CALLING ALL COLLIERS - 2006

[Guest abogdan]

With Nady already in the fold, I don't see that signing another RH 1B/OF type for the bench would make great sense. If they could sign him to a minor league deal and keep him in Norfolk for a month or so until someone gets hurt, though, that would be a great idea.

[nymr83]

Nady hurts lefties himself so that seems like a redundant move to me.

[Frayed Knot]

Yeah, Perez was mentioned by some of the papers as a possible Minaya target - but that was all pre-Nady.

[Vic Sage]

Hey, Omar!

I'd be all smiles
if the Mets signed Giles

his age is no reason
to blow it this season

and just check your facts
ain't no luxury tax!

you win the race
by gettin' on base

And we'd be flyin'
if we had Brian

I'll get in your face
and stay on your case

until you stack cash in piles
and go sign Brian Giles

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Today's (11/27) Daily News sez the Mets like 35 y.o. infielder Jose Valentin to assume Marlon Anderson's role.

]IN THE MIX: Infielder Jose Valentin told a Puerto Rican newspaper that Mets executive Tony Bernazard had called him saying the team was interested in signing him as a utility player. The Mets apparently used one of their Puerto Rican stars, Carlos Beltran, to help. Beltran, Valentin said, gave Bernazard his telephone number. Beltran and Valentin were both born in Manati. "Tony Bernazard called me and told me that they are interested in my services because I could play various positions and that I'd be able to play regularly like Marlon Anderson did," Valentin told the Spanish-language paper El Nuevo Dia in yesterday's editions. "I would like to be on this team because I'll be with various Puerto Rican players, Beltran and (Carlos) Delgado, and if they sign (catcher Bengie) Molina, it's even better. "Moreover," Valentin added, "I'm looking for a team with the opportunity to win a championship." Valentin, a switch-hitter, appeared in only 56 games for the Dodgers last season because of a right knee injury, batting .170 with two homers and 14 RBI. The previous year, he slugged 30 homers for the White Sox, but batted .216 with a .287 on-base percentage and made 20 errors. He was dumped and Chicago went on to win the World Series.

Bill Madden obviously wrote the last sentence

[nymr83]

Omar, i promise there will be plenty of utility infielders available in February, please go get us a RF/C/2B, thank you.

[Guest OlerudOwned]

="Johnny Dickshot"]Today's (11/27) Daily News sez the Mets like 35 y.o. infielder Jose Valentin to assume Marlon Anderson's role.

He's like a bizarro Marlon. Lots-O-Power, but not good as an OBP guy. (His best season was .259 AVG / .336 OBP. It was 1996)

[Guest Edgy DC]

It's silly to entertain the notion that by making an offer to a potential reserve, the Mets braintrust is somehow putting on the back burner the pursuit of players to fill more featured roles.

It would put some power on the bench, potenially --- although neither Jose Valentin nor Jay Bell had any power left when the Mets tried them as reserves.

[Valadius]

OlerudOwned might be Kreskin. See page one.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Daily News:

]With Franco and the switch-hitting Valentin joining Ramon Castro, Chris Woodward, Victor Diaz and Tike Redman, the Mets' bench seems all but complete. But a Mets official suggested the team might not be done and portrayed it as unlikely that righthanded hitting outfielders Diaz and Xavier Nady would be on the major-league roster. With Julio following in the footsteps of John and Matt, the Mets have had every player named Franco in major league history.

I don't have a great feel for the Mets' take on Diaz any more.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Our Updated Bench as of 12-9:

Presumed 'Starters'

Chris Woodward R/R -- SS, 2B, 1B, LF, RF


Xavier Nady R/R -- LF, RF, 1B, 3B
and/or
Victor Diaz R/R -- LF/RF



Castro R/R -- C


Julio Franco R/R -- 1B


Jose Valentin B/R -- 3B, 1B, 2B, SS, LF


Tike Redman, B/R -- CF, LF, RF


The Minor Candidates:

Jeff Keppinger R/R -- 2B

A. Hernandez B/R -- SS/2B -- 3B?

Eric Valent L/L -- 1B/LF/RF -- CF?

Brian Daubach L/L -- 1B

Out of the race:

Mark Sweeney -- L/L 1B -- Signed with SF

Miguel Cairo R/R -- 2B, 1B, LF, RF -- nontendered

Jose Offerman B/R -- 1B -- LF/2B -- nontendered

Ice Williams R/R -- CF/LF -- nontendered

[Guest Edgy DC]

Mets.com is still listing Franco's signing as "possible."

[Guest Rotblatt]

You're missing Tike Redman in there, JD. Of course, he's kind of useless as a lefty off the bench since he has a reverse split, but at least technically he'll be joining Valentin as a lefty.

[Guest sharpie]

Looks like Tike'll make it because they will need a CF option. That makes 14 hitters, 11 pitchers, which is the split that I like.

This isn't a bad bench.

[Elster88]

I like Woody

[MFS62]

JD,
re: your list

If Nady AND Diaz both ride the pine as bench players, who are you saying would be the "regular" right fielder, Tike?
Who else?

Later

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Thanks rottty, I'll add.

[Vic Sage]

i think Diaz might go, and they'll use a 5 man bench to carry 12 pitchers (maybe keeping the rule 5 guy).

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

That bench could use a left handed power threat. Tike Redman and John Valentin don't offer much power from either side of the plate.

[Frayed Knot]

Valentin (Jose, not John) a switch-hitter, is a decent HR threat.
In fact, that's all he may be at this point.

[Elster88]

Rockin' Doc wrote: That bench could use a left handed power threat. Tike Redman and John Valentin don't offer much power from either side of the plate.

I think too much of this is made sometimes. We didn't have a left-handed power threat on the bench last year and the bench had one of the greatest "bench seasons" of all time, I think. Woody and Castro, just off the top of my head, had game winning homers, even if Castro's was as a starter. Both of those guys are coming back. Now we add Valentin who has power. Lefty vs righty may not be such a big difference. Put a guy up there who can hit a double and hope for the best if nothing else.

[Frayed Knot]

We got some good bench play last year -- but it was mostly singles. Yeah, there were some HRs - and some timely ones too - but every team's going to get their share of those, even if only by accident.

The problem we'd have in trying to re-create last year's irregulars is that it'll be tough to count on as many hits finding holes as last season. We were good but mainly from a BA standpoint. Any duplication could be purely coincidental because there were just too many "similar" players; too many slap-hitting, middle infielders; Offerman, Anderson, Woodward, etc., and even our OF sub - "Ice" - was a singles hitter. Every once in a while you need someone who has the ability to make the opposing manager wet his pants in late innings, or at least change pitchers as soon as the PH is seen swinging sledge-hammers in the on-deck circle.
Tony Clark, for instance, would have been a menace on last year's squad.
I'm not sure if Valentin's going to be that guy but he's a start. So is Old Man River plus the sitting half of Nady/Diaz.

btw, If Nady starts the year riding the bench, I betting it won't take to long for the first columnist to suggest that 'no one (esp Willie) puts Nady in a corner' (OF position)

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Frayed Knot - "Valentin (Jose, not John) a switch-hitter, is a decent HR threat..."

Ever since the Mets signed Jose Valentin, my feeble mind has kept insisting it was former Met John Valentin. Even though I know John Valentin was exclusively a right handed player, retired from baseball following his 2002 season with the Mets, and he looked nothing like Jose Valentin, my mind kept stubbornly overlooking those facts since they did not support the preconcieved notions I had imagined.

Though I'm pretty sure I would have eventually figured out my error sometime between now and spring training, I appreciate you pointing out my error. That explains quite a bit.

Without question, Jose Valentin has historically posed a greater home run threat than John Valentin did during his career..