Benjamin Grimm

It's official: Adam Rubin wrote: Chris Young passed his physical with the New York Mets on Thursday, clearing the way for him to sign his one-year deal with the team. The Mets are scheduled to announce the deal with the right-handed starter at 1 p.m. ET. Sources say that Young can earn up to $4.5 million if he reaches all his incentives, a deal similar to the one left-hander Chris Capuano signed, sources said. Capuano received a base salary of $1.5 million and can approach the maximum if he throws 200 innings and makes 32 starts. Sources said that Young's incentives are a bit easier to reach.

Edgy DC wrote: I think he signed his last extension in season He did, but the difference this time is that free agency is beckoning. Sandy has said (or at least strongly suggested) that he doesn't want to sign Jose until he sees what he can do on the field. That would seem to rule out February, but perhaps not March. But it's not clear how much Sandy needs to see. Would two strong weeks in spring training really be enough? Or does he want to see two or three solid months? If it's the latter, then obviously it would have to be an in-season deal. I wonder how distracted players are by this kind of stuff? They're generally not at the negotiating table. The real distraction would be from the press, I'd think. If the negotiations happen quietly, and get resolved quickly, the fact of the signing should make things less distracting, since things would no longer be up in the air. I do think it's possible that they'll sign him in-season. There are really five possibilities: Sign him in the spring, sign him during the season, sign him after the season, trade him, or let him sign elsewhere. I don't have any clear sense which of those options are more likely than any of the others.

I thought Heilman signed with Arizona?

There's a picture that's worth a thousand words!

Bring a cell phone so they'll know you're a time traveler.

�If I had a time machine, it�s the first place I�m going,� said Stew Thornley, author of �Land of the Giants: New York�s Polo Grounds.� A Minnesotan, Thornley said he was smitten from his youth by images of the ballpark�s shape, setting and unique features. I've had that same thought. And I know which game I'd go to... the 1908 Fred Merkle game.

metirish wrote: That is one wide dude.

Perhaps he was chopped liver.

Retired AP baseball reporter Josh Bolan wrote: So are the Mets clearing payroll to make a run at Albert Pujols for the 2012 season? Well, The Mets are making an obvious attempt to spend no new capital this year and seemingly willing to forfeit the 2011season. The Mets are simply willing to bide time until those contracts come off the books so that they can be ready for the free agent class of 2012. You can be certain that unless Ike Davis hits 30 HR�s and drives in 100 + this year, or comes damn near close to those numbers, the Mets will have at the very least, Price Fielder (who has just set himself up nicely to be a free agent in demand next year) on their team opening day in 2012, if not Albert Pujols. Pujols has repeatedly stated that he will not negotiate once Spring Training starts. While I don't necessarily believe that, I do believe that he won't negotiate once the season starts. The clock is ticking and Mets fans are hoping that time expires. For those Mets fans who are all into the home grown infield thing and don�t want to give up Ike Davis to get Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder, the only thing I can say is, you�ll get over him pretty quickly. - Josh Bolan With the Yankees, Phillies, and Red Sox all seemingly set at first base, the Mets would seem to have a shot if they decide to go this way. Especially if both Fielder and Pujols are on the market.

What do we think about Prince Fielder? Will be cheaper than Pujols (but not cheap!) and maybe he can be signed for seven years as opposed to ten. He'll turn 28 in May of 2012, so a seven-year contract would end when he was 34. Yes, I know we all like Ike. I do too. But as I've said before, I don't follow opposing players that closely, so I don't know much about what Fielder's negatives might be. What I'm wondering (not advocating, but wondering) here is if it's at all likely that the Mets might go after Fielder next winter. I do think that Fielder is more likely to hit the free agent market than Pujols is.

It's extremely unlikely that Beltran will be a Met in 2012, so they need to start thinking of who their next center fielder will be. At this point, Pagan has to be the leading candidate, and probably will continue to be unless he falters and/or one of the young guys has a breakthrough year in the minors. If the Mets can sign him for three years at a price they find reasonable, I think it would be a smart move.

Ceetar really is an optimistic Mets fan. As for Gee, let us not forget that he stunned the baseball world by being named Schaefer Mets Pitcher of the Month for September 2010. He was looking like the Mets fourth starter in 2011 until the signings of Capuano and Young pushed him to sixth. I also see him starting the year in Buffalo unless one of the five guys ahead of him suffers a spring-training injury. But there's so much iffiness (that's actually a word!) around the Mets starters that I think Gee will get a share of big league starts. My prediction: 8 starts, mostly in the second half of the year. He'll have an ERA of around 4.20 and he'll end the season as part of the conversation for the 2012 rotation.

Imagine owing Pujols $30 million in 2021 when he's 42 years old. That can really hamstring your franchise.

Meanwhile, Prince Fielder is only 26.

Davis would be more likely to switch teams than positions if the Mets got Pujols. I really don't think it's going to happen. And as stated above, if it means giving a 8- to 10-year contact to a 32-year-old, we shouldn't be rooting for it to happen. It would be much more tempting if they could get him for three or four years, but that's not gonna happen. I'm sure he'll stay in St. Louis. I'm rooting for Ike to take a great leap forward this year, thereby eliminating all talk of Albert.

I think the odds are fairly good that either Capuano or Young will be able to start 20 or more games. Signing both of them is better than just signing one of them. (The eggs/basket thing.)

Wow!

Dan Uggla?

Emaus' name almost means "Let's Go" in Latin. (Remembering the classic Mets banner that read "Eamus Metropolitae")

Oliver Perez has no trade value, but Oliver Perez plus $11.5 million certainly should.

Gwreck wrote: Who do you see as the 4th outfielder? Good point! I guess I was still looking at it as if we were in the Omar/Jerry regime. Now that you mention it, Evans probably is the most likely number 4 guy. I'm pretty sure he'd slot above Harris or Duda.

This signing is now officially official.

Fifth outfielder, little playing time, at least until Beltran is dealt, and possibly after that. I say he'll end the year with about 150 plate appearances.

I guess it's maybe, though my hunch is it's a slight one. But since the Yankees already have Texeira, and the Phillies have Howard, at least the Mets won't have to worry about competing with either of those two teams.

Shouldn't it have been "Who's At First?" Who's On First seems to imply a baserunner, not a fielder. Perhaps the syntax was different back in the days of Bud and Lou.