10-31-12 – Placido Polanco, Fall Ball, Options, Jake Peavy, CF

The Phillies declined their part of mutual option on Placido Polanco. Boy, can this guy hit when he’s healthy. And, this is the kind of utility infielder you want on your team. He plays third base, shortstop, and second and is a lifetime .298 hitter. Yes, his best days are behind him, and he was a complete dud in Philadelphia, but guys like this prevent you from losing games, either in the field or with a clutch hit in the late innings. He’s coming off a huge 3-year contract which means nothing. He’s 103 years old and you can get him easily in the $1-2mil range. Sign him to a minor league contract, bring him into camp and work the shit out of him, make Jason Turner work for his 2013 job, and, if he’s healthy, sign him to a one-year deal. Polanco, Rick Ankiel, Melky Cabrera… these are the 1-year deals you need to have a legitimate chance to make it to the playoffs without an outfield.

OF Juan Lagares (.000) played for Aguilas Cibaenas of the DFL as a late defensive replacement in left field. C Francisco Pena (.286) went 1-3 in the same game. The big news was the five scoreless innings thrown by P Miguel Batista (0.00)…  P Armondo Rodriguez (0.00) threw one scoreless inning for Leones del Escogido… ex-Met Cory Aldridge leads the Mexican League in home runs (9), RBIs (19), and runs scored (15)… over in Arizona, Danny Muno (.125) singles in Darrell Ceciliani (.244) in the third... . 

photo by Mack Ade

From Rotoworld:

Mets exercised 3B David Wright's $16 million option for 2013. It was merely a formality. The two sides remain in ongoing negotiations regarding a long-term extension, and it seems likely that something will get done prior to spring training. Wright had a nice bounce-back season for the Mets in 2012, batting .306/.391/.492 with 21 homers. New York also picked up R.A. Dickey's option.

Yes, it is just a formality, but it’s still nice to know that your shortstop and top pitcher will be back in the clubhouse on reporting day. One of three things is going to happen when this all plays out. One, you have two great players, for a multiple amount of years, on your team. Two, you have at least four new excellent young players in your organization that play key positions if you trade them. Or, three, you  have four more first round picks in the 2014 draft, considered a pretty talented one, especially in the first round. All three scenarios are decent ones and we all have our own favorite end to this saga, but, in any case, there’s a positive here for the future of the team.

The free agent market had their bar set late yesterday when SP Jake Peavy resigned with the Chicago White Sox for two years, $29mil. It’s $14.5mil per year for a guy that went 11-12, 3.37, 32-ST and helped his team reach second place. Does this come into play with the RA Dickey situation? Well, it doesn’t in 2013 because that was simply an option that the Mets just had to pick up at $5.05mil. Forget the age… Dickey is a knuckler that will easily still be around by the time Peavy’s deal ends and no one dominated National League hitters more. I may be wrong, but I don’t think this deal is good news for the Mets. Sign this guy quick Sandy.

And lastly, Anthony DiComo wrote a wonderful story at mLB about centerfield, in general, and Angel Pagan, in particular. A portion:

The Mets never intended for Torres to be the long-term solution in center; they simply hoped he could keep the position warm until prospects Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Matt den Dekker and -- eventually -- Brandon Nimmo were ready to contribute.  But uncertainty continues to surround Nieuwenhuis, who looked so overexposed at the plate last season that the Mets eventually demoted him back to the Minors, where he suffered a season-ending foot injury that cost him critical development time. Den Dekker remains raw and Nimmo is still years away, meaning the Mets have no obvious in-house candidates to replace Torres.

Let’s remember something before wanting the Pagan-Torres deal to go away. Pagan had reached a point where he was a negative force both on the field and in the clubhouse. This was once one of the most popular players that simply wound up sitting at his locker with his headphones on and talking with no one. Nobody in the clubhouse mourned his leaving. Yes, the Torres deal didn’t work out, but the Mets would still be searching for a long term centerfielder if Pagan was still around.