As i'm reading through all the Mets "Offseason game plans" that pop up this time of the year, it occurs to me that what the Mets need the most is a left-handed, middle of the order power hitter...A guy with a reasonable salary, under several more years of team control. What the Mets need more than anything else is the player that Ike Davis was supposed to be...A 40 homer threat, that can protect David Wright in the lineup, and keep pitchers honest. But can the Mets really afford to give Ike Davis another chance at turning his career around? What if he shows up this Spring with that ballerina swing I suffered through last year? Here's what I would do---Call Ike, and tell him to pick up an outfielders glove and start practicing shagging fly balls...The Mets outfield situation is still wide open, and this way they could go get a legitimate first baseman...(Duda just ain't it). Ike sported a low 90's fastball in high school, so he definately has the arm...and his potential lack of range wouldn't look so bad playing next to Lagares/Den Dekker in Center.A popular idea out there amongst us amatuer GM's surrounds bringing back Carlos Beltran...Listen, I would love nothing more than for the Mets to re-sign Carlos for 3-4 years and then hang his jersey from the rafters---but what makes people so sure that a deal could be done? Last time I checked the Mets took a crap all over this guy on his way out the door...So if the Mets offer 3 years 40 million, and the Yanks offer 2 years for 26...where do think he's going to sign? Lets not forget that the night before we signed this guy the first time, he called Brian Cashman and offered up his services at a discount...
When the Mets extended Terry Collins contract they missed an excelent opportunity to add an element of toughness to the coaching staff, and the rest of the team that has been sorely missed for many years in my opinion. I long for the days of "take no shit" baseball the Mets played in the mid to late 80's...What about an all 86' Mets coaching staff for 2014? Pay Davey Johnson enough to come out of retirement again, and then make Wally his bench coach and #2...Remember 6'5 Eric Davis taking a hard slide into Ray Knight at third? Ray took one step back and then through an overhand right to his teeth--There's you're third base coach right there...Is Dykstra still in jail? If not tell him to put an entire pouch of Redman in his left cheek and go man the first base line...Ronny and Keith could be you're pitching/hitting coaches (over/under is two days before Keith makes Lucas Duda cry).
Reese Kaplan wrote a piece the other day on the Mets looming roster crunch (or lack thereof). I couldn't agree more, and it got me thinking about how many players the Mets employ that really have little to no future on a Major League baseball team (other than the Mets of course). I think that the time has come for a "black friday" mass release of the some of these guys. If the Mets were to release Andrew Brown, Mike Baxter, Zach Lutz, Omar Quintinilla, Josh Satin, Sean Henn, Robert Carson, Greg Burke, and Jordany Valdespin how many of them would make a major league roster out of spring training next year? How's this for an offseason game plan--Replace these nine players with legitimate Major League baseball players...I don't even care who....
I understand what your saying about why Beltran would not want to come back here. I feel the same way. But these aren't the same Yankees that they were when Beltran originally signed here. These Yankees are a bunch of overpaid aging players past their prime. Their starting rotation consists of a declining Sabathia and Ivan Nova right now. Their two best pitchers last season were over 40. One retired, the other isn't a lock to return either. They have no farm system to make a big impact trade and they have so many holes that they can't just go out there and sign the top 3 free agents and fix everything (which is how they got in this situation).
ReplyDeleteThe Yankees are going to have to go through a rebuilding phase after a 20 year dynasty. I could bash them all day but the whole concept is Beltran makes the most sense to a perennial contender like STL or TEX as he pursues as many rings as he can over his final seasons. Anyone who thinks that the Yankees will be contending for a championship next year clearly didn't watch any games last year
Kevin - kudos, I was just going to write something similar. The Yanks aren't the dominant force they were and appear to be sliding down. The Metd can be on the upswing with their pitching and the right moves. I think Beltran easily takes the $40M from the Mets.
ReplyDeleteI still think a perennial contender makes more sense or an up and coming team that is ahead of the Mets like the Pirates. Either way, I'd love to have him back, but I think it's a longshot.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I feel like Alderson has a built in mechanism to NOT pursue what Met fans want him to pursue, even if it makes good baseball sense. Just my general sense of his management ego. Not very scientific on my part.
ReplyDeleteHe'll never sign Beltran even if Beltran wanted to come back. But, who knows, I could be wrong.
Say what you want, but I bet the Yankees make the playoffs next year.
ReplyDeleteWithout ARod's contract, they'll have like 80 million to spend before reaching that 189 million threshold.
The mets will spend 30 million, maybe...
The yanks will go over that 189 if they need to.
The mets won't go over 95 million no matter what.
Two totally different franchises with totally different ownerships. The yanks haven't had a farm system since the 90's that has popped out any consistent quality. Yes, Cano is great, but there aren't any other stars that came from that system since the 90s.
The Mets have young pitching, but won't spend what they need to go into the season feeling absolutely confident that they'll be good. The Yanks? They'll be good...
Cano & Kiroda would take up at least 40 million of that. They also need at least 2 starting pitchers if they think they have a rotation of Sabathia, Nova & Pineada. They also need to sign a 3B and/or SS. Right now their outfield is Gardner, Ichiro, Soriano, Almonte & Vernon Wells. Gotta think they will try and bring in another outfield. If they want Ellsbury, they'll be doing what they do best and paying a big contract to a player over 30. They got no production behind the plate this year. Then there is the whole bullpen issue.
ReplyDeleteSo essentially, they have $40 to fill the following holes SP, SP, RP, 3B, SS, C, OF.
Good luck with that. They are a mess and the Mets will have a better record than the Yankees next year. Cano is the only player on that team that is worth anything and they are gonna have to sign him to a contract that puts him in the same category as everyone else on that team. Everybody is either overpaid and old or overpaid and old.
Ike to the outfielld? Please, pulleeeeze, don't subject him to that kind of humiliation. At 1B he is a potential gold glove, in the OF it would be more like a lead gloove. Lets just sign a legitimate outfielder like Cruz, Byrd or Beltran.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Beltran, please don't talk 3-4 years. He'll be 37 when next season is 3 weeks old, and while his conditioning is very sound, I don't want a 40 year old Beltran racing around in the vast expanses of Citi's outfield. A 2 year contract makes a lot of sense, filling a window that takes us to 2016 when internal options like Puello or Lawley (and maybe Vaughn or Ceciliani) could be ready for prime time.
Herb - might have to give Beltran a 3rd option year to get him
ReplyDeleteHi Herb
ReplyDeleteIke's career is on life support...
He's been a .200 hitter for two years now.
I'm not talking about making him the starter in right field...Give it a shot, and if it doesn't work out, let him go play first in the pioneer league.
If the Mets start the year with Ike Davis, or Lucas Duda as the starting First Basemen then we are doomed to another year of mediocre baseball.
He did play OF in college. Not that it means anything though.
ReplyDelete