Sherman's Plan Is Interesting...

By now many of you should have come across the recent article written by Joel Sherman of the New York Post. While I normally try to avoid Sherman's articles, this time he does bring up an interesting point. The Mets were willing to commit 12 million dollars too two lackluster free agents (Pinero and Molina) both of whom can be compared to some remaining free agents on the market who could be had for much less.

Sherman says signing Rod Barajas, Russell Branyan, Felipe Lopez, Kiko Calero and Jarrod Washburn. I however, think the Mets should invest the money a little differently.

Barajas is an obvious need. If he can be had for a cheap one year deal, this seems like a no-brainier. Barajas is no superstar, but he is better than Omir Santos. Barajas will put up 10-15 HRs and 60 or so RBIs, which would be a welcome addition to the end of the order. He apparently handles staff's adequately and would serve as a nice stopgap for Josh Thole.

Kiko Calero is an interesting option. He was lights out last year. However, I would rather the Mets sign someone like Joe Biemel, because he would instantly solve our second lefty vacancy.

I would stay away from Russell Branyan, he does have a lot of raw power, but he really seems like someone who will not repeat that success. Plus he has some injury trouble...

Felipe Lopez would be an excellent signing in my opinion. He has been constantly solid at the plate over the last few seasons, and would be a more than adequate replacement for Louis Castillo should (or when) he craps out this season...

The real question mark is Jarrod Washburn. He was superb for the Mariners last season, but when he was traded he fizzled out. That is what truly scares me. I don't think he has much left in the tank. I would honestly be more comfortable signing someone like Pedro Martinez, who proved he still can pitch well, to fill out the back of the rotation. Pedro is also a great clubhouse presence.

How About Jason Jennings?

The buzz around the blogosphere recently is that the Mets are open to adding another starter "if the price is right." While looking at the remaining free agent starters one may ask who is actually worth signing? The list is made up of mostly lackluster and uninspiring names who probobly will not amount to much in the 2010 season. However, there are a few names that have promise and could be serviceable as a back end starter. Names the Mets have been linked to are Jon Smoltz, Jarrod Washburn, and Chien Ming Wang. However, one name that strikes me as interesting is Jason Jennings.

Jennings was never much of a name during his career in Colorado, despite winning the 2002 Rookie of the Year award, mostly posting ERA's in the 5's. However, in 2006 he had a stellar year, in which he posted a decent ERA of 3.78 in Coors Field, and wound up with Houston. Jennings was a pretty solid pitcher while in Colorado, posting a combined 4.81 ERA and went 28-21 for what was a pretty horrendous Colorado Rockies team.

He played one season of pretty horrific ball in Houston in 2007, and then ended up on the other Texas team, the Rangers for the start of the 2008 season. The pitching hungry Rangers envisioned Jennings being a solid arm for their rotation, however his first season was riddled with injuries and Jennings became all but forgotten.

Last season however, Jennings came back from his injuries, and pitched pretty admirably for the Rangers. He posted a 4.13 ERA in 61 innings pitched, and had 44 strike outs during that period.

Now, he is not a name to write home about, and by no means am I advocating a major league contract, but I believe Jennings could be a solid pickup to compete for a rotation spot should the Mets not sign anyone who locks up a slot. Jennings was a decent pitcher for the Rockies earlier in his career. It could be argued that much of his stats were inflated by Coors Field and it's hitter friendly tendencies. Jennings has proven that he has the ability to win 10+ games, which would be a welcome addition to the back end of our rotation.

Mets Should Sign A Few Guys To Minor League Deals

While reading my twitter feed, I stumbled across an interesting one from Joe DeMayo.

"I think a couple good minor league deals for Mets to give out would be BJ Ryan,Joe Beimel to compete for 2nd lefty and Rich Aurilia for bnch"

I happen to think signing those players would be extremely smart. All of them would be signed to minor league deals and would at the very least offer the Mets some depth at AAA if they did not make the majors.

BJ Ryan - The once dominant Toronto closer had a tough season last year, but was 2-4 with a 2.95ERA and 32 saves in 2008. As a low risk addition to compete for a second lefty job, this seems like a no-brainier.

Joe Beimel - Beimel is a player I have advocated the Mets signing all offseason. He was 1-6 with a 3.58 ERA for the Nats and Rockies last season, and has consistently shown that he is a great arm for the pen.

Rich Aurilia - Aurilia isn't much of a flashy name, but he does offer the Mets a potential leadership position off the bench. The NY native wants to play at home for the last year of his career and I think that him competing with Chris Carter and Frank Catalanatto would make for a solid Spring Training competition for the Mets.

I Have Hope: A Mets Fan's Mannifesto

The 2010 New York Mets are a team many people within the baseball world seem to have written off as a blunder already. I however, have a different view. I truly think that the Mets have a chance to make the post season this year.

Now before you call me crazy, hear me out. The Mets were picked by Sports Illustrated before the 2009 season to win the World Series, and the way I see it, the Mets have only gotten better since the beginning of last season. The Mets have talent, and a potentially lethal team.

The problem with the current team is that there are a lot of questions regarding the HEALTH of the team. If healthy, the Mets have a powerful lineup and with a few small additions to the club, have a well rounded core with strong players who surround them.

The thing people tend to criticize the most about the Mets is their rotation. I think the Mets have a potentially strong rotation. Now, don't get me wrong, there are a lot of question marks, but if all of those questions are answered with positive outcomes, the Mets have the makings of a very solid rotation. As Mike Pelfrey said, the Mets were picked to win the World Series with essentially the same rotation in 2009, but everyone got hurt. It's not like all that potential and talent suddenly dissipated in one year. Lets look at each of our projected starters best seasons:

Johan Santana: 20-6 with a 2.61 ERA (2004)
John Maine: 15-10 with a 3.91 ERA (2007) and in 2008 he wasnt horrible either
Mike Pelfrey: 13-11 with a 3.72 ERA (2008)
Oliver Perez: 15-10 with a 3.56 ERA (2007) but again, I would take 2008 Ollie any day
Jon Niese/Fernando Nieve both showed signs of being solid pitchers in 2009.

All of these pitchers have had excellent seasons within the last few years. This essentially means that the Mets have a rotation with the potential to each win upwards of 10 games. Not many teams can say they have rotations that are able to achieve that. Maine has been dominant at times, Pelfrey has shown that he has the ability to be a front line starter, and at points Ollie has pitched in huge games for us and delivered.

Now, of course just because they have the POTENTIAL to be great doesn't mean they will be. I'm just pointing out that maybe, just maybe, things will go right and all of our starters will reach their potential and deliver.

As for hitting, I was a huge fan of the Mets signing Jason Bay. His hitting will be felt in the lineup and give them a huge jolt in the cleanup slot. The lineup looked a lot more threatening with a healthy Beltran in it, but Angel Pagan should fill in admirably while Beltran rehabs. However, with a healthy lineup of Reyes Pagan Wright Bay Frenchy Murphy Barajas?/Santos/Blanco and Castillo the Mets will need to fight on until Beltran gets back, and everyone can get shifted down in the lineup. If they score (again a question mark) they should have enough pitching to win.

Finally, I think the bullpen is what will make or break the Mets in 2010. While some members are sure things:
- K-Rod will make the game interesting, then get the save.
- Feliciano will continue to do amazing.
- Sean Green will suck.
There are a few options that could really make the difference. Kelvim Escobar's signing was a low risk high reward kind of deal that has the potential to be a great signing. Escobar was filthy at points in Anaheim, and has an arm that can shut down opposing batters. If healthy, he has the potential to be the lights out set up man we envisioned JJ Putz being last year. The other huge wildcard in the pen will be the Japanese import Ryota Igarashi. Igarashi supposedly has been fantastic for Japanese teams, and if he continues he could be a valuable 7th inning man for the Amazin's. However, I am a bit wary of Igarashi. The Mets have not had the best of luck with Japanese imports (Kaz Matsui), but for what ever reason I think Igarashi will be different. Who knows?

Overall, there are a million question marks with the Mets. But, if the Mets reach the potential that many of them posses, they could have a very great season in 2010.

4 Mets Farmhands Crack ESPN's Top 100 Prospects

Four Mets prospects were on Keith Laws "Top 100 Prospects" over on ESPN. SP Jerry Mejia ranked #23, SS Wilmer Flores was #41, 1B Ike Davis came in at #64 and most surprisingly OF Fernando Martinez was ranked at #73.

Mejia has electric stuff, and the potential to be a staff ace at some point in the VERY far future, which led me to thinking his spot on the list is justified. Mejia is still only 20 years old, and if the Mets let him develop his command in the minors, they may have a very special prospect on their hands.

Flores will one day be a 1B or a corner OF, but for now settles in at SS. He also has extreme power potential, which makes me think of Miguel Cabrera.. Flores is also still too young to get overly excited about, but he certainly has the makings of an excellent prospect.

Davis is the Mets 1B of the future, which was solidified by the Mets not signing a REAL 1B to at least platoon with our incumbent 1B Daniel Murphy. Davis has been hitting the ball extremely well since last season, and the Mets seem to be excited by him.

However, F-Mart's decline on the list is most shocking. Martinez has been widely regarded as the Mets top prospect for years, but now after a ill-fated cup of coffee in the majors it seems as if fans and the media alike have lost faith in him. I expect Martinez to be a solid major league player in the future.