12/22/12

Mack Stuff – Mets Budget, Travis d’Arnaud, Michael Bourn, Nolan Reimold



Best Christmas Poem - http://mets360.com/?p=13885


Howard Megdal‏ - @howardmegdal -  The #Mets $7 million budget @kendavidoff reported earlier this week to get whole OF, SP, bullpen is up to $10 million.

                I emailed both Howard and Ken and asked them how they did their math, but they never answer my email. It’s one thing having $10mil… it’s another finding someone to give it to. I’m not sure there is a decent right hand hitting outfielder still out there to consider. I would lock up either Hairston or Ross and then turn to the pen and try and find one key pitcher that could take over as the first reliever in… sort of like Pedro Feliciano used to be. Do you notice we keep talking about the same five or six names? God, it’s touch keeping up this Hot Stove season.


There is no doubt d’Arnaud was available due, in part, to his injury history. In June the 23-year-old tore his posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) and missed the remainder of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) season. In 2010, he registered just 292 plate appearances due to two bulging disks in his back. My father is doctor making me qualified to say these injuries are worrisome. Catching is a demanding position and if d’Arnaud were a Jay its conceivable he could DH once a week. Joe Mauer caught just over seventy games in 2012 and was the designated hitter for another seventy. Similarly, the Giants are able to spell Buster Posey‘s knees by placing him at first base. Of course, the Giants are also intent on destroying Brandon Belt. However, such creativity isn’t an option for d’Arnaud in Flushing. I’d estimate the move from the Junior Circuit costs him between ten and twenty games. If you have you own d’Arnaud or another NL catcher make sure to have a quality back up. Moreover, d’Arnaud’s playing time this season is more questionable as a Met. The noncompetitive, cash strapped Mets have absolutely no incentive to call up d’Arnaud before the super-two deadline. But, for fantasy owners sake, hopefully they will call him up earlier. One would think a big market club like the Mets could handle paying d’Arnaud an extra year of arbitration, but these are the Mets. Prior to this trade the Jays looked strong and replacing J.P. Arencibia with d’Arnaud early in the year would have been a good win now move. I wouldn’t go as far as to say the Jays would certainly call him up before the Mets would, but Toronto would have had more of an incentive to. http://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy/index.php/what-to-make-of-travis-darnaud/


Ideally, yes, Bourn is a fit and he would give the Mets outfield some instant credibility. He does strike out a lot, but he’s become an excellent top of the order catalyst as an outstanding base stealer with triples speed. The Mets don’t have much of that, and it’s something they have desperately needed since both Jose Reyes and Angel Pagan departed after 2011. But, a) he’s left-handed and the Mets need right-handed outfielders, b) they need power in the outfield, c) he’s a Scott Boras client, and there’s no doubt he will try and get someone to overpay for Bourn, and d) he received a qualifying offer from the Braves, and so the team Bourn signs with will have to surrender their first round pick in the 2013 draft. On top of that, Bourn depends on his legs to be successful, and it remains to be seen how quickly those skills diminish in the coming seasons. http://metsblog.com/rumors/outfield/latest-on-of-market-bourn-still-available-swisher-visiting-teams/


The Baltimore Orioles outrighted outfielder Steve Pearce to Norfolk (IL).

Let’s take a peak and see if there is an excess of outfielders on this team and what they might need (I do this at this time of the year, every year):

Baltimore has eight (8) outfielders on their 40-man:

                Xavier Avery – 2012 MLB: 94-AB, .223 – bats left – minimum salary
                L.J. Hoes – 2012 MLB:  2-AB, .000 – bats right – AAA: .300 – minimum salary
                Adam Jones –  2012 MLB: 648-AB, .287 - $85.5mil through 2018
                Nick Markakis – 2012 MLB: 420-AB, .298 - $66.1mil through 2014
                Nate McLouth – 2012 MLB: 209-AB, .268 – bats left - $2mil 2013, FA in 2014
                Nolan Reimold –  2012 MLB: 67-AB, .313 – bats right – ARB-1
                Trayvon Robinson – 2012 MLB: 145-AB - .221 – switch hits - the Orioles traded Robert Andino last month to the Mariners for Robinson – minimum salary

Well, the Orioles have plenty of outfielders and yet they just traded for another one (Robinson).  I assume one of these guys will DH in 2013 and Hoes could move back to second base. Still, you can’t sit Jones or Markakis, and McLouth just re-upped for another year.

My guess is someone like Reimold could be had for some pitching… 28 years old… he was off to a hot start in 2102 (.960 OPS) but went down for neck surgery that ended his season. Regarding his rehab, Reimold was quoted to say last month: “I plan on playing left field unless somebody tells me differently.”

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mack, if D'Arnaud's injury history is such a concern, then why is it that so many ML execs are shocked that Toronto gave him up after at least two teams asked for him and were flat out told NO? And besides that, how many catchers DON'T have some back issues throughout their career? It's to be expected considering the physical demands of the position. Non issue to me.

Charles said...

This is why they gave him up...

Pelfrey got 4 million plus incentives
Liriano got 14 million...wow
Guthrie got 25 million...holy shit

Relief pitchers are signing 20 million contracts and they're not closers.

Pitching costs have skyrocketed for guys that are mediocre at best.

RA dickey is a number 1 starter; easily worth 20 million a year in today's market, yet he'll make 5 million and only 12 mill after that.

D'Arnaud was a cheap price to pay for a team that believes they are one great pitcher away from making the playoffs, yet are at their limit payroll wise. Toronto, for their needs, made out big on this deal despite what they gave up.

Anonymous said...

Charles, you are right that the price for pitching is enormous. Francisco Liriano for 2 years and $12.75 mil for a younger version of Oliver Perez?! Mets were interested, but glad they didn't get him at that price. Pelfrey isn't worth $4 mil coming off TJ surgery. And Guthrie? A HR pitcher getting 3/$25? Really? But teams smell the money soon coming their way via the new nat'l tv deal and are gonna spend it, no matter how carelessly.

As for Toronto, don't go having championship rings made up just yet. While I applaud them for taking advantage of a weakened AL East and improving their team "ON PAPER" there are questions to be answered. One, so many new players in the club house, how will they gel as a team unit? Two, a new "old" manager with a bad reputation for player relations in a suddenly veteran laden clubhouse That could prove toxic quickly if Gibbons hasn't mellowed out in 3 years away from ML managing.

A very good recent example of heavy spending that didn't initially pan out: LA Dodgers. All those players acquired last July in blockbuster deals not only didn't get them into the playoffs, but they actually ended up further from 1st place than they were prior to the deals. Having said that, it still could pan out with the new players more familiar and adjusted to their new team. Same thing COULD happen in Toronto.

Back to the price of pitching. While you might say D'Arnoud is a small price to pay, most MLB execs were, if the media reports can be believe, shocked the Jays gave up T.D. in this deal. Allegedly two other teams asked for him and were turned down. I have to wonder if the Marlins asked for him in their blockbuster deal. If so, and the Mets got him simply for Dickey when the Marlins couldn't get him for Reyes, Burhele, and Johnson that would be quite a feat. Though I am no fan of Sandy Alderson, I have to tip my hat to him for taking advantage of the inflated price of pitching to snag two top 50 prospects for a 38 year old knuckleballer.