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Shapiro, Minaya Met Yesterday

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Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes that phone buddies Mark Shapiro and Omar Minaya met in person yesterday evening.  Any chance the Indians and Mets could match up for a trade?

We know the Mets may be looking to move Jorge Sosa and/or Scott Schoeneweis.  The Indians are currently trying to decide whether to give their last bullpen spot to Tom Mastny, Jorge Julio, or Scott Elarton; not sure if either Met pitcher would help. 

The Mets are known to be looking for outfield assistance.  The Indians have two out of options outfielders: Shin-Soo Choo and Franklin Gutierrez.  Choo is recovering from Tommy John surgery and may have to join the South Korean army.  Gutierrez is the frontrunner to start in right field.  Theoretically the Tribe could part with half of their left field platoon – David Dellucci or Jason Michaels.  Dellucci is shaking off a sore forearm currently.

The Mets could also use another starter; Cliff Lee or Jeremy Sowers might be available.

Nationals Release John Patterson

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6:58pm: Bart Hubbach of the New York Post says the Mets are not interested in Patterson.  The Astros may take a look.

2:18pm: Today the Nationals released oft-injured starter John Patterson, who hasn’t had a healthy season since his excellent 2005.  Patterson says he’s healthy, but wasn’t progressing as quickly as the Nationals had hoped.  His velocity has been down this spring.  Based on his comments he seems like a good guy; I’m sure he’ll find work with another club.

Patterson was drafted fifth overall by the Expos in ’96, but jumped to Arizona as a $6MM loophole free agent after Montreal didn’t offer him a contract within fifteen days.  The D’Backs’ top pitching prospect needed Tommy John surgery in May of 2000, before he reached the bigs.

He made his big league debut in July of ’02 as an injury replacement for Rick Helling.  He also received a September call-up to finish off that season.  Patterson was named by Bob Brenly as the fourth starter heading into the ’03 season, but a poor spring performance and a cut on his thumb caused Brenly to change his mind.  Patterson bounced up and down between Triple A and the Majors that year.

Out of options in ’04, the D’Backs delayed their decision on Patterson until late March and then shipped him to Montreal for nondescript reliever Randy Choate.  Patterson opened the season as the Expos’ fifth starter, but tore a groin muscle and didn’t come back until July.  His performance after that was erratic, but he excelled in the winter league after the season.

A Tony Armas injury helped Patterson snag a rotation spot to begin ’05, and he was masterful in 31 starts that year (despite a DL stint for back spasms).  With big expectations for ’06, Patterson discovered forearm soreness in April.  The injury didn’t go away, and Patterson had exploratory nerve surgery in July.

That winter Patterson lost his arbitration case but entered the season a healthy pitcher (aside from dizzy spells in spring).  Biceps and elbow soreness surfaced in May; his velocity was down all year.  In June he went to Canada for an injection-based nerve treatment in his elbow.  Though he deemed the procedure a success, Patterson went under the knife again in September to remove upper arm scar tissue and deal with more nerve problems.  While the velocity has been down this spring, Patterson hasn’t dealt with any injuries yet.  After reviewing his history, I realized Patterson is a marvel of modern science.  Still, it seems the man’s body was just not meant to pitch every five days. 

Stark’s Latest: Roberts, Fuentes, Lofton

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ESPN’s Jayson Stark has a new blog post jam-packed with hot stove rumors.

  • The Cubs are getting frustrated with the Brian Roberts situation, wondering if they’ll ever complete this trade.  The Orioles are scouting players but still haven’t given the Cubs the names they crave.  I got the exact same vibe from the source who told me Jose Ceda’s inclusion was never proposed by the Cubs.
  • The Tigers and Phillies are both hunting for bullpen help; Detroit’s sights are set higher than Philadelphia’s.  Unwanted players such as Wes Helms and Brandon Inge aren’t in demand.  And while Marcus Thames is desirable, he’s not enough to get Aaron Heilman from the Mets.  Brian Fuentes, also a Yankees target, may be the best available reliever.  But Stark says the Rox want a "high-upside young arm" for the southpaw.
  • My own guess at some useful relievers who may be available: Damaso Marte, Joe Nathan, Jamie Walker, Chad Bradford, Huston Street, Alan Embree, Kevin Gregg, Jon Rauch, and Chad Cordero.
  • Stark names the Cubs, Rays, and Mets as the teams looking for an extra outfielder.  No deals appear imminent, though the Rays made an unsuccessful offer to Kenny Lofton.  The Mets and Cubs are considering the same names we’ve heard for a few weeks now.  The Cubs are in a holding pattern since they may get Jay Payton in a Roberts deal with Baltimore. 

Odds and Ends: Rivera, Hamels, Sherrill

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Here’s today’s gathering of links.

  • John Shea examines the Giants’ roster crunch, which would be greatly relieved by trading Dave Roberts and Steve Kline.
  • Adam Rubin implies that the Angels want too much from the Mets for Juan Rivera – Jon Niese or Bobby Parnell.  A deal seems unlikely.
  • Cole Hamels, accused by a heckler of being a cross between Casey Fossum and Shawn Camp.  BURNED!
  • Buster Olney is hearing from other teams that the Orioles may shop 30 year-old newly anointed closer George Sherrill this summer.
  • Joe Christensen believes that we’ll learn about Joe Nathan’s future with the Twins by week’s end.
  • Brock For Broglio posted an interesting interview with Voros McCracken.  This quote from McCracken caught my eye: "One of the things that kind of bugged me with the Red Sox was a somewhat implied expectation that I’d come up with something like DIPS on a regular basis."

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Rule 5 Draftees

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Last year the Reds selected Josh Hamilton in the Rule 5 draft despite only 23 games above Single-A and only 15 games anywhere since 2002 (actually the Cubs picked Hamilton and traded him to the Reds the same day). Hamilton went on to hit .292-19-47 in 90 games. This year, 18 players were chosen in the Rule 5 draft (14 pitchers). These players must remain on the 25-man roster all season or be offered back to their original club for $25K. By my count, three players (Sergio Valenzuela, Lincoln Holdzkom, Jose Capellan) have already been offered back to their original clubs (Capellan was picked up on waivers by a third team during the process). Hamilton is the rare case of a position player sticking with his new club as it is far easier to hide a developing pitcher and still get him playing time in the bullpen than it is on the bench.While it is rare for position players to stick, we have already learned that the Cardinals may keep Brian Barton as a fifth outfielder. As opening day rosters begin to take shape, let’s take a look at what is being said in the Blogosphere about the chances for the Rule draftees.

  • Tim Lahey (RHP, CHC/MIN): Bleed Cubbie Blue sees the Cubs working out a trade with the Twins that would allow them to send Lahey to AAA. In fact, they speculate that Lahey will be the PTBNL in the Craig Monroe deal.
  • Evan Meek (RHP, PIT/TB): Bucs Dugout predicts that Meek will at least start the season with the Pirates before being offered back to the Rays.
  • Randor Bierd (RHP, BAL/DET): Bird Brain projects Bierd to make the roster and hopes the O’s give him every chance to stick.
  • Jose Capellan (LHP, CIN/BOS): Capellan was originally selected by the Giants but was just placed on waivers. The Reds picked him up (Rule 5 rules still apply) and Obsessive Giants Compulsive is surprised the Giants let him go.
  • Sergio Valenzuela (RHP, CIN/ATL): Valenzuela was sold back to the Braves after not making a single appearance in a spring game. The Braves then traded Valenzuela to a team in the Mexican League. Which begs the question…Are "future considerations" from the Mexican League worth the $25K the Braves dropped to bring him back? Talking Chop finds the entire situation funny and is not surprised that Valenzuela did not stick with the Reds.
  • Brian Barton (OF, STL/CLE): Cardinals GM is predicting Barton to be on the opening day roster with Juan Gonzalez starting the season in AAA.
  • R.A. Dickey (RHP, SEA/MIN): Detect-O-Vision is infatuated with the knuckleballer but notes that Dickey "has a looooooooooong way to go".
  • Steven Register (RHP, NYM/COL): Mets Fever thinks Register might actually stick by earning the final spot in the bullpen.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Odds and Ends: Jerome Williams, Linden, Lo Duca

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Below you’ll find the day’s random rumors and links.

Pierre’s Days With Dodgers May Be Numbered

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The Orange County Register speculates this morning that Juan Pierre may be on the verge of losing his job after only one season with the Dodgers, which may force a trade. If true, the Dodgers will have received only one year of service for their $44MM investment.

Tony Jackson notes that with center field belonging to Andruw Jones, that leaves two spots for Pierre, Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp. Ethier and Kemp have shown this spring that they may be ready for everyday jobs. Jackson also suggests that Pierre is not an ideal candidate for the bench even if the remaining 4 years and $36.5MM on his contract are discounted.

It was previously mentioned that Pierre may be willing to waive his no-trade clause, which limits the Dodgers to five teams. However the A’s, one rumored destination, are not interested. If Pierre is traded, the Dodgers will most likely have to swallow a good portion of the remaining contract. Would the Mets get involved if talks with the Tigers and Jay fall through? Pierre might only cost them $24MM for the next four years and middling prospect.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Barry Bonds

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The biggest name remaining in the free agent market is one Barry Lamar Bonds. The most recent rumored destinations for the all-time home run champ have been the Rays, Mets and even Japan. The Rays say there was never any serious consideration and the Mets say they are not interested.

The biggest question mark concerning Bonds is whether his production at age 43 is worth the circus that follows, both in the clubhouse and in the media. Yesterday at my home base, Rays Index, I contacted Chone Smith of Anaheim Angels All The Way, and creator of the CHONE projection system.  Smith had used his projection system to predict that the final regular season standings. The Rays are projected to win 89 games and finish third in the AL East, based on a considerable improvement in pitching and defense. The Mets are projected to win 92 games.

In an effort to estimate Bonds’ on-field impact, we asked Smith to substitute Bonds into the Rays and Mets lineups and rerun his projections. With Bonds in the lineup, both the Mets and the Rays improved by 3 games in the standings and approximately 30 net runs (As an Angels fan, Smith kindly refused to run the same projection for the Mariners or the A’s, lest those teams start thinking Bonds is a good idea).

If the Rays are indeed an 87-89 win team (PECOTA projects 88 wins), then Bonds might be a difference-maker. While signing Bonds may indeed be a headache, the difference between 89 wins and 92 wins for the Rays could be the difference between the 2007 Brewers (just missed) and the 2007 Rockies (World Series). And the difference between 92 wins and 95 wins for the Mets could be the difference between the 2007 Mets (one game short) and the 2007 Phillies (one game not short).

To quote one commenter from Rays Index, "Media scrutiny is only hard if you suck.  If you’re good, it’s fun."

Let’s take a look at what else is being said about Bonds in the Blogosphere…

If there is a topic you would like to see covered in "Baseball Blogs Weigh In" please let me know HERE.

  • Squawking Baseball thinks the Angels could be a solid fit for Bonds.
  • Baseball Musings will miss Bonds if he doesn’t play this year, and lists several teams that should consider signing him.
  • Amazin’ Avenue explores "The Bonds Market" and express their desire for the Mets to sign the aging slugger, calling the apparent blackballing "disgraceful".
  • Mike’s Mets doesn’t see Bonds as a clubhouse cancer and thinks he would be good for the Mets, but does not think he will fit from a financial perspective.
  • Bugs & Cranks feels that the Dodgers would have a much better shot at winning the NL West if they signed Bonds.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Bogus Crisp To Mets Rumor

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2:34pm: Theo Epstein says he hasn’t been talking to the Mets.  Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe labels this rumor a fabrication.

2:10pm: Newsday’s David Lennon confirms the Mets haven’t traded for Crisp, implying that they wouldn’t be interested.

1:13pm: WFAN’s Ed Coleman reports rumblings of a possible Coco Crisp to the Mets deal, which would involve Angel Pagan.  It’s not confirmed or official, but it’s out there.  When I get more I’ll update the post.

Crisp’s contract: $4.75MM in ’08, $5.75MM in ’09, and an $8MM club option for ’10 with a $0.5MM buyout.  Crisp has posted an OPS around .700 for Boston while playing stellar center field defense.  I imagine he’d spend time at all three outfield positions for the Mets if acquired.

Pagan, 26, started in the Mets’ organization.  The outfielder plays all three positions and has a career line of .255/.306/.415.  In January of ’06, the Cubs purchased his contract from the Mets.  He made the Cubs’ Opening Day roster, but a torn hamstring knocked him out until July.  The following year he got the call in May to replace Felix Pie.  Then he had an unfortunate bout with colitis.  In January of this year, the Mets reacquired Pagan from the Cubs for Corey Coles and Ryan Meyers.

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