Edgy MD

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Hitting on all of those (with their good-but-limited ceilings, unless you think Tejada or Havens will go 30-30 on us), and 2 of the big prospects? Maybe that gets us in by, say, 2014. Maybe. Again, I'm hopeful, too. But look at the rest of the division, sir. I laugh. I guffaw with hardiness. They are only the hateful fire that will temper Terry's sword of righteous baseballness.

Gwreck wrote: Edgy DC wrote: I think the Mets' awesomeness will come faster than you think. Fill in the blank. The Mets will next make the playoffs in _______. 2012

Byes for top 11 seeds.

I don't know if it's Lennon or Alderson being snarky but David Lennon wrote: Alderson on Pujols' 10-year, $250-million deal. "I hope he got a box of chocolates with that." #mets

Didn't notice that. With double elimination, does the winner still claim the loser's un-used stockpile? Part of it?

Good job. Northeast and Southeast look strong to me.

You have no need to move past the disappointment, or no reason? Without Reyes (or any other premium talent acquisitions)... Well, Reyes wouldn't have been an acquisition but a retention, but yeah. The thing about holding your cards is you don't know which ones are going to come up aces, or when. But it's exciting. All over baseball, while (seemingly) known producers will earn unthinkable sums of money (to varying levels of actually earning --- some won't earn a lick of it), guys you never heard of earning minimum wage are going to establish themselves as productive players, or even stars, this year. More next. I have no doubt that some will be Mets. And that's the real fun. Any rich, corporate welfare hording, criminally implicated blunderbuss can hurl money at players other teams have found and developed. What's the fun in that? Rooting for the clever guy? The courageous guy? The guy zagging when all around him folks cry for him to zig? The guy whose own boss unjustly wants him to outperform his predecessors with fewer resources? The one whose former employees are disparaging him in the media for not showing them L($)O($)V($)E? The one who, rather than getting crippled by self doubt, reminds himself of his faith in his approach, dismisses the insult as a reflection on the callow speaker, and presses on? That's the movie I want to see. Go Mets. They're going to knock your socks off.

How about hitting big on Tejada? On Havens? On Davis? On Murphy even? They have growth potential all over the field. Not to go ceetar, but here I am. This is a young and increasingly inexpensive team, with reason to be optmistic --- if not always confident --- in most areas.

OK, let me be more specific. This team could play well. And if they do, I think fans would respond, Reyes or no Rreyes. Fans are like that. Throwing money at big-time players is the one thing most fans seem to both demand and ridicule --- to both celebrate and mock their team for. In the end, whether the Mets have a payroll of $100 million or $150 million, that decision has to be made on a cost-benefit analysis. And it sure seems debateable to me. And if it's debatebable whether matching or exceeding the Marlins' offer to Reyes wold have been a good move, then it's debateable whether not signing him will trigger a further deterioration in the team's competitiveness and profitabliity. Losing Reyes is disappointing. But I'm so far past it at this point that I'm looking to lap it. Every day brings us closer to stabilizing the franchise from the triple-storm effects of the Madoff scandal, the economy, and the over-investments in over-valued asseets that took place before those whammies. Or it brings us closer to the day a jury hands down a decision making the continued ownership of the Wilpons unviable. One or the other. Still I press onward.

Eleven of us (by my count) had Pujols returning to the Cards. The lone vote for the power of the free market was attgig with the Cubs. Good 'ol Angels.

I think the Mets' awesomeness will come faster than you think.

Nobody other than the Marlins would give him more than four.

Joan of Arc saw the angels coming.

Mets pass in AAA phase and phinal phase also. Minor league pick taken from them is short season catcher Hector Alvarez.

Points, baby. Points.

I guess I'll predict more of nuttin'. Adam Rubin saying that Sandy plans to leave the Winter meetings at 11:15 (not 11:10 or 11:20?). Maybe he leaves the AAA phase to a leiutenant.

seawolf17 wrote: Who the hell is Rhiner Cruz? Adam Rubin's posting that he's likely to be lost too. High-walk, high-strikeout Dominican righty, who, if he occassionally puts it together, might fashion himself a Jorge Julio-type career. Currently kicking ass with Los Gigantes del Cibao in winterball, but the walks are still coming. He'd probably be maddening to try and carry for a full year on a big-league roster at this point.

bmfc1 wrote: And there goes Rhiner Cruz. Listen to the excitement live! http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?topic_id=6350584&content_id=20013543 How about me, huh?

Looks like LaRussa jumped ship at the perfect time. Gar, the Batting Stance Guy wrote: Halos alive in Pujols sweepstakes. Pujols-Maicier-Aybar-Callaspo infield would amass however many HRs Pujols hits.

And then I dig a little further and learn that he's trying to come back from a neurological disorder. Oh well, my money's on the table. Go, Drew!

My prediction of who they'll grab: San Diego middle infield prospect Drew Cumberland. My prediction of who they'll lose: Binghamton righty Rhiner Cruz, but he'll be re-united with Wally Backman before the summer is over.

I think the Rauch and Francisco deals are still unofficial and I guess that's because they want to keep a roster spot open for a Rule V-er. A grossly disproportionate amount of V-ers are bullpenners, but I wonder if they might not try to grab a backup shortstop. OE: Cubs have six open roster spots. Brews have five.

Or maybe stabilize. Or, maybe, go up, if things go well. Things could go well. Reyes wasn't everything.

What's a reasonable rate?

Prediction archives.