Tag: Luis Castillo

Report: Pierre Wants Trade From Dodgers

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According to MLB Trade Rumors, Juan Pierre’s agent told MLB.com that he’d be willing to waive his no trade clause for a ticket out of LA. He’s another bad contract player that the Mets may be eyeing as a swap for Luis Castillo’s bad contract.

The Dodgers are losing Jeff Kent to free agency and Blake DeWitt, a natural third baseman, was getting playing time at second base anyway. The Dodgers will need to be in the market for a second baseman.

Pierre has 3 years/$28.5 million left on his deal. And although he’s not an ideal fit skill-wise for the Mets, his contract matches up fairly well with Castillo’s 3 years/$18 million.

Pierre’s performance dropped off this year due to a lack of at-bats. The Dodgers have a log jam in the outfield. Pierre will only be 31 years old next season, not too old to make a contribution. He’s consistently getting around 200 hits when he plays every day. He doesn’t take a lot of walks but he could be slotted into the number two spot in the lineup, or at the bottom of the order. He’d be able to handle left field which is an area of need for the Mets as well.

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Mets 2008 Off-Season Needs: Second Baseman

I think it’s universally agreed upon at this point that one of Mets GM Omar Minaya’s biggest mistakes was signing Luis Castillo to a long term contract. He’s a shell of his former self, with bad knees plaguing his ability to contribute to the Mets. Frequently, during the 2008 season Castillo sat on the bench watching Damion Easley, Argenis Reyes, and even Ramon Martinez start at second.

Castillo just finished the first year of his 4-year/$25 million contract. He received a $1 million bonus when he signed the deal and he’s scheduled to receive $6 million/year thereafter.

If that wasn’t enough to turn your stomach, here’s the bad news: I fully expect Castillo to be the Mets starting second baseman on opening day 2009 in Cincinnati. The reason is 100% financial. I don’t think the Wilpons will be of a mind to eat all or most of Castillo’s contract as has been suggested by some, including one of my favorite writers Matthew Artus.

You don’t need me to give you Castillo’s statistics for 2008 to know he was terrible. I heard you booing him at Shea in September, including when Jerry Manuel benched him just to avoid being treated so harshly by the home crowd. Castillo lost his starting spot during the most important games of the season in September to journeyman Ramon Martinez. Need I say more?

The sad truth is that Castillo isn’t going anywhere. The Mets have too many holes to fill in the free agent market this off-season in the outfield, bullpen, and rotation to eat Castillo’s contract. Billy Wagner’s $10.5 million isn’t covered by insurance because his injury was a pre-existing condition. So the Mets are eating that money already. And don’t forget that they’re paying Willie Randolph $2.25 million in 2009 to watch on his favorite network SNY. They won’t eat another big contract.

The bottom line is don’t get your hopes up about Orlando Hudson or Brian Roberts. The only way that will happen is if the Mets can trade Castillo for another player with a bad contract like the D-Backs’ Eric Byrnes. He’s got $22 million coming to him over the next two seasons. That may be a fit because they’ll need to fill a hole at second base when Hudson leaves. And the Mets need some help in the outfield.

Barring that type of deal, you should expect to see Castillo at second base again next season. I don’t see the Mets eating most or all of his contract.

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Mets Roster Moves- Maine To DL; Castillo Activated

The Mets decided to go ahead and put John Maine on the disabled list because of the bone spurs in the back of his right shoulder. He hasn’t been the same pitcher over the last month and a half at all. There’s been some talk from Jerry Manuel that Maine’s season may be over, from NY Post:

“I think if we do rest him, I would think it would be a complete shutdown,” Manuel said in today’s Post. “I have to take in everything and make a decision because we want to do what’s best for John Maine, we want to do what’s best for the team. We’re in a pennant race.”

Maine to the disabled list eliminated any questions about who would go off the active roster when Luis Castillo came back. He’s in the starting lineup tonight against the Astros after not playing since July 2 because of a hip flexor injury. Now the Mets have three second basemen on the team and continue their curious roster decisions. For much of the season they’ve been carrying three catchers.

On Deck- August 24- Astros at Mets [Game 3]

Houston Astros (65-64 Road: 31-36) at New York Mets (72-58 Home: 40-24) 1:10pm

Randy Wolf (8-11 4.81) vs. Oliver Perez (9-7 3.93)

TV: CW11  Radio: WFAN

What to watch: Perez is 3-1 in his last four decisions. He’s been surprisingly consistent in the second half of the season. Wolf got rocked in his last start in Milwaukee giving up six runs in four innings of work.Apparently, Luis Castillo won’t be returning to the active roster today either but he can’t play in anymore rehab games. So he’s in limbo right now.

Visit The Mets Report Live Game Chat during the game to chat with other Mets fans.

Mets Castillo Volunteers To Stay On DL

Luis Castillo, set to return for the Mets tonight, volunteered to stay on the disabled list for a few more days. Jerry Manuel told reporters last night that Castillo would start tonight’s game.

You have to wonder what’s going on here. Clearly, Manuel and Mets fans have liked the Damion Easley–Argenis Reyes tag team at second base since Castillo went on the disabled list.

Castillo can’t play any more rehab games under league rules. And he’s already back in New York. So, this leaves us wondering what the plan is. Who knows?

On Deck- August 23- Astros at Mets [Game 2]

Houston Astros (64-64 Road: 30-36) at New York Mets (72-57 Home: 40-23) 7:10pm

Brandon Backe (7-12 5.62) vs. John Maine (10-7 3.82)

TV: SNY  Radio: WFAN

What to watch: The Mets go for their fifth consecutive win today with Luis Castillo back from the disabled list and starting at second base. Maine hasn’t lost a game in more than a month, since July 18th. But his velocity has been down lately which bears close watching. Backe got rocked in Houston in his last start for 11 runs over 5.2 innings. Lets’ hope he has another start like that tonight.

Visit The Mets Report Live Game Chat during the game to chat with other Mets fans.

Mets Castillo Will Be Activated and Start Today

Luis Castillo will return from the disabled list. He hasn’t played since July 2nd due to a hip flexor. Manager Jerry Manuel told reporters yesterday that he’ll also return to the starting lineup tonight against the Astros.

The bigger question is which currently active player will be going off the roster to make room for Castillo. The speculation is surrounding Nick Evans, Brian Stokes, and Argenis Reyes. It would be a shame to see Argenis go back to the minors because he’s played so well in the field and he’s done the little things with the bat. Evans doesn’t look like he’s really ready to be a Major League player yet to me. And it doesn’t make sense to keep him on the bench. I’d rather see him continue to get at-bats in the minors and come back to the Mets when the rosters expand in September.