20
2012
Mets Are Now The Only Team Not To Sign A Major League Free Agent
An article by 
According to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, with the San Diego Padres just announcing they have signed free agent pitcher Jason Marquis, and the Marlins signing Placido Polanco, the Mets are now the only team that have yet to sign a MAJOR LEAGUE free agent this offseason.
They have a reported $20-25 million to spend, and last week Alderson said he could just end up keeping it because free agents are too pricey. It’s starting to look like he really meant it. More dough for Fred, another nice Christmas bonus for Sandy…
I think the strategy all along was to wait and see if the world would end tomorrow. Anyway, who’s up for buying some Mets season tickets?
Meesa thinks issa too early still.
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
I'm a lifelong Mets fan who loves writing and talking about the Amazins' 24/7. From the Miracle in 1969 to the magic of 1986, and even the near misses in '73 and '00, I've experienced it all - the highs and the lows. I started Mets Merized Online in 2005 to feed my addiction. Follow me on Twitter @metsmerized.
65 Comments + Add Comment
NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 23 | 18 | .561 | - |
| Nationals | 23 | 19 | .548 | 0.5 |
| Phillies | 20 | 22 | .476 | 3.5 |
| Mets | 16 | 23 | .410 | 6.0 |
| Marlins | 11 | 31 | .262 | 12.5 |
Last updated: 05/18/2013
Recent Comments
- Saturn: on Mets GM Tells Ike Davis He Has Until End Of Month To Turn Slump Around: I do not get at all the...
- Ron: on Mets GM Tells Ike Davis He Has Until End Of Month To Turn Slump Around: This team is just so bad it's...
- philipag: on Mets GM Tells Ike Davis He Has Until End Of Month To Turn Slump Around: Yes - Keith had ego - but...
- rob: on Mets Appealing Harvey Earned Run, Want Tejada Charged With Error: We've gone from "The Time is Now"...
- Jimmy Pernil: on Mets GM Tells Ike Davis He Has Until End Of Month To Turn Slump Around: TEAM INS could give Ike 1500 at...
MMO Mets Chat
Need Tickets To The Mets Game?
Check Out These Great MLB Links!
Photographs From Gordon Donovan
5358 Fans Follow Us On Twitter!
1270 Fans Like Us On Facebook!
2341 Fans Read Our Feed!
1702 Fans Subscribe via Daily Email!
Does this mean we won’t win the December World Series like last year’s Marlins?
It means that we won’t win October’s World Series.
Oh, like the Marlins and Angels did last year?
It means our chances of winning are as good as the Astros
No, it really doesn’t.
jason marquis is a Ml in name only at this point isn’t he?
This is only news because it’s the Mets lol.
Looking around… I didn’t believe it at first.
Phils had Adams/Lannan, Braves Upton, Marlins Polanco, Nats had Haren…
Oy.
but we definitely win the “addition by subtraction” award for getting rid of Bay. No team can come close to that.
and the Braves and Nats actually lost real players from the team.
Did they lose any Cy Young Winners?
The Braves REPLACED Bourn WITH Upton…not to mention they have a pretty good farm system to help supplement losses.
Who did the Nats lose ?
Well at least Kay and Murphy cant say, I don’t see any other teams doing anything either! LOL
Would bringing up someone’s name in a snide sarcastic tone, that hasn’t yet participated in said thread yet, be considered instigating and bailing?
What happened to you Maniac, you used to be a good, classy guy that could point/counterpoint baseball like a grown up, I miss that Maniac………oh well…………
Maybe his thinking is that once RA was gone, despite saying otherwise, that any financial move would just be pointless…
I wouldn’t doubt that they pick up a couple more nobodies, and save the cash for next year when their system will graduate more arms to fill in the rotation and bullpen cheaply. Then, since Santana, Bay, and Fransisco will be gone, they’ll have a lot more money to upgrade the outfield with actual good players.
Lets not discount the fact that the Mets just might NOT have the money to spend. No one from the organization has come out and stated that they had a certain amount of cash.
Yeah wright tool less this year, yeah Bay did too. But maybe that was a nesessary step for them this year. Just because we all think the payroll could be the same as last year doesn’t mean they can afford it. I have to think at this point that there’s definately money problems…how can you not sign just one free agent? This might not be Sandy, it could be the piggy bank running empty.
what OF are available next year within the Mets price range AND worth their money ?
Granderson? Nope, he’s getting up there in age
Ellsbury? always injured, represented by Boras
Beltran? LMAO…there is a better chance Lenny comes back to play for us
Whatever excuses Sandy had with Bourne, Upton, Josh, Ross, Ludwick, he’ll have next year with a SMALLER CROP of Outfield free-agents
LMAO met fans
its like u guys WANT to believe the BS you are being fed
Hehehehe!!!
Sandy said the prices are too high this year as if their will be a “Black friday sale” next year….lmao
The Price only goes up Dummy….With the contracts that Victorino, Pagan, Bj Upton got Justin Upton is a bargain and he is only 25yrs old…and the Right handed power hittting Outfielder that the Mets NEED…..
The Wilpons and Sandy make Mets fans not want to follow the team anymore.
So all we did was lose a Cy Young and gave a minor league deal to Cowgill? No priority to win anymore. Wilpon and Alderson hate us.
The priority is to win the rest of the decade, not just 2013, as it should be. Especially when there was really no shot at it anyway with so many holes.
The challenge is still out there to anyone to find me a team this century who was losing, significantly raised payroll, and then won. Haven’t heard from anyone yet.
Yeah which decade? 2020-2030?
LMAO not this decade !
I am waiting for someone to come up with the teams to be the last one to sign a free agent to a pro contract over the last 10 years and what was their resulting win/loss record the following season.
Somewhere someone is frantically searching for this to then use to to qualify the results as having a direct connection to being last. You know it’s coming.
so I saw Sherman say this but I am still not sure as to who Milwaukee and Colorado signed? Did I miss something?
The question is does it matter? I mean so what if they did not sign someone to a pro contract? 1st or last what matters is will the signing be a good one not if it was 1st last.
sorry should read “will the signing be a good one not if it was 1st or last.”
no it doesn’t matter at all actually but I was just curious about the accuracy of the comment by Sherman who kinda started this.
Hey, why don’t you ask your lordship for a new line. You are stale boring unimaginative and brain dead. Oh, you have also done an awful lot to ruin what was once a very good site.
Jessep,
Brewers signed Tom Gorzelanny.
Rockies signed Jeff Francis / Logan Kensing.
Ah Francis was with them last year so kind of a loophole I guess. Logan Kensing was a minor league deal along with McClendon.
Good catch on Gorzelanny.
Yeah, Francis did get an MLB deal, and he was a free agent at the time. So technically, it counts.
so if the Mets re-sign Hairston he would count?
Correct.
He is currently NOT affiliated with the Mets organization and would request an MLB deal. I made that sound much more professional than it needed to, lol
You know to me this actually is a positive. Alderson and team are making smarter moves then they are getting credit for. They have made it clear that they are not trying to put a championship team on the field for 2013. I think that 2015 may be a contending year based on the maturity of players like D’Arnaud, Wheeler, Harvey, etc.
Signing an overpriced FA right now is probably not the answer. Yeah, I get it we need an OF of some sort. But I think some responsibile, wise trades for players that will be cost controlled and be part of our future is more logical. You want Cody Ross for $5 a year OK I’m fine with that, but it will probably cost the club more than that…and that would result in a bad signing.
We need to learn from Jason Bay.
In fact I will go on record to state that the LA Dodgers who seem to have plenty of money to spend should be our trading partner for Johan Santana. Injury and all, I’d be willing to bet that the Dodgers would look at a trade for Johan. Eithier is a left hander with some dough on his deal but at least he is young and consistantly good Not a 1 yr wonder that is being overpaid.
“You know to me this actually is a positive. Alderson and team are making smarter moves then they are getting credit for. ”
LMAO….You cant be serious smart move is not improving the team??? You are aware that that signing a Cody Ross wont stunt the growth of any prospects, because we have none on the horizon for what 3yrs.
And signing a player in the 2012 offseason can help the 2014 team if you make a decent signing of a player like Ross to a 2-3 yr deal.
As far as Jason bay is concerned I dont here anyone caling for Sandy to hand someone a 4-5yr deal worth 16mil per….We’d take a decent OF signing for 7mil tops just 1 guy hell I know he is a terrible fielder but at this point I’d even take Delmon Young for 5mil
Smart moves can also be moves you don’t make, which is a concept most on here still fail to grasp onto.
Exactly. Obviously Bad Bad Leroy doesn’t understand anything I am trying to say.
A concept you dont get is whether the farm system is loaded with prospects that doesnt guarantee they will pan out. And you cant rely on prospects alone to improve in todays game.
The worst thing Sandy can do is sit on his hands and wait for the prospects to get here. What will we do if when they arrive they are underwhelming???? Huh??Wait some more for more prospects or will Wilpon panic then and go back to impulse shopping.
And this is what they raised ticket prices for? Makes sense to me !
An equally good tittle for this post would be Somebody Actually Did Sign Jason Bay to a Free Agent Contract! Yes, That Jason Bay!!
Would we be a better team in 2013, at this point, if we signed Cody Ross and traded for Justin Upton (very tough to do and not have to give up one of our stud pitching prospects). With the loss of RA, i doubt it.
In that context, paying ‘up’ for an F/A or paying a steep price in a trade for an OF should be compared to buying a house in CA in 2005 – 06.
I’d patch the team for 2013…and gear for 2014 & beyond to be competitive.
Did any honestly think the 2013 Mets would be a World Series contender?
Tomorrow is also the official first day of winter. Its also the day the Mayan calendar ends.
So we either still have plenty of time or we’re all gonna die tomorrow.
I’m no GM, but seems to me this is no way to build a team. You don’t just “turn it on” when certain cogs make it to the bigs. How about building Harvey’s confidence by putting some guys behind him who can hit and field? How about fostering a winning mentality? They’re just not doing that.
^^^^^^^^^
THIS
BINGO!!!!
Exact-o-mundo…..See what the nats did they had Ryan Zimmerman Werth(too much money but they got their man)then they added pieces to compliment them on 1 to2 yr deals so they wouldnt block there prospects like LaRoche, Morse a platoon hitter started to blossom etc…..
They didnt wait for prospects….. they bought there prospects time to develop by fielding a somewhat competitive team and piece by piece integrated them into the lineup Desmond and Espinosa were up around the same time…Desmond struggled his 1st couple yrs up then boom 3rd yr he breaks out big….He was afforded time to develop because he had Vets around him…J.Zimmerman,Espinosa,Ramos,Strasburg, Harper….The nats didnt wait on any of these prospects when Harper the most highly anticipated prospect came up the team was already set he was the extra piece….
Mets are waiting for d’Arnaud to be Piazza….Wheeler & Harvey to be Cain & Lincecum…Familia to be Mariano Rivera….
And pray that we have Angels in the Outfield helping Duda & company….lol….http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCXiGeM9Lqw
Well in Sandy’s defense he WAS going to sign someone but then the Giants snapped Torres away from him!
Is that a photo of Jeff Wilpon at the office below SA’s photo?
They will sign a free agent outfielder soon or my name is not ray sadecki.
Ok so whats your real name?
We see no reason to wait…LOL
At this point, all we can do is sit back and wait and see what the farm system produces to go along with what we already have.
Granted, we now have three of the top ranked prospects in the game so we can’t begrudge that, however, even if successful they will be brought up to a team we all know has way too many other holes to fill which cannot be supplemented by just a farm system. And even with the contracts for Bay and Santana coming off the books, that money will be needed to pay off debts not helped by decreasing revenue.
So unless we pull a minor miracle like Oakland this year – or us during that glorious 1969 season – it’s going to be rough. And Oakland could also next season prove to be a one hit wonder like our Miracle Met squad was – we never played the same after ’69 when everything just came together – including I think a lot of Divine Intervention.
Every couple of months or so I love checking out this site to see how you guys are doing. I must say you are progressively moving towards a nervous breakdown as fanbase. I know there was no chance you would trade Dickey to us, but what were you guys thinking? As far back as 1994 when we become division rivals I’ve been watching your team, this might be the lowest level of awfulness you have ever experienced. Only one first place finish and ten losing seasons in 19 years. Compared to 11 division titles and 17 winning seasons for us. I dont think you’re familiar with the concept of improving your team. Heard you got some new puppies. That’s cute! :-O
Yeah, you’re right whoever you are. We’ve been pathetic. We have very bad owners and have had a couple / few bad G/Ms. But i’d rather be ‘us’ looking ahead for the next decade, than ‘you’.
Wait until the year after next, pal! LGM!!!
And yet you still have the same number of championships as we do.
This doesn’t surprise me. You got to hand it to sandy – he really is doing his job – that is saving money for the Wilpons.
Let’s face it – a few years ago – while Omar was still in charge – his last year I believe – we were a couple of players away from a really good team and Fred was sitting on about ten million dollars that he said the team will use before the trading deadline to see who they can pick up.
They never spent it.
Then, of course, it was wait until Perez and castillo’s salaries were off the books – they would reinvest that money in the team – that’s what we were told – and they never did.
Now that they have a bit of money to spend again – they won’t.
Instead they put a team oout there that no one wants to pay money to watch. And they lose money in attendance year to year to year.
Since Citi Field has opened there income has gone from $180 Million to $126 Million. That’s $54 million dollars less last year. And about 45 million less from the year before – almost $100 million less some of which could have been reinvested in the club to make sure that fans would want to keep showing up.
But when you gut the team you will end up with less money that is saved dumping salaries.
Pretty pathetic.
And it will be even less this year.
Sandy claimed last year that the reason he couldn’t spend money is because attendance is down – well maybe you should have thought of that when you took the job!
Attendance comes first, then spending. Always how its been, always how it will be. for any successful franchise. Prove to me otherwise.
don’t worry, I’ll wait…
Attendance comes first and then spending. Not buying it. If you don’t invest in a product worth buying, the people will not come. This is actually the biggest argument for signing Wright. Casual fans will love him as a career Met even if he starts to decline. However, outside of signing Wright, the Mets have done nothing to make people excited about going to see the 2013 Mets. Believe it or not, stars matter, especially in big cities.
If the Mets wanted people to come they would’ve gone out and signed Hamilton and Greinke. The pendulum has swung so far the other way now though. Everybody is all about defending billionaires now. Like I always know, most sane people know it’s not about spending just to spend…you have to spend wisely. However, this whole wait until 2014 thing…if we stop investing in our MLB product, 2014 will turn to 2015, and 2016…and we will still be waiting.
“Believe it or not, stars matter, especially in big cities.”
Winning creates stars
Winning comes first in THIS BIG CITY.
Trust me, if the 2013 Mets won the WS, no one would give a rat’s ass about the name on the back of the jersey
No need to wait all that much….
2005 shows your wrong!
The Marlins ?
We had attendance – then Sandy started dumping and the attendance dropped dramatically – pretty simple math.
If they want people to come back they have to put some money back into the team so they can contend.
People pay to watch good teams – check out the Yankees attendance BEFORE Steinbrenner put huge cash into the team.
By the way everyone – it is December 21st already here in Sydney and I’m still here.
Ha! Good to hear.
Maybe the Mayan Calander was about the Mets?
But it’s still the 20th where the Mayans lived…..LOL
Hahahhaa so, the estrategy is wait until the world ends tomorrow xD nice thought
I think the mets can and absolutely should make a move for Justin upton. I think the writers here at mmo should write a piece on acquiring Upton and I believe I have a realistic way of acquiring him. Sandy promised revamps in OF this offseason, which we haven’t seen yet maybe he’s trying to put together a legitimate trade. Here’s my thinking, I see a three team trade between the Indians, diamondbacks, and mets. The Indians are rumored to be interested in Parnell (great that’s fantastic take him please I had enough of him already). The diamondbacks of course would like a shortstop that’s what asdrubal Cabrera comes into play with the Indians and lastly the mets can part with Flores bc wright is blocking him at third, just like when they traded away Marte. If the mets can thro in a few prospects and vice versa. This could be a legitimate deal and Upton would be a fantastic way to upgrade our lineup with speed and power and he van mentor wright since they grew up together and played on the same little league team. Then we can sign bourn maybe to a one yr deal and BOOM. We have a contending team offense wise. What do you guys think? I would love to hear more about this possible trade from the mmo crew.
We’ve had the Justin Upton discussion. His career road splits make him barely average. Considering how he plays in the second most hitter friendly park in the league, that doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence.
Hopefully because we’re holding out for Dariel Alvarez.