Minors Stuff

New York Mets

Third baseman Shawn Bowman, 24, who hit .294 with Double-A Binghamton, was added to the 40-man roster, which now stands at 36. That protects Bowman from leaving as a minor-league free agent or being selected in the Rule 5 draft.

Bowman, a 12th-round pick in 2002, had 24 doubles, three triples, nine homers and 44 RBI in 91 games. Bowman, a native of New Westminster, B.C., Canada, hit .275 with three homers and 15 RBI to help Canada win a bronze medal in September's World Cup. He also was named the third baseman on the All-World Cup squad.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/mets/#ixzz0W5YnIpFw


The Mets' needs are so many that they cannot establish one course of action. Signing one or two of the primary free agents would make a difference. But if that can't be accomplished, what then? Some possibilities the Mets have discussed follow:

• Pursue Cameron to play left field, thereby improving the outfield defense and adding some power. That would reduce Angel Pagan to a reserve role, which is what the club prefers. Chances are the Mets would want Cameron for one season, affording more time for Fernando Martinez to develop.

• Include Luis Castillo in a trade package and hope to fill a need with what they receive in return and then sign Hudson to play second base. The Mets believe that Castillo's renaissance season and, in particular, his on-base average, .387, have made him attractive to other clubs. Hudson, who lost his second-base job with the Dodgers, is not likely to be pursued by too many clubs.

• Sign Glaus, a right-handed power hitter, to a conditional contract and have him available to share first base with Murphy and provide power off the bench. That would all but eliminate Delgado from the Mets' thoughts. But for now, the club is considering offering Delgado a conditional contract.

• Sign Wolf and package a starter on the Mets' roster -- not Johan Santana, of course -- to acquire a No. 2 starter or a slugging outfielder.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091105&content_id=7629280&vkey=news_nym&fext=.jsp&c_id=nym&partnerId=rss_nym


Now, about Carlos Delgado: The Mets have discussed bringing him back, but those in favor are in the minority, perhaps a minority of one -- Omar Minaya. And I don't believe Minaya would do more than offer him a low-base salary with significant incentives, if that. From what I've been told, Delgado is considering playing in winter ball to provide some evidence that he is healthy, fit and able to produce. I'd imagine many teams would be interested in him if they became convinced he again can produce as he did in the second half of 2008 and the early weeks of '09. But the Mets seem quite committed to Daniel Murphy at this point. And neither Murphy nor Delgado plays a position other than first base. -- Mets.com

The Indians have talked to the New York Mets about adding former All-Star catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. to new manager Manny Acta's coaching staff. Alomar has been added to the Mets' big-league staff after serving two years as their bullpen catcher and catching instructor, but his job hasn't been finalized because of other changes on the staff. One of those changes included the firing of Alomar's father, Sandy Sr. In his 11 years with the Indians (1990-2000), Alomar was one of the most popular players in team history. He was voted into the Tribe's Hall of Fame this past summer. -- Cleveland Plain Dealer


International:

The nominations are in now for positions on the IBAF Executive Committee to include the President. As all know by now, I am not seeking election to any position. I have informed the candidates that I will serve the organization in any way possible to help the growth of our sport. Specifically, the relationship we now have with MLB, MLBPA, and other professional organizations is at an all time high. It's imperative that we keep these connections as strong as possible in the years ahead. I do hope that the upcoming December election is held with focus on the future of the organization and not on any self serving issues. This has been a great year for baseball. The Korean Series, Japanese series, and World Series have all been successful by any measure. Millions of fans saw the best of sport in all these competitions. Our challenge now is to bring the same level of achievement to all our member federations.
http://ibafbaseball.blogspot.com/2009/11/future-of-ibaf.html


General:

In the years 1996-2000, the Yankees had briefly brought back that aura of invincibility the franchise used to have in bygone days, and its fan base became swollen with just the sort of chunkheads you would expect to parasitically attach themselves to a guaranteed winner:
• fat, lonely teenagers;
• dead-eyed stockbrokers with suspenders and goo in their hair who, when they were not pretending to actually watch the games, liked to drink single malt, smoke Cohibas, and purchase lap dances;
• young fogies whose bedrooms were crammed with baseball books and whose lack of a suitable father figure drove them to fantasize that DiMaggio, The Mick, and the Sultan of Swat walked with them;
• dorks and assholes.
http://networkedblogs.com/p16924537