15
2011
Jeff Francis Agrees To Deal With The Royals
An article by Hojo's Mojo
According to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick via Twitter, the Kansas City Royals have signed free agent starter Jeff Francis to a one-year deal.
The deal is pending a physical.
With the left-hander now off the table, it leaves Chris Young as the top remaining option in the Mets’ price range according to Adam Rubin.
Other likely options for the Mets might include Dave Bush and Jeremy Bonderman.
The Mets are still looking to sign a starting pitcher according to comments made by Sandy Alderson on Tuesday, but are unwilling to pay more than $1.5 million dollars in base salary.
Yesterday, it was reported that Chris Young was very close to making a decision and that besides the Mets, 4-5 other teams are very interested with the Washington Nationals considered to be strong favorites.
About the Author: Rob Johnson
105 Comments + Add Comment
NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 24 | 18 | .571 | - |
| Nationals | 23 | 20 | .535 | 1.5 |
| Phillies | 20 | 23 | .465 | 4.5 |
| Mets | 16 | 24 | .400 | 7.0 |
| Marlins | 11 | 32 | .256 | 13.5 |
Last updated: 05/18/2013
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It’s kind of sad that the lowest market team in baseball and the lowest payroll team in the AL have outbid the New York Mets. Our hopes for a competitive season in 2011 relies on a collection of players that are all coming off injuries, shoulder and elbow surgeries and even a pending steroid suspension. Some writer here called them genius moves which is kind of funny because if it were Omar Minaya making these signings he’d be burning at the stake instead of getting a pat on the back.
Omar’s signings got injured, Sandy’s signings are already injured.
Omar signing didn’t get us a W.S.
You love Omar so much it must of killed you to see him get fired when it wasn’t his fault then I suppose right?
Omar was just unlucky according to you. Phillies they are just lucky then I suppose?
Please Omar failed and now he is deservedly gone. Maybe soon Alderson will fail and guess what he too then will be gone.
Ya, because Jeff Francis is perfectly healthy and doesn’t have any injury history.
It’s really bad that the Mets missed out on a slightly better than average pitcher. Thats the kind of guy you drop top dollar on.
Maniac: So your idea of a perfect situation is that the Mets outbid teams for below average starting pitching?
So the fact the Mets look at the remaining free agents and “say” they will not pay more than 1.5m is a bad thing? Do you believe they are worth more $? It’s not like we’re talking about guys who are locks to be key acquisitions….
If the Royals want to pay more $ for a below average pitcher, being mad that the Mets don’t outbid them is just… dumb.
It’s Jessp!
The best part about all of this discussion and Maniac and Bayonne’s desperate attempts to seem like they are smarter than everybody is you don’t even know what he signed for.
You have no idea right now how much $ Francis is guaranteed
And you ignore the fact that if he’s healthy he’s guaranteed a spot in their rotation based on the current makeup of their rotation.
You’re the one who thinks he smart, you always remind us that you’re not one of the “fans” and I don’t really care what the hell you do for a living anyway since u like to remind people that you’re not one of the “fans”
Granted there’s still time but lots of Mets fans including myself think they could have done better and I also hear that from professionals on my Twitter feed and on the TV/radio. So YOU don’t carry any weight with me.
What professionals?
How about answering the questions rather than avoiding them there sir.
Is your idea of a perfect situation is that the Mets outbid teams for below average starting pitching?
So the fact the Mets look at the remaining free agents and “say” they will not pay more than 1.5m is a bad thing?
Do you believe they are worth more $?
Any1 wanna make some easy money bettin that these questions wont be answered? It’s as sure a thing as you can get.
Sure, they could have done better for THIS year. At the expense of the future. Your head is so wrapped around what better players signed elsewhere for you can’t understand they never would have signed with the Mets for the same money.
Kerry Wood would have been real nice, but no way the Mets sign him for only $1.5 mil. Same with Garland, and many others. Just because you’re a Mets fan doesn’t mean every available free agent wants to play for them.
You’re just making excuse for Saber Sandy, if this was Omar doing these moves you’d be asking for a public beheading. This is New York and he’s doing an AWFUL job of generating ticket sales, in fact he’s LOSING sales. He could have spent a little more to stay competitive AND help rebuild the minors at the same time.
This team has a nucleus to compete and and he’s showing no regard for that at all and I know Angle was a good company man with what he said but I bet there are players on that team none too happy about it
Nope, I was one of the last stalwarts trying to defend Omar. I kept trying to find the positives in his moves. The Opening Day 2010 roster finally convinced me.
Thanks for playing, though. Anything else?
We’re not talking about the 2010 opening day roster we’re talking about if Omar was making these moves that Sandy is you’d be asking for a public beheading.
Don’t change the subject.
I’m not changing it. I defended Omar till the bitter end. Problem was, he WASN’T making these moves. He was signing Alex Cora and trading a bullpen arm for GMJ and signing Mike frickin Jacobs to START AT FIRST BASE. If Omar were making these moves, he’d still be the GM.
Omar had nothing to do with the 2010 opening day line up? OK.
listen to yoursleves metsies. fightin about whther or not a broken down loser should be a metsie or not. maybe if your broken down gm would have trited to get talent on the team you’d be fighting about where you gonna finish, but now you fight about whther a guy like francis is bad enough to fit your newimage of being losers. in the 60′s you were entertaining losers, now you are just mean nasty rotten losers,… now you deserve to be losers. fans are losers and the mets are losers. enjoy it……
I wouldn’t call them genius moves, not now anyway. I’d call the hold the fort moves, get us through the season reasonably competative, playing good baseball, not playing s**t baseball and at least be watchable while we dig out from the crashing a third time since the Wilpon came on board.
Omar never caught any heat during the off season no matter who he signed. Ever year he was being toasted for “winning the off season” even when it was pretty foreseeable that it was going to crash.
Even if he had gotten us one in 2006 how long do you think we would have remained a contender? 14 guys at anywhere from 32 – 47 three of them in their 40′s and the next thing he does is go out and give up a #1 pick for another 40 year old, (that’s four of them now) resign and count on El Duque again, and sign a 32 year old to play 2B who needs knee surgery on both knees then he lets Bradford, Oliver and Hernandez go and signs Schowenweiss to a 3 year deal and Mota (50 game suspension looming) for 2 years. It’s a real shame Omar was being hailed for all his genius moves.
Revisionist history at play here.
What other pitchers are available if Sandy wanted to spend just a little more money? Maybe a few million more?
You tell us. Outside of Cliff Lee (who really wasn’t interested in the Mets), who is it that gets your attention?
Not really anyone great, honestly. its all SP3 types AT best, more then likely SP4-SP5. Milwood, Chen, Young, Bush. Overpay for Pavano. Thats about all.
A trade is looking more and more likely, maybe offer a better prospect and castillo for an overpaid OF and an SP.
Sean, I wouldn’t mind a trade, but outside of Young, none of those other guys are remotely good. Young’s got an injury history, but at least he could pitch well healthy. Those other guys are jokes.
Although I wouldn’t hate it if the Mets signed Dave Bush, just to have Bush and Dickey on the same team.
Yep, the brow don’t get lower than that.
are you saying, they may be…uhhh…preoccupied with something? god, that was so easy.
If the rotation is gonna improve, I can’t see anything short of a trade or Millwood. He is very fly ball, but the Mets can handle a fly-ball pitcher. He’s been a horse.
Im still pro trade though.
I would take a chance on Millwood pitching at Citi Field. He’d also be back in the NL w/no DH. He’s been through the wars, could be a good influence on the younger pitchers and can help keep us in the WC until mid season when more trades can be made if we’re still in it.
Improve and Millwood don’t belong in the same sentence. I get that he’s a horse, but what good is 200 innings if they’re awful innings? His ERA has been over 5 two of the last three years, and in his decent-looking season in 2009, his FIP, xFIP and most peripherals were actually WORSE than 2008 and 2010 and those 5+ ERAs. Also, he’s had one season of a tERA under 4.50 since 2005 and hasn’t had a tERA under 5 since 2006.
I’d much rather the Mets gamble on good, injured pitchers returning to form than pitchers we know have been bad-to-awful in a sample size as large as his most recent 1,000 innings.
Oh okay, so advanced metrics tell you that Millwood just might not pitch better in a park like Citifield with no DH and may be a good influence on our younger pitchers…and metrics tell you that Millwood couldn’t possibly help this team stay into the race until July when more trades can be made if the Mets are in it….okay so the metrics say so.
Just like someone said advanced metrics say that Mike Pelfrey is a top of the rotation pitcher. Sure.
Well, I don’t know anything about Pelfrey being a top starter, but you got the first part right. You’re starting to catch on.
LoL, I was surprised as well.
Oh okay so Millwood coming over from the AL to pitch at a park like Citifield with no DH and being a good veteran presence for our younger pitchers and possibly giving the Mets some innings is not a good idea because of metrics.
Yeah, right. Awful judgement.
Do you even know what the average AL DH hit last year? Or are you maybe guessing?
You mean what the average AL DH hit last year vs. what the average NL pitcher hit? No i don’t know those numbers.
Alright, I do. And I’ll tell you. The average DH hit around .270, 20, 75. Those are solid numbers. Now, let’s compare them to NL pitchers. To further prove my point, I’m going to wrongly assume NL pitchers hit nothing. Zeroes across the board. Not one home run or RBI from a single NL pitcher OR the pinch hitter in the late innings, which would make the AL numbers even more superior. A favor to my good friend Bayonne. Also as a favor, I’ll use traditional stats. I want to make sure Bayonne can’t poke a single hole in this balloon. Everyone still with me?
AL DHs hit .270, 20, 75 in 648 plate appearances. I can’t tell you how many at bats because I’m not even thinking about OBP and walks here. Just Bayonne’s traditional stats. 648 is 162 games times four trips to the plate. That’s one home run ever 32.4 trips to the plate and one RBI every 8.64 trips to the plate. The .270 remains the same because it’s a rate stat.
Let’s also assume Millwood is the picture of health and makes 34 starts. Let’s also assume, because I want to shortchange me here, not Bayonne, he faces the pitchers spot 4 times. And let’s also understand pitchers don’t bat four times, I’m also including pinch hitters, here.
So, Millwood would face that pitchers spot 136 times (34×4). In 136 plate appearances, at a home run every 32.4 PAs and one RBI every 8.64 PAs, Millwood would see 4.2 and 15.7 HRs and RBIs come off his totals.
So, in an IMPOSSIBLE scenario of Millwood facing 136 plate appearances of pitchers instead of DHs, in the scenario entirely one-sided towards Bayonne of the pitchers he faces never ONCE putting a bat on a ball, he’ll see four fewer home runs and 16 fewer RBI
Now, in Millwood’s recent terrible history, you honestly think he’d benefit from seeing those numbers off his totals?
Millwood. Is. Terrible.
You lost him at favor. LoL
“Good veteran presence” Man, your not still trotting out that non justification for signing someone are you.
Jeez, didn’t your Swami bring enough guys over here in the last few years for their “good veteran presence”?
The ability to play baseball at a high level, his cost, upside and how a players strengths fit in with the existing roster is the only consideration in determining weather he should be signed.
Not nebulous non reasons like “good club house presence.”
After all your swami thought it would be a good idea to leave Oliver Perez lounging around the club house all year. How important could it be?
Boy it always works out well on “paper” right?
By George I think you’ve got it!
That is what xtreem just said look.
“His ERA has been over 5 two of the last three years, and in his decent-looking season in 2009, his FIP, xFIP and most peripherals were actually WORSE than 2008 and 2010 and those 5+ ERAs. Also, he’s had one season of a tERA under 4.50 since 2005 and hasn’t had a tERA under 5 since 2006.”
Sounds like Tim Redding to me.
Bayonne,
I never said I wasn’t a fan. I’m just not one of these fans like you who find every move or non-move a cause for complaint. I try to enjoy my surroundings a little bit more
“and being a good veteran presence for our younger pitchers” — how do you know he’d be a good influence on anybody? Have you sat in a clubhouse with Kevin Millwood?
And you still have yet to answer the question.
You’re mad the Royals got Jeff Francis. How much $ did they give him? How much $ is too much to pay a guy who has been injury prone and hasn’t proven to be very effective in the last 3 years?
You’re mad the Mets aren’t overpaying for a below average starting pitcher. Jeff Francis sells tickets? Is that it?
You complain, to complain.
I like how one of the guys who claims the FO is settling for mediocrity is now pimping Kevin Milwood.
“Oh okay, so advanced metrics tell you that Millwood just might not pitch better in a park like Citifield with no DH ”
Yup. Besides, do you really want to settle for better than he’s been lately?
“and may be a good influence on our younger pitchers”
As opposed to Santana and the pitching coaches? Do you have anything to say he is a good mentor for young pitchers?
“and metrics tell you that Millwood couldn’t possibly help this team stay into the race until July when more trades can be made if the Mets are in it”
Yes, advance metrics and pretty much every other method of determining a player’s value tells us that trotting out a guy every 5th day to throw 6 innings of batting practice will not be very helpful to the team.
Not to mention all the amazing things Millwood has done for the young pitchers in Baltimore. I mean clearly he’s been such a positive influence on them right?
Or he’s over 30 years old so when the Mets don’t sign him we like to just pretend because he’s “old” the Mets should’ve gotten him to carry Jon Niese’s bags
Gah, don’t remind me. I keep putting Guthrie on my fantasy team.
Donal, I ended the year with Guthrie, too. It hurts sometimes.
By the way, it is kind of dishonest to imply that pitchers in the NL, who generally hit in the 9 spot, are comparable to DHs in the AL, who generally hit in the middle of the order.
After all, DHs are there usually because they hit well but can’t field a lick.
You’re right of course, but I didn’t want to point out the disparity in RBI opportunities a DH sees compare to NL pitchers/pinch hitters. Remember, I was sliding everything I could possibly think of in Bayonne’s favor. Of course, in actuality the 4/16 decrease is probably more like 4/10 or so. But Bayonne’s my guy here, so I was doing it all for him.
Your all heart X.
I do what I can. I’m a pretty selfless guy.
Depending on what he is asking, I’d like to see the Mets at least take a run at Justin Duchscherer. I haven’t heard anything about what he is seeking, though.
Who?
he’s a super injury case though. He is Rich Harden redux.
Ya, like I said, depending on what he is asking. Give him a Capuano like deal.
the difference is, justin hasn’t been consistently on the field in a few years, due to various injuries. His hips have both been fixed. Carlos Delgado has been having his hips fixed, three surgeries already and he still isn’t good to go.
And can somebody tell me what sabermetrics have to do with the Mets not overpaying for Jeff Francis? I mean are you that afraid of statistics that you think they are so powerful that they’d lead a GM to avoid overpaying for a below average pitcher?
Wait you need a lesson as well. Look at what the last student learned. OK from the top.
Professor North Jersey: By George, he’s got it! By George he’s got it! Now once again, where does it saber?
Bayizal dohickey: On the Mets, on the Mets.
Professor North Jersey: And where’s those saber Mets?
Baylizal dohickey: in Queens, in Queens!
You have to have some fun with this or else what’s the point?
If the so-called saber people were the Legion of Doom then who would be the following characters?
Brainiac
Lex Luthor
The Riddler
Toyman
The Scarecrow
Captain Cold
Gorilla Grodd
Sinestro
Solomon Grundy
Bizarro
Dibs on Sinestro.
Would James K be “Toyman”?
oh I am TOTALLY Gorilla Grodd. DIBSIES
For those peeing themselves over the fact the Mets didn’t sign the mighty Jeff Francis… I’d like to know how much $ do you feel is too much for Francis? If the Mets signed him for day $3m guaranteed, is that too much?
listten t0 the metsie….another fake…. i bet every time the mets fail to get “their man” or bum in most cases, you write junk like you just did, but if francis were to have been dumb enough to sign you’d be saying what a great moive it was. you are so full of it jeesup… and everyone knows it. what a group… you all have no right to make fu.n of anyone or anything. laughingstock of america……mets!!!!!!! i feel bad for the few metsie fans who want to win being stuck with a bunch of folks like you… clueless about the game, clueless about talent, and clueless about just how big a joke you all are……Bye…enjoy yourselves…… the park will be filled in red when the phils and nats come to your little dump. hahahahahaha
Troll
HA! Jinx!
DERP DERP DERP I IS A TROLL DERP DERP
According to Jerry Crasnick, Jeff Francis’ deal with #Royals is for a $2M base salary. He can make $2M more in incentives based on starts and innings pitched
So the Mets feel Capuano is a better fit for them, sign him to 1.5m base. Francis goes for more $, a pitcher the Mets clearly liked less than Capuano… and we’re mad about this?
We’re angry that the Mets didn’t spend MORE money on a guy they liked LESS than a pitcher they SIGNED.
Imagine whats next. Manny Ramirez will sign somewhere and we’ll have a public outcry
Hat tip to R.D.M. Member Metsfan4decades for pointing this out.
“After each appearance, Warthen says he receives an update on Perez’s performance from bullpen catcher Rafael Arroyo, who accompanied Perez to “be a guy that pushes him do his workouts each and every day.”
“At times,” Warthen said, “he thinks that Ollie is up-and-down, and his heart isn’t as in it as much as it should be at times. But he feels good, and he’s getting in shape, and he’s working hard, realizing that this is a big year.”
nj.com/mets/index.ssf/2011/01/mets_pitching_coach_dan_warthe.html
This from a pitcher in his walk year that has a guy there to “push him” to do his workouts.
Amazing.
Thanks for that MNJ. Appreciate the insight. It really says a lot that his catcher was pretty candid rather than just taking the easy road and saying he was “looking good, working hard, trying out some new stuff, ect.”
I was told by a couple of people that work at Citi that nobody even talked to Ollie in the club house last year after he refused to go down to the minors and while that couldn’t have been easy for him he should have done what was right for the team and possibly helped himself as well. Trachsel and Bobby Jones did it and they came back and contributed quite a bit.
It’s going to be a long year for the Mets and eventually we will end up trading Beltran, Reyes and possibly Wright…there is no doubt in my mind that the whole purpose for the new management and the owners is to dismantle this team and make some money…the only thing that could save the Mets is, if they by some miracle, with this mediocre team, they start winning and keep the fans coming into the park, otherwise we are in for a very long season…LGM
well, what you just described is the classic business situation of a company hiring a hatchet man CEO to come in, gut the place, make the balance sheet look good for a potential buyer, then sell and run.
it has been done before in sports too. what do you think a buyer will want more? An old team with a high payroll and no prospects, or a young team on the ascent with a brimming farm system, and low payroll?
Damn, all of this is because I made a comment that if Omar was making these moves he’d be crucified? It happens to be the truth and pretending that it wouldnt be is plain ignorant. Alderson is getting lauded for moves that had Omar made them would have gotten mocked and laughed at. Case in point was the reaction to Omar’s R.A. Dickey signing. Yes wee were all wrong. Lets see if the Moneyballer can top that player value. What did he get like 600K or 700k or something? Lets see which GM gets the best value pick.
The difference between Dickey and the guys Alderson signed is that these guys have had a history of successes. Dickey had a history of complete failure. We were all wrong, we all admitted it and moved on. We like Alderson’s signings because unlike Jacobs, GMJ, etc. etc., Paulino, T-Buch and Capuano have been good major leaguers in the past. That’s why Dickey AT THE TIME was laughed at and these guys at this time are praised. If these guys fail, I’ll be the first to admit Sandy screwed up.
A history of success? Paulino’s very, very, very limited success came with PEDs. What success did Capuano have? Three years before TJ he had a 4.58 ERA, you call that success?
Capuano’s last two full seasons (2005-2006) were pretty good. Paulino’s career BA and OBP against lefties (the only reason he’s here and the only thing he’ll be doing) is .338/.390.
Yes, success.
Capuano had 1 good year in 2005 18-12 3.99 ERA, 2006 he was 11-12, 4.03 ERA for Milwaukee,
I have no problem with Paulino signing but good numbers lefties.
That being said, i wouldn’t call these “successes”
Ollie P and the Hernandez brothers on the other hand…raving successes.
Bayonne – This will be fun I’m sure.
Nobody’s saying Capuano is some sort of ace. He’s a calculated risk just as Francis or Young or Bush would be.
However, you mentioned this morning in agreement with Maniac how bad it is that the Mets got outbid for Francis by the Royals and what a poor job Alderson’s done.
So I ask you, if you just said Capuano has only had 1 good year. I wonder why the temper tantrum over the fact they didn’t sign Jeff Francis.
Jeff Francis got more $ guaranteed than Capuano, and has never had as good of a season as Capuano’s “one good” year as you say.
So…what is the reason for complaining about the Mets didn’t sign Francis? The difference between Francis and Capuano in terms of projected talent is minimal if you’re being honest. The only difference is, a more desperate team, the Royals gave Francis more $.
It’s that simple. It has nothing to do with who the GM is or what saber metrics a GM uses or doesn’t use. It has to do with spending $ and getting the most for your $. Rather than just throwing money out the window towards every free agent available
Hey, 11-12, 4.03 is a good year if you’re pitching for a team that went 75-87 and score the third fewest runs in the league as your support.
No, damnit. Wins are the only true measure of a pitcher! Especially in the American League where they don’t bat!
Thanks for stopping by, Joe Morgan.
My pleasure. Its great now that I have all this free time and I can finally tell you nerds that you are all wrong for worshipping that book Billie Beane wrote about how computers know the most about baseball.
You realize the lucking out with RA Dickey pales in comparison to deals like Ollie, rights?
That the criticisms of Omar are not just for one or two deals, but the entire body of work?
Would you like me to reprint my list of reasons I had it with Omar?
All GMs make bad deals. Look at Vernon Wells signing instead of Ollie, he got $175 million more and it is widely considered the worst contract in MLB history. It was architected by Ricciardi.
Assuming that it was indeed Ricciardi that made that deal, and the indications are that it wasn’t, so what?
Is Ricciardi in a position to make that kind of deal again? No, he isn’t.
Ricciardi probably isn’t cut out to be a GM, but he is a damn fine part of the team.
Maniac, Minaya was fired after 4 years of failure.
Deal with it.
The need to say “Oh you would be crucifying these moves if it was Minaya” means what?
If they did it would be due to his previous 4 years of failure not inspiring people that he knows what he is doing.
The difference with Alderson is simple. He is getting the benefit of the doubt until he shows he is just as bas as well. In 4 years if the Mets still suck and Alderson continues to do these same moves people will say enough and be calling for his head as well.
Now though is not that time and like it or not Alderson deserves the chance to at least fail before passing judgement the same as Minaya got.
These posters are not giving him the benefit of the doubt. As I said in my original comment they are being called “genius moves” by Craig I think, and that is ignorant to say such a thing.
My problem is not giving Alderson his well deserved benefit of the doubt, it’s the assinine compliments he’s getting which are for now undeserved.
It doesnt take a genius to divide $5 million between five injured players and a steroid user. That what players like that go for. Nobody wants them, but now they are ours and we should all support them. But enough with the “genius moves” MMO writers!
If someone said he made a genius move then call that someone out dont say these people cause I am not saying genius move so I would like not to be cast in the same group as someone else and I am sure others would feel the same so let’s see who said genius move again? please focus on him OK?
I did call that someone out as a MMO writer. It’s all of you who made a mountain out of mole hill. I was just saying enough with the ticker tape parade and lets wait to see what happenes before we call Alderson or his moves genius.
Read below Maniac cause your flip flopping.
Then go into the comments section of the article Craig said it in and call him out there. Don’t go into news posts made by other people and talk about it.
I think it was the new guy Collier who had said Alderson is making genius moves but it really doesn’t matter.
I’m not saying Capuano won’t pitch well for us because he just may give us a good year but going out and signing a bunch of guys on the cheap that NOBODY else wants and calling it some kind of revisionist thinking it blind faith and just plain ol’ rationalizing. They’re trying to rationalize his moves.
And i really think it does the nucleus of the roster a total injustice because this is a team that can compete and he’s too busy acting like a vulture searching for a dead carcass. This roster deserves better.
Like who?
Do you think they would be in this mess if the previous management had done a better job? Isn’t the insult from the guys who trashed the farm system and saddled the team with horrible cotnracts?
Would you like it if they exceeded the offers for Lee, Crawford or Werth?
Maniac said he thinks it was Craig that said Alderson was making “genius moves” but then he says “these posters” are implying Alderson is making genius moves so he needs to focus on who said what cause he is all over the place.
The point remains saying Minaya would be crucified means what?
If they did say Minaya would be crucified it would be due to his previous 4 years of failure not inspiring people that he knows what he is doing.
The difference with Alderson is simple. He is getting the benefit of the doubt until he shows he is just as bas as well. In 4 years if the Mets still suck and Alderson continues to do these same moves people will say enough and be calling for his head as well.
Now though is not that time and like it or not Alderson deserves the chance to at least fail before passing judgement the same as Minaya got.
The genius remark was done by new guy Clayton Collier
http://metsmerizedonline.com/2011/01/morning-grind-capuano-buchholz-alomar-alderson.html
And he explained why he said it in his reply. Was it a little over the top? Sure… I don’t think anybody would be a baseball GM if they were a “genius” but those trying to pinpoint that word as your line of defense against somebody who doesn’t mind this offseason is quite a reach.
Further, if you have an issue with what he writes. There’s a comment section below his blog that you can easily write on.
sandy gets the benefit of the doubt (and Omar would have been crucified if the moves actually deserved it) simply because Omar is the one thatblew out the payroll on a flawed roster so badly.
Then go to the article or post where he said that and take it up with him there. Going to completely unrealated threads and claiming that someone might have said it in some other place is petty and unfair.
“blind faith and just plain ol’ rationalizing”???
Hello, calling Bayonneeeee……
Have you not heard anything Alderson has said?
He told you from day 1 that the Mets would not be big players in free agency due to their financial inflexibility.
When any new gm comes in to take over a team all you have is faith that he will turn things around because until he does so what else is there?
Rationalizing you say? How about just opening your eyes and seeing that everything that he has done has been what he said he will do this off season and that means your getting exactly what you are seeing.
That you don’t like it is fine your entitled to it but unless your rooting for Alderson to fail (are you?) you have to hope he knows what he is doing and the Mets will be all the better for it in the long run.
I promise to be right next to you at the end of 3 years if we are no better than where we are now calling for Alderson’s head OK?
In the words of Roger Maris, I say to all of you kiss my asterisk!
still waiting Maniac.
The point remains saying Minaya would be crucified means what?
If they did say Minaya would be crucified it would be due to his previous 4 years of failure not inspiring people that he knows what he is doing.
The difference with Alderson is simple. He is getting the benefit of the doubt until he shows he is just as bas as well. In 4 years if the Mets still suck and Alderson continues to do these same moves people will say enough and be calling for his head as well.
Now though is not that time and like it or not Alderson deserves the chance to at least fail before passing judgement the same as Minaya got.
I actually agree with Bayonne on one conceptual point. ( realize I am in the minority, but I think the team has enough talent on it to at least seriously compete for the WC. Assuming of course reasonable health and production from the big $ guys (the stars), without which it matters little what else the FO does.
that, and some smart moves to fill in the margins (bench, support players, etc.)
where I agree with Bay is that if they could have spent a modest amount extra ($5-$10 mill say) to get better guys, then I think they should have done it since that could be the difference between falling just short and making the playoffs.
of course, the trick is figuring out exactly which players this was. And I know that not everyone wanted to come to the mets, but there were mid-tier guys (say, Garland level) that would have added more to the team than cheap injury guys likely will.
Or, they could have invested in the pen. Sign Fuentes as a set up/alternate closer (side benefit, limit K Rod GFs). Just another option.
you can slice and dice the names any way you want, but the concept of making that little extra investment is valid.
Garland wasn’t leaving California for a one year deal and probably wasn’t all that interested in walking into this chaos. I’m not fussed on Fuentes at all and he does want a healthy paycheck. Other than guys you could only wish about their really wasn’t that much out there.
Mejia and Tejada are clogging up the 40 man roster before they had to be put on it to protect them from rule 5 poachers and before they were ready to contribute at the ML level so you couldn’t make a lot of signings to begin with.
I can understand the idea that you and Bayonne among others feel this team could compete for A W.C in 2011.
The thing is that the one person’s whose opinion matters may or better was not willing to make that conclusion to the point he is willing to spend more money to find out.
Alderson has said that he likes to have as much information as possible before making a decision. So is it that unrealistic to believe that not knowing what the problem was and what is needed to fix it so the Mets could possibly make the W.C. in 2011 he is taking this time to evaluate the team while holding the line where payroll is as he sees how best to move ahead in 2012 and beyond?
Alderson is not doing anything to jeopardize his off season heading into 2012 season. He has already stated that if the Mets are indeed in a playoff hunt this A.S.B. he doesn’t see himself not being able to add a player that may help in that endeavor.
I should of finished that by saying,
so if the Mets are competitive at the A.S.B. this year he will be expected to try to add a player to help the team reach the post season but by that time he will have a better feel of exactly what that is that the team needs. Which is what you would expect from any GM.
entirely possible. But, we shall see soon enough if they really are broke as some surmise, if they can’t add payroll then either!
moot point though if the team isn’t really in the hunt at that point.