While arbitration cases continue to be settled and the final handful of straggling free agents negotiate with potential suitors, here's some notes from a few front offices around the Majors on Thursday …
- Mets owner Fred Wilpon said that he'd like to see former GM Omar Minaya return to the team in an advisory role, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Minaya, of course, was replaced by Sandy Alderson following the 2010 season but remains under contract with the Mets and is owed approximately $1.1MM annually through 2012. Wilpon said Minaya is a good person and would be a welcome re-addition to the organization, but he understands that Minaya has needed time to evaluate his options. Begley speculates that Minaya could return in a talent-evaluation capacity, perhaps internationally.
- Indians GM Chris Antonetti said that he expects to land another player or two this offseason, tweets Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Bastian notes that the Tribe could still use a third baseman and starting pitcher, in particular. Antonetti is in his first year as Indians GM.
- Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos said that Toronto is likely done making any major moves this offseason, but minor ones remain possible, according to Shi Davidi of the Candian Press (twitter links). Of course, Anthopoulos added the caveat that this could change with one phone call.
- Padres GM Jed Hoyer, similar to Anthopoulos, said he has a pretty good idea of what his club is going to look like this season, barring any unforeseen injuries, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com. Hoyer is happy with the Padres' offseason in the wake of the momentous Adrian Gonzalez swap, writes Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune, and said that the organization targeted free agents who were coming off down seasons in 2010 in the hopes that they might rebound with the Friars in 2011.
hahahah, what a great time to be a Blue Jays fan. This is the most excited I have been since (excluding the world series), I used to listen to them on the radio while camping in Northern Ontario.
Forgive me, but are you serious? I would be happy to trade MLB’s most “toxic” contract. But how can they compete in that division? If you finish not in last place you had a great season.
The truth is we have a new team with a new core and a new manager. With Wells moving out, Bautista becomes the new centre of our batting lineup, the back end of our rotation is new, our relief is completely new and the way in which all of them will be handled is new. I mean, those are a lot of question marks, but it’s certainly going to be a year to watch!
“Of course, Anthopoulos added the caveat that this could change with one phone call.”
LOL I love Alex.
things could change with one phone call? I wonder if that is one call from someone specific. what a tease.
Minaya would make a great advisor. Ask his opinion and then do the opposite.
… Come on, someone had to say it.
He would be perfect as “director of amateur scouting”.. Though it might not be easy to put his pride aside and work under his replacement.
Yeah, he’ll catch on somewhere as a special assistant or advisor. As much as I love making fun of the guy he did make a few good moves and probably wouldn’t rank on my worst GMs list.
Didn’t they say they were interested in improving at 3B tonight?
When Robbie Alomar showed up, someone screamed “Can you play third??”
So the Mets are in the market for a … Tutor? Come to find out nobody hired in the front office speaks spanish.
Sandy Alderson and Terry Collins show up and look over the roster and say:
“How the hell are we going to talk to these guys?”
I got this.
Hello, Sandy? How soon can I start?!
Llámame….or just slip a note in with my next invoice. :p
Minaya was always the “scouting” guy. That was supposed to be his forte, especially in international markets.
Wilpon just hired another MLB Puppet.
First Minaya took over the MLB owned Expos. And he pulled the trigger on the infamous Bartolo Colon, Lee Stevens for Brandon Phillps, Grady Sizemore and Cliff Lee trade.
That crippled the Expos and still haunts the Nationals now. Should have used that “scouting eye” then.
Minaya is what he is and he is just another baseball man with who is bilingual. Thats it. Nothing else he is not special.
And who are you to say that? I’m not defending Minaya in any way, shape or form and don’t get me wrong, he’s made some very questionable trades and decisions in his career but saying someone is “not special” when they’ve been in charge of major sports franschises is nonsense. He has to be more special than you to have the opportunity to head multimillion dollar organizations.
for someone who’s so opinionated.. you would think you would atleast have a clue what your talking about…
I’ve actually wanted Omar back as maybe the head scout for the Latin American program. Unlike some people I won’t let what he did as a GM cloud my judgement of what he can bring to the team in another role that he’d flourish in.
Minaya had his chance forget him
So you are buying all the wolf tickets? Right on. I got bridge for you to take a look near Brooklyn…
The Blue Jays should have an elite farm system. When were they good again?
Paging Joe Carter….No we were good in mid 2000’s Paging Pat Hentgen.
I mean come on. You have had top 15 picks for what say the last what like 8 or 9 years. So you better have a loaded farm system. Not to mention you traded maybe the best pitcher of the generation in his prime. And the reason for the trade: cause he was tired of losing to the good teams.
And almost all the elite farm systems are owned by elite MLB teams.
So I don’t want to hear about prospects. Every LOSING organization sells their fan base on it.
‘and if you disagree that just means you don’t realize how poorly run the Blue Jay organization has been run since Pat Gillick left office.’
So best of luck to the Leafs and we will see you next June picking in the top 15.
Ah its’ nice to see someone that can’t make a valid statement without trying to bring someone down but then has to resort to racist or defensive comments to try and validate another rediculous statement. I’m not Indian but you probably can’t tell because you have your head so far up yourself that you can do a self Colonoscopy.
Wow. Is this based on how you feel? Because it’s certainly not based on actual real-world information.
The Jays have had winning seasons in 8 of the last 13 seasons. And a few of those losing seasons were very close (80-82 in 2001 and 2005).
Those winning seasons then has an effect on the draft picks we get. Because of that, we didn’t have, as you guess, top 15 in the last decade. By what I see with a quick five minutes research, about half the time were we well-positioned. Granted, not all of the picks turned out to be decent players. But now we’ve got Romero, Snider, Purcey, Arencibia and Drabek working at the big-league level. And more highly touted (Lawrie, Hechevarria) in the wings.
And I’m sure you know, since you’re well-informed about the organisation, that there has recently been a change of management and an organisation-wide shift toward scouting. It’s said that the Jays have the biggest scouting crew in the majors.
In any case, do you really expect to convince a hometeam fan against thinking positive about the upcoming season? From an outsider perspective? Really?
“So I don’t want to hear about prospects. Every LOSING organization sells their fan base on it.”
So every organization except the maybe 5 who can afford to buy their teams… You make no sense. Every team can go out and buy players but only certain teams know how to draft. This is what is wrong with baseball.. people like you who think teams should just be bought. Here is an idea, join the rest of your “fans” as they pile out of Yankee Stadium in the 6th inning.
Why don’t you check where the Jays finished meatball in relation to all our top 15 picks before you make claims–you moron
onewildman?
more like
onewildlyuniformedandunintelligentman
“And almost all the elite farm systems are owned by elite MLB teams.”
If this is true then I guess you can agree that the Jays are potentially on their way to becoming an elite team since they currently posses one of the MLBs elite farm systems.
Yankee fan stupidity—enjoy your overpaid team get old
Tell me about it. It’s not like
everyany difference of opinion has to deteriorate into mindless one-upmanship & put-downs around here – and that goes triple for bigotry and ignorance. Maybe we could skip that crap and actually have a civil exchange of ideas? Just a crazy thought…. 😉Whatever. Go Mets!!
Minaya’s a clown, ruined with a capital “R” this franchise. This just proves you can’t hire your friends and you especially cannot force your ethnical heritage in a business that will eat you alive for it.
Actually that’s not true. It is hardly a secret that on the management side of things, the industry is very much run as an old-boy network; largely populated by guys who got their jobs through friends on the inside — guys with pull who were much like themselves. Billy Beane describes it as more of a social club than a business with jobs often created just to accommodate a buddy, rather than meet an actual need for the organization. So in this aspect – and independent of his effectiveness as a GM on the whole — Omar stands out because he operated much the way any “old boy” would…but he just wasn’t one of them.