Gwreck

Some Beltran thoughts from Buster Olney: Before Sandy Alderson closed out his deal with the Milwaukee Brewers, he made one last round of calls to other teams, diligently checking to see which team would give him the best financial deal in the salary dump of Francisco Rodriguez. He would've loved 50 cents on the dollar, but in the end, he wound up getting about 40 cents on the dollar from the Brewers, in order to run out from underneath the onerous $17.5 million contract option that scared everyone. But the Mets are giving off a very different vibe in their early discussions about Carlos Beltran, according to sources. The Mets believe they have the best available outfielder in a mediocre market for offensive players and are aiming to land a top prospect -- and they have indicated that they will keep the slugger until they get exactly what they want. It remains to be seen if the Mets' strategy can pay off, or if their early pre-trade deadline stance on Beltran will change. And as they begin to get deeper into discussions with the six or seven teams that have expressed serious interest, a major hurdle will be how much of the money still owed to Beltran -- about $8 million, at this point -- will be paid off by the Mets. But the Mets fully intend to get a prime prospect for Beltran and believe that some team in need of an upgrade will eventually submit to their demands because of Beltran's potential to impact a lineup. To review, Beltran's first-half numbers: .285 batting average, .377 on-base percentage, .503 slugging average. He has played in 89 games this year, eliminating doubts about whether he can hold up in 2011, and rival executives know that he is eligible for free agency in the fall and has every reason to thrive and remain in the everyday lineup. Beltran is hitting .337 with runners in scoring position and has a 1.020 OPS in those situations, which ranks 13th in the majors. The Giants would love to have him. He could help the Red Sox, although some executives wonder how Boston would fit him into its payroll without paying the luxury tax the team's owners work to avoid. The Yankees are not interested, but perhaps the Tigers are, and they have always been known to be more aggressive than most teams and not shy about taking on a big contract. Beltran could provide for the Rays the kind of offense they had hoped to get out of Manny Ramirez. The Indians aren't limiting themselves to small-budget options, and if the Braves got serious about Beltran, they'd be in position to offer a wider range of pitching prospects than any other team (and the fact that Alderson was willing to deal K-Rod to the Yankees tells you he's not concerned about dealing his assets to perceived rivals, if he thinks the trade works well for his side.) Beltran would fit the Pirates; heck, the way he's playing, he'd fit almost any team. And this is why the Mets have let it be known to other teams: Beltran will cost you, and if you don't want to say yes to our demands, we believe some other team will, and we will wait for that moment.

Ceetar wrote: Worley's pitching? http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/news/probable_pitchers/index.jsp?c_id=phi

Ok, now we sign Reyes to an extension.

Books.

This was a rule change made recently.

Ceetar wrote: Gwreck wrote: I would offer Beltran 2 years at, say, $7.5M a year. Would he get more from an AL team that could put him at DH if necessary? Probably. I think that's too much. But I don't think his ego (Boras) would settle for even that much of a paycut. So....you want the Mets to re-sign him? You want him re-signed cheap but don't think he will? You don't want the Mets to re-sign him? What's your actual opinion here?

I would offer Beltran 2 years at, say, $7.5M a year. Would he get more from an AL team that could put him at DH if necessary? Probably.

We haven't played the Cardinals yet this year so I can see how this would go overlooked. Berkman: 24 HR, 63 RBI, .290/.404/.602

I'd like to see some media pressure on MLB re: what they plan to do re: the bad umpiring that is becoming an epidemic.

#DateOppKTESPOpp. SPScoreRecordPlGB (NGB)WC PlWCGB (NGB)WinLossSavePotGPotSIGTPostsJoe PetDebut(s)827/1NYYNieseNovaL, 2-141-41T310.5=#800080]T66.5=#FF8000]Nova=#0000FF]Niese (7-7)TBDG-Fafif (2-7)65837/2NYYGeeColonL, 5-241-42T311.5=#800080]T77.5=#FF8000]Colon=#0000FF]Gee (8-2)TBDGwreck (2-3)847/3NYYDickeyGarcia=#0000FF]W, 3-242-42310.5=#800080]76.5=#0000FF]Rodriguez (2-2)=#FF8000]AyalaTBDTBDG-Fafif (3-7)857/4@LADStaffCapuanoDe La Rosa=#0000FF]W, 5-243-42310.5=#800080]56.5=#0000FF]Capuano (8-7)=#FF8000]De La RosaRodriguez (21)TBDG-Fafif (4-7)867/5@LADPelfreyLilly=#0000FF]W, 6-044-42310.5=#800080]56.5=#0000FF]Pelfrey (5-7)=#FF8000]LillyTBDG-Fafif (5-7)877/6@LADNieseKuroda=#0000FF]W, 5-345-4239.5=#0000FF]Niese (8-7)=#FF8000]KurodaRodriguez (22)TBDG-Fafif (6-7)887/7@LADGeeKershawTBDTBDG-Fafif897/8@SFDickeyVogelsongTBD907/9@SFCapuanoLincecumTBD917/10@SFPelfreyCainTBDTBD

Niese 2 Duda 1.25 Turner 1.25 Parnell 1 Rodriguez 1 Beltran 1 Tejada 1 Thole 1 Harris .5

Box Score

Books!

I just want to point out that there's no fucking way the guy would be able to buy a suit or play craps without his ID/credit card (left in the room) or his room key (which we know he doesn't have).

Runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Kemp grounded to Tejada who went to second for the first out. Turner relay to Duda was in time (clearly) but the ump called Kemp safe, prolonging the inning. I think it was only a one-run error, as the runner who went to third then scored on a sac fly (which would have been the third out if the DP was called correctly). At the time of the blown call, Ethier had already singled in Furcal for the Dodgers' first run of that inning.

Reyes' speed -- turning doubles into triples, singles into doubles, etc. -- mitigates his lack of power. Beltran still has plenty of power.

Too bad we traded him away for a sack of baseballs.* * Or comparable value, I forget.

Stokes was with the Mets for 8 months and was reliever of the month 5 times. Wow.

Edgy DC wrote: He went 2-6 yesterday, and I've got to think there's room for him on this team. I can't imagine Terry likes his lineup against lefties right now --- starting Murphy and the hapless-against-lefties Duda at the corners and batting Paulino pau-clean-o. I like it. Give him Pridie's roster spot.

An article from that trip cites the Dodgers as Hanks' favorite team: Article here.

Bay vs. Dodger Stadium, round 2: Bay wins.

Capuano 2 Parnell 2 Pagan 2 Rodriguez 1 Beltran 1 Tejada .5 Murphy .5 Duda .5 Bay .5

Books

Great job by Parnell. I figured we were going to get Isringhausen for the 8th but Terry surprised me.

Mets lead the NL in 2-out runs: things I learned on the SNY broadcast. Where was this production in 07-08-09??