Category: Latest News

Gary Sheffield Unhappy With Mets; No Surprise

SAN FRANCISCO - MAY 17: Gary Sheffield #10 of...
Image by Getty Images via Daylife

It was bound to happen at some point this season and now it has. Gary Sheffield isn’t happy with the Mets and even asked out of the lineup on Thursday night. He did play Friday but got thrown out for arguing balls and strikes and it looked like it was on purpose.

For all the talk of Sheffield being a team player when they signed him in April, that’s over now. He wants out or he wants a contract extension and neither is going to happen. The reports were that the Giants claimed Sheffield on waivers but they couldn’t work out a trade that was satisfactory to the Mets. So the Mets pulled him off waivers and have to keep him for the rest of the season.

Sheffield was surprised that he had to learn about this development through media reports and not Omar Minaya. He told reporters after Friday’s game that he was confused why the Mets wouldn’t let him go to play for a contender in San Francisco.

The Mets only have to deal with this for nine more games to finish out the month of August. Then they can release Sheffield after September 1 so he wouldn’t be eligible for another team’s postseason roster. If he continues to make a nuisance of himself, that’s exactly what they should do.

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Mets Billy Wagner Claimed By Red Sox

Wagner
Image by phillenium1979 via Flickr

The Mets have an opportunity to come out from under a total of $3.7 million of Billy Wagner‘s contract. The reports are that he was claimed on waivers by the Boston Red Sox. I’m sure the Mets were shocked that anyone would claim Wagner after coming off Tommy John surgery and only pitching in one game on Thursday night.

The Mets now have until Tuesday to: 1) work out a trade with the Red Sox 2) let Wagner go to the Red Sox for nothing 3) pull Wagner off waivers and keep him for the rest of this season. Of course, option 1 is ideal but it will depend highly on how much of Wagner’s remaining salary ($2.7 million) and next year’s option buyout ($1 million) that the Mets are willing to eat. It also depends on Wagner allowing a trade because he has a full no-trade clause in his contract. The reports are that he wouldn’t allow a trade back to the Phillies but would go to a contender.

The Mets should just let Wagner go for nothing and have the Red Sox pick up the rest of his contract. At this point, the Mets are bordering on becoming one of the worst teams that money can buy in the history of Major League Baseball at almost $2 million per win. The only worse team was the 2008 Seattle Mariners, and that cost almost everyone in the front office and the manager their jobs.

For the sake of his reputation and legacy, Omar Minaya needs to drawn down the Mets financial exposure as much as possible. He’s already responsible for one of the worst trades in MLB history and now he’s on the verge of spending the second most money per win in history. Minaya could very well become known as one of the worst general managers in baseball’s 140 year history.

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Mets News Aug. 19, 2009 Church, Sheffield, Santana, Wagner

NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 28: Manager Jerry Manuel ...
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Of course, the big news of the day is the continuing feud between Ryan Church and Jerry Manuel. But there’s more on the heels of the Mets 9-4 win over Atlanta at Citi Field last night.

Here’s the news:

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Mets Jerry Manuel And Ryan Church Trade Shots

DENVER - JULY 11: Ryan Church #25 looks on fr...
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The Atlanta Braves are in town and Jerry Manuel and Ryan Church took the opportunity to wage a mild war of words. Basically, Manuel said that David Wright’s concussion is being handled differently than Church’s because they’re “different animals”. Manuel later tried to clarify by saying they’re “different individuals” and apologized if Church took offense.

Church responded that he’s fighting for a playoff spot with the Braves and would take the high road by not responding negatively to Manuel’s apparent slight.

It’s difficult to understand why Manuel would use this situation to take a backhanded shot at Church after he’s already been traded away. As Joel Sherman properly points out today, Manuel should be the adult in any situation involving a player.

Despite the public denials, it’s clear for the world to see that these two just don’t like each other and probably never did. That’s fine. It happens. But Manuel needs to tone it down and keep his negative comments to himself about Church. There’s no point in continuing to take jabs at Church. He’s gone. It’s over. Just let it go.

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Mets In The News Aug. 18, 2009

NEW YORK - DECEMBER 02: New York Mets chief o...
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Whether it’s a fastball bouncing off David Wright‘s helmet or an almost-forgotten closer returning from Tommy John surgery, the Mets always have something happening to peak our interest.

Here’s the Mets news for today:

  • Matthew Artus of Always Amazin’ hopes that we don’t see David Wright on the field again this season
  • Dave Singer of NY Sports Dog tries to come up with some names for David Wright’s hideous shirt
  • Tejesh at Mets Prospect Hub has his 8/18 links up. The Mets are done, it’s time to keep an eye on what players can help this team next season
  • Dave at Mets Lifers has a great post up comparing the offensive deficiencies of Brian Schneider to Charlie O’Brien. Must read!
  • Joe Janish at Mets Today writes about Jeff Wilpon’s trek across New York state apologizing for the pathetic teams that the organization is fielding, the journey started in Buffalo and should end in Flushing
  • Kerel Cooper of On The Black recaps the Giants series and doesn’t want to see Livan Hernandez start another game for the Mets
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Video: Billy Wagner Returns To Mets

If you were watching the Mets-Giants game last night you saw Billy Wagner back with the team in the dugout. He hasn’t pitched in a game since Aug. 2, 2008 when he had to have Tommy John surgery.

The plan is for Wagner to come off the disabled list on Friday and start throwing in games as an audition for a trade. Wagner has already told the Mets that he would waive his full no-trade clause to go to a contender.

Here’s some video from NJ.com:

Update on Billy Wagner’s return to the Mets
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Wagner also got feisty with a reporter while being questioned about the possibility of being traded.

Mets’ Wagner fires back at reporter
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Mets David Wright On Disabled List

David Wright
Image by Keith Allison via Flickr

The Mets finally got something right yesterday when they put third baseman David Wright on the disabled list with post concussion symptoms. As you know, he suffered a head injury in Saturday’s game after getting hit in the helmet by a Matt Cain pitch.

After a trip to the hospital, Wright was at home during yesterday’s game. It looks like they learned something after Ryan Church‘s concussion, then being flown around the country, then playing poorly for the rest of the season.

It’s possible that Wright could miss the rest of the season according to Jerry Manuel’s comments. Not that it matters anymore because the team is out of the playoff chase.

You can hear Mets GM Omar Minaya’s press conference announcing the move below:

Infielder Andy Green will replace Wright on the Mets roster. He’s a 32 year old that was hitting .270 in 35 games for Triple-A Buffalo.

Basically, there’s no reason to go to Citi Field now unless Johan Santana is pitching. If you’re thinking about buying tickets for a game, don’t bother. The team that the Mets are fielding isn’t competitive anymore with the injuries that they’ve sustained this season.

If you need a Mets fix, stay home and watch them on TV. This team isn’t worth paying the price of a ticket for.

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