I’m reading all these raves that the Mets are strong players for Octavio Dotel…

Really? I mean do the people writing these headlines really belive that?

Let me dispel that myth for you if I may…

First of all, you may have already read that Jonathan Broxton – a much more inferior reliever than Dotel – just signed a one year $4 million dollar deal with the Kansas City Royals.

Why would Octavio Dotel sign for one penny less than that?

Matt Cerrone over at Mets blog believes that Dotel will sign for less than $3.5 Million…

The buzz in baseball has been that Dotel would first like to re-sign in St. Louis, who declined his $3.5 million option for next season. This would suggest they view him as being worth slightly less or they have no interest in bringing him back.

There are TWO HUGE REASONS why the St. Louis Cardinals declined Dotel’s option and declined to offer him arbitration.

  • Reason #1 – They want to accumulate as much money as they can to re-sign Albert Pujols who is their number one priority.
  • Reason #2 – BECAUSE THEY WOULD BE IDIOTS TO PICK UP THAT OPTION!!!

Why, you ask? It’s simple…

Under the terms of the new CBA the St. Louis Cardinals will get a compensatory pick even if they decline to offer Octavio Dotel arbitration!

That’s right, they get a top draft pick just by letting Dotel, who just turned 38 years old, go.

That is why his option was declined.

That is why they didn’t offer him arbitration.

So now, I ask you, why would Octavio Dotel sign for a penny less than the $4 million Jonathan Broxton got???

You think Dotel’s agent is going to allow that to happen and get laughed out of the business?

You think Dotel’s agent is not going to get his aging client one last huge contract coming off the heels of a fantastic season?

That’s the new Mets philosophy/thinking right there, and it’s not grounded in reality. Dotel will get and is entitled to fair market value. Players like this are not on the Mets radar because they only want to pay below fair market value. But they want you to think they are interested in quality players.

So now that I’ve explained the facts to you, let me ask you again, do you think the Mets will pay Octavio Dotel $4 million or more dollars to play for them next season?

Of course they won’t…

Are the Mets strong players for Octavio Dotel?

Of course they’re not…