With the Winter Meetings on the horizon and just ahead, I return from a three month hiatus from posting here on Metsmerized.  I have not been short of words to say or topics to discuss, but the emotional letdown of yet another September meltdown was too much to overcome until now. My outlook for this offseason is optimistic but yet frighteningly realistic at the same time. I do believe the Mets number one priority needs to be adding [...]

Back in October, I blogged extensively on several rumors that had the Mets hotly pursuing Seattle Mariners closer, J.J. Putz. Those rumors died down in November when it became apparent that the mariners’ asking price was extraordinarily high. As I’ve mentioned time and time again, I have a strong sense that the Mets would rather trade for a closer rather than cave into the demands of Francisco Rodriguez or Brian Fuentes. Even though, both Fuentes [...]

The Mets decided to bring back a few of their own minor league free agents today and signed  pitchers Nelson Figueroa and Adam Bostick, infielder Andy Green and catcher Rene Rivera. The four of them will be invited to spring training as non-roster players. Nelson Figueroa made six starts for the Mets in 2008 and had some good moments early on before sliding and being sent down to AAA. He worked 45.1 innings, surrendered 48 hits, [...]

Don’t forget to refresh your memory on Part 1 and Part 2 The stadium emptied pretty quickly, mostly due to the blow out score of the Ravens beating the Eagles 37-7. As soon as the sectioned emptied that I was working at, we immediately began the next assignment which was combing every seat in every section for valuables. This sounds like a hefty task, especially in a huge stadium like M&T Bank Stadium, but it [...]

Last week, Joel Sherman of the NY Post spoke to Omar Minaya about his plan for the Mets 2009 rotation. Here is what he wrote on his blog. I have spoken to many Met officials, including GM Omar Minaya, and each has told me essentially the same strategy: That they would like to add a quality starter to place behind Johan Santana in the rotation and go to camp giving Jonathan Niese a chance to be [...]

As we all gave “Thanks” this holiday weekend, I decided to write about what I am personally thankful for, baseball-wise. My Father – In 1973, my dad decided to introduce me to the National Pastime. I was only 7 years old and it was he who taught me to appreciate the beauty of the game, the sheer majesty of Baseball. My dad explained to me to enjoy the unknown, the unexpected. The anticipation of what [...]

Here is the full list of free agents compiled by MLBTR that were offered arbitration before the midnight deadline last night. Type A (15 players)A.J. BurnettOrlando CabreraJuan CruzBrian FuentesOrlando HudsonRaul IbanezDerek LoweDarren OliverOliver PerezManny RamirezFrancisco RodriguezC.C. SabathiaBen SheetsMark TeixeiraJason Varitek Type B (9 players)Casey BlakeMilton BradleyPaul ByrdJon GarlandMark GrudzielanekBrandon LyonDennys ReyesBrian ShouseDavid Weathers Surprisingly not offered arbitration:Bobby AbreuJoe BeimelPat BurrellAdam DunnBraden LooperJamie MoyerRandy WolfKerry Wood I gotta tell ya, Kerry Wood and Joe Beimel are looking even [...]

Joel Sherman of the New York Post, reports that soon after the Colorado Rockies acquired Huston Street in the Matt Holliday deal, the Mets checked in and made an offer for Street. Sherman explains that the Mets wanted to trade reliever Aaron Heilman, but that the Rockies wanted Pedro Feliciano as well. The Mets said no, and that was the end of the negotiations. I would have pulled the trigger on that… Not only would we have [...]

Part 1 Can Be Found Here. On Sunday, I had the opportunity to work at M&T Stadium for a Ravens Game, and this is the second part of my description of what it is like to see sports from another perspective. After our lunch break was over, which was about 1:50, we got moved to the upperdeck of M&T stadium for reassignment. My first assignment on the upperdeck lasted all of 5 minutes. The way [...]

There have been Mets rookies who had a positive effect the moment they took the field, such as Tom Seaver. There were others who took time to develop, like Jose Reyes. But there’s never been a player with the impact of Dwight Gooden. “Doctor K” won the hearts of Mets fans from day one with promise, potential and a God given talent rarely seen on a baseball diamond. As someone who witnessed Doc first hand [...]

Forget everything you have heard on sports radio… Forget everything you have read in the sports pages… Details of an under the radar conversation between Omar Minaya, Tony Bernazard and Luis Castillo at a meeting in October has leaked out. The Mets have every single intention of giving Luis Castillo the second base job despite what some Met officials had previously said. During that October meeting, Luis Castillo pleaded for another chance and promised that he would [...]