Amazin' Stories

Free Agent Listing - Day 2

Six more Mets joined the list of potential free agents. Here's the Day Two listing of players declaring for free agency.

XX B FREE AGENT FILINGS FOR FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2008

Today, the following 42 players filed for Free Agency pursuant to Article XX B (2) of the Basic Agreement.  The filing period began Thursday, October 30, and will run through Thursday, November 13.

Arizona
Clark, Tony (1B)

Atlanta
Julio, Jorge (RP); Smoltz, John (SP)

Baltimore
Cintron, Alex        (SS)

Boston
Casey, Sean (1B); Colon, Bartolo  (SP); Schilling, Curt (SP)

Chicago Cubs
Blanco, Henry        (C); Lieber, Jon (RP);Wood, Kerry (RP)

Chicago White Sox
Hall, Toby (C); Ramirez, Horacio (RP)

Cincinnati
Hairston Jr, Jerry (SS); Mercker, Kent (RP);Valentin, Javier (C)

Cleveland
Elarton, Scott (SP)

Colorado
Melhuse, Adam (C)

Detroit Tigers
Wilson, Vance         (C)

Florida
Hendrickson, Mark (RP)

Houston
Ausmus, Brad        (C); Hawkins, LaTroy         (RP);Wolf, Randy (SP)

Kansas City

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Oliver, Darren        (RP); Rivera, Juan (OF)

Los Angeles Dodgers
Garciaparra, Nomar (1B); Johnson, Jason (RP); Sweeney, Mark (1B)

Milwaukee

Minnesota
Everett, Adam        (SS)

NY Mets
Alou, Moises (OF); Armas Jr., Tony (RP); Ayala, Luis (RP); Martinez, Pedro (SP);  
Martinez, Ramon E (2B); Rincon, Ricardo (RP)

NY Yankees

Oakland
Thomas, Frank (DH)

Philadelphia

Pittsburgh
Michaels, Jason (OF); Rivas, Luis (SS)

St. Louis

San Diego
Prior, Mark (SP)

San Francisco
Aurilia, Rich (1B)

Seattle

Tampa Bay
Baldelli, Rocco (DH)

Toronto
Parrish, John (RP)

Texas

Washington
Perez, Odalis (SP)

*Potentially eligible due to contract terms.        
                                                                               
+Provisional election pending resolution of option provision in Player's UPC.

Carlos Delgado Officially on Board

While Carlos Delgado might have been as welcome at Shea Stadium early last year as Stephon Marbury is now at Madison Square Garden, barring a trade the veteran first baseman will be back when the Mets move to Citi Field in 2009.

The Mets will make it official later today, confirming what was common knowledge - that they will pick up the option on Delgado's contract.

Delgado had a $4 million buyout on his deal and the Mets will add $8 million, paying him a total of $12 million for the upcoming season. There has been some rumbling that Delgado would be available on the trade market this winter, but Jerry Manuel has pointed to Delgado as one of the core pieces, along with David Wright, Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran.

This seemed like a no-brainer once Delgado found his stroke - coincidentally around the time Willie Randolph was shown the door. The Mets not only relied on Delgado's bat and his leadership, but also have few other options at first base. While Daniel Mprphy may project there at some point, for now it's Delgado.

Fernando Tatis Comes Back

The Mets saw three of their players declare on the first day to file for free agency, but not all of them escaped. Fernando Tatis, who was a revelation this season, signed on with the team again. The release follows: 

 

Fernando Tatis, who was named the National League Comeback Player-of-the-Year this season, today signed a one-year contract with the New York Mets. Terms were not disclosed.

 

Tatis, 33, who hit .297 with 16 doubles, one triple, 11 home runs and 47 RBI for the Mets separated his right shoulder diving for a double by Nationals’ pitcher Odalis Perez in the fifth inning on September 16^th at Washington. Fernando underwent an MRI the next day and the test revealed a Grade 3 shoulder separation.

 

“I feel fine now,” said Tatis, whose contract was selected from New Orleans (AAA) of the Pacific Coast League on May 13^th. “I didn’t need surgery and I will be ready to go in the spring.”

 

For the Mets, Tatis made 35 starts in rightfield, 28 in leftfield, two at third base and one at first base.

 

“Fernando got so many key hits for us last year,” said Mets’ General Manager Omar Minaya. “Not having him the last few weeks of the season certainly hurt. His versatility certainly makes us a better team.”

 

In 2008, Fernando hit .392 (29-74) with men in scoring position. He also compiled a .311 mark (33-106) against lefthanded pitching.

 

Tatis’s Sporting News Comeback Player-of-the-Year Award was voted on by 314 current major league players, 18 managers and 41 General Managers and Assistant General Managers

Free Agency Begins

With the World Series over the period has begun to file for free agency and Oliver Perez was among the 65 players who filed on the first day eligible. Here's the list for day one:

XX B FREE AGENT FILINGS FOR THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2008

Today, the following 65 players filed for Free Agency pursuant to Article XX B (2) of the Basic Agreement.  The filing period begins today, Thursday, October 30, and will run through Thursday, November 13.

Arizona
Cruz, Juan (RP); Eckstein, David (SS)        

Atlanta
Norton, Greg (OF); Ohman, Will (RP); Tavarez, Julian (RP)

Baltimore
Millar, Kevin (1B); Payton, Jay (OF)

Boston
Cora, Alex (SS); Ross, Dave (C); Varitek, Jason (C)

Chicago Cubs
Dempster, Ryan (SP); Edmonds, Jim (OF); Fox, Chad (RP); Howry, Bob (RP)

Chicago White Sox
Crede, Joe (3B); Uribe, Juan (2B)

Cincinnati
Affeldt, Jeremy (RP); Lincoln, Michael (RP)

Cleveland
* Donnelly, Brendan (RP)

Colorado

Detroit Tigers
Garcia, Freddy Antonio (SP);        Jones, Todd (RP)

Florida
LoDuca, Paul (C)

Houston
Loretta, Mark (2B)

Kansas City
Grudzielanek, Mark (2B)

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Anderson, Garret (OF); Garland, Jon        (SP); Teixeira, Mark (1B)

Los Angeles Dodgers
Beimel, Joe (RP); Blake, Casey (3B); Lowe, Derek (SP); Maddux, Greg (SP); Ramirez, Manny        (OF)

Milwaukee
Gagne, Eric (RP); Kapler, Gabe (OF); Lamb, Michael (3B); Sheets, Ben (SP); Shouse, Brian (RP)

Minnesota
Guardado, Eddie (RP); Punto, Nick (SS); Reyes, Dennys (RP)

NY Mets
Easley, Damion (2B);         Perez, Oliver (SP); Wise, Matt (RP)

NY Yankees
Abreu, Bob (OF); Moeller, Chad (C); Ponson, Sidney (SP);        Rodriguez, Ivan (C)

Oakland
Brown, Emil (OF)

Philadelphia

Pittsburgh
Gomez, Chris (3B); Mientkiewicz, Doug (1B)

St. Louis
Izturis, Cesar (SS); LaRue, Jason (C); Looper, Braden L. (SP); Lopez, Felipe (2B); Springer, Russ        (RP); Villone, Ron (RP)

San Diego

San Francisco

Seattle
Bloomquist, Willie (OF); Cairo, Miguel (1B); Ibanez, Raul (OF)

Tampa Bay

Toronto

Texas
+ Blalock, Hank (3B); Bradley, Milton (DH); Jennings, Jason (SP); Vazquez, Ramon (3B); Wright, Jamey (RP)

Washington
Wilkerson, Brad (OF)

*Potentially eligible due to contract terms.        
                                                                               
+Provisional election pending resolution of option provision in Player's UPC.

Daniel Murphy Joins the Blogging World

I don't want to tell you to read someone else's blog instead of mine, but I trust that you'll come back here - particularly since the one I'm sending to you is probably a one-shot deal. But Daniel Murphy popped up as a guest blogger from the Arizona Fall League, so check it out as he details his injury that has sidelined him. The link is right here.

Revive The Rivalry - Mets and Braves in '09

While the Mets and Braves squabbles may have taken a back seat in 2008 with the Mets and Phillies racing to the wire once again, Chipper Jones might have a major chip on his shoulder for 2009.

The Sporting News released its postseason All-Star teams, based on polling of league GM's and assistant GM's, and at third base David Wright earned the NL honors over Jones - despite Jones hitting a league-best .364 and getting in MVP conversations for much of  the season. Here's the story from Sporting New:

Second baseman Chase Utley and closer Brad Lidge of the league champion Phillies headline Sporting News’ 2008 National League All-Star team, while three teams — including the Indians — have two players on Sporting News’ American League All-Star team.
 
A panel of 41 general managers and assistant general managers from both leagues chose the teams.
 
Utley hit a career-high 33 home runs and collected more than 100 RBIs for the fourth consecutive season, and Lidge was 41-for-41 in save opportunities, with 92 strikeouts in 69 1/3 innings and a 1.95 ERA.
 
Meanwhile, G.M.s and assistant G.M.s selected Twins catcher Joe Mauer and first baseman Justin Morneau, Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and shortstop Derek Jeter and Indians outfielder Grady Sizemore and starting pitcher Cliff Lee.
 
“He had tremendous control this year,” Rays catcher and Lee victim (0-for-10) Dioner Navarro told Sporting News. “He can beat you with so many pitches — fastball, curve, two-seamer, changeup — and he can throw those in any count.”
 
Rounding out the American League team are Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia, White Sox outfielder Carlos Quentin, Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton, Orioles D.H. Aubrey Huff and Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez.
 
Joining Utley and Lidge on the N.L. team are Cubs catcher Geovany Soto, Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols, Mets third baseman David Wright, Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez, Rockies outfielder Matt Holliday, Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun, Cardinals outfielder Ryan Ludwick and Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum.
 
“You don’t see many guys his size throwing that hard, but it’s not so much his size and deception. It’s the stuff,” Utley told Sporting News of Lincecum. “He has ‘A’ stuff. The scary thing is he’s still learning to pitch.”
 
The complete package of Sporting News’ MLB awards is in this week’s magazine, available at Barnes & Noble, Borders and Hudson Retail outlets.
 
SPORTING NEWS’ ALL-STAR TEAMS

A.L.
C Joe Mauer, Twins
1B Justin Morneau, Twins
2B Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox
3B Alex Rodriguez, Yankees
SS Derek Jeter, Yankees
OF Carlos Quentin, White Sox
OF Josh Hamilton, Rangers
OF Grady Sizemore, Indians
DH Aubrey Huff, Orioes
SP Cliff Lee, Indians
RP Francisco Rodriguez, Angels
 
N.L.
C Geovany Soto, Cubs
1B Albert Pujols, Cardinals
2B Chase Utley, Phillies
3B David Wright, Mets
SS Hanley Ramirez, Marlins
OF Matt Holliday, Rockies
OF Ryan Braun, Brewers
OF Ryan Ludwick, Cardinals
SP Tim Lincecum, Giants
RP Brad Lidge, Phillies

 

Mets Coaching Staff in Place

With a Halloween deadline for the expiring contracts of the Mets 2008 coaching staff, the Mets announced their new staff today - which is mostly the old staff.

Gone are third base coach Luis Aguayo, first base coach Ken Oberkfell and bullpen coach Guy Conti.

Dan Warthen, who had great success with the pitching staff - well, maybe not great success, but Johan Santana and Mike Pelfrey, the two most important pieces of the rotation, prospered during his tenure - is back as pitching coach. Howard Johnson, who absorbed some criticism, will be back for his third season as hitting coach, and Sandy Alomar Sr. is back as bench coach for Jerry Manuel with Sandy Alomar Jr. serving as catching instructor.

Randy Niemann, the long-time pitching guru of the organization (okay, maybe I shouldn't call anyone a pitching guru after Rick Peterson was ousted) takes over as the bullpen coach for Guy Conti, who will move into a role working for the Wilpon's. Conti's departure might be another sign that Pedro Martinez is not coming back - with Conti having a long and close relationship with Martinez.

Razor Shines will take over as third-base coach. He served in that role for the White Sox in 2007 and managed the Phillies Clearwater A-Ball affiliate last year. The team has not named a first-base coach yet.

The full release follows below the fold:

Fernando Tatis Earns Comeback Honors

The Mets weren't completely shutout of the postseason awards. The Major League Baseball Players Association handed out it's top comeback player honors Thursday and Fernando Tatis was named as the National League Recipient. Here's the release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                              

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL PLAYERS HONOR TOP COMEBACK PLAYERS

New York, NY, Thursday, October 23, 2008… Perseverance and dedication took center stage today as Major League baseball players named Cleveland Indians pitcher Cliff Lee and New York Mets outfielder Fernando Tatis this season's top comeback players.  The Major League Baseball Players Trust and Yahoo! Sports today announced the American League and National League winners of the 2008 Players Choice Awards for Comeback Player in an Internet webisode (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/awards/pa) highlighting the on-field performances and community leadership of Major League players.  The 2008 Players Choice Awards, presented by Playstation ®, benefit the Major League Baseball Players Trust. Additional support for the Players Choice Awards is provided by The Topps Company and The Upper Deck Company.  [See webcast schedule below for more Players Choice Awards announcements.]

Cliff Lee’s 2007 season was one the seven-year veteran would like to forget.  After struggling through an early-season injury to his abdomen he was unable to regain form and was sent down to the Indians’ class AAA affiliate in Buffalo.  Determined to prove he belonged in the Majors, Lee focused his off-season training on making sure he returned to spring training fully healthy. The result: He led the AL with 22 victories – the most by an American League pitcher since Roy Halladay’s 22 for Toronto in 2003 – against just three losses. He also led the AL with a 2.54 ERA and a winning percentage of .880.  This is Lee’s second Players Choice Award, as he was named the 2008 AL Outstanding Pitcher earlier this week, and he is a finalist for 2008 Player of the Year, scheduled to be announced on Friday, October 24.   

After not playing professionally in 2004 and 2005, Tatis was motivated to attempt a big league comeback by his desire to earn enough money to build a church in his hometown of San Pedro de Macoris, D.R.  The road back was a bumpy one as he played in just 28 games with Baltimore in 2006, and found himself in Triple-A New Orleans for all of 2007. Not to be deterred, he excelled in New Orleans, and finished the season with 21 homers, 137 hits and 90 runs scored in 131 games.  His 2007 performance was good enough to earn him a trip to spring training with the New York Mets, but he fell just short of making the big league roster out of camp, winding up back in the Big Easy.  However, after just 37 games in New Orleans, he was summoned to the Big Apple in May, and helped the Mets contend for the NL East title by hitting .297, with 11 homers, 47 RBI and 33 runs scored in 92 games.

Players Choice Awards annually recognize the best player, pitcher, rookie and comeback player in each league.  The Player of the Year and Man of the Year awards bestow top honors without regard to league. Balloting of all Major League players for the Players Choice Awards was conducted in September under the supervision of accounting firm KPMG. 
 
Each 2008 Players Choice Award winner will recommend the charity of his choice to receive a grant from the Major League Baseball Players Trust.  Since 1992, the Players Trust has contributed more than $3.25 million dollars to charities around the world in honor of Players Choice Award winners.

The 2008 Players Choice Awards finalists are [winners in bold & underlined]: 

AMERICAN LEAGUE:

Outstanding Player: Josh Hamilton (Texas), Justin Morneau (Minnesota), Dustin Pedroia (Boston)
Outstanding Pitcher: Roy Halladay (Toronto), Cliff Lee (Cleveland), Francisco Rodriguez (LA Angels of Anaheim)
Outstanding Rookie: Mike Aviles (Kansas City), Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay), Alexei Ramirez (Chicago)
Comeback Player of the Year: Josh Hamilton (Texas), Cliff Lee (Cleveland), Troy Percival (Tampa Bay)

NATIONAL LEAGUE:

Outstanding Player: Ryan Howard (Philadelphia), Chipper Jones (Atlanta), Albert Pujols (St. Louis)
Outstanding Pitcher: Tim Lincecum (San Francisco), CC Sabathia (Milwaukee), Brandon Webb (Arizona)
Outstanding Rookie: Geovany Soto (Chicago), Jair Jurrjens (Atlanta), Joey Votto (Cincinnati)
Comeback Player of the Year: Jorge Cantu (Florida), Fernando Tatis (NY Mets), Kerry Wood (Chicago)

EITHER LEAGUE:

Player of the Year: Cliff Lee (Cleveland), Albert Pujols (St. Louis), Manny Ramirez (LA Dodgers)
Marvin Miller Man of the Year: Derek Jeter (NY Yankees), Albert Pujols (St. Louis), Michael Young (Texas)

Yahoo! Sports webcast schedule of the 2008 Players Choice Awards:

Monday, October 20 – AL & NL Outstanding Pitchers – Winners: Cliff Lee (AL)/Tim Lincecum (NL)
Tuesday, October 21 – AL & NL Outstanding Players – Winners: Josh Hamilton (AL)/Albert Pujols (NL)
Wednesday, October 22 – AL & NL Outstanding Rookies – Winners: Evan Longoria (AL)/Geovany Soto (NL)
Thursday, October 23 – AL & NL Comeback Players – Winners: Cliff Lee (AL)/Fernando Tatis (NL)
Friday, October 24 – Player of the Year/Marvin Miller Man of the Year

If You Still Want to Listen

Still a fan? Still faithful? Do you still want to listen to the Mets?

Of course you do. When February comes, spring training will bring optimism - come on, it brought optimism during the days of Doug Flynn and Steve Henderson - and you'll be dying to hear Howie Rose or Ed Coleman from Port St. Lucie or the first Jerry Manuel Report.

And you will hear it on WFAN again. The Mets and WFAN announced that they have re-upped their deal - and added in a few new wrinkles. The details follow below the fold:

Don't Want to Watch the Phillies? Think Vegas Baby

While the Phillies are readying for the World Series the Mets are readying for 2009 and their next action - the Winter Meetings in Las Vegas in December. In the meantime, I got these sent to me courtesy of Bodog - an assortment of odds on the eventual destinations of free agents Manny Ramirez and CC Sabathia.

Which team will Manny Ramirez sign a contract with for the 2009 MLB regular season?

Los Angeles Dodgers                -125

New York Yankees                    3/2

New York Mets                          5/1

Philadelphia Phillies                   15/1

Boston Red Sox                        100/1   

Field                                         9/2

 

Which team will CC Sabathia sign a contract with for the 2009 MLB regular season?

New York Yankees                   -150

Milwaukee Brewers                    5/1

Los Angeles Dodgers                 5/1

Los Angeles Angels                   11/2

New York Mets                          15/2

San Francisco Giants                 10/1

Field                                         4/1