Hot Stove 2009-2010

[nymr83]

The right choice was made here as far as cost effectiveness, Bay got too much I think because he was one of he best players in a weak FA class, but paying Holliday like Beltran? YIKES!

[TransMonk]

Minaya comes out of this looking good.

[MFS62]

TransMonk wrote: Minaya comes out of this looking good.

Well , in case nobody noticed (and I can guess why), Baywatch was about rescues.
Maybe Omar feels this one deal has rescued his arse.

Later

[Guest Edgy DC]

If Baywatch was about anything, it was about titties.

As far as Omar, for a guy whose concern is allegedly self-preservation, he's sure playing it cool, refusing to make a panic move last season even as folks demanded it of him, and letting the market come to him this offseason even as folks rip him for standing still.

[Guest Edgy DC]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: be it "nothing" in 2006,

See, if I want to indict Omar, it's the something he did in 2006 (understanding that we're talking about the offseason following 2006) that is the heart of the case against him.

Victor Diaz for Mike Nickeas -- lose.

Heath Bell and Royce Ring to for Jon Adkins and Ben Johnson -- big lose.

Signing Alou -- big lose.

Signing Easley -- win.

Henry Owens and Matt Lindstrom for Jason Vargas and Adam Bostick -- big lose.

Letting Bradford walk -- lose.

Letting Woodward walk -- win.

Signing Newhan -- loss.

Signing Sosa -- eh.

Siging Schoeneweis -- big silly loss.

Letting Floyd walk -- well, he was a better investment for for left than Alou.

Signing Sele -- eh.

Letting Zambrano walk -- win. Big whoop.

Letting Trax walk -- probably a loss.

Signing Alomar -- proably a loss.

Releasing Soler -- win.

Signing Tatis -- win.

Siging Ledee -- loss.

Take away that offseason and Omar Minaya is way ahead on the ledger.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

You forgot Banny-for-Burgos. Yoy, I must have been suppressing that chain of moves.

The CW was that Omar wanted pitching depth that offseason, right? Everything else was mindless tinkering. The offseasons of 2007-08 and 2008-09 were more clearly about filling a primary need. 2006? I still don't know what that was all about. Karmic payment for 2005-06's offseason/2006's in-season working out so swimmingly (Delgado, Wagner, Maine, Sanchez, Perez), maybe?

[Gwreck]

Also: Letting Darren Oliver walk - lose.

For what it's worth, we got 376 PAs out of Cliff Floyd in 2006 at a .731 OPS and 328 PAs out of Moises Alou at a .916 OPS in 2007.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I honestly don't remember what the perceived needs were going into the 2006-07 offseason, but I do remember being surprised that Moises Alou was the one significant move that the Mets made. There was something else that I was hoping for, but I don't recall what it was.

Here's what we were talking about back then:

http://archives.cranepoolforum.net/index.php?ThisForumID=1&ThisMonth=2006-11

[Gwreck]

Ah, forgot another one. Re-signing Mota - big lose.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Who's patona314? All over the place that guy was.

[Benjamin Grimm]

It looks like we were thinking about Soriano that month.

[Benjamin Grimm]

And that's also the winter that the Mets went to woo Barry Zito. And maybe considered Jeff Suppan as well.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Not a lot of supastars available that year. Soriano, Zito amd Carlos Lee all have been disappointments for their $$. But yeah, loading up the Mets that year with Newhan and Schoeneweis and Sele did the team zero favors as far as repeating.

To me Omar's worst moment was in '08, when the managerial seams split and he did nothing to improve the team at the trade deadline tother than cross fingers on a few rejects while the bullpen crumbled and the team coughed up another lead.

[ashie62]

Carlos Lee has been a disappointment? Guy is pretty solid

[DocTee]

Jack Cust returns to Oakland: 1 year, $2.65 million

[DocTee]

Scott Podsednik and his uber-hot wife to KC.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

As per Bryan McTaggart of MLB.com, reliever/starter/dush Brett Myers will assert his dominance in a calm, dignified fashion for Houston. (Terms unannounced, pending physical.)

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

As of last night, Aubrey Huff has signed with San Francisco (1 yr/$3M).

Which means... the only two teams with open first-base slots and spare cash are the Mets and O's. Which MEANS... Adam LaRoche is suddenly traveling very light in the leverage department, and may not be able to demand a 2-plus year deal.

[Vic Sage]

I'd offer him 2/yrs $18m.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Ooooor you could slide that money over to Son of Ka-el, and get some wormkilling for yer dollar.

Mets, Dodgers In On Pineiro By Howard Megdal [January 11, 2010] 7:09pm CST: According to Ed Price's Twitter feed, the Mets and Joel Pineiro are talking, with the money somewhere around two years, $15MM. At that price, you'd have to think a deal could get done quickly. The Mets have been interested in Pineiro all offseason, though Pineiro has seemed to be looking for a deal that rivals or exceeds the three-year, $29.75MM contract Randy Wolf signed with the Brewers. Two years, $15MM is exactly what Jason Marquis signed for earlier this offseason with the Nationals. Despite the concerns over whether Pineiro can repeat his successful 2009 without Dave Duncan, his pitching coach with the Cardinals, the Mets would be taking a worthwhile risk at that price and length. Pineiro was 15-12 in 2009 with a 3.49 ERA and just 27 walks in 214 innings pitched. 7:37pm CST: According to Tim Brown's Twitter feed, "In the face of economic limitations, Dodgers working on a way to sign Joel Pineiro."

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2010/01/mets-in-talks-with-pineiro.html

[ashie62]

How do you think Omar will address the starting pitching. After the freshly cut Santana there are 4 question marks.

The Mets can't afford to get caught here...

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

From today's Buster Olney blog post: No budget? No problem. Just ask nicely.

Part of the unusual nature of the Mets' offseason has been the fact that general manager Omar Minaya has never been given a budget. As the baseball operations powers have been evaluating possible strategies, the executives haven't been able to cast these choices against the context of how much money is available. On almost all teams, the talent evaluators are given a budget and then paint within those lines, dispersing the dollars according to the needs. The Mets' front office, on the other hand, is making its recommendations to Jeff Wilpon on a case-by-case basis, without knowing whether it is yet bumping up against a financial ceiling, or knowing how to prioritize the current needs for pitching or catching. "You need to start with a budget," said one talent evaluator. "And then you work from there. This really makes it much more difficult." In many cases, Wilpon has been the lead negotiator for the Mets this offseason, and not Omar Minaya -- reinforcing the belief in some corners of the organization that Minaya is one extended losing streak removed from being fired.

[Guest Number 6]

Jays rumored to be bringing back Delgado, according to MLB.com's Noah Coslov by way of MLBTR.

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2010/01/blue-jays-sign-carlos-delgado.html

Edit: Jays GM and Delgado's agent have both denied the rumor.

[ashie62]

Jays deny it..Olney says Mets onto Pineiro and Molina took a hike

[metirish]

I'm sure it's somewhere, Heilman to AZ for 1year & $2 million plus.

[Guest OlerudOwned]

Merkin "Merkin" Valdez traded to Toronto.


Merkin.

[MFS62]

OlerudOwned wrote: Merkin "Merkin" Valdez traded to Toronto. Merkin.

Is that true?
Or are you just merkin us around?
Later

[A Boy Named Seo]

OlerudOwned wrote: Merkin "Merkin" Valdez traded to Toronto. Merkin.

He should help patch things up.

[Guest Number 6]

Things are sure getting hairy in Toronto.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Makes sense... they've got an opening he's suited to cover.

The question is, it's a long, hard passageway to Opening Day. Will he stick?