Category: Pitching

Juan Rincon Refuses Triple-A Assignment

The Minnesota Twins designated reliever Juan Rincon for assignment on Friday. They asked him to accept an assignment at Triple-A Rochester but he refused. The Twins now have 10 days to trade him or release him.

Rincon has a one year contract for $2.475 million. Last year and the beginning of this season have been pretty bad for him. Check out his career statistics (click to enlarge):

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Source: Baseball Reference

He’s pitched in a lot of games in his career and is only 29 years old. It would be worthwhile for Omar Minaya to get a scouting report on him from Johan Santana.

If Minaya is looking at making some deals before the non-waiver deadline this season, the bullpen is an area that they could use as bait. Aaron Heilman, Scott Schoenweiss, and Joe Smith could all have value in trades for more consistent offense at first base and the outfield.

Video: Billy Wagner Post Game June 12

You’ve probably seen this video by now. Billy Wagner is brutally honest about his brutal performance yesterday. I respect that he’s taking the heat for the team but I’d respect him more if he was saving games!

If you watched ESPN Baseball Tonight after the Mets game it was interesting that they bleeped the word "sucked" from Billy’s comments. Is that really a word that needs to be bleeped in current English vernacular?

See his post game reaction below.

Report: Front Office Unhappy With Randolph Last Night

NEW YORK - JUNE 11: Mike Pelfrey #34 of the New York Mets is removed from the game by manager Willie Randolph #12 in the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamonbacks on June 11, 2008 at Shea Stadium in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Fox Sports Ken Rosenthal reports that the Mets front office was unhappy with Willie Randolph’s decision making on two points last night:

  1. Letting Mike Pelfrey talk Randolph into pitching the ninth inning
  2. Bringing Billy Wagner into a game during the middle of an inning

Personally, I thought that the game should have been Pelfrey’s to win or lose. I understand that the five game losing streak may have influenced the decision. But Pelfrey was the best pitcher in the stadium last night and should have kept pitching. I would have allowed him to give up more than one hit before pulling him.

Rosenthal goes on to write that the Mets players understand that it’s a foregone conclusion that Randolph will be fired at some point this season. They just want to get it over with and move on to eliminate the distraction hanging over the team.

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Bartolo Colon And Missed Opportunities

Back on February 25th when I was looking at the Mets potential Quadruple-A starters, I wrote that I was disappointed that the Red Sox signed Bartolo Colon. At the time, the Mets were put off by his excessive weight.

Well, tonight Colon beat the Orioles to bring his record to 4-1 with a 3.41 ERA. I know that hindsight is 20/20. I know that you should look forward and not back, but this was a big mistake by Omar Minaya.

Colon would’ve given the Mets a great insurance policy in case someone (let’s say Oliver Perez) blew up during the season or someone was hurt for a significant period of time (Pedro Martinez). Perez is 4-4 with a 5.37 ERA. Martinez is 1-0 with a 6.91 ERA is three starts.

Who knows if Colon will make it through a long hot summer? He is obese. But he sure looks good for Boston so far.

Temper The Pedro Hype

It was great to see Pedro Martinez re-join the Mets rotation after two months off recovering from a strained hamstring. If he can stay healthy, he’ll be a nice addition to the team… Not a great addition. He spent a significant amount of time on the disabled list in each of the last three seasons. And he’s 36 years old and eight years removed from his third, and most recent, Cy Young Award.

His influence as a clubhouse leader has been vastly overstated in my opinion. The Mets don’t need production in the locker room, they need it on the field. If he’s more important as a locker room influence then make him a coach. We need him to produce on the field.

Gerry Fraley wrote a nice column today for the Sporting News about this topic. His contention is that as long as Oliver Perez and Mike Pelfrey are in the Mets rotation, their problems aren’t cured. I have to agree with that contention. I like Mike Pelfrey and think he has the ability to be a solid starter at the big league level, but he is so unpolished that I think he needs more time in the minors.

Who knows what to make of Oliver Perez? I don’t think that anyone does this season. The Mets may just have caught lightning in a bottle last season with his 15 wins. If he can get out of the first or second inning in games, it’s just unacceptable. Pedro Martinez pitching every fifth day isn’t going to change that.

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Welcome Back Pedro, Your Age Is Showing

The local papers and talk shows are buzzing about the return of Pedro Martinez to the Mets, and the introduction of Joba Chamberlain to the starting rotation for the Yankees. Check the back pages and the sports talk shows this afternoon and that’s all that you’ll hear about.

It’ll be a fun night because New York baseball fans will get to see Joba for the Yankees early and then Pedro in the nightcap from San Francisco. Both teams need a boost from their pitchers. The Yanks are toiling away in fourth place, seven games behind the Rays. Equally as mediocre, the Mets are also in fourth place and four and a half games back of the Phillies.

Unfortunately, I like the Yankees’ chances better with a young, power arm coming into the rotation from the bullpen. The Mets are relying on Pedro Martinez to utilize his guile because his power has long since disappeared from his 36 year old arm. Continue reading “Welcome Back Pedro, Your Age Is Showing”