10/16/09

Minors Stuff




New York Mets


The Mets, of course, have monitored J.J. Putz's progress. They have decisions to make, including whether to exercise their option on his contract and, if they don't, whether to pursue him as a free agent. If they decline to exercise the option, which is quite likely, he can file for free agency and become available to all clubs. "I'll just wait to see how it hits me when [the Mets] decide," Putz said. "I guess I'd be open to pretty much anything. I liked being there. I enjoyed the guys, not the season." -- MLB.com


Winter Leagues:

Josh Thole is looking to be the starting catcher for the Mets next year. Brian Schneider is not one of those legends that puts a lot of pressure on you. He still needs to improve his defense, but his hitting is not a problem. His two hits drove in two runs to lead Caracas over Margarita 6-4.

The second player selected in the 2009 draft, Dustin Ackley made his AFL debut for the Peoria Javelinas, but it was the Surprise Rafters led by the hot hitting Ike Davis that got the 6-4 victory. Ike only got one hit but drove in two runs and is hitting .556 to start the fall season

http://myworldofbaseball.com/wordpress/?m=200910

Everyone's talking about Jenrry Mejia. He evoked a storm on twitter yesterday by touching 98.2 MPH with his fastball. Thanks to the Brooks Baseball AFL PitchFX tool, we have access to a detailed breakdown of Mejia's 39-pitch outing. His fastball sat in the 94-96 range and he threw it for strikes a little over half the time (54.2%). Ten of his 11 changeups were 86-87 MPH and two of them got swing-throughs -- 63.6% strikes. Of the four curveballs he threw, only one was a strike -- he ranged from 76-78 with the offering. He did not record swing-throughs with his fastball or curve, according to PitchFX.

Here are a few notes that I got from a hitter who faced Mejia in the Eastern League this season: He was filthy. His fastball has hard cut and sits 94-98. His changeup was really good (good movement).

http://projectprospect.com/article/2009/10/15/arizona-fall-league-notes

Ike Davis has knocked home eight RBI in the first two games of the season to lead the Fall League


Blogs:

Here's what pisses me off about Jose Reyes:
All season long the pre-game shows (Fran Healy would like me to point out that the show is called "KFC Pre-Game Live" sponsored by KFC and their new Kentucky Grilled Chicken ... but I won't because I'm not being compensated, and I almost choked on a boneless chicken bit that actually had a bone) would be dominated by the following: "Jose Reyes got up out of bed this morning and ate a bagel with cream cheese, but the cream cheese weighed down his hamstring. Jerry Manuel says that he expects his return in about another two to three weeks."And it went on and on and on ... and it wasn't just Reyes. We had to hear about the running, jumping, and eating habits of pretty much everyone on the roster. But Reyes is the meal ticket ... the one that holds it all together, making it more frustrating that this injury has been the one that has seemingly been mishandled the most.

http://metstradamus.blogspot.com/2009/10/what-have-you-learned-jose-reyes.html


Last year I would be more skeptical then I am this season, thanks to Luis Castillo. Yes, I was one of those who wanted Castillo gone no matter what and didn't believe he could make a comeback that would convince me otherwise. Castillo did prove me wrong and even though he could be moved this off-season, I would have no problem with him returning.

After signing a three year 36M contract Oliver Perez had the worst year of his career. He only made 14 starts ( 65 innings ) with a record 3-4 with an ERA of 6.82.

First Ollie's ineffectiveness was blamed on conditioning at the WBC and then a knee injury was revealed. Now, maybe he actually had an injury but it's hard to believe when Ollie had a hard time identifying which leg was injured when asked by reporters.
2010 Baseball Free Agents: Right Fielders

Bobby Abreu, 36, Angels - 09:$5M (Type A)
Jermaine Dye, 36, White Sox - 08:$9.5M, 09:$11.5M, 10:$12M mutual option ($1M buyout) (Type A)

Brian Giles, 39, Padres - 06-08:$9M annually, 09:$9M club option ($3M buyout) (Type B)
Vladimir Guerrero, 34, Angels - 04:$10M, 05:$11.5M, 06:$12.5M, 07:$13.5M, 08:$14.5M, 09:$15M club option ($3M buyout) (Type A)

Eric Hinske, 32, Yankees - 09:$1.5M

Geoff Jenkins, 35, Phillies - 08:$5M, 09:$6.75M, 10:$7.5M mutual option ($1.25M buyout)
Gabe Kapler, 34, Rays - 09:$1M

Austin Kearns, 30, Nationals - 07:$3.5M, 08:$5M, 09:$8M, 10:$10M club option ($1M buyout)

Jason Michaels, 34, Astros - 09:$750K
Xavier Nady, 31, Yankees - 09:$56.55M (Type B)

Randy Winn, 36, Giants - 07:$4M, 08:$8M, 09:$8.25M (Type B)

Richard Hidalgo is still raking in the winter league. He didn’t get any major league love that I’m aware of, but a couple Japanese teams attempted to sign him. Either the money wasn’t right, Hidalgo didn’t want to go to Japan or the reports were not true, but he had a quiet summer for 2009, other than the two games he played for Monterrey in Mexico. He’s back in the winter leagues and raking again for Magallanes, getting three hits in five at bats, driving in two runs and scoring three. All three hits were doubles and led Magallanes to a 9-5 win over Caribes. With an average hovering at .538 early in the season, perhaps he will get some major league team to express an interest in him. He will be turning 35 next year so his best years are past him, but Hidalgo could be a good bench player if he wants to fill that role.

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