Alou Out 4-6 Weeks

The Milledge trade was just awful. He could have been a cornerstone of the team along with Reyes and Wright and then they could have signed one of these guys and been a better overall team.

"The Milledge trade was just awful. He could have been a cornerstone of the team along with Reyes and Wright and then they could have signed one of these guys and been a better overall team."

Thats interesting, because I bet I can find at least a dozen posts in the archives where you call Milledge just another overated prospect hyped up by the NY Media, or something of that nature. Also, even with Milledge, the situation is not even a little bit different, the only difference would be that the Mets have a less reliable catcher, and a big questionmark in RF going into a season where they want to win a championship.

You think that Lo Duca/ Milledge makes the Mets a better overall team in 2008 then Schneider/ Church?

And even with Milledge, we are still looking for a replacement LF, so now(under your scenario), we have a questionmark in Milledge in RF, a questionmark in Estrada/Lo Duca behind the plate, and a questionmark in LF. I will take one questionmark instead of 3.

Whats the deal with you anyway? You bashed Minaya all winter, and then you basically became a ghost after he got Santana using what you frequently called one of the worst farm systems in baseball.

Then you come back as a self proclaimed Red Sox fan, even though you were all over Dayton Moore's and Brian Bannister's nuts for the last 8 months. Do you have split personalities?

Heres a what if for ya....What if the Torreabla deal never fell through!

I really like the idea of trading for Nady. He can play left when Alou's down, he can play right or first against lefties. The Mets could easily get him 400 atbats, probably 500. He was also a huge fan favorite in 2006. Anybody have a guess at what he would cost?

I wouldn't mind the reds trading freel if they were interested...maybe a low level prospect

I think Omar needs to do what he did all offseason and resist pressing the panic button. There's a strange aura around Mets camp right now, but all things considered, they're looking okay.

The thing I really like is we're getting a really close look at some of the younger guys. Fernando Martinez is performing well. Angel Pagan his hitting singles left and right (literally). Jon Niese looked as sharp as Phil Humber or Kevin Mulvey ever looked. And I really like the little bit I've seen from Ruben Tejada.

The other thing to remember is, the core of this team is still very much intact, save perhaps Delgado. Being patient with Carlos Beltran early in the season is always wise. There's no reason to rush right now. Pedro seems to feel pretty good. Wright and Reyes are getting their swings in (knock on wood). Santana, Maine, and Perez are getting their innings in (knock on wood). And there are some surprisingly interesting looking relievers in camp, none of whon are nearly as green as Joe Smith or Eddie Kunz.

I remember last year, the theme of the Mets feeling like they could just "turn it on" at any time started well before April 1. They just couldn't seem to buy a win last Spring, and there were all these questions about whether they'd be able to turn it on when the calendar turned to April. They could stack their lineup against a bunch of A-ballers and find a way to lose. Then they burst out of the gate winning their first four regular season games, sweeping the team that knocked them out of the postseason in 06 on the way. That vibe just seemed to stay with the team all season, and they'd just put it in cruise control until it got close. They just couldn't "turn it on" one more time in September.

We're seeing something different this spring. We're seeing minor leaguers scrap and hustle for wins late in the game. We're seeing a ton of relievers hold down the middle innings. The result is the Mets have somehow won five straight in their final turn at bat. Perhaps this feeling can carry into the regular season too...

Besides, who do they even have to trade? I suppose they have a bit of a surplus in the bullpen, but nothing that could buy more than a role player or a short term solution. The only way the Mets might find a long-term solution for 1B/LF would likely involved either trading Fernando Martinez or signing Kyle Lohse after trading a far superior arm.

Fernando won't be traded. if you won't include him in a deal for Johan then you won't include him in a deal for anyone. And he's not ready to play LF yet and that could have an effect on his career later

I did say that Milledge was hyped because of New York, which is true. He drew comparisons to Sheffield, which I thought was ridiculous, however I never said he would be a complete bust. Chances are he turns out to be a solid player. And the Mets system is awful, Terry Ryan was forced to trade with Minaya. The Sox and Yankees had far better offers out at one point.

by my calculation, 4 weeks, that's um April 2nd, so he misses somewhere from 2 games to 2 1/2 weeks of the season. Not a big deal. Unless it drags on and Minaya pulls a Hendry, like when Derrek Lee had that broken hand and nothing was done about a replacement for 2 months.

It's true that Alou will only miss a little bit at the start of the season, but he's gonna miss a lot more time throughout the year. Better find a decent replacement now, preferably someone that can platoon with Church in RF while Alou is healthy.

In all seriousness, Nady solves a bunch of problems for the Mets. LF when Alou goes down, RF platoon with Church, 1B backup for Delgado.

sign barry lamar bonds, he can hit some bombs while his buddy alou is out

Bonds… Barry Bonds…

I cant believe no one else even mentioned it… I think this is NY, this is the team which is supposedly the favorite to win the NL ~ and they have questions in both OF corners plus 1B? It just cant stay that way, it just cant… Bonds is the type of producer you would expect to see in the Mets OF. Beltran/Bonds/Alou/Church ~ that’s more the OF I would expect from a team which is planning on winning it all. Another guy could even be brought in as well, a guy that could backup 1B too.

You think that Lo Duca/ Milledge makes the Mets a better overall team in 2008 then Schneider/ Church?

NRMax, I normally agree with you but here I gotta say...

uhhhhh, yeah!

"Mets fans are going to be sitting and wondering about what could've been when they think about Reyes and Gomez at the top of the order while Wright, Martinez and Milledge pound from the middle of the order."

This made me laugh. I think Milledge will be a fine player, but I'll try to console myself by watching Johan Santana shred National League hitters for the next several years. I'll try not to wonder "what might have been" had Minaya not traded away the immortal Carlos Gomez, he of the mighty .399 career minor league slugging percentage.

"Milledge can hit both righties and lefties?" That's news to us because of his whopping .703 OPS against Righties. I mean, if Ryan Church is subject to a career platoon role because of a .723 Career OPS against Lefties, then what does that make Milledge? At least with Church, he has the benefit of 75% of the league being Right Handed.

"nicel ist of players and all, but mets have nothing to give up

Posted by: arly2380 | March 05, 2008 at 10:32 PM "

You're acting like these guys are extremely valueable. It's not like any of them are commanding a top prospect in return.

The Mets are shopping a couple half-decent relievers in Jorge Sosa and Scott Schoeneweis (Well, against Lefties that is). It shouldn't take much more then that to pry away an Marcus Thames type.

Also for what it's worth, the Mets farm system is only bad for 2008 and maybe 2009 help. They have alot of talent in the lower levels of their minor league system, particuarly due to Minaya's international signings and a solid draft last year.

that guy talking about milledge is a bit wishy washy. in just the two posts today he calls milledge a cornerstone and then says he will be a solid player. whats the deal buddy? on a different note i just cant believe alou is hurt, the pillar of physical health that he is. how old is he now anyways?

I think this could be a good break for a guy like Pagan to shine but I wouldn't count on it happening. If there is a trade to be made it absolutely should be for someone who could play first and OF. Nady would be nice but the Pirates seem real high on him. Juan Rivera great stats and the Angels might ask more than what the Mets have. Millar might be a good stop gap if he's ever played left before.

Murton would be the best outfielder I think but can't play first.

If I'm Minaya and I can get an OF/1B for guys I was already putting on the block, do it. Otherwise, maybe sit tight and see how the others recover. If Alou becomes the only one out by Opening Day with say Pagan in left, I'm not crying.

Randy Winn and Dave Roberts are available. Giants want to save cap space and let some kids play.

I'm sure Winn would probably be their preferred option.

Matt Murton

How about this:
Murton/Marquis/Cotts for Sosa/Schoenweis/Elduque. Mets gain a spot on roster (assuming Cotts goes directly to AAA )and get their 4th OF. Cubs rid themselves of Marquis - who will put up numbers similar to Elduque. Cubs m,aybe throw in a few mil to balance it out $$ wise

Marquis is making over $9 mil next season - no thanks.

JoelCards, I hope you know a cornerstone player doesn't have to be a great player. A cornerstone player is at least solid and he will contribute to a team for years to come (usually its a young player). Best example that comes to mind right now is Pedroia who is a cornerstone of the Sox offense.

themetros: That's a pretty bad point. First of all, as darkstar pointed out, Griffey is an aging star. Griffey's career line against lefties .274/.345/.513, suggesting that for the majority of his career, he did perfectly fine against lefties. Church has never been a full-time player, and at age 29, it's looking less likely (even the Mets will platoon him against good lefties). Not a good comparison.

Um....I think you shorted Church 10 there. He hit 43 doubles, 15 HR, and 1 triple, and none of those are far off his career clip. In fact it looks like some of those homers turned into doubles in 2007. He hit his 15 homers in in 470 ABs last year. The rest of his career is composed of three seasons and 527 ABs that yielded 20 HR and 33 doubles. Plus he's been playing all his games at RFK, save his first 63 ABs which were in Montreal. Shea's no picnic, but its not in the same league of pitchers parks as RFK was.

Two Possible Murton to the Mets Scenarios

Matt Murton, Scott Eyre and Daryle Ward in exchange for Aaron Heilman

Murton in exchange for Endy Chavez and Jorge Sosa

Scrib, for the most part I respect your opinions, but Heilman is not going for a 4th outfielder. You can make the arguement Duaner Sanchez and Aaaron Heilman might be the 2 most important players on the team this year. If they can bridge the gap to Wagner successfully, NY might run away and hide with the NL East. Also, Endy Chavez is the Mets 4th outfielder, so I dont think they will trade him and another arm away for Murton, who is also a 4th outfielder, and doesnt provide many of the things Endy does (late inning fielding replacement, pinch runner, plays all 3 positions, outstanding defense, etc.). I like Murton and all, but there are 50 other guys in the league who can be solid halves of a platoon facing LHP, so I dont think it should really cost the Mets any part that they value at all. Like others have said, Sammy Sosa wont cost you any players, and will produce atleast what Murton does vs LHP.