STUFF: - Brian Harrison, Stefan Welch, More Mets Defections, Mets Loan

1. Third baseman Brian Harrison has joined Mack’s Mets as a contributing writer. The pure third baseman was a 13^th round draft pick in 2010, out of Furman University. He made a splash in that same year with Brooklyn (.286/.352/.548/.900), but has been hampered with ticky-tacky injuries since. He got in an additional 219 at bats last season for the Cyclones, hitting .237. Brian will write about, well, he’ll write about what the hell he wants to write about, beginning soon. Please welcome him aboard.

2. The signing of first baseman Stefan Welch by the Pirates proves once more there is life after your first professional contract. Steff knew that the end of 2011 would bring the Rule 5, and the odds of him being retained by the Mets were slim regardless of what he produced last season. The 23-year old hit .271 for St. Lucie, with 16-HR and 53-RBI. His OPS was also .800. That’s how you play your Rule 5 year and it’s obvious that this will be the Pirates gain. G’Day Steff and feel free to come to Queens some day and kick the Mets in the ass.

3. In my world, the following is real bad shit. Ismael Cruz (signed Jenrry Mejia, Ruben Tejada, Jeurys Famillia, Wilmer Flores, Cesar Puello, Jordany Valdespin, Juan Urbina) , the supervisor of the Mets Latin American operations, has joined the Toronto Blue Jays. In addition, the Mets' former director of international operations, Rafael Perez, left the organization to become Major League Baseball's new director of Dominican operations. By my count, the Mets hired three VPs last year, is dumping payroll, still has no first base coach, signed some pitcher to play in the outfield, and continue to lose key personnel.  Please. Tell me what I’m missing here?

4. Did you catch the story on Thursday that the Mets are seeking a 4-month extension to pay back $25mil to the MLB? Four months… December, January, March, April…  still no ticket sales. What will be different? The story also said that baseball Commissioner Bud Selig was contacting other teams to rally behind Fred Wilpon. Ha Ha. You got a better chance of Herman Cain’s wife being happy her husband had a secret 14-year relationship with another woman (sex or no sex). I seem to be the only person in baseball writing about this Selig-Wilpon relationship, which is fine, but please give me credit when the story goes viral.