Moises Alou - This Year's Derek Bell?

[Willets Point]

Or something more?

Discuss.

[metirish]

Does Alou have a yacht and does he take ot to Shea?

[Theoldmole]

You worry too much. It's baseball. Enjoy it.

[Willets Point]

Ok, I'll start:

Similarities:
1. Not much was expected of either when acquired over the offseason other than a veteran bat and outfielder.
2. Both started the season extremely hot.

Differences:
1. Less was expected of Bell who was basically a throw-in in the Hampton deal. Alou is expected to be a least as important as Cliff Floyd was last season.
2. Alou has had a much better career overall than Bell.
3. SNY showed a stat that Alou is hot at the start of the season but tends to hit well all-season long. In other words, a hot start presages a good season (albeit we can't expect the .400 BA to last).
4. Alou probably won't pitch this season.
5. Bell to my knowledge never peed on his hands.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

Bell was less than a throw-in.

Normally a throw-in is somebody that the sending team uses to sweeten the deal for the recipient. In Bell's case, though, the Astros told the Mets that if they wanted Hampton they'd have to also take Bell.

He was more of a bitter pill than a sweetener.

He was likeable, though. I enjoyed his year as a Met. I soured on him when he pulled that Operation Shutdown crap with the Pirates a year or two later.

[nymr83]

Alou was good, is good, and will probably be good. The only issue with him is how many games you can keep him in the lineup, and i think anything over 130 + healthy for the playoffs is fine.

[Willets Point]

Yancy Street Gang wrote: Bell was less than a throw-in. Normally a throw-in is somebody that the sending team uses to sweeten the deal for the recipient. In Bell's case, though, the Astros told the Mets that if they wanted Hampton they'd have to also take Bell. He was more of a bitter pill than a sweetener.

Is that true? If so, it's pretty funny/sad. I liked Bell too.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

That was my recollection of the Hampton deal as well, Yancy. The Astros wanted rid of him and made the Mets take him in order to get Hampton.

[Frayed Knot]

Bell was the reverse throw-in cuz he was owed a ton of money - some $6mil IIRC - and Houston was anxious to get rid of the contract (and him). They had Hidalgo & Berkman coming up at that point and Derek had fallen out of favor and out of a job.

The biggest difference is that Bell on his best day wasn't half the hitter Alou is.

[metirish]

IIRC Bell wasn't a happy Met at the end.

[Guest Edgy DC]

If I recall correctly, Bell was a seriously wounded Met at the end.

[Frayed Knot]

Bell had a terrific first 1/3 or so of the season he was here - prompting some cries of; 'SIGN HIM LONG TERM NOW!!!!' - before falling into an abyss for much of the rest of the season; which sort of mirrored the peak & valley aspects of his whole career. He had snagged that big contract that Houston wanted out from under coming off a big year he had there (as one of the "Killer Bees") a few years earlier. Alou - aside from several injury marred seasons - has been much more consistant.

Bobby wound up giving Bell the start in Game 1 NLDS against the Giants with the idea (he claimed later on) that he would switch to Bubba Trammel for game 2 if Bell didn't hit. But then he severely turned his ankle in the field leaving it open for Timo to catch fire after being put in as the temp replacement and neither Bell nor Bubba saw another AB in that series.