METS SET SIGHTS ON STARTING PITCHING

Music to my ears. I know most of you have a deep respect for wood a la Larry David, but without pitching you can have all the ash, maple and old hickory you want, you won’t win. Pitching wins period.

The top pitcher around that the Mets could get is Roy Halliday but the cost both player/prospect wise and money wise makes Halliday a dream that won’t come true. The next on the list is John Lackey, who is doable. Contract wise that is. If it takes an AJ Burnett 5yr/$82 mil deal to get Lackey here so be it. Sure he comes with a warning label as he hasn’t made over 30 starts in the last two seasons but the Mets are dessssssssssssperate for a #2 to Santana’s #1 and the they can piece together the rest of the rotation by adding two of the usual suspects from Jason Marquis, Joel Piniero, Randy Wolf, Jon Garland, and the coming off injuries, Ben Sheets, Erik Benard, and Noah Lowry, and my trade up specials Aaron Harang, Bronson Arroyo and Gil Meche to go with Mike Pelfrey as the 4^th or 5^th starter then and only then will progress be made in Flushing.

By the way I agree with this from Mack’s Mets to make John Maine the 8^th inning set up man to Frankie Rodz and I would also make Ollie P a reliever as well and have Bobby Parnell and Perpetual Pedro Feliciano as my 7^th inning mix and match set and throw Sean Green in for shits and giggles.

Nothing gets accomplished here until the pitching is squared away.

“WHAT THEY ACTUALLY LIKE THAT BLUE AND ORANGE STUFF”?

Can’t you just imagine, Jeffey Skill Set saying that? How out of touch can you be about your fan base and the history of the close to <places right pinky to right corner of mouth> $1 billion dollar baseball franchise he and his family own?

The Skill Sets had to be hit over the head by their fan base to paint the walls blue and orange, add a Mets Hall of Fame that even the great unwashed can gain entrance to, and go back to the uniform that the vast majority of Mets fans revere.

METS-MARLINS IN SAN JUAN, WHO NEEDS TWO?

So MLB wants the Mets and Marlins to play a series in San Juan which would be taken from the Marlins home schedule. Now how does this help the Marlins? The only time they get big crowds at Your Name Here Stadium is when the Mets come to town, plus with the construction of a new ball park shouldn’t the Marlins be trying build a better relationship with their fan base so they fill the new place once it’s up? The weird thing about the Marlins fans is they support the team very heavily through TV and Radio so maybe it doesn’t matter if they play in San Juan or San Quentin.

Also in this story there is a blurb about the Mets looking at signing Jack Cust. Hopefully it’s for a bartender’s job at the Acela Club.

The thought of free-agent left fielder Matt Holliday signing with the Mets is good for a chuckle. Some who know Holliday say he would prefer not to play in New York. Also, his power to right-center makes him a poor fit for Citi Field. The Mets would not be so desperate to upgrade in left if Fernando Martinez had justified talk that he might be a left-handed Manny Ramirez …

Hey Ken , who’s Holiday’s agent ? Scott Bora$ right? Bora$ will have Holiday sign with the Tehran Burkamakers if the price is right. Who’s your source on this one, the same source who told you that no way C.C. Sabathia would never come to New York, Money talks, and bullshit is employed by FOX, dickhead.

Dierkes also puts Randy Wolf and Brad Penny in Mets Blue and Orange. Wolf I can see but Brad Penny? Unless it’s to work as a bouncer at the Acela Club I don’t see it.

Not even the comedy team of Cohen and Hernandez could get me to watch last nights game. It was 11-1 Bravos after three and that sent me right to the Rangers-Red Wings exhibition game from MSG.

For all of you screaming about getting another bat or two for 2010, it’s time for you to wake up and smell the elevated Team ERA. This team is in dire need of starting pitching, not just a solid #2 compliment to Johan Santana but a good # 3 starter as well. If I’m making the decision around the Mets, I’d be priming both John Maine and Oliver Perez for bullpen duty next season. I’d move Maine, as I feel the wear and tear of being a starter is too much for him both physically and mentally. Bobby Ojeda, who has been fantastic these last few weeks with his critique of this team, took Maine to task last night for bitching and moaning about his aches and pains. Ojeda said that Maine needs to take a page from the Johan Santana book of “even though my knee and elbow need surgery I’m feeling fine no problems”. Ojeda stated that guys like Maine who talk about what hurts and talks about his aches and pains so much turn off their teammates and the front office. Ojeda claims there is a  time to tell the truth and there is a  time to shut the fuck up. Well Ojeda didn’t say fuck I just threw that in.

If the Mets could land Roy Haliday or even make a move on Felix Hernandez that would be the best news all off season. If they can get El Loco from the Cubs for fifty cents on the dollar that would be swell too. Then add a lower level guy like Jason Marquis, or Randy Wolf to go with Big Pelf and a healthy Jon Neise you have something of a pitching structure in your rotation.

I’d love to see Maine become the 8^th inning guy and add him in with Bobby Parnell, Pedro Feliciano in the late innings and add OP as a long man  with Frankie Rodz closing then add in your filler guys.

Maybe it’s me but I think Jose Reyes’ thinking that he needs to get into a game the next couple of weeks for his own gratification is what’s wrong with this team.  It’s more how does this help ME than how does it help WE. If Reyes wants to test his leg then in the afternoon before the game run around the bases as fast as you can if you feel good great go home and you know what? Go play winter ball if you wish. If the leg is still a mess, the go get the god damn surgery you need and report to St. Lonesome in the spring. It’s time everyone in this fucking organization from the owner to the General Manager to the manager to the slow as shit counter person at the Shake Shack concession stand takes some fucking pride in be affiliated with the New York Mets. It’s not about “YOU” it’s about the M-E-T-S. It’s about players getting the proper medical and training help they need to stay on the field. It’s about competence in the front office and sticking to the edict of getting younger and athletic. Its coaches who have the ability to actually teach the game of baseball to the minor leaguers and having competent baseball people on staff to help young players at the big league level become better players.

Really, it’s time this organization got its head out of its ass and did something positive and productive for the team and its fan base. You know when a good chunk of the season ticket holder don’t renew for next year the Skill Sets will have a dumb ass look on their faces wondering why they are not renewing. I guess not everyone loves the Brooklyn Dodgers Freddy!

I wish I had some kind of good Mets news today besides Ryan Church signing for 1yr/$2.8 mil and Angel Pagan signing for $575K (how great a job is it being a fridge player on a ML team? Pagan was hurt nearly all season. When he was getting back in shape he got to play in Brooklyn, then his shoulder was still sore and he shut it down for the season for all that he gets a raise of a little less than $175K.) So now here is what the Mets outfield looks like:

Manny Ramirez (Ah, I’m just fucking with ya head!)

Really here are the outfielders:

Tatis, Murphy, Beltran, Church, Reed, Sullivan, Pagan.

If you take out Beltran you would have a real 1962 throw back kind of outfield. The lone true right handed hitter is Tatis with Beltran and Pagan going from both sides of the plate but Beltran hits all pitching but Pagan is a much better hitter  from where else but the left side of home plate. Hey it’s all right with the exception of Beltran they all work cheap. Oh and don’t forget The Teen-Aged Hitting Machine who hits (what else?) left handed.

  I’m at the point now where I want Omar to sign Ben Sheets and Randy Wolf and kick Oliver Perez to the curb. If by some outlandish way the Mets would over pay in years and money to OP it would have disaster written all over it. The longer OP holds out for a Mets contract the more pressure he puts on himself and the first game his gets his ass handed to him in the first inning and the $iti Field crowd boos him and calls him an over paid piece of shit it will be uglier than Amy Winehouse the morning after and all night bender.

My son got his high school acceptance letters this weekend and I’m proud to say he made all three of his high school choices and has been accepted in the Scholars Program at all three schools. His top two choices (St Peter’s Boys and Monsignor Farrell) have offered him full four year scholarships (yes, hard to believe he’s my kid but believe me he takes after his mom thank god) both schools are excellent schools and each one offers things the other doesn’t such as small class (St Peters) and broader base of extracurricular (Farrell) so the choice is a difficult one.

As I said my son is 100 % like his mother so he thinks things out and is very methodical about his decisions unlike his father who goes on impulse and does very little thinking so this decsion may go to the deadline which is January 31.

So my concern for which way Omar and the Mets will turn for pitching has been diverted while my own family negotiating is ongoing but I would like to find out if Scott Boras represents High School freshman?

Time for Omar and Co. to put a competitive deal on the table for OP with a deadline. Omar be a man and tell Boras shit or get off the pot with OP this ain’t Sandy Koufax we’re courting here.

At this point maybe bringing in any two Randy Wolf, John Garland, Ben Sheets or Freddie Garcia is as good if not better than paying a Kings ransom for OP or maybe I’m just a frustrated Mets fan that is freezing his ass off in 6 degree weather wishing it was April allready.

In the aftermath of the Lowe signing, I just hope the pressure of the impatient Mets fan base (yes, I know hello black pot it’s me black kettel) does not cause an over payment to Oliver Perez. At this point I am more intregied with a Ben Sheets/Randy Wolf daily double that giving OP anything more than 3yrs/33mil no 4^th year an no more that $11-$12 mil a year. 3/$36mil is my ceiling on OP.

I’m putting together a bunch of topics for tomorrow night’s Pro Baseball Central show as I will be flying solo as Joe McDonald has a previous engagement and speaking of Joe check out the new design at the mothership NYSPORTSDAILY that Joe has put together is bright and easier to navigate to all categories that make NY SPORTSDAILY your number 1 NY sports destination on the web.

As I say I will be in full Spalding Gray monologue mode tomorrow night so why not join me at 9PM EST on Blogtalkradio and call in at (646) 595-4462 where we can discuss the Lowe deal, OP, the offense and all things Mets on Pro Baseball Central.   

I’m having my living room torn apart and a massive redesign so between the noise, the clutter of furniture, debris and taking down Christmas decorations I’m sneaking in a post before the workers come back from lunch so just a quickie for today

Looks like the free agent market is starting to flow a bit with word that Omar and Scott Boras will sit down for lunch today and discuss Derek Lowe and Ollie P (you would think with all the fan pressure and media pressure even the Great Bloviator Francesa is on our side that the  Mets should find a way to get Manny Ramirez that the Skill Sets would let Omar even discuss it with Boras.) It looks like Omar wants to get his pitching in a row as he has offered deals to Tim Redding and is getting ready for Randy Wolf as the word is Mets pitchers and catchers are to report to St Lonesome on Feb 13.

A must read today is Curt Schillings 38 Pitches blog where he destroys Dan Shaughnessy of the Globe even using his “CHB” (Curly Haired Boyfriend) nickname. I hope Bob Ryan can give Shaughnessy some help getting the broom stick Schilling stuck up his ass removed

Remember tomorrow night at 9 EST Pro Baseball Central back on the air with the first show of ‘09

Greg Prince at Faith and Fear in Flushing has been checking out a sneak preview of the MLB Network which goes live Jan 1. From reading the site there looks to be some fine programming on the channel plus the WBC and there will be live games during the season and the lovely Hazel Mae in studio.

Story in NEWSDAY today about the unknown of the nation rescission and its effect on the Mets and Highlanders and are they rescission proof? Andrew Zimbalist the noted economist believes both teams are in a dangerous territory and I agree as what fuels both teams are the high rollers on Wall St who are either broke or ready to be indicated. The story also looks at the real baseball fans like us who work hard and like to spend our discretionary funds on our favorite baseball team but the Mets have to be very careful as not to price out the hard core workingman Mets fan as that and not the Madoff scam will be the ruinations of the franchise.

On this day in Mets history, remember 1986 World Series Game 6 parachutist Michael Sergio? He was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and fined $500 for his stunt. Try that today and I’m sure you’d get a stiffer sentence.

Metsblog has a breakdown on the stories of the pitchers who the Mets have interest in. From the looks of things Omar’s pitching wish list looks like this:

1. Derek Lowe
2. Ollie Perez
3. Randy Wolf (who needs to get over his 3yr/$30mil asking price)
4. Tim Redding
5. An assortment of non-tender, rehabbing stumblebums.

I’m on the Derek Lowe bandwagon with his sinking fastball and slider that fits the Mets need perfectly. He is durable and consistency and even at 36 years old I’d offer him 3 yrs/$50 mil with an option on a 4^th

I love this quote from Prince Jeffey about the cash on hand and whether the Skill Sets are broke:

["How is that possible? We have other money. Just because you guys don't know how much money we have, we have other money and other funds outside of (the Mets).

"It's called diversification."]

So according to Jeffey, losing a half billion ain’t shit as long as the new ballpark has turnstiles and we Mets fans line up for tickets the Skill Sets will still be farting through silk. Now the follow up question should have been “Do you have enough coin to improve your team”? Ok big mouth put up or shut up. I’ve come to grips that Manny will not be wearing a Mets uni but the big need is two starting pitchers so I expect to see a press conference soon to announce the signing of Derek Lowe. If it takes 4yr/60-65 mil then do it! Then get Randy Wolf for the 5^th starter spot and I swear I’ll lay off my ball breaking ways for at least a week. In fact I’ll volunteer to run a 50/50 raffle at all homes games to raise more capital.

Meet the challenge Jeffey, prove to me that you can walk the walk!!!!!!

Again tonight at 9PM PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL will be live so join us and call in (646) 595-4462