As for the Mets, chips like Carlos Gomez, Fernando Martinez and Philip Humber are not proven commodities yet. Even Mike Pelfrey, who is 5-9 with a 5.55 ERA the past two seasons, is not a sure thing.
Minaya is shopping these names around -- he met with Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail about left-hander Erik Bedard -- but there does not seem to be enough to get a [Bedard] deal done.
From last week's Newsday:
Before making Friday's trade, Minaya called other potential trade partners and was told that dealing Milledge to the Nationals would not hinder the Mets' chances of obtaining a front-line starter. Carlos Gomez is the young outfielder other teams want.
Said Minaya, "We were told that if we were to move Lastings, we have enough talent in our system to be able to complete deals for the guys we're talking about."
Hey Omar, last week you said there was still enough on the farm to reel in a big fish. Now, word is, Bedard will take more chips than we have.
What the E?
I guess I should have known that things were heading in a bad direction when Omar had to solicit the opinions of other GM's on the value of his remaining prospects. That's right, apparently Omar took the word of our opponents in determining how to proceed.
Next up on Occ Obs: W solicits Mahmoud's opinion on whether the US military is capable of occupying N Korea.
5 comments:
I have to say that Omar does seem to be commenting a lot to the media these days about our prospects and other teams' opinions... Not sure why, doesn't make any sense.
A few other thoughts:
1. The Milledge deal is really chapping me, in large part b/c we could have gotten so much more for him in previous years (including possibly Manny Ramirez). If his trade value truly is down, and it wasn't just that Omar got suckered by other GMs, then KEEP him and play him, you've got nothing to lose.
2. I've seen a lot of quotes from anonymous GMs over the past few months indicating they are down on our prospects, especially Pelf took a big hit last year. They have a lot of questions about whether he has the necessary arsenal of pitches to make it as a front-line starter. I think it's starting to look like if Pelf and Humber don't work out, we're screwed. I doubted that we would be able to pull off a big trade in this offseason, and unless Omar has something up his sleeve for Bedard, I think we're basically entering '08 with the same roster as '07.
So we need Pedro and Duque to stay healthy all year; Maine, Perez, and Pelf or Humber to maintain control; Sanchez to be healthy and '06 dominant; Scho to not blow; Joe Smith to be April '07 Smith; Willie to learn how to actually manage a bullpen, and Wagner to keep it together. Good luck with that; I wouldn't be surprised if we don't even make the playoffs again in '08, unless we pull off a big trade. Not to mention the inevitable Castillo and Alou injuries, plus question marks about Delgado's wrist.
I think you have to get one of Bedard, Haren, or Kazmir in here, preferably in that order.
The Milledge deal looks terrible on paper, especially considering how long the Mets would control Lastings.
Before last season started I said that Pelf could be bullpen material, and that still wouldn't surprise me. He's a 1-, maybe 2-pitch pitcher currently, and it's tough to go through the lineup 3 or 4 times on 1 pitch. He's still got great movement and velocity, and might have been able to solidify his slider and change with more IP last year, but as it stands, I wouldn't be shocked if Humber winds up in the rotation and the Pelf in the pen. Which is why I also wrote yesterday that it wouldn't surprise me to see Heilman as trade bait.
Pelf and Duque in the pen would be awesome. I mentioned earlier this year that I noticed Pelf typically is lights out for the first two innings, and doesn't melt down until innings 3-5 (likely due to Fredo's point that with only 1 or 2 pitches, you'll get hit the 2nd time through the lineup). If the Mets are willing to say Pelf is not a starter long-term (like they were with Heilman), then moving him to the bullpen would solidify the pen enormously, IMO.
Comments in today's Post are killing me. Mets are still pursuing Livan, Dotel, and Chacon. No, maybe, and NO! I can maybe see interest in Dotel, BUT not if we have to give up much, especially since our pen will be fine if we move Pelf and Duque there. WHY do they insist on talking about Livan and Chacon, those guys are exactly what we don't need. They move the team backwards a few steps, might as well go Lima time. I'm sick of Omar's "I'll pick up some crap and brush it off to see if I got a diamond" approach. 8+ years of MLB stats are a pretty good indicator of a player; Peterson can only do so much to improve a pitcher from his mean.
Not to mention this item: As for Dontrelle Willis, who is reportedly heading to the Tigers along with Miguel Cabrera, the Mets hadn't believed the lefty starter was available. What bothers me about this is not that we didn't pursue Willis, but rather the broader philosophy it implies. The Mets "didn't believe" he was available? What does that mean? EVERYONE is always available, at the right price. Pick up the phone and ask. How many other players are the Mets not pursuing (e.g., Kazmir) b/c management "didn't believe" they were available? Ridiculous.
I'm not upset about Willis. A good, gutty pitcher, but I don't think he'll be a lights-out pitcher ever again. A solid #3 at this point.
Cabrera is another story. You have to go after a guy that good, no matter how big a D-bag he is.
This Livan Hernandez obsession has become a bad joke.
Get ready for a large step backwards in '08.
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