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3/23/10

5 4 3-23: - Trading Carlos, Pitching Problems, SP5, The Animal... and Comparing Murphy and Francoeur

Trading Carlos:

Our friends over at metsreport have their own solution to the Mets' woes:

Final Decision? - Trade Beltran to acquire a #2 starter, help re-stock the farm system. At the same time we could let Reyes walk and sign Jimmy Rollins as a free agent. Yes, you heard it here first!

A couple of things about this theory:

1.  The value or Carlos Beltran has diminished greatly, both from his leg problems, but also the way he went about seeing his own doctor. He might have been right to do this for his own health, but it sure doesn't paint him as a "company man" in the eyes of any team's ownership.

2. Letting Jose Reyes "walk" is, in my opinion, a viable option. Trading him is another.

3. Don't assume that people like Jimmy Rollins thinks he'll get back to the WS by playing in Queens. The Mets are going to have to make some changes in the big offices with lots of windows, before quality players, and their agents, want to deal with this team.

Pitching Problems:

Here's anothe article from Amazin Stories on the pitching woes of the Mets:

"And if the Mets were frightened by what they saw Monday, they get Oliver Perez on the mound today. The Mets have yet to see Perez, Pelfrey or John Maine show that the troubles of the past are behind them. Pelfrey had one very solid outing. Perez has had a few more consistent than last year, but still not what you’d want to see. And on the back end, the competition for the fifth spot has hardly been riveting..."

All of us in the Mets writing world are jumping on the same bandwagon... it will be interesting to see some of the Q&A answers from Omar and Jerry...

SP5:

Sam Page over at Amazin Avenue gives his spin on the rotation mess:

"...So the Mets have options, and consequences that accompany every possible move. Niese and Takahashi can be outrighted to the minors at any time. Nelson Figueroa and Fernando Nieve are both out of minor league options, so would have to clear waivers to be demoted to Buffalo. Figueroa could also refuse assignment and test free-agency. He recently insinuated he would do just that, if waived, and sign for a better salary in Japan. With the Mets, Figueroa narrowly missed arbitration and has a very underwhelming split-contract that will earn him ~1/4 of the major-league minimum in AAA... "

Boy, Figgy just can't catch a break, can he?



The Animal:

Still more positive articles on 1B/OF Chris Carter. This one from Brian Costa at the Star-Ledger:

Manuel has given Carter a nickname: The Animal. When Manuel arrives at Tradition Field shortly before 7 a.m., Carter is already there, riding a stationary bike in the weight room. When most players leave in the late afternoon, Carter is still there, taking extra infield practice before lifting more weights. In between, Carter approaches just about every task with an almost fanatical sense of purpose.

There's not much good to talk about in the Mets camp right now. The pitching reeks and the only players that are hitting will be sent to the minor league complex somethime this week. And then there's Carter, who continues to prove he should be a major league baseball player...

Comparing Murphy and Francoeur:

Brian Joura of mets360 has an interesting comparison on two Mets "starters" that may not finish the season in that position: 

Realistically, the Mets go into the 2010 season unsure of what they will get from either Jeff Francoeur or Daniel Murphy. Francoeur has much more of a track record in the majors than Murphy, but his production has been so inconsistent (WARs ranging from 3.7 to -1.2) that anyone who says they know what to expect is lying. The fascinating part is that their production in the majors has been somewhat similar yet the expectations, at least from some vocal fans and media members, are completely opposite. Let’s start with their career numbers:

IMO... By the end of the year, Murphy will still be fighting it out with Mike Jacobs and Carter for the starting first base job... because Ike Davis wil be packaged for one of many starting pitchers the Mets will begin to deal with.

And Francoeur will also be safe, since CF Fernando Martinez will also be in the Davis package.

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