Links for Tuesday…
- Twins assistant GM Rob Antony told Parker Hageman of Over The Baggy that the team just hired a stats guy. Also, Antony reads MLBTR every day!
- According to Tom Gage of the Detroit News, pitcher Casey Fien asked the Blue Jays why he was released and was told he was a liability.
- Scott Podsednik told MLB.com's Scott Merkin there was miscommunication between his agent and the White Sox this offseason, but Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn disagreed.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders if the Mets will be thinking about trading Fernando Martinez for a top-notch starter come July.
- Ed Price of AOL FanHouse tweets that the Rangers are still looking at bringing Ramon Vazquez back. Vazquez is a prime candidate to be traded or released by the Pirates before the season begins, though the Rangers added Hernan Iribarren ten days ago.
90 mil payroll, 184 million Mauer contract. Now a stats a guy? Carl Pohlad must be rolling over in his grave right now.
Anthony’s anti-sabermetrics philosophy must have people on this site dropping jaws…
What makes Sherman think that the Mets can land a “top-notch” starter with Martinez as the key piece?
Have you seen what Martinez has been doing all winter/spring? He has been tearing it up, he’s only 21 years old and if he can stay healthy he’s going to be in the big leagues before the end of the season. The kid has a world of potential still and this spring has shown it.
Oh yeah, winter/spring numbers! Like they carry any weight. Please.
…and Delwyn Young is slugging .818 this spring.
So there’s a GM out there who is going to trade a “top-notch” starter based on a few spring at-bats? Now if he’s actually healthy in July and raking at the AAA or MLB level then as a PIECE of a package for a solid (what “top-notch” guys are going to be available?) starter? Sure.
This is the METS, Perez is a “top-notch” starter to them. Many teams have junk like that to give away for a shot to see if Martinez is the next over hyped OF prospect (Escobar, Milledge, Gomez, the list goes on and on)
I am still shocked by Terry Ryan’s Santana trade. Man did we get hosed with that deal. Gomez stinks! The guy is dumb as dirt. Guerra (supposed ace potential), he stinks too. I don’t deny it we got hosed, but the Met’s farm system is awful.
actually, Bill Smith turned Gomez and Mulvey in to Hardy and Rauch.
Absolutely! Turned a bad deal into a pretty damn good haul IMO, and saved a TON of money that’s now spread out over several players. The 22 mil the Twins would have spent on Santana is now going to Baker, Hudson, Hardy, Rauch, Blackburn, Guerrier, Kubel, Span, Thome and there’s still some left over.
BTW, they still have Guerra, too, who is still young. If Guerra is going to make it anywhere, it’s going to be in the Twins farm system.
PLEASEEE…..The Mets have nothing but junk to trade. Everyone saw their supposed top notch talents when they traded for Santana. Guerra (sp), garbage…..Mulvey (sp), garbage……Gomez (of), all speed, no bat and absolutely no brains, well ya know. GARBAGE.
.
The Mets stink because their farm system is devoid of talent. F’Mart might end up being a halfway decent player, but demanding a “top-notch” starter. Sure (sarchastically)
Because Martinez (spring stats aside) has a lot of potential and is not in MLB’s top 50 prospects but thats because Jonathan Mayo messed up and he admitted it. He has a lot of potential. The Mets couldd get Bronson Arroyo or Edwin Jackson at least. Maybe Paul Maholm or Zach Duke. Possibly James Shields.
And he’s enough as the key piece in a trade for a “top-notch” starter? I don’t think so. Since when are Arroyo and Jackson top-notch starters? Neither are Maholm or Duke. But, I agree, Martinez could fetch any one of those four except Jackson who would demand more than just Martinez. And there’s no way that the Rays would give up Shields for Martinez.
If Martinez is healthy and performing, the Mets will want to replace Frenchy with him. If he’s injured or struggling, he won’t net them a top starter.
Dear Rangers Front Office,
Ramon Vazquez’s time in Pittsburgh is over. The Pirates would not want very much in return, maybe some rakes for the groundscrew or feed for the Parrot. Either way, he is not welcome back to PNC Park.
Sincerely,
Ian Smell
Zack Stewart, David Purcey for Martinez?
They might not be top notch at the moment but in a few years Stewart will be a #2 while purcey could start or close in the bullpen
David Purcey, although he has tremendous upside, isn’t the “top-notch” starter Sherman was talking about in his article. They are looking for a co-ace. If they were going to make any deal, I’d find guys like Roy Oswalt, Brandon Webb, etc. to be more likely. That being said, I’m not sure the Mets can put a package together to land those guys.
If pirates could get anything for ramon it be a win
I wouldn’t trade F-Mart for top pitching. The Mets have a huge payroll, and should use free agency to plug their needs. Don’t deplete the farm even more. Davis, Mejia, and F-Mart should be untouchable to protect the future. I can honestly see this class having a similar impact as when Wright and Reyes were brought up.
They need to be all in for Lee, Beckett, et al next year!
Agreed…I think F-Mart will replace either Beltran or Francour…If Mejia can project as a starter…
A rotation of
Santana
Free Agent
Niese
Mejia
Ollie
would probably work out ok
Pelf and Maine need to go
I was under the impression that Meijia was going to be use as a back of the bullpen type guy? I don’t follow the Mets, but is that the case, or is he heralded as more of a starter-type?
I believe he is a back end of the bullpen, possibly a closer, type of guy. Then again, he’s young, and everything can change based on his development.
It’s going to become painfully obvious by about May 1 that the Mets have a huge black hole in RF, and if Fernando Martinez is hitting well in AAA, it will be a no-brainer move to make him the starting RF for the big league team. Although on the other hand, the people running the Mets are dumb, so they probably won’t realize Frenchy can’t play until he’s OPSing .650 in mid-July and the season is down the tubes, at which point they’ll all be fired. I think it’s very likely that the Mets stumble badly out of the gate, given some of the guys they’re counting on to be starters. Six of their eight opening day position players are pretty bad players: whoever plays catcher, Daniel Murphy, Luis Castillo, Alex Cora, Angel Pagan and Jeff Francouer. I’m an eternal optimist but this team is going to be dreadful to watch.
They’re also trying their best to take the top prospect in the whole system, Jennry Mejia, and turn him into a middle reliever despite the fact that he has several plus pitches and is only 20 years old. One thing you can say about the Mets: they are not shy about dicking around with their top prospects and ruining them.
I’d like to know more about Fien being told he was a liability.. There has to be something more to the story.
With respect to Fien, he definitely got a raw deal in being bounced around and bad mouthed by the BJ’s. The BoSox were trying to quietly tuck him into the farm system, and I suspect the BJ’s were just pre-emptively trying to head that off when they claimed him off waivers. Their goal having been met, to show the guy disrespect on the back end after releasing him is just appalling.