-I have
to tell you that I was pretty impressed with Santana’s velocity on Tuesday. He
sat in the upper 80s and even hit 90 in the first inning. I really didn’t
believe he had that much in the tank anymore. The next test is how he feels
when he wakes up over the next couple of days, but, suffice to say, this was
quite impressive. For ST game 2. At this point I would be thrilled if he could
just be a back end starter through the remainder of his contract, or put up
enough decent numbers for the possibility of a trade at some point this season.
The Mets would have to eat the lion share of his contract, but wouldn’t it be
perfect if his roster spot could be filled by either Jeurys
Familia or Matt Harvey.
Look
folks, I’m wrong as often as I am right, but let’s remember what’s going on
here. The Mets are NOT going to be a competitive team for (at least) the next
two seasons in their own division, no less the league.
And, the
Mets will never sign another contract with Santana, so the only thing you want
here is a halfway sound arm, his old mechanics (which are identical for the change
and the fastball) and a heater around 91-92. That will get him an SP3 role,
and, with that nasty go-to change, you’ll stand a chance for 10 wins before
September 2012.
Then, you
deal him off, eating 75% of his contract and you move on down the road.
But, what
do I know…
I agree wholeheartedly Mack. In one of my long-winded posts about the future, I wrote that moving Santana and eating a good portion of his salary would be best for all involved.
ReplyDeleteIF he return even close to form this year and the Mets are willing to eat some of that contract, I think they could swipe some young talent from a contender that is desperate for pitching. This year's (and possibly most future) deadline should be a seller's market with so many additional teams given a glimmer of playoff hope with an additional wild card. There will be less teams offering their productive players and more teams wanting them.
Santana's 2014 most certainly will not vest given the requirements, leaving a $5.5M buyout. If he's traded, the Mets can pick up the remaining portion of his 2012 salary as they already have a reduced payroll and those dollars are a sunk cost. That leaves his 2013 salary ($25.5M) and the $5.5M buyout for a total of $31M owed to him. If I were the Mets, I'd offer $24, split 12-12 over 2013 and 2014. This way, the Mets have additional payroll flexibility in 2013 and the acquiring team is only on the hook for $7M for 1 year of Santana. If he is anything close to what he was, that's a hell of a bargain and could net the Mets some interesting young talent.
Better still, wouldn't it be nice if he has a solid season and they restructure his contract so they don't eat as much when they trade him next offseason?
ReplyDelete+1 Frank, I just think he'll return more in trade at the deadline.
ReplyDeleteYa know, it would be nice to attract some AA prospect out of this.
ReplyDeleteHell, you throw in a Zack Wheeler type and I'd eat the whole contract.
I'm with you Mack, this could be a chance to get another high-ceiling starter, add some OF depth, or solve that long-term catching problem the team has.
ReplyDeleteIn addiiton to the usual suspects (NYY, Bos, LAA, etc.) the expanded playoffs and the Mets' assumed willingness to eat a substantial portion open up a much greater list of suitors....off the top of my head I could see the Blue Jays, Rangers, Cardinals, Reds, and Diamondbacks all in the market for a 'cheap' Santana come July.
...Now if we could only get Jason Bay to show signs of life...
ReplyDeleteI'd LOVE to think that he could be a major role model to the young pitchers about to make it to the bigs. I'd also hasten against jumping ahead of ourselves, as it's still only one, 2 inning exhibition game, in spite of the fact that I was beyond excited to watch him pitch! He is still not movable unless the team picked up about 95% of his salary, which isn't going to happen. I'd love to be able to send a healthy Santana to a contender (he deserves it), preferably a team that has a spare, top catching prospect lying around the cubbard somewhere!!
ReplyDeleteI DO think that Michael's proposal would be MORE than reasonable IF, as he said, he's anything close to what he was. And, funny enough, most of the teams you cited, Michael, have young catching prospects in their "cubbards"...lol
Thanks David...I can't help but dream about a healthy Santana and salary to Toronto for d'Arnaud come July.
ReplyDelete