Jon Niese Rumors
By Howard Megdal [June 5, 2009 at 5:42pm CST]
It is a given that with the news today that J.J. Putz will miss upwards of the next three months, Jose Reyes out an undetermined length of time, and Carlos Delgado still far from resuming baseball activity, that the Mets will be at the center of any number of rumors. But what is unclear at this point is just how New York can make deals, with the depth an organization would trade now missing from the Mets. After all, it was assumed that any deal the Mets would make for either Nick Johnson of the Nationals or Aubrey Huff of...
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By Tim Dierkes [May 27, 2009 at 8:10pm CST]
8:10pm: David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the Red Sox-Francoeur rumor: Talked to someone in Braves organization who sort of dismissed the Red Sox rumor. Said he hadn’t heard one thing about them having any serious interest in Francoeur or scouting him recently. 9:01am: Yahoo's Gordon Edes wrote about many different trade scenarios in his column last night. Edes seconds Ken Rosenthal's rumor that the Red Sox have been scouting Jeff Francoeur. The Nationals have been scouting the Mets' Triple and Double A teams, trying to figure out a possible return for Nick Johnson. Names of interest for Washington:...
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By Tim Dierkes [December 17, 2008 at 12:20pm CST]
12:20pm: MLB.com's Marty Noble writes: The possibility of the Mets signing a lesser alternative isn't precluded, but the club is unlikely to act on picking up another starter until it's satisfied it has done all that is possible -- and financially feasible -- to bring in Lowe. Noble says the Mets sense Lowe's price tag is $16-17MM per year. 8:37am: Ken Davidoff of Newsday lays out the Mets' plans for their starting rotation. For Oliver Perez's slot, the Mets want to either re-sign Perez or sign Derek Lowe. Randy Wolf, Jon Garland, and possibly Tim Redding are the backup plans...
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By Tim Dierkes [December 12, 2008 at 8:51am CST]
The latest from Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Mets GM Omar Minaya recently admitted he did not expect to pursue A.J. Burnett or Derek Lowe, saying, "I'm probably not going to be in there right now, financially. Not after spending all the money that I did on K-Rod." Sherman isn't sold, though - he thinks Lowe's price could drop and give the Mets a shot. The Dodgers haven't received a counter-offer to their two-year, $45MM proposal, so they won't be making another bid. Sherman adds that they are planning to non-tender Takashi Saito. The A's remain the frontrunners...
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By Tim Dierkes [December 10, 2008 at 12:48pm CST]
The Mets signed Francisco Rodriguez yesterday, but GM Omar Minaya is not done tinkering with his bullpen. SI.com's Jon Heyman says Matt Capps, Huston Street, and others are on the radar as setup possibilities. However, teams are asking for Jon Niese and the Mets don't want to give him up. Heyman adds that the Mets have talked to the Mariners and Cubs about relief help as well.
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By Tim Dierkes [December 1, 2008 at 2:45pm CST]
Links for Monday... Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik admitted to have a conversation with Ken Griffey Jr.'s agent, but wouldn't reveal anything else. One of Matthew Cerrone's readers dug up a Primera Hora article saying the Mets have been scouting free agent reliever Fernando Cabrera. Bob Klapisch looks at Pedro Martinez's four-year, $53MM deal and asks: was it worth it? Rays Index notes that Grant Balfour will use WBC participation as a bargaining chip in contract negotiations (he's eligible for arbitration). Marc Hulet of Baseball Analysts looks at top hitters for the Rule 5 draft. Fire Brand of the American League...
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By Tim Dierkes [July 31, 2008 at 8:39am CST]
8:39am: SI.com's Jon Heyman says the Mets have "kicked around" the idea of acquiring Ian Snell from the Pirates and using him in relief for the rest of the year. Snell is signed through 2010 with club options for '11 and '12. It's tough to see the Bucs moving him, even in an off year. 8:13am: According to David Lennon of Newsday, the Mets are not finding a deal to their liking for a reliever or outfielder. They've put pretty much all of their good prospects off-limits - Fernando Martinez, Jon Niese, Eddie Kunz or Bobby Parnell. Players such as...
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By Tim Dierkes [July 30, 2008 at 3:49pm CST]
Some additional notes from ESPN's Jayson Stark: The Mariners still want Jon Niese and another prospect for Raul Ibanez; the Mets are not biting. Similar situation with the Ms asking the Cubs for Felix Pie and another player. The Mets aren't in on Jarrod Washburn or Tim Redding. The Marlins are making it clear that there is no done deal for Arthur Rhodes. Clark Spencer had written the Fish "could be closer" to a deal for Rhodes than a catcher. Stark says the Mariners are driving a hard bargain for Rhodes, with the Red Sox, Marlins, Phillies, Brewers, Tigers, Mets,...
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By Tim Dierkes [July 29, 2008 at 12:06pm CST]
12:06pm: ESPN's Buster Olney ranks the Mets' priorities as reliever, corner outfielder, and starter, in that order. They're currently discussing Ibanez with the Mariners, but not much has come of it yet. 10:17am: Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger doesn't buy the denials - he says Mets GM Omar Minaya remains interested in Manny Ramirez. The Mets rank Ramirez above alternatives like Raul Ibanez, Adam Dunn, and Randy Winn, and might make certain prospects available just for Manny. Is Jon Niese among them? Niese is thought to be untouchable, and was promoted to Triple A today. Meanwhile Mets manager Jerry...
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By Tim Dierkes [July 27, 2008 at 10:11pm CST]
Rounding up rumors and links from the weekend... SI.com's Jon Heyman says the Mariners are asking the Mets for Jon Niese for Raul Ibanez. Not likely. ESPN's Buster Olney says the Braves would require Conor Jackson from the D'Backs in a Mark Teixeira deal, but Arizona is not biting. Another quick hit from Olney: the White Sox are surveying the relief market in the wake of Scott Linebrink's shoulder injury. Several readers have written in about Phillies' lefty J.A. Happ being pulled early from a Triple A start (2.2 scoreless innings) with no sign of injury. Something to keep an...
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