After a week in which the Mets lost Matt Harvey for the season and traded Marlon Byrd and John Buck to the Pirates, GM Sandy Alderson sent out a letter to team season ticket holders. The letter, which was passed along by Kristie Ackert of the Daily News, re-iterated the club's desire to win as many games as possible in 2013, even though they won't be playoff bound. "This offseason, we will explore every possible way of improving our club. Trades and free agent signings always seem to get the most attention, but helping our current players also will be a key to improving in 2014 and beyond," Alderson wrote. Here's more out of the NL East..
- David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News explains why another year of Kyle Kendrick at about $8MM would be a good deal for the Phillies. Kendrick's two-year, $7.5MM deal expires this season, leading to his final year of arbitration eligibility. Kendrick, 29, owns a 4.40 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 on the year.
- The Phillies officially signed Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez today and GM Ruben Amaro Jr. sounds confident that the deal is a worthwhile risk for the club despite health concerns, writes CSNPhilly.com's Jim Salisbury.
- Nationals manager Davey Johnson told 106.7 The Fan that he feels this is a good time for him to "ride off into the sunset," writes Patrick Reddington of Federal Baseball. However, it sounds as though the 70-year-old still wants to work in baseball in some capacity.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney (video link) explains why the Marlins' Jose Fernandez should be the Rookie of the Year.
