.

…for what it’s worth, i recall hearing that the D’Backs have interest in kuroda, as well…

…as i noted this afternoon, there is more and more buzz coming from Nashville suggesting that the Mets are seriously considering Livan Hernandez…

Earlier today, citing ‘a source,’ MLB.com reported that the Nationals may be willing to give Hernandez a two-year deal.

According to the New York Times, both Minaya and Hernandez’s agent have stated publicly that they intend to speak with one another soon.

Lastly, Steve Popper of the Bergen Record is reporting that Minaya will meet with the agent’s for Octavio Dotel and Shawn Chacon tonight.

…lastly, there is very minimal buzz suggesting that the Mets may have inquired about Cubs RHP Mark Prior, who is said to be drawing interest from the Padres, among others…

Last week, the Detroit Free Press wrote that the Tigers, Astros and Brewers are also showing interest in Dotel.

…as i have written before, from what i recall, the Mets had mild interest in dotel during last year’s trade deadline, as well as two off-seasons ago, when they considered giving him a one-year, incentive-laden deal…

…the buzz from new york has long suggested that dotel is eager to return to the game’s biggest market, and is more than willing to be a set-up man for Mariano Rivera or Billy Wagner…

The Braves acquired Dotel at last year’s trade deadline in exchange for RHP Kyle Davies, only to put Dotel on the 15–day disabled list with a right shoulder strain just 10 days later.

He was was 2–1 with a 3.91 ERA in 24 games for the Royals before being traded and getting injured with the Braves.