Free agent catcher Bengie Molina has rejected the latest offer from the Mets, according to a tweet by ESPN's Buster Olney. The team is now beginning to focus it's attention on Joel Pineiro.
We heard that the Mets were close to landing Molina earlier in the week, but apparently he had a change of heart. The two sides have been haggling over the length of a potential deal seemingly all offseason. The Mets are one of several teams interested in Pineiro, and they'll also be on hand to watch Ben Sheets throw today.
Earlier today we learned that GM Omar Minaya was never given a budget this offseason, and instead must seek approve from COO Jeff Wilpon on a case-by-case basis.
No pre-defined budget? Ay carumba.
What IS the latest offer? Is it 2 years? Is it 1 plus an option?
Likely still 1 with an option, big mistake Bengie,………..have fun being a back-up elsewhere!
bengiee!!! ayiiiii, no!!!!
you should have signed, unless you are hoping to cash in on the $$$ ol’ buddy Sabean saved from not getting LaRoche, and might bring you back to bat cleanup again!
Has Yorvit Torrealba signed anywhere yet? Its obvious Benjie doesnt want to play for the Mets. He turned down more money last time he was a free agent. So why not go after another catcher.
he has not
He didn’t turn it down, Omar pulled the offer very quick. Bengie wanted to negoiate for more money but Omar instead traded for LuDuca and Bengie had to take the next best offer which was about 4mil less. Maybe he is still bitter and is only trying to use the Mets to get a better contract but doesn’t look like anyone is bitting.
For everyone complaining about Bengie OBP, nobody is getting him for his OBP. They are getting him for his 80+ RBIs.
Any GM that is getting Bengie because of his 80 RBI’s should be banned from the game.
Every player can be an RBI guy based off who is hitting around them. Great example is JD Drew. Guy knocks in 100 runs when he hits 3rd/4th in LA and Atlanta. Moves to Boston and hits 7th – his RBI’s drop into the 60’s.
So, Bengie did 80+ in the heart of the Gigantes lineup the past two years. What does that say?
He likes to cheat on fastballs?
It says exactly what bjsguess was trying to point out. You stick a player in the 4 hole and he’s gonna rack up more RBIs than he would batting 7th or 8th (which is exactly where Molina belongs in most line-ups).
That’s a mighty expensive fantasy team you’re running, Mr. Wilpon.
Big Stein wants a calzone!
Why does it sound more and more like Molina doesn’t want to a) play for the mets or b) play at all? Unless this guy has a messed up view of reality he should be happy a team is willing to pay him for his services.
Has Yorvit Torrealba signed anywhere yet? Its clear that Bengie isnt interested in playing in Flushing. He turned down more money the last time he was a free agent to play elswhere. The Mets need to look elsewhere for a catcher
LaRoche Jr. turns down an offer when he has no other offer.
Is he out of his mind?
Where else is he even going to be offered 1 year with any value? Has he not seen what the other catchers have been signing for?
You would think that seeing LaRoche have his greed backfire on him would give him a clue!
Spend the money on pitching, if Sheets delivers today, throw some cash at him. I’d rather see the money spent on Sheets upside than on Molina’s regression.
Actually, Pudge and Kendall received very generous deals and Molina is better than either of them.
Although, that speaks more of the stupidity of those deals than Molina’s actual worth.
The Mets should offer 1 year and just be done with him. He is not worth a multi year deal when better catchers are available next season. (Plus, the Mets have viable alternatives for this season)
He’s being really sh1tty. No one wants him but the Mets, might as well take the best offer. Fool.
Oh, the humanity. What kind of world do we live in when a catcher in decline can’t get a three year deal for his age 36, 37 and 38 years?
Can’t cry over Benjie. Pitching is the big need, and the money that was going to go to Benjie would really be better spent on pitching. If Benjie can get a better deal than what the Mets were offering — whatever it was — then he should take it and move on. This dance has gone on long enough.
I’d be happy about this if I was a Mets fan. They don’t need a 36 year old catcher with a sub-.300 OBP in their lineup, especially if it’s for multiple years.
As a Mets fan, I love this!!
Quick thought/question: would it be possible to sign both Sheets (1 year 9 mil plus incentives) and Piniero (2 years 16 mil) and then trade John Maine for a catcher? Or to even take it further and trade Maine and Castillo for garbage simply to unload Castillo. Replace Luis with O-Dog or Felipe Lopez.
Aiden — Or … if you’re open to trading Maine, why not sign one of Sheets or Pineiro (preferably Sheets IMO), and trade either Maine or Pelfrey for another legit #2-type starter like say … Roy Oswalt? I could live with going in either direction. The Mets have focused wayyyy too much on Molina (and cathers in general) than they have on pitching. Molina’s egomania may be the best thing that happened to them all off-season. Right now, there are four big question marks after Johan Santana and that has to change if they want to be taken seriously.
Spirit – I like the idea. I just feel that Oswalt would gut our entire farm system. There is no way Maine could command a big enough trade value to get an ace like Oswalt, or even a #2 starter. Right now, the Mets farm system is middle of the road, but that’s mainly because of the lack of MLB-ready talent. In a year from now, I expect it to be top 10. I’d really like to hold onto our pieces, and upgrade the team with money. After all, we are a New York team, right?
Agree with you about Maine’s value. I know I’m in the minority but if I were the Mets I’d move Pelfrey plus prospects for Oswalt. Because Pelfrey is healthy and has more upside than Maine they’d be able to hold onto their best prospects. I know most Met fans prefer to keep Pelfrey, I just don’t think he’s going to be anything more than inconsistent in New York, with all the scrutiny he’s gotten as a #1 pick. The Mets almost obtained Oswalt a couple of years ago from Houston in a 3-team deal with Baltimore that Peter Angelos scuttled at the last minute, so the Astros have been willing to deal him and Pelfrey might thrive in a market with a lot less media heat.
I hope the Mets strongly consider this, spend some money on Sheets and see if they can trade for someone like Oswalt. Behind Santana, that would be formidable. IMHO, that would address the most glaring need in a big way.
The problem with John Maine lies in the fact that he has not been healthy, therefore, he has no real trade value, plus his contract does not hurt us. As for Castillo, if they could have moved him they would have by now.
I would love to add Hudson and keep Castillo, it would likely keep both of them fresh, and if Castillo plays well again you could move him mid season.
I do think that the money is better spent on pitching though. I would love to see them get Sheets and if the price is right Piniero as well. However if one or the other falls through then shop for someone like Hudson.
Impossible to say since Minaya is on a case-by-case signing basis, as was mentioned in the post. But– why would you trade John Maine to pull off a salary dump of a $6 million player who Fangraphs had outperforming his contract last year?? Maine is a legitimate SP in your rotation, and I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but that’s a bit of an area of concern for this team right now.
This, as many other stated already, is likely a blessing in disguise for the Mets. If they can add 2 SP’s, and at least one of them being of the Sheets or Piniero (risk/reward) group, with the other being one of the Jon Garland types (innings eater), they can have a respectable and fairly competitive rotation. Something like Johan, Sheets, Pelfrey, Maine, Garland is a huge upgrade from where they are now, and if that can be done at the expense of signing a +2 WAR catcher, more power to them.
Your point is taken but “legitimate SP” are an area of concern partly because of Maine. He hits the DL every season and someone has to be called up to fill in. He may be good, but he’s not healthy enough to help create any stability.
Your point is taken but “legitimate SP” are an area of concern partly because of Maine. He hits the DL every season and someone has to be called up to fill in. He may be good, but he’s not healthy enough to help create any stability.
I doubt they get both, just because there’s too many other teams looking at these guys to be left out in the cold on BOTH.
Maine has very little trade value. His injury history negates any value as a 4th starter (which, despite the hype, really is where he has pitched when healthy); no one is going to trade a decent catcher for a guy you can almost bank on missing 8-10 of his starts, minimum.
What team has an opening at catcher and is willing to give Molina multiple years at top dollar?
NONE!!
Mr. Molina, you are a fool.
I am terrified that this will lead to a last-minute reunion with the Giants.
You called it!!
As a Phillies fan, I am very disappointed about this. I was looking forward to Bengie and Frenchie swinging at the first pitch on a consistent basis.
You mean like Ryan Howard?
Yes, they are very comparable players.
Exactly like that… except for them combining for 20 less HRs than Howard will have alone.
and for the fact that Howard is actually willing to take a walk. Howard’s career OBP is .376, Molina is .308 and Francoeur is .311
I should have realized that Philly fans can not read between the lines. Howard has the same aggressive approach, the only reason he gets the walks is the fact that his power is feared and respected.
My point was simply the fact that you can not define a player by his aggressiveness at the plate.
But when a player’s aggressiveness results in a terrible OBP, then you can define a player by his aggressiveness.
I’m not a Philly fan. Pretty far from it actually… I’m just someone who noticed your awful comparison between two below average hitters and a guy who has been in the top 5 of MVP voting each of the past 4 years, with a career OPS of .960+… Might be best to keep those types of comparisons to yourself.
Intentional walks pad the stats nicely, buddy.
Enough to account for a 60 point difference in OBP?
According to Amazin’ Avenue: Bengie Molina walked just .19 times for each strikeout, the worst mark in the majors.
There’s a difference between being aggressive and swinging at everything.
According to FanGraphs, Ryan Howard swung at 27% of pitches outside the strike zone. Frenchy was at 36%. BMolina was at an incredible 44%.
For a frame of reference, Pujols was at 23%. Looks like one of those three actually does know how to take a pitch…
FTW
Haha… yeah… 105 intentional walks in over 3100 plate appearances. That’s about a difference of .03 OBP points. What else ya got?
ok, why do the Mets want Molina for more than one year anyway? He’s obviously going to be a stop gap for Josh Thole. For you Mets fans, take my word for it: Josh Thole is a beast!!!!!!!!!!!!! He’ll be ready to be a starter next year. I live right near Binghamton and I’ve seen him play a fair few times.
“ok, why do the Mets want Molina for more than one year anyway?”
They DON’T. Offering one year clearly will not get him so 2 yrs is the Mets’ counter-offer to Bengie’s original demands for a 3 yr deal (reportedly as high as they are willing to go). Of course at this point perhaps nothing will…and I can live with that.
“ok, why do the Mets want Molina for more than one year anyway?”
They DON’T. Offering one year clearly will not get him so 2 yrs is the Mets’ counter-offer to Bengie’s original demands for a 3 yr deal (reportedly as high as they are willing to go). Of course at this point perhaps nothing will…and I can live with that.
I don’t know who the Met’s AAA catcher is, but theyd be better off bringing him up than signing Benjie Molina.
They need a pitcher more than a catcher right now. If he doesn’t want to agree to a contract, forget about it. I don’t know where else he thinks he can get a multi-year deal at. No one else really needs a catcher aside from Texas who probably won’t spend the money on him. Seattle could probably use him on a one year deal.
ROD BA-RA-JAS! (clap-clap-clap clap clap)
im hoping for some good news out of the Sheets session today.
make it happen Omar!!
I think Bengie doesn’t want to live on the East Coast. He lives in Blackhawk,CA, and more than likely would hate to move his young sons. Also, Lincecum and Cain give a lot of credit to their seasons last year to Bengie. I think that he realizes that taking the Mets offer isn’t the smartest thing to do at this point, and might come crawling back to the Giants. He is familiar with the team and can move nicely into the 6th spot. Then the rotation doesn’t get messed up with a new catcher. 2 year 8MM can reach 12MM. In his second season he can guide Posey into a starting role, helping him with the Giants young pitching. Torrealba signs a 1 year deal with the Mets. And next offseason there will be a 4 team war for Mauer…
CF-Rowand
2B-Sanchez
3B-Sandoval
1B-Huff
LF-DeRosa
C-Molina
RF-Sheirholtz
SS-Renteria
P-Lincecum
I’m not opposed to ONE more year of Bengie, however let it stew until about a day before pitchers and catchers report to make the offer.
Nice call.
Who are the 4 teams you are predicting to battle over Mauer? BOS, NYY +…? I’m not so sure one of the “usual suspects” will be involved, myself. The Mets have their own prospect they are saving a spot for – presumably the reports about him are true and he is the real thing.
Omar probably pulled the offer when he realized he was offering $5M a year for BENGIE Molina, not JOSE Molina.
I actually think Molina would be a great addition for the Mets….he calls a good game, throws runners out and will bat 8th….who doesn’t want a 8 hitter driving in 70 and hitting 15 homeruns….As a Mets fan, do u really want Santos as your catcher next season? Cause I don’t.
This is just strategy… The Mets want Molina, Molina wants the Mets, no one wants Molina….they are both playing hard ball…Molina had zero leverage and the Mets have total leverage
I love it Omar. No budget, you crack me up.
Clearly a statement made for all agents with desirable players left to sign.
Not signing Molina is a clear indication that the focus is pitching. I also believe that Molina was pressing due to the Beltran situation. He assumed that the Mets would panic and look to secure a little pop at his price (two yrs).
If the “never given a budget” thing is true, and all decisions are going through Wilpon…Omar is already fired. It’s just a matter of time.
That’s probably a good thing for the Mets!
OK but why would you aim that comment at Omar when it’s Jeff who’s holding the purse strings?
OK but why would you aim that comment at Omar when it’s Jeff who’s holding the purse strings?
Is Molina Johnny Bench? This is a waste of time. Sign Joel Pineiro and Ben Sheets. Spring Training is 1 month away, I understand patience but c’mon Molina isn’t worth this much stress
Hmmm Russell Martin for 5 mil or Bengie Molina for 6 million.. yeah thats a no brainer..
I think the undisclosed budget should give Mets fans hope; the rabbit might still get pulled out of the hat yet this offeason, and Bay was just the appeitizer!
I think he comes back to the Giants. The reason why everyone is only offering 1 yr deals is because next yr bidding war for Joe Mauer!!! Mets, Yankees, Twins, and Red Sox
With a very promising catcher about a year away, I’m not so sure you can just automatically include the Mets in your bidding war scenario.
Anyway, nice call about Molina going back to SF!
With a very promising catcher about a year away, I’m not so sure you can just automatically include the Mets in your bidding war scenario.
Anyway, nice call about Molina going back to SF!
The Mets are better off signing Torrealba. He’s several years younger and a very similar hitter. If he doesn’t regress from last year then he is in fact a better hitter. 2/6 would probably get it done. At worst 2/8
Omar should make a take it-or-leave it offer to Molina. If he rejects, simply move on, he isn’t worth all this time and effort.
Every player can be an RBI guy based off who is hitting around them. Great example is JD Drew. Guy knocks in 100 runs when he hits 3rd/4th in LA and Atlanta. Moves to Boston and hits 7th – his RBI’s drop into the 60’s.—————————–Ok, first off Drew only knocked in 100 runs once. Exactly 100 with the Dodgers. I always find it interesting how people view certain stats as more scientific ones become available. RBI are a poor tool to use to say “This is a great player because he drove in 100 RBI’s”. However, if you look at the twelve players that DID drive in 100 rbi, they are all pretty good/great hitters. A better way to use RBI, in the case of Slo-Mina, is to say “Wow, he drove in 80 RBI DESPITE, not having much in terms of speed or high OBP (other than Sandoval) hitting in front of him”. This isn’t an attempt to extol the virtues of Slo-Molina, but driving in 80 RBI on the Giants is somewhat impressive. Obviously he wouldn’t be a #4 hitter on the Mets, and I’m not even convinced the Mets should be going this hard after him, but one could imagine that he would have a decent shot at 100 RBI in the Mets lineup if he has a healthy Reyes, Wright, Bay and eventually, Beltran hitting in front of him, assuming that the move from At&T to Citifield doesn’t gobble up some of his offensive production.
Molina’s not driving in 100 runs if he continues to hit .260/.286/.429 w/RISP like last year.
Molina’s not driving in 100 runs if he continues to hit .260/.286/.429 w/RISP like last year.
I love where the Mets are at with this. Omar is truely operating from a position of strength, knowing that there is no time pressure on him as there is on Molina.
There was a method to the madness of 10,000 catcher signings in late 09.
Well played Omar, credit where credit is due. I predict: 1 yr @ 6, club option for 1 @ 4. 6million committed, a break at our discression next yr and he imposes his will on the long term plan for the team. Thole in 2011. Ike Davis 2011 is the biggest reason a one year Delgado solution at first is a likely outcome this Spring. He will probably sign in Spring Training during pitchers & catchers week.