Some links as Spring Training games get started…
- Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports writes that Aroldis Chapman may be the most well-known of the recent Cuban defectors hoping to make an MLB impact, but that he's hardly the only one.
- The Hendricks brothers, who represent Chapman now, reached a settlement with API, who used to represent the lefty, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com.
- The Justin Upton deal should work for both sides, writes Tyler Hissey of Around the Majors. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic warns that there's some risk involved from Arizona's perspective, and wonders if B.J. Upton's recent struggles factored in his brother's decision to sign an extension now.
- The Mets have called the Padres about Adrian Gonzalez, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter).
- Yovani Gallardo's agent had some talks with the Brewers about a long-term deal last spring, but nothing came of them, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that Joe Crede is hitting, throwing and waiting for a job offer.
- Red Sox Assistant GM Ben Cherington tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com that the club has catchers in the upper minors who are "capable of coming up and playing." From defensive catchers like Dusty Brown and Mark Wagner to the powerful Luis Exposito, the team has potential behind the plate, though it doesn't have certainty for 2011.
- R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs wonders if Eric Hinske will encourage Jason Heyward to sign a long-term deal, like Evan Longoria did a couple springs ago.
- Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star reports that another team offered Noel Arguelles more than the $7MM bonus he will receive from the Royals.
I hope Heyward signs a Longoria contract!
Isn’t it a little premature to be talking about long term deals when the dude’s not even on the 40-man roster yet? Must be a slow news day over at Fangraphs.
How much if any time did longoria spend in the minors?He was leading the american league in RBI and near the top in homerslast year when he got injured, he also was injured the year before. The sky is the limit for this guy his home run stroke is a work of beauty that short swing quick wrist kind of like Hank Aaron.
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
Looks like the Fangraphs link also gos to the Kansas City Star story. But I was sitting here wondering what Eric Hinske would say to people as well, so interesting timing.
OMG, the Mets called the Padres about Gonzales?
Surely, Jed “I’m a Red Sock till I die” Hoyer, hung up the phone and told him he will deal with no one but the Red Sox and only accept a package from the Red Sox that includes all their lesser ranked non impact prospects.
Can’t wait until the Boston fans realize every team, other than the Yankees, will be in on this guy and if they want him, it’s gonna hurt. A lot.
For some reason when it comes closer to the trade deadline i dont think the red sox will acquire Agon i think they will go out and get someone that we havent heard of yet maybe trade some pitching prospects to that team considering our farm is loaded with mainly pitching prospects
Not every team could afford to extend him, so I don’t think every team would be willing to get into the prospect bidding war. Your point is taken though, the Sox are going to have to open their vaults (both prospect and money) if they want to get him.
actually. teams wont have to worry about extending him just acquiring him in a trade. some teams might only have a couple of years to compete and will go after him.
Well yeah. I just meant that considering what the Padres are going to be asking for him, some of those teams would probably pull out because it may be detrimental to their progress if they sent all their top prospects away for a rental.
Who can the Mets offer? Fernando Martinez & Ike Davis isn’t enough to get the deal done. I’m a Yankee fan, but I’d love to see the Mets assemble a squad to compete in the NL. If everyone remains healthy and the rotation comes together, they’d have a legit shot at competing. A.Gon would be a LOVELY addition, but the Amazin’s just don’t have the pieces to pull it off.
I’m not too familiar with Mets prospects, so I’m not sure what they could offer. But I think the Mets are more than one piece away from contending, and while Gonzalez would fit like a glove, they NEED to focus on pitching. That rotation behind Santana last year was U-G-L-Y.
Dicky, you’re making yourself sound like an idiot here.
First, nowhere did this story mention the Red Sox pursuing Gonzales yet you felt the need to bring them into it and bash them and their fans anyway….. sounds a little unnecessarily bitter. Yes, they pursued him in the past and maybe they will again…. leave it at that. They surely know that if they were to successfully obtain him that it would hurt. A lot. You don’t get to be a perennial contender by being morons.
Secondly, you sound even more idiotic lumping all Red Sox fans into the same boat. Most realize that it would take an astounding package to net A Gon. Some don’t realize it… some fans are more casual but still love their team… they just aren’t hardcore. You can’t expect everyone to have the right idea and be completely knowledgeable. Fan base wars are stupid and immature.
Lastly, in term of the Red Sox interest in A Gon, the bottom line is that they covet him greatly, have the prospects to make a move, and can afford whatever contract he might require. This puts them at or near the top of the list if they decided to make another attempt. It’s reality. Stop complaining about it.
Bay and A.Gon could be a nice combo
No brainer the mets need gonzalez enough said. I say you give the padres ike davis, fernando nieve, fernando martinez, and if at all possible oliver perez.
Imagine this lineup: Reyes, Pagan, Wright, Bay, Gonzalez, Franchor, Barajas, Castillo…….. Thats a lineup that could contend for the division and go deep in the postseason…although we still need our pitching to step it up…
That’s not going to get AGon 86 nymets. Think Ike, Mehja, and probably Fernando Martinez plus another lesser prospect. Oliver Perez is negative value. I don’t get why SOME met fans don’t get that. He actually makes alot MORE than AGon.
Getting González would be a start, but it’ll take more than “stepping up” from the rotation to get the Mets into the postseason. Even if one is a back-up, your trade proposal subtracts 2 SP and we still don’t have a solid #2 guy (please don’t talk to me about Maine/Pelf and “potential”…they have to prove themselves, and in Maine’s case, stay healthy). Taking Oliver Pérez out of the picture (for any reason!) is a plus, but who do you propose to replace him with at this point? Sorry to say but with or without Adrián González, pitching is still too much of a weak link for the Mets to get too far any time soon.
Maybe this is just me, but I’ll venture a guess that in the unlikely event Gonzalez goes to the Mets, Oliver Perez and Fernando Nieve won’t be names going in the other direction.
Try Ike Davis + Jenrry Mejia + Jon Niese + Wilmer Flores
The conversation will start with Ike and Fernando Martinez. From there another top prospect and a lower one would probably get it done.
They really should be focused on acquiring a SP
I would love to trade for A Gonz just as much as everyone else, but it is worth getting rid of 90% of our farm system? I supposed if we had the money to keep him around for the long term it would be worth it. He does have an above average glove along with his big bat
Let me give you all my trash & an expensive bill to pay off. In return, you give me your most valuable asset.
Meijia, Ike Davis and Fernando Martinez would be an awesome package for A-GONE. He would definitely solidify that lineup.
It would be hard for San Diego to turn that down
Fans are sleeping on the Mets rotation.. Veteran catchers will help out the rotation alot. Alot of ifs but IF Perez can keep his head straight 7 innings a game he’s awesome, IF Mike Pelfrey can forfill his potential and IF Maine could stay healthy and get back some of what he had in 07 that could be a really good rotation.
I think almost every team has a veteran catcher. Alot of IFS if you ask me.
Met didn’t have one.. Omir Santos was the starter last year and expected to start this year befor Rod Barajas . Santos was inexperienced and did not call a good game. He fell out of favor with the staff. Blanco is also a good team captain kind of guy and those intangibles are important to any major league team
It would not be that hard, Davis has no value to them/.
He also has go value to the padres who seem to be grading towardd blanks as the new first baseman.
You do know he is an OF too….
Are you referring to those 2 whopping games he played
In right?
2 games vs 100+ games at first..
Hymmmm…..
Obviously I know that, I never said he started more games in OF, I just said he is an OF too. His better postition is 1B but he CAN play an average corner OF which would give him value if he was traded.
Obviously I know that, I never said he started more games in OF, I just said he is an OF too. His better postition is 1B but he CAN play an average corner OF which would give him value if he was traded.
Ike Davis used to be a pitcher and has an above average arm with the ability to play LF or RF. I do however believe he is better defensively than Blanks.. Why wouldn’t he be of value to the Padres??
If my aunt had balls, she’d be my uncle.
Alright lets clear this shall we? The way it is written here seems to suggest that the Mets called about Gonzalez. HOWEVER they did not pick up the phone and call him today – this was something that was done months ago, not anytime recently. There is a very big difference between the two.
The Mets need Adrian Gonzalez and his left handed bat. Ike Davis, Jon Neise, Fernando Martinez?
The Mets need a lot of things.
they need to stop running trains on your mom and go get tested.
I don’t know what that means or who my mother is, but I’m sure she’s involved in something along those lines wherever she is. If she’s even alive.
Mets fans are optimistic but dumb, their only valuable prospect and davis is a c prospect while the padres have blanks anyway. Fernando martinez would be necessary too but all in all the mets arent even close to a trade, go to rebuilding phase and trade away players.
# Red Sox Assistant GM Ben Cherington tells Alex Speier of WEEI.com that the club has catchers in the upper minors who are “capable of coming up and playing.” From defensive catchers like Dusty Brown and Mark Wagner to the powerful Luis Exposito, the team has potential behind the plate, though it doesn’t have certainty for 2011.
Is this them saying they may not extend Vmart? Sounds like a hint in the media without getting close to saying anyone’s name..
ike davis, fernando nieve, fernando martinez, and if at all possible oliver perez.
I hate to be the one to tell you all this, but this package is not near enough to land someone of Gonzales calibre. Many teams could top that offer with MUCH better prospects. Unless the Mets are willing to start the conversation with Reyes or Wright, then this is a serious pipedream. AGon won’t be a Met.
I would think the Padres would probably prefer to trade him to the AL league but maybe that is just me.
Niese and FMart are not ranked as high as Mets fans think they are, The Pads have a first baseman in Blanks in the minors, Mets fans you dont have the prospects to get the deal done, and The Red Sox will have to come off of Bard and Ellsbury in a AGon trade to start it. By the ways am Sox fan and a Braves fan, so i have no interest in a Pads/Mets trade but get over it and realize fair trades not force trades in The SHOW.
Mets fans please get over the Idea that Niese and FMart are top prospects, they are not, you do not have the prospects to get a AGon deal done. Red Sox fans expect that Ellsbury and Bard will be required to start AGon talks. I am a Braves/Red Sox fan so I dont really care about AGon talks with Mets and Pads, but the Pads have a 1st base prospect in AAA in Blanks so remember that.
Cue ridiculous trade proposals from fans who think they can get top notch talent by trading garbage prospects.
The twins could sign crede to a minor league contract like Jones and
maybe trade for Lowell or Gonzalez midseason
I doubt the Twins will want to take that gamble again. Crede probably won’t be picked up until midseason, and even then, it may still be a minor league deal. Nobody wants to get burned by his back issues.
I dont see the mets giving up jennry mejia for anyone now….the buzz is he is developing a mariano rivera like cutter…they might have found a gem there…
I can see F-Mart going in a trade for a #2 SP…depends on his ability to play CF…as a corner OF, he has little value to the Mets…they have a few other picks, eddie kunz, brad holt, who may be pieces of a trade as well…wilmer flores is not going anywhere…the kid is 18 with 2 years in the books and one of the fastest rising international prospects…the mets need some sort of insurance in case Reyes leaves…or hurts his hamstrings running away from the KKK crowd crying reverse racism every time Omar signs someone with a tan
I would love to trade for A Gonz too but now is not the time to mortgage the farm.
Let’s see how this season starts with what we have.
We need that Lefty in the pen and that would only cost us dollars.
People on here don’t seem to have any idea of were the top prospects lie in the developement process, and the rate at which they are imporving. You all just watch what the Bisons do this year, it’s going to be entirely different scene in Triple A for the Mets this year. In 2011-2012 people will be calling us. patients Met fans.
Anyone who wants AGon will have to back up the truck to Petco Park and then shell out a nine-figure salary. AGon would fit the Mets very well but they only really do a deal like this when they have significant leverage, a la Santana who wanted to play for them and could dictate the process. Thus the Mets could get away with not putting Fernando Martinez in that deal.
A lot still has to play out during the first half. Are the Mets even in the race as we near the deadline? Are F-Mart and Davis tearing up Triple-A pitching? Has Davis already been called up and is he doing well at 1B? Is Mejia mowing down Triple-A hitters, or is he already in the Met bullpen? Or are they all struggling or injured or both?
Given the actions of both organizations I think the Red Sox are much more likely to end up with AGon than the Mets. The Sox were willing to part with Hanley Ramirez and Anibal Sanchez for Josh Beckett, the Mets just don’t do those deals. They either keep their top prospects or trade them (Kazmir) for crap.