“You know what? My phone is off. And I won’t (call Minaya) unless he calls my agent (Fernando Cuza) or he calls me. I have a lot of respect for Omar and the Mets, but I’m not going to go chasing the Mets.  I’m not in that bad of shape. I’m okay and they know I am okay.  Yeah, I would like to be back (with the Mets). But I’m not just gonna follow the [...]

John Lackey has been with the Angels since 2002, when he helped them win the World Series.  He has been the heart and soul of their pitching staff for eight seasons. Now he may have thrown his last pitch for Los Angeles/Anaheim/California. Is it possible that his performance for the Angels in Game 5 of the ALCS just earned him a contract for the 2010 Mets? The Mets need a proven #2 starter to follow [...]

Former Mets pitching coach (and new Brewers pitching coach) Rick Peterson, was kind enough to answer some questions for me last week, and he gave me some candid thoughts on several topics we discussed including pitch counts, minimum innings pitched in the minors, the Verducci Effect, and of course the Mets.  What was your favorite Mets moment? In this clip, Rick discusses his friendship with Willie Randolph, and how special it was to get within one [...]

Join us once again for yet another Mets Merized Live Chat. Tonight we will take questions and discuss what the Hot Stove Season may have in store for the New York Mets. We will tackle all the questions regarding the recent week in Mets news, all the latest rumors, and even peak in at the recent performances of the Mets prospects in the Arizona Fall League. Rudy Jaramillo to Cubs, Rick Peterson to Brewers, Thoughts? [...]

And yet it seems that we’re in the same spot. October 17, 1999. Ten years ago last Saturday. Robin Ventura gave Mets fans one of the more unusual defining moments in team history. A “grand slam single” in the bottom of the 15th inning to break a tied game and send the Mets to Game 6 to face the Atlanta Braves one more time. As fate would have it, the Mets would fall short in [...]

The World Series Ed Leyro wrote about yesterday is likely to come to fruition—Yankees/Phillies, unless the Dodgers and/or Angels sweep the remaining games.  And the way New York and Philly are playing, that’s about as likely as snow in the Caribbean.  So we’re going to have to face facts here.  Yes, a Yankees/Phillies series is going to be like a Mets/Red Sox series would be to a Yankees fan—and we all know how that one [...]

Last week on MetsBlog, Michael Baron reported via Newsday that soon to be free agent Matt Holliday, preferred to play for either the Yankees or Mets in that order. Holliday’s agent is none other than Scott Boras. I can assure you that Holliday’s comments had more to do with money and less to do with a burning desire to play for New York. I’m sure that he and Boras are both acutely aware that the Yankees and [...]

According to a report on ESPN.com linked here (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4581715), the NY Mets actually profited from the Bernie Madoff scheme. Awesome. I don’t know if there is an award ceremony for the business that gets the most bad press in a calendar year, but HOW the NY Mets could even be runners up in that category in 2009 is beyond me. Right now, the Mets are neck and neck with David Letterman, and trust me, more people [...]

MLB Trade Rumors reports that the Mets have approximately $110M in salary commitments for 2010.  Assuming that Omar (and Jeff) can spend and equal last year’s payroll, he has approximately $30M to spend.  Below is a position by position account of who we have and what we need.  After spending the money, let’s see if we have a chance next year. Position Players:. 1st base – Daniel Murphy, Carlos Delgado, Prince Fielder, Adrian Gonzalez, Nick [...]