Category: Latest News

Mets’ Beltran and Perez Recovering

St. Lucie Mets
Image via Wikipedia

Last night Carlos Beltran and Oliver Perez played a rehab game for St. Lucie. For Beltran it was the second straight game he played the full game since his knee surgery. He’s expected to return to the Mets on July 15 in San Francisco. He hasn’t played for the Mets since Oct. 4, 2009.

Perez pitched for St. Lucie going 5.2 IP for the win. He allowed 2 hits and 2 runs while getting 7 strikeouts. He’s been on the Mets’ DL since June5 with knee tendinitis. It’s unclear when he’ll be returning to the Mets and whether he’ll be headed back to the bullpen or not.

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Report: Mets Financial Troubles Mounting

Bernard Madoff's mugshot
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The New York Post is reporting that the Wilpon family’s financial situation is so precarious that they cannot add payroll through trades. The report states that adding a front line starting pitcher is the least of their problems. Their debt load is so heavy and attendance is down so much this season that if the trend continues for a season or two, they may be forced to sell the team.

It was almost one year ago that I wrote about the Madoff mess causing talk of the Mets being forced to sell the team. Now those rumors are back. You never really know exactly what the financial situation of the team is. But it’s not a good sign when the rumors of trouble are consistent and persistent.

The key points of the NY Post article are:

  • The team has nearly $700 million in debt
  • The Mets are losing about $10 million/year including depreciation and interest payments on the debt
  • Attendance is down 19% from 2009 and down 35% from 2008
  • SNY is profitable but is leveraged to roughly six times it’s earnings before interest
  • The Wilpon family refinanced about $375 million in loans and kept $75 million for themselves

The article has a little bit of information about the family’s investments in commercial real estate which has been in a down market for three years now. It doesn’t help that the Mets’ fortunes have been down for three years now either. And it won’t be easy to recover. The article states that one of the debt covenants prevents the team from increasing payroll. Taking on Roy Oswalt or Cliff Lee would be great this month. But the Mets can’t expect the Astros or Mariners to take back equal or more salary.

We may be stuck with the pitching staff as it stands now. Maybe John Maine or Oliver Perez will come back and start doing what seems unlikely to most of us. If not, we could be speculating on who will be buying the Mets in a couple of years. Hopefully, it won’t get to the point that the Rangers have this season.

Thanks to MLBTradeRumors for the link.

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Mets 2010 All-Star Lost Bonuses

One of the most interesting things about MLB contracts are the bonus clauses. They’re not allowed to give bonuses for most statistical performance entities. Many bonuses are structured around playing time or award selections. This is particularly true of free agent contracts and some arbitration eligible player contracts. I looked through Cot’s Baseball Contracts to see which Mets lost out on bonuses this year by not being selected to the 2010 All-Star game.

Here’s the list of lost bonuses:

  • Johan Santana – $100,000
  • Carlos Beltran – $100,000
  • Francisco Rodriguez – $100,000
  • Henry Blanco – $50,000

The Mets ended up saving $350,000 in bonus money this year and didn’t have to send the players above on a cross-country trip with the potential of getting hurt. It worked out really well for the Mets that none of their pitchers made the All-Star team. It’s always nice to have your players in the game for the exposure but the risk of a pitcher getting hurt is tough to swallow.

By the way, who would’ve ever thought that Blanco would have an All-Star clause in his contract?  He’s never been an All-Star in his career, so I don’t know where that came from.

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Mets 2010 All-Stars Wright and Reyes

David Wright will be the lone Mets starter in the 2010 MLB All-Star game. He’s making his fifth appearance this season and is making a really nice comeback from a dreadful 2009 season. I have to admit that I didn’t vote for Wright. My 2010 All-Star vote was for Scott Rolen at third base. I tried to be objective and I just think that Rolen is having a better season than Wright and he’s playing for a first place team. That has a little bit of weight in my mind.

Jose Reyes is coming off the bench this year behind Hanley Ramirez. It’s his third All-Star appearance and he’s on the roster because Troy Tulowitzki is hurt. Fellow Mets report writer John Wenk voted for both Wright and Reyes this year. I just didn’t see either one as a solid starter.

I’ve heard some griping from Mets fans that Mike Pelfrey wasn’t selected by manager Charlie Manuel for the pitching staff. But he’s scheduled to pitch Sunday against the Braves, so there’s no way that he could pitch in the game. It’s too bad because his numbers are right there for the All-Stars despite the fact that he hasn’t had his best stuff for the last four starts.

Audio-David Wright on 2010 All-Stars

Audio-Jose Reyes on 2010 All-Stars

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K-Rod and the Mets 2010 Bullpen

New York Mets pitcher Francisco Rodriguez follows through on a pitch against the Washington Nationals in the ninth inning of their National League MLB baseball game in Washington, July 3, 2010. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.jsForget Cliff Lee, how about solidifying the bullpen so that the anxiety levels of Mets fans throughout the Tri-State can subside late in games?

Yesterday (7/3), Francisco Rodriguez blew his fourth save of the season as he failed to protect a 5-3 Met lead in the bottom of the ninth against the Nationals. Following Ivan Rodriguez’s walk-off single to right, there was no pounding of the chest, no blowing kisses and pointing to the sky for our closer. Instead, the loss dropped the Mets to a disappointing 2-4 on the current road trip against sub-.500 NL East foes.

At this point, I am reluctant to even keep my television tuned into games when K-Rod enters in a save situation. Simply put, K-Rod is lacking as a stopper. He lacks the intimidation factor he once possessed with the Angels. He lacks good movement and location of his pitches. And he no longer is able to blow hitters away with plus velocity. His fastball is as straight as an arrow, and he often hangs his curveball. K-Rod’s control is erratic, and he has made a habit of getting behind in counts and putting runners on base. Basically, Franky has not given Mets fans a reason to feel confident in the 9th inning with a 1-3 run lead this season. With all of this said however, the one ounce of acclaim I will give him is that when his change-up is working he can be effective. Continue reading “K-Rod and the Mets 2010 Bullpen”

Mets Need Cliff Lee for the World Series?

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Cliff Lee releases a pitch against the Los Angeles Angels in the first inning of their MLB American League baseball game in Anaheim, California, May 28, 2010. REUTERS/Alex Gallardo (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.jsToday’s Water Cooler Topic: Why would the Mets even try to sign Cliff Lee when they know the Yankees will just steal him this offseason?

Ok, if you don’t already know I am a Met fan who knows entirely too many Yankee fans. Inevitably, I have to defend the Mets on a daily basis and this topic is a big one.

We’ve made it to July and are only 1.5 games out of first. This team just held it’s own against the Twins, Tigers and Yankees. Three of the top teams in the AL. The Mets are legitimate contenders.

My gut feeling is that the Mets should go all out and get Cliff Lee and not worry about losing him to free agency after the season ends. If the Mets always want to be a team that plays in the shadows of the current World Series Champions then why bother fielding a team at all? Do what it takes to win a World Series every year. That’s what that other team does. Continue reading “Mets Need Cliff Lee for the World Series?”

Johan Santana and Developing Young Pitchers

New York Mets Johan Santana (R) watches as Cleveland Indians Travis Hafner hits a pitch for a solo home run during the second inning of the Mets MLB inter-league baseball game in Cleveland, Ohio June 15, 2010. REUTERS/Aaron Josefczyk (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.jsMets fans are quickly realizing that the 2010 version of Johan Santana is not the same pitcher that the team traded a proverbial “bucket of balls” for back in 2008. After Santana and the Mets agreed to a 6-year, $137.5 million extension following the trade that winter, the left-handed ace went 16-7 with an ERA of 2.53. Santana had a Cy Young caliber season that year, he could have easily had 4-5 more wins, if not for a horrendous bullpen that ultimately led to that team’s demise.

Fast-forward to the present, and it is plain to see that Santana is performing like anything but an ace. Coming off an injury shortened season in 2009, the wear and tear on Santana’s elbow is certainly showing, especially coming off surgery. The 31-year-old’s velocity is down considerably, which lessens the effect of his signature out pitch, his change-up. Combine the drop in velocity of his fastball with poor location of seemingly all of his pitches recently, and you have the make-up of a very hittable and predictable Major League pitcher.

With Santana’s 2010 campaign so far in mind, it reminds us of the importance of developing young pitchers within the organization (a big-market organization, at that), so the need for acquiring high end starting pitchers down the road isn’t as great. Continue reading “Johan Santana and Developing Young Pitchers”