All-purpose spring training news and non-news thread

[smg58]

It's actually $27M per year for the next three. He may ask for a trade -- and if he wants to go that badly the feeling would probably be mutual and the Yankees would quickly oblige him -- but I just don't see him simply walking away from that money. He could probably get 8 years and $160M if he opted out, but he'd need a reason to think he couldn't get 5 and $80M three years from now for it to pay. (The Texas Rangers, who are slated to pay him over $21M over the next three years to play for the Yankees, would probably throw a huge party if he did opt out, though.)

And besides, A-Rod would bet a better fit at second base than Wright.

[nymr83]

Wouldn't Reyes get moved to 2B again?
Isn't this the dumbest speculation ever?

[smg58]

Nymr83 wrote: Wouldn't Reyes get moved to 2B again? Isn't this the dumbest speculation ever?

I'd hope not, and of course it's dumb but the subject came up so I guess we're talking about it.

[metirish]

Ben Shpigel from the NYT thinks it's down to Park and Pelfrey for the fifth starters spot,with Pelfrey his favorite.( Shpigel is a good beat writer IMO)

] Needing One Starter, Mets Measure Park Against Prospect By BEN SHPIGEL Published: March 13, 2007 VIERA, Fla., March 12 � Chan Ho Park thought he threw one bad pitch in Monday�s game against the Washington Nationals. So did his catcher, Paul Lo Duca. The problem was, they were talking about different pitches, and that difference of opinion summed up Park�s performance in the Mets� 9-6 loss. No one came away from the outing especially impressed � or distressed. But in the continuing competition for a spot in the rotation, Park did nothing to prove that he should receive any more consideration than the other candidates. In the first two innings, he pitched as if he deserved a spot. Over the next inning and a third, he did not. His unflattering pitching line: three and a third innings, five hits, four runs, two walks, six strikeouts, a wild pitch and a hit batter. �He was struggling with his command, but it�s only his second time out,� Manager Willie Randolph said. �I don�t take a whole lot away from that. I think he threw the ball O.K. But it was like the first time out; he was a little erratic in the zone.� With John Maine and Oliver P�rez practically assured of making the rotation, the competition for the final spot figures to intensify this week. Randolph refused to handicap the field, saying, �I�m not ready to start plucking guys out.� But the race has begun to sort itself out. Of the seven contenders, only Mike Pelfrey has consistently impressed team officials this spring. His slider is improving, and he throws a heavy sinking fastball that gives hitters little choice but to pound it into the ground. Against Baltimore on Thursday, Pelfrey faced 13 batters and induced 12 ground balls. In five innings, he has not allowed an earned run. He is scheduled to pitch four innings Wednesday against Detroit. The Mets signed pitchers like Aaron Sele and Park to provide insurance in case prospects like Pelfrey and Philip Humber were not ready. Humber could help the team later this season, but he has not pitched well this spring, allowing eight runs in three innings. The Mets would love to have Pelfrey continue to pitch well and claim the final spot. Park may be the biggest obstacle. Earlier in his career, when he had success with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Park threw his fastballl in the mid-90s, complementing it with a slider that he prefers to call a �hard curveball.� His velocity has decreased since then, forcing him to rely more on his off-speed pitches and a sinker that he picked up toward the end of his time in Texas in 2004. �He can throw four pitches for strikes,� said Lo Duca, who first caught Park when they played for the Dodgers. �But when he has to, he can run it up there.� Park allowed one hit through the first two innings, striking out three � all on breaking balls. Leading off the third, Nook Logan ripped a triple that skipped past first baseman Carlos Delgado and right fielder Lastings Milledge. Park struck out the next two hitters, but on a 2-2 pitch to Chris Snelling, his inside fastball tailed in and clipped Snelling on the ankle. That was Park�s bad pitch. Ryan Zimmerman followed by belting a hanging slider � Lo Duca called that Park�s bad pitch � for a ground-rule double. Another run scored on a wild pitch. After striking out Robert Fick to end the inning, Park allowed a walk, a single, a sacrifice and a two-run single in the fourth before being replaced by Alay Soler. Park threw 76 pitches on a warm afternoon, and he said he started tiring toward the end. �My legs, not my arm,� he said. Soler did not help himself either, allowing two runs and raising his earned run average to 8.22. He, Humber and Sele stand the least chance of making the team. Sele, signed to a minor league deal, has been hit hard and is a candidate to pitch for Class AAA New Orleans. Among the rest, Jason Vargas has pitched well, but not as well as Pelfrey. And Jorge Sosa could prove more of an asset in the bullpen, especially considering the uncertain status of Duaner S�nchez, who is coming off shoulder surgery. That leaves Park and Pelfrey. In the first eight days of the season, the Mets have three days off that are spaced so that Randolph has the option of not using a fifth starter until the 12th game, April 15. If Pelfrey makes the roster and does not start until then, Randolph could make the smart first step in limiting Pelfrey�s innings and keeping him fresh for later in the season. The Mets have less than three weeks to choose their rotation. That should be enough time for them to decide whether Park is one pitch from a great outing, or if he has thrown one bad pitch too many. INSIDE PITCH Willie Randolph said he did not like that the Mets were 2-8-1 in their past 11 games, but he said he had not started worrying about it � yet. �I�ve been to a lot of spring trainings, and many times the record doesn�t mean a thing,� he said.

[soupcan]

Is anyone giving any weight whatsoever to the Mets ST record of 4-9-1?

I don't think I care for all the reasons that we all know - It's Spring Training, the games don't count, the managers don't manage to win, the players are working on things rather than doing what they might normally do in a given situation in the regular season. The Mets have lost a few games by blowing late leads that would normally have been protected by established bullpen vets rather than unproven minor league talent or starters and such in unfamiliar roles, etc., etc.

I'm thinking that this team is pretty solid and Willie will have them together and ready when the bell rings.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I'm human and I'm a Met fan. I care when the Mets lose. Or guys wearing the Met uniform who may never be Mets lose.

Intellectually, I'm usually able to divorce my disappointment from the higher stakes of the regular season. I'm more concerned with matters of key individuals. Green, Delgado, Hernandez, Adkins, Franco. Heilman also.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

I'm concerned, not because of the record necessarily but how we've acheived it -- with Alou not contributing, and Delgado & LoDuca hurting; and without Sanchez, and with Burgos pitching poorly.

If missing important parts of the O, and getting shoddy bullpen work is what we might expect for the season we're gonna be in trouble.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

On a positive note we're beating the fat out of CC Sabathia right now. Green and Reyes have HRs in the 2nd inning and it's 4-0.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Green's little rennaissance has been a sweet little ride this week. Let's hope it's a real one.

[Frayed Knot]

.