The Morning Report 11.23.2015 | Mets Lose Jack Leathersich to Cubs, Syndergaard could be a Career Met, "The Final Boss" a Mets RP Target

Adam Rubin | ESPN New York- The Chicago Cubs have claimed left-handed reliever Jack Leathersich off waivers from the New York Mets. Leathersich, 25, underwent Tommy John surgery on July 30, so he is not due to return until next summer. The Mets have a shortage of left-handed relievers, but chose anyway to remove Leathersich to clear a spot ahead of Friday's deadline to add prospects to the 40-man roster to shield them from the Rule 5 draft.

(Chris Soto: I don't blame the Mets for removing a guy from the 40 man roster who will likely not contribute to the team during the 2016. There is never a guarantee that a player comes back from Tommy John Surgery 100%, as evidenced by Bobby Parnell. That said, I don't think anyone would have expected Leathersich to be claimed. Even stranger....Leathersich was not the only New York reliever recovering from TJS to be claimed on waivers as the Yankees RHRP Chase Whitley was also grabbed off of waivers by Tampa Bay.)



Kristie Ackert | NY Daily News- Noah Syndergaard had dreamed of being a big leaguer most of his life, but ever since 2013, he had dreamed specifically about getting a chance to get back to New York City. “I love it here,” Syndergaard said. “I had some time after the season and I wanted to just experience all I could of it. I wanted to do things I couldn’t do in the season and I am having a lot of fun. I want to be a Met for life, I love it.”

(Chris Soto: Syndergaard is quickly becoming my new favorite Met....a position that has been empty since the departure of Jose Reyes. He's fiery, he's talented, he can throw it by you with a 100 mph fastball or make you look ridiculously silly on a 84 mph hammer curveball. These kind of statements, these "natural" statements, are something you don't hear coming out of the mouth of a Matt Harvey. While I'm certainly enjoying the wonders of 3 aces in the Mets rotation right now....I know when push comes to shove....we can't afford to extend all 3 of them. If I had to choose 2 of deGrom, Thor, and Harvey right now, with the 3rd being traded and bringing in a massive amount of young talent, I would be choosing Thor and deGrom.)



HOT STOVE REPORT (courtesy of mlbtraderumor.com)

• Per Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com, the Nationals have jumping into, and are now leading, the race to sign free agent RHRP Darren O'Day. The Nationals have a competitive edge in their pursuit since O'Day's wife currently in employed in the D.C. area.
• Per Newsday's Marc Carig, Korean closer Seung-hwan Oh is on the Mets radar as a potential free agent addition to their bullpen as they continue to look for options to bolster their late inning set-up core to Juerys Familia. 

(Chris Soto: Not knowing what exactly is going to happened with Papelbon and the Nationals....adding a guy like O'Day to the bullpen mix adds a ton of depth to an already good bullpen. That said though, you have to wonder what the value add is? Is $9M per season really best spent on a 7th inning bullpen arm or would it be more helpful elsewhere? As for the Seung-Hwan Oh, if I'm the Mets I would certainly take a flyer on Oh. Especially knowing that his numbers were so dominant in what is widely known as a hitting friendly environment in the Korean Baseball League. Also....he has a bad ass nickname...."The Final Boss")

The Morning Report 11.12.2015 | Cespedes' Strike Zone Problem, Boras Flip Flops on Harvey and Pisses Off Marlins, Mets in the Market for RP

Brian Mangan | The Read Zone- If you were watching the Mets play in the postseason and you thought Yoenis Cespedes was swinging at everything: you were right. And it might cost him tens of millions of dollars in free agency. Many observers want to lay blame for this poor performance on his shoulder, but there another obvious culprit as well. Pitchers simply stopped throwing Cespedes strikes — and he couldn’t lay off. Whether it was the pressure of the playoffs or a general problem with discipline, Cespedes’s control of the strike zone was nonexistent for a month.

(Chris Soto: Highly recommended read here folks. I am a huge fan of Mangan's work and this article is a wonderful display of why, me personally, I am willing to let Cespedes walk away from the Mets via free agency. The amount of money that would be required in order to sign Yeonis would be better served elsewhere.)



Kristie Ackert | NY Daily News- Uber agent Scott Boras is now happy with the way things worked out. “I think there was a misunderstanding,” said Boras, who made his annual appearance at the GM Meetings on Wednesday. “Matt never, ever said anything about not throwing in the playoffs. He was always going to throw in the playoffs and our plan included him throwing in the playoffs. “We were all baseball players, we know you pitch in the playoffs,” Boras continued. “The Mets came to us and Dr. (James) Andrews with a plan to pitch in the playoffs, it was executed and turned out well.“

(Chris Soto: HAHAHA.....this guy is just something else. Eventually, both players and General Managers are going to get to so frustrated with him that it becomes detrimental to his clients. We already saw it during the off-season last year when multiple Boras clients ended up still being unsigned going into January and even February. Generally, when a player waits that long, the market dries up and the amount of money available is greatly reduced. We're even beginning to hear rumblings of a potential divorce between Boras and SP Matt Harvey, though both were quick to squash those rumors.)



Associated Press | New York Times- The Miami Marlins' feud with agent Scott Boras escalated Wednesday, and the team said he'll be left out of any future talks regarding ace Jose Fernandez's workload. "My strong suggestion to Mr. Boras is that instead of resting on his 5 percent that he collects from his stable of players, he write a check and buy a team," Samson said. "Then he would have the opportunity to run a team that he claims to be so able to do. Until that time, he is in no position to comment how any Major League Baseball team is operated."


(Chris Soto: See.....what I say :)....After the whole Matt Harvey fiasco occur within their own division and having their own problems with Mr. Boras in regards to another client of his, Marcell Ozuna, the Marlins are not going to let Boras bully them around in regards to Jose Fernandez's 2016 workload.)



HOT STOVE REPORT (courtesy of mlbtraderumor.com)

• According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, the Mets are showing interest in RHRP Joakim Soria. In 67.2 innings this past season split between the Tigers and Pirates, Soria posted a 2.53 ERA and 1.09 WHIP while striking out 64 batters.
• According Joel Sherman of the NY Post, the Atlanta Braves are heavily shopping star SS Andrelton Simmons and are in contact with 3 separate West Coast teams. 
• Korean RHCL Seung-hwan Oh is scheduled to travel and spend 10 days in the USA speaking with teams about a possible jump to the MLB. "The Final Boss", as he is called in Korea, compiled a 1.69 ERA in 9 seasons in the KBO followed by a 2.25 ERA in 2 seasons with the Japanese Nippon League.

(Chris Soto: As much as I would love for the Mets to go after Andrelton Simmons, I cannot see the Braves trading him within the division unless they got a high upside, high control SP like Steven Matz or Noah Syndergaard in return. To that I say, "No Thanks." I must admit though.....I am highly interested in Seung-hwan Oh. In the offense heavy Korean League, the guy amassed 277 saves! That could be very valuable behind Juerys Familia. There is a bit of concern though with Oh, he's had Tommy John surgery twice in his life with the most recent operation occurring in 2010. He is not subject to international posting rules though, so he is treated just like any other Free Agent.)