metirish

The chick from Long Island says the only HGH Lo Duca was taking was Viagra.

I can't wait to hear what Hank has to say, if the Astros had waited would they have got Tejada for less?

I suppose now there will be no need to argue over what cap he wears into the HOF, for what this is worth Jon Heyman who has a HOF vote says Clemens is now not a first ballot entry,but like Bonds he probably will vote for him to get in. My opinion is that Clemens should be treated no different than Bonds as far as the HOF goes.

NYT says Pettite will be named in report, interesting tidbit here from the same article. ] Clemens had a 40-39 record from 1993 through 1996 and was not re-signed by the Boston Red Sox. The next year, he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays and began working out with McNamee. Clemens had two of the best years in pitching history in 1997 and 1998, winning the Cy Young Award in both seasons and also led the league in wins, earned run average and strikeouts.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Does this mean the Mets offered N.D. Chavez arbitration? I thought he was a possibility for nontendering. . ] The club did tender contracts to other players on the its 40-man roster who are unsigned for the 2008 season, including Endy Chavez, Pedro Feliciano, Aaron Heilman, Oliver Perez, Duaner Sanchez and Jorge Sosa, who are eligible for arbitration. The Mets may seek to sign Padilla and Johnson to Minor League contracts. If Johnson doesn't re-sign, the club will have nothing to show for dealing Heath Bell and Royce Ring to the Padres last fall. Mets.com

News on Estrada, Johnson,Padilla and others. Mets cut ties with players Mark Prior and the Cubs part ways, he's worth a look I guess but his agent says Doctor Andrews expects Prior will be ready to pitch mid-May although the agent then said " "if you want to be conservative, tack a few months onto that." ".

Great article on the slogan for 1992. Hardball is Back

Found some things. Firm that came up with in the horrible "Our Team. Our Time" Firm http://tjsmarketinggroup.com/clients.htm

I imagine management in Houston has thought about that so either they got advance notice that Tejada is not on the list or they don't care either way, I'm going with the latter.

On the plus side he plays just about every day, last season he only played in 133 games but the previous six seasons he played in every game and the two seasons previous to those he missed only a hand full of games.

You would think going to Houston and that Park would motivate a guy, we'll see though. Seems like a whole lot for a player that's not had a great year since 04.

Higher than a Church spier.

A dumb question, will the probe go back that far?

I've had myself programmed for some time to expect some Mets favorites to be named, that way I won't be all that shocked.

Yeah but we will have the better defensive player in Church.

Seawolf flying around the Country recruiting students.

Klapisch today on his National column. ] Landing a big-time ace would help allay Mets' doubts Special to ESPN.com The date was Sept. 13, back when life was still plush for the Mets. They had a seven-game lead over the Phillies with 17 to go, on final approach to the postseason -- heck, the World Series -- with no reason to believe their world would soon disintegrate. Three months later, the Mets are still recovering from the worst collapse in regular season history. They're not even the favorites in the East anymore, let alone the National League's best team. So what happened, exactly? The question has stumped everyone at Shea. Who loses six of their final seven games at home with a playoff berth at stake? The finish was ugly enough to soil even Tom Glavine, who was booed off the mound (and out of New York) after surrendering seven runs to the Marlins in just one-third of an inning in the season finale. Indeed, the gap between the Mets' before and after is too wide for any conventional explanation, forcing Omar Minaya to spin his way around the embarrassment. The GM says, "We won 88 games. That's not a terrible season." Still, there are enough scars that Minaya was scouring the winter meetings looking for a blockbuster deal. The Mets' pursuit of Johan Santana has been noted everywhere -- of all the left-hander's suitors, the Mets have the most desperate need for him -- but so far, Minaya doesn't have the chips to tempt the Twins. Not if he's keeping David Wright and Jose Reyes off the table. Not if Carlos Beltran is staying put, and not if Lastings Milledge has already been dealt. It's not that the Mets aren't trying: They've opened the vault of minor league prospects for the Twins to choose from -- Carlos Gomez and Fernando Martinez are both available, although not necessarily in the same package -- but the problem is Minaya likes his young stars more than anyone else does. Unlike the 2005-06 boom in Flushing, when the Mets acquired Beltran, Pedro Martinez and Billy Wagner, and instantly morphed into an NL powerhouse, the Mets could finish the winter as quietly as they started it. There are no free-agent checks for Minaya to write, no rabbits the GM can pull out of a hat, which is hardly good news for Mets fans. The current battle plan for 2008 is tightly crossed fingers. "Right now, you have to pick the Phillies [to win the East], because they're the champs," Minaya conceded recently. "But I still like our club. If I have to go into the season with what we have right now, I'm OK with that." Minaya's peers don't necessarily believe that. Everyone thinks he'll do something, anything to keep from relying on the surgically-repaired Pedro Martinez as the ace. But Minaya's decision to send Milledge to the Nationals may have cost the Mets whatever chance they had of making a megadeal for Santana or Dan Haren without including Reyes. The swap itself, which brought Ryan Church and Brian Schneider, has met with mixed results in the industry. One general manager said during the meetings, "Now was the wrong time to trade Milledge. It was either last year when his value was higher or next year after he could've brought more [in return]." Right now, you have to pick the Phillies [to win the East], because they're the champs. But I still like our club. --Mets GM Omar Minaya The Mets' response is that Church, even at 29 and having already peaked, is a legitimate threat against right-handers, evidenced by his 43 doubles last year. He'll play better outfield defense, and is more mature than Milledge. Schneider, meanwhile, trumps Paul Lo Duca behind the plate. For the short term, Minaya is probably right when he says, "This is a good trade for the team. It might not be popular, but these players are going to help us." There's also cautious optimism about the return of Duaner Sanchez as the eighth-inning set-up man, a move that could allow the Mets to deal Aaron Heilman. Still, there's no mistaking the lingering wound this offseason, from Glavine's defection to the Braves, to the failed attempts to land Santana, to the uncertainty surrounding Reyes after his vanishing act in the final six games of the season. Of all the players the Mets are counting on, it's Reyes who'll most greatly influence the franchise's course in 2008. Not Pedro, not Beltran, not even Wright can match Reyes' game-changing skills. The shortstop's combination of speed, defense and gap power made him one of the five best players in the National League at certain times, yet he batted .156 (5-for-32) while the Mets were being caught and passed by the Phillies. The company line is that Reyes' collapse was merely a "slump at the wrong time," says Minaya. The shortstop says he was tired after playing 160 of 162 games, and finishing second in the NL in plate appearances. But Reyes' exhaustion bled into a bizarre moodiness. The 24-year-old shortstop gave away enough at-bats down the stretch that he, too, was booed by Met fans. The normally effervescent Reyes was so out of sync he ended up in a fistfight with the Marlins' Miguel Olivo on the second-to-last day of the season. One major league executive believes Reyes is paying the price for his headfirst slides as his stolen-base total keeps skyrocketing. After 234 swipes in five seasons, including a major league-best 78 last year, "You have to wonder if all that punishment got to him," the executive said. A strained relationship with Willie Randolph didn't help, either. Reyes started distancing himself soon after the manager removed him from a game in July for failing to run out a ground ball. Now, says Minaya, "It's Willie's job" to rehabilitate Reyes' spirit. The GM didn't have to say or else. The stakes are already high. Randolph was nearly dismissed after the collapse, and everyone will be waiting for ownership's response if the Mets start slowly in 2008. With September's echo lingering, it likely won't be pretty. METS' GREATEST NEEDS � Ace starter: During the heart of N.Y.'s collapse (last seven games of season), its starter's ERA was 8.64. � Bullpen help: Mets relievers had a 4.03 ERA in '07 after posting a 3.28 ERA in '06. � Catcher: Among those who played 75 percent of their games at catcher and had 300-plus PAs in '07, Brian Schneider ranked tied for 24th (out of 29) in both batting average (.235) and home runs (6). � Right field: On the bright side, Ryan Church is a .340 career hitter at Shea Stadium. Only Hideki Matsui (.420) and Albert Pujols (.354) have higher career BAs at Shea among active players with a minimum of 50 at-bats.

Did Wright get $20 million when Vitamin Water that he endorses was sold to Coke, Deutsch asks him.

Minaya was on SNY SportsNite last night( yes I tune into that every night) and while he wished LoDuca all the best and that he was a great guy he wanted better defense and feels he has that behind the plate and in the outfield.

Thanks for the links, great to see the place taking shape.

I've seen a lot of ex-players hawking products on TV but this beats all out. From Wiki Mark Alan Littell (January 17, 1953 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri), is a professional baseball player who played pitcher in the Major Leagues from 1973-1982. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals. Littell had a lifetime ERA of 3.32 and saved 56 games from 1976 to 1981. His career was cut short from elbow spurs. In 2006 Littell took a protective cup he invented The Nutty Buddy to market. He found his way on YouTube with a demonstration allowing a 90mph fastball to hit him in the groin while wearing The Nutty Buddy

I caught the last scene, it sucked.

I need to take time tomorrow and read this properly, hijinx ensue when SJR is on the loose.

I think I understand this, my question is what are the penelties if any for a team that does not adhere to the signing bonus ceilings?

Not a ball player but Chick Corea is cool, I might actually watch this because of the Mets angle and I just love Mitch Albom.