Let's check out the latest Mets-related links, as Carlos Beltran makes his spring debut vs. the Red Sox….
- Brian Costa of The Wall Street Journal explains one interesting way in which the Mets could avoid having Francisco Rodriguez's $17.5MM option for 2012 vest. K-Rod needs to finish 55 games this season to trigger the option.
- All signs point to Jose Reyes playing for a team other than the Mets in 2012, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Sherman talked to five non-Mets executives and not one expects to see New York re-sign Reyes. As we heard yesterday from SI.com's Jon Heyman, Reyes' OBP will be a major consideration as the Mets contemplate their future with the shortstop.
- In a separate piece, Sherman wonders whether we'll see a full-fledged fire sale from the Mets, with the Wilpons attempting to keep control of the team. Two rival execs that spoke to Sherman said it would be wise for the organization to cut payroll nearly in half for 2012. If the club were to go in that direction, deciding whether to try to extend or trade David Wright would be the toughest call, says Sherman.
- Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times examines why the Mets and Dodgers, two franchises with ownership uncertainties, are being treated differently by Bud Selig.
Do the “rival executives” who want the Mets to have a fire sale work in Philadelphia and the Bronx?
I wish they’d stop talking about fire sales in regards to the Mets. For fire sales to work, you have to have good players who teams want, and aside from Wright and Pagan, all we have are broken down bad contracts and high-paid injury risks.
How annoying is this new pop up advertising on this site… I wont be around much if that continues…
An ad-blocker is your friend. I never get those, or see any ads whatsoever.
firefox + adblock + noscript = live forever
Seriously, what kind of person who surfs the internet does not use an ad-blocker?
A person who cares about making whatever small amount of money I can via ad impressions for the sites that I enjoy frequently.
I swear the Mets are like the next Pirates in my eyes. At least they will have an excuse for being so bad for an extended period of time.
i know, people seem to think that to be a good team, you must first rid yourself of any sort of talent so that a magic 7-legged fairy will descend from the heavens and grant your team everlasting power and glory. see–pirates.
i love it even more when people think with the mentality of
“lets trade our best player we will just get a package of good-elite prospects anyway”
but in reality success in the minor leagues does not guarantee anything at the major league level. A set of good prospects could be total busts (see miguel cabrera trade)
I don’t think it’s quite as simple as “we think we’ll be better with prospects than with our best player.” And I don’t think that any GM in baseball is ignorant to the theory that prospects can go nowhere.
Teams that are not in contention for the World Series are looking into the future to see when they might envision themselves becoming more competitive. At the same time, they have to weigh the value of the contracts against the financial success of the team.
Usually, when trading away an established player for prospects, it is because they are aiming for some combination of:
1. reduce payroll
2. we are not good enough now, and by the time we get better, that established player will either be past his prime or cost us too much
3. that established player is in the last year of his contract, and rather than risk arbitration and get draft picks, we’ll take known prospects
4. We have a lot of potential for two years from now, whereas we are likely to finish with 75 wins this season. Let’s increase our chance of success in the future by risking nothing right now.
5. The amount we’re making in ticket revenue vs. the amount we’re spending on this established player isn’t worth it. We can dump that contract, acquire cheaper talent, and not lose a lot at the box office.
…and likely more reasons than that.
the problem is that the assets the mets have, bring more value in their play on the field than what they can command in a trade.
Perfect example is Castillo
He very well can perform at 2009 levels this year…which means a .300 average/380 OBP, decent defense…
but u couldnt trade Castillo for Robinson Cano or his pet lizard right now.
“one step at a time”, alderson said when asked about potentially resigning reyes next year. “i still haven’t figured out how we’re going to pay him this year”
lmao
the wilpons try to pay Reyes in Dominican Pesos.
Reyes: Huh?? 12 million Pesos is NOT 12 million dollars Mr. Wilpon
Jeff: We’ll throw in some chickens and platanos
Reyes: How about 9 million more dollars to go with that
Jeff: How about free membership to any Ballys health club
Reyes: How about you give me your house, sports car, boat, wife, and mistress.
Jeff: Can I keep the house and boat?
Reyes: For a cool 4 million yes.
Jeff: Deal ! My wife’s name is Martha, My mistress name is Steve. I drive a 1981 Porsche. Have fun !
Anything Joel Sherman says has to be taken with a grain of salt. That guy is full of crap.
If Bud Selig asked me for a loan, I’d turn him down. So now we’re even.
Bud is pretty liable in this BS with the Dodgers.
Based on absolutely nothing: I think if the Mets do indeed end up ridding themselves of most of their significant current players (Reyes, Wright) and questionable contracts (Bay, Beltran, etc.) and end up losing for a few years as a result of this financial mess, anddd there are some ownership changes beyond this whole “let’s sell a small amount of the team with no say in how things are run” strategy… it would make sense to revamp the Mets organization’s image. I know when the Rays changed their uniforms and whatnot it happened to coincide with when much of their young talent was ready. From a PR standpoint though I think it makes perfect sense for the Mets to try something like this eventually. Only after they hit bottom, however.
Sorry, but all I got out of this is that you want them to change their uniforms?
not that simple. has to do with branding the product in a way that the fan base will respond to. If I had access to the figures used in how Tampa Bay came to the decision they did (granted they had a name change involved too) I’d have a better argument. Changes in uniforms yeah sure but logos / advertising etc. could be involved in varying degrees. Mets are also slightly more old school than TB so there would be opposition.
The Mets are much more old school than TB, people are still fighting the black dropshadow and black/blue caps and uni’s, and that change was made almost 15 years ago. The Mets, brand wise, need to embrace what makes them unique. Keep the uni’s old school, don’t make moves in response to criticism from media/fans/etc. Updating the brand leads to lame promos like the Mercury Mets. 1 home uni, 1 road uni, keep the faces of your franchise, cherish and showcase the great Mets of the past. That’s the Mets best move.
New Mets lineup !
1 – Pagan ( CF )
2 – Thole ( C )
3 – Evans ( LF )
4 – Davis ( 1B )
5 – Flores ( 3B )
6 – F-Mart ( RF )
7 – Murphy ( 2B )
8 – Tejada ( SS )
SP
Pelfrey
Dickey
Niese
Gee
Young
YAYYYY
Wilpon should turn his organization’s payroll into the Ray’s model. Paying big money for free agents is wayyy overated and unnecessary. You can get similiar production for tens of millions less. Money spent unwisely is just a waste. Look at Oliver Perez, Jason Bay, Beltran and Santana last year…. what did you get for that 70 million right there? Basically a whole lot of nothing. Nobody talks about Santana as being a bad contract- that dudes elbow and shoulder is going to be needed bale wire and duct tape. He was good when he was young- but the Twins wisely got rid of him and the Mets have gotten 1 good year out of him.
Wilpon should turn his organization’s payroll into the Ray’s model.
Wilpon should sell to someone smarter and let them do it.
Umm…easier said than done. The Rays model is a combination of good management PLUS an enormous amount of luck. Other teams have diligently invested in their farm system for years and made the same good decisions as the Rays and haven’t gotten squat from their farm.
Good development>good scouting
Good development+good scouting = best case scenario
this is the case with the rays.
the mets would’ve had tim beckham up in the majors starting by now.
see milledge…wright…reyes…and the gazillion other prospects they rush all the time..
THIS is where I see Sandy having the most effect on the club. Not so much scouting cuz Omar and his team was GREAT at that …but a philosophy on development, which i felt they were getting better at when Terry Collins ran the minor leagues last year. I did not want terry getting the MLB job cuz I felt he was too instrumental in the improved development of their minor league system last year.
You left out the part about having to finish last/next to last for 10 years straight so you can get those nice high draft picks that turn into cheap production
I’d trade Wright and Reyes and get as much back as possible. Build that team around your park… pitching, speed and defense. The Mets need some gap hitters that can run (like Pagan).
Wright isn’t going to be traded, the end.
and that guy is omar minaya just look at the photo nuff said
I have another good way to stop KRod from reaching his quota of finished games. Have his father in law challenge him to a rematch and Rodriguez with tear another tendon.
Letting am elite closer come in a high leverage situation in the 7th inning is a good theory. When I actually see a manager do it, I’ll believe it.
The Mets have NO reason to trade Wright. Don’t do it Sandy. I was happy when the Mets signed you, don’t make me change my mind.
I love these things.. 5 non-met execs? so they already know what another team is going to do? they know how their internal discussions go? do all teams execs just go around and say “we as an organization arent going to do this”, months before the guy hits free agency? what if (and believe me, I know this is crazy hypothetical) reyes has a monster year, bats 330, and leads the mets deep in the playoffs, better yet to a world series victory.. do you honestly think the mets wouldnt sign him after that? they wouldnt be able to deal with fans in new york after that.. its new york, not the marlins
Except Reyes appears to be in decline and he will not propel the Mets to the WS unless he can pitch like Doc, and hit like a MVP…..even then its a stretch. New York fans can complain all they want but he is almost more gone than Crawford was from the Rays.
Yea, like every player, his best years are behind him at the ridiculously old age of 27.. get that player a wheelchair and move him to DH already…
He’s not old but he does “appear” to be in decline. The numbers that make him useful like his obp, SB, and power are all down from years past. Sure he could bounce back and bring his OBP to at least his career average and steal 50 bases again, but after 09’s injury and and 2010’s stats who knows. Fact is it will be nearly impossible for the Mets to win the WS, or even make the playoffs for the matter. I would be surprised if they come in ahead of the Marlins. This isnt the Giants who have an amazing pitching staff with a solid lineup, this is the Mets who have Johan, K-Rod, and what will probably be a plus lineup.
According to TC, Reyes already blew by the entire team in team races…the only one close was Pagan. Doesnt sound like he is injured now.
unless the mets get new ownership. I agree. Reyes is gone.
Unless the Mets are competing they would be stupid to hold onto Wright and Reyes much longer. Unless they develop a couple decent young pitchers this year they are just not going to be able to surround the two of them with too much talent. The market is thin too and even if someone was available the Yankees would likely get the first crack at them. Best to get a couple large packages of prospects than nothing at all and then have them leave anyway. When 3rd place is your best case scenario unless half your division gets injured its time to pack it up.
From April-July the rotation is
Pelfrey/Dickey/Niese/Young/Capuano
Assuming Santana comes back July…
the rotation would be
Santana/Pelfrey/Dickey/Niese/Young
they have the 3rd best rotation in the division, the 2nd best defense and on paper, the 2nd best offense. they have the players to surprise the division
I am a die hard Yankee fan who started watching baseball and the Yankees when I was 9 and it was also Jeters rookie year and I appreciate everything he has done for the team but the best thing he could do for the team is if Reyes has a good healthy year to tell the team that he will play in the outfield or 3rd with A-Rod becoming the full time DH and go after Reyes. He’ll only be 28 entering free agency. I know Jeter won’t be any better at 3rd then at ss but A-Rod isn’t Brooks Robinson either. Just an idea at least I would be thinking about it if I were Cashman or the steinbrenners. I’ll give Jeter this much at least when he gets to a ball hes good and he has great baseball instincts. Just his range pretty much stinks.
angels would like david wright, who do we call?
GHOSTBUSTERS! lmao.
Man talk about Debbie Downer’s.
What else ? Santa, Tooth Ferry, and Easter Bunny don’t exist.
Face it everyone Hates the Wilpons, but just accept the fact they are gonna go down with the Titanic and fight this to the very end.
“Tough call” on trading Wright might have been the stupidest thing written in a while
OBP is important, but the fact that it’s brought up in EVERY single conversation regarding signing (or re-signing a player in this case) now that Alderson is a GM is so damn stupid. Reyes has a career OBP of .335, but for 4 straight years his average OBP was .355. Given his struggles last season and being rushed back from injury and in some cases being forced to bat from one side of the plate, I think it’s safe to say that it was an abberration.
I also seriously doubt that Alderson says “Well, Jose, your OBP was only .343 this year, so we’re going to have to pass.”