10:58am: Competing GMs say the Mets' Omar Minaya is "itching'' to do a deal. And it's no wonder with the Yankees stealing the show across town and the competing Marlins close to possibly adding superstar Manny Ramirez. However, a lot of Mets people want to hold onto their top prospects, including outfielder Fernando Martinez, and pitchers Jon Niese, Eddie Kunz and Robert Parnell. Seattle requested "two premium prospects'' for outfielder Raul Ibanez, and Mets people don't like that idea. Minaya is spending more time on the relief situation, which is looking iffy lately, especially with Duaner Sanchez's radar gun readings down.
This will make Angst/Joey Walnuts happy, but it makes me nervous. Minaya strikes me as the type of general manager who will make a trade just for the sake of doing so, which almost never works out well. Oh, and Seattle is crazy if they think anyone is trading two premium prospects for Raul Ibanez. If the Mariners wanted to trade Ibanez for Eddie Kunz and Bobby Parnell, I would be fine with that, since I have no faith whatsoever in those guys. They aren't premium rospects and the idea that Kunz and Parnell are anything other than cannon fodder at the major league level is pie in the sky dreaming.
9 am: One bullpen option the Mets have kicked around is to try to pry disappointing starter Ian Snell from Pittsburgh with the idea of employing him as a reliever for the remainder of the year. Snell could then be used in the rotation next year when the Mets may need starters. Pedro Martinez likely won't be back and Oliver Perez could leave as a free agent. The Mets are continuing to make left-hander Jon Niese unavailable because they'd like to see him make the rotation next year.
I like that idea a lot. Ian Snell has talent and is a tough customer who hates losing. He could be rejuvenated playing for a franchise that actually gives a damn about winning. If the Pirates were dumb enough to take a C prospect for Snell - and God knows the last 15 years have proven that they are - the Mets would have to jump all over that.UPDATE: 1:49 pm: The Mets are talking to the Nationals about a deal for reliever Luis Ayala, SI.com has learned. Mets GM Omar Minaya badly wants a reliever and wouldn't mind making a deal. This could be it.
Minaya has a good working relationship with Jim Bowden, so this wouldn't be surprising. Luis Ayala isn't very good; even when he's going well he gives up more than a hit per inning and has a low strikeout rate. He is strictly bullpen filler, so hopefully Minaya won't offer anything more than a marginal prospect for his services.
UPDATE: No deals done. I wouldn't be surprised if the Mets continue to pursue Ayala; I don't imagine he'll have much trouble passing through waivers.
6 comments:
Better keep those Kunz comments to yourself, the boys at FU think he's better than Jesus, and let me tell you Jesus can throw gas!
Snell is an interesting idea. In fact at this point the only deal I would do of all of them offered. He does have great stuff, although if he hates losing he has to stop walking folks and getting home runs hit off of him, that's why he isn't a Riff.
I have a rule of thumb that would extend to Ayala. If you haven't made into a six team strat league with 15 player minor league systems, you can't be good. I think I had him before I left for FLA., and that was the last time he made it in.
The boys at FU tend to overlook the inconvenient fact that Kunz can't get out lefties. I hope the Snell thing doesn't dry up completely now.
To be fair to Kunz,he has a very high strikeout rate overall and induces a ridiculous amount of grounders. Obviously, he's a reliever, which practically makes him overrated in itself.
Against lefties, his peripherals are pretty bad, but he still manages to get grounders. I don't much about his stuff- sounds like he lacks a good changeup, but what do I know? Hopefully, he'll adjust to them as Joe Smith has. It's interesting; there seems to be a lot of hitters out there, particularly lefties, that seem to adjust to hitting pitchers from the same side. Wonder if the same goes for pitchers?
Its fitting Brian Giles will be here next week. Hope he has 7 hits and 3 homers that sends this team on a downward spiral that makes last September look like a Flynn Family Picnic. Then your malopropism of "Angst" will really fit the bill.I believe Steve Phillips who talked yesterday about the importance of the front office backing their team by adding on at the trade deadline, giving everyone in the room a psychological edge and confidence boost. Yanks lose their starting catcher and go out a replace him with a HOFer. We lose 2/3 of our outfield and Minaya does NOTHING. We'll see just how bad of a day Omar had in the upcoming months. But 14 hours after the fact, Angst aint happy.
And I don't wanna hear that crap about the minors being barren or him panicing at the last moment and making a set-the-franchise-back-5 years move. Its his job to do something smart with what he gotto convince some other GM his prospects are better than they really are. Prospects moved for Griffy and Manny are headscratchers and he couldn't even get my man Giles?
He did something smart, Joe, he resisted the idea of trading anything more than a stick of gum for Luis Ayala.
The fact is this, if our prospects were any good than we would have Nady, plain and simple, Omar was trying to buy like a motherfucker, but who wants a dollar when you can get a Euro instead.
Oh, I completly agree with Ayala, but even Jack agrees that Giles in the 2 spot would have fit like a glove. Adress that. He and I went over the rosters a month ago and pinpointed Giles as the most trade worthy option. In my mind, its Minaya's job to convince Towers that its better to have 2 or 3 of our mid level warm arm prospects than a 38 years old on team 25 games under. Does Giles make or break the Pods next year? Is he that crucial to the '09 plans? Why was it the dodgers and not the Mets in on the 3 way for Manny? How does Griffy go to the ChiSox for relativly marginal talent? Alou is done and Church is a question mark as big a Carlos Baerga's head. Fact is Theo was under orders to rid the team of Manny and Omar decieded to protect his 3 tradable commodities. Carpe Diam. The Phils did nothing, we could have and should have made the big move. Are we tryin to win or are we tryin to stay competative for the next 5 years?
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