Ken Rosethal wrote a good article on the intangibles that Pedro brings to the Mets. It sounds like he’s about as healthy as he’s going to get. If that’s the case, the Mets will have one of the best, if the not THE best, one-two starters in baseball.
Category: Roster
New York Mets High Priced Talent, Really High Priced
Dan Rosenheck of the Times did a great article analyzing the contract of Johan Santana. The factors considered are: his historical performance, statistically similar pitchers, age, and value based on Citi Field opening next year. I usually look at Baseball-Reference for statistically similar players, and they list Roy Oswalt and Tim Hudson among others as the most statistically similar to Santana.
Duaner Sanchez Q&A
Steve Serby of the Post did a Q&A with Duaner Sanchez. He’s taken a lot of heat over the last year and a half. It sounds like he’s learned some impotant lessons and grown up a lot. The Mets need him to get back to 2006 form.
In case you forgot how good he was in 2006: 49 games, 5-1 2.60 ERA.
The Walking Wounded
It seems like everyone is injured. The list is long: Gotay, Beltran, Schneider, Delgado, El Duque, Church, Anderson… is there anyone left? The longer El Duque stays out, the better Pelfrey’s chances are of making the team out of spring training. He pitched three more innings today, two hits and no runs. It’s early but if this keeps up there’s no denying Pelfrey the fifth spot in the rotation.
Will Pedro be a Met after ’08?
Pedro talked this week about being open to a contract extension beyond this season. The Mets appear to want to see what he can do for at least the first half of the season. He’s an injury risk after missing most of last season. Johan Santana is the clear #1 starter now, so Pedro’s stock has gone down as has his spot in the rotation. I would wait until the end of the season before talking to Pedro about another contract. If Pedro returns to his successful form, I would try to keep him on a two-year deal or maybe a third option year. They should be able to get him in the $8-10M/year range if he’s back to his old self.
Bartolo Colon Signs Minor League Deal with Boston
I was disappointed to see that Bartolo Colon signed a minor league contract with Boston. He’s a much better option as a long shot starter than Tony Armas, Jr. is. Colon is only three years removed from a Cy Young Award.
Obviously, Colon’s weight is a concern. It looks like he ate himself out of LA and he’s been hurt for the last two years. Prior to that he was a consistent 30+ start per year pitcher. In his 11 year career (he’ll be 35 in May) he’s 146-95 with a 4.10 ERA. He won 20 games a year twice, most recently in 2005.
Contrast Colon with Tony Armas, Jr. and his 9 year career record 52-65 with a 4.62 ERA, no All-Star games and no Cy Young’s. Sure, he’s played on some bad teams with the Expos/Nats and Pirates. But it just doesn’t make sense to me that the Mets would go in this direction.
The last few years have seen several forgettable starts from veterans called up from the minors like Brian Lawrence, Chan Ho Park, and Jose Lima. Even though Pelfrey and El Duque are vying for the final spot in the rotation, the Mets are bound to need a veteran starter at some point during the season. Minaya missed the boat when he didn’t get Colon.
Fifth Spot in the Rotation
It comes down to El Duque and Mike Pelfrey. I really hope that Willie hasn’t made up his mind about the last spot in the rotation yet. I know that I haven’t. Bart Hubbach of the Post describes the competition.
Pelfrey looked lost at times last year, like he was completely over matched in the majors. He’s a young guy at 24 and still has plenty of time to get it together. I hope he can give El Duque a run for his money.
El Duque is a walking medical mystery. He’s hurt again… already. He has toe and foot problems, and recently had a root canal. He only started 24 games last year. That’s just not good enough.
The Mets Report 