Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Oye Como Va

Johan is a Met!

gigitty giggitty!

After all the talk about how the Red Sox or Yankees were going to get him.

After all the talk about how the Mets prospects weren't good enough to get the deal done.

After all the talk about how the Mets were going to go into next season having done nothing to improve.

Omar tells the Twins - "This is my deal. Take it or leave it", and Bill Smith says "OK."

The price? Humber (basically Major League Ready). Gomez (needs a year in AAA). Mulvey (one full pro season so far.) Guerra (huge upside, but still under 20 and in low A).

Now, before we all fret about the prospects, remember, the Mets have a 1st rounder and 2 sandwich picks (thank you Atlanta!) in the draft this year, so that will help (assuming Omar is really going to ignore the slotting system).

The bottom line is this. Humber isn't Santana. Mulvey is probably a back end guy. Guerra has a lot of upside, but is what, 4 or 5 years away? As for Gomez, I wasn't overly impressed last year. I know he was rushed, but he is going to need a lot of seasoning.

Omar was able to hold onto the jewel, Fernando Martinez. He is probably at least a year awy, if not two. Fine, we can sign a stop gap next offseason if need be. His upside is a lot higher than Gomez.

The time for complaining about this offseason is done. The Mets, with one trade have dramatically altered the landscape of the NL East. The team is stronger. Look at this rotation

Santana
Martinez
Maine
Perez
Hernandez

This gives Pelfrey time in AAA to work on being consistent. Then he can take over for Hernandez when he needs a rest.

Time to rejoice all. Enjoy it. Wilpon better open the wallet. You have a network, and a new ballpark opening in 2009.

And the best pitcher in baseball. Think of the jersey sales.

Oh baby!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

8 Random Facts about Ed...

is 8 more than you really wanted to know. You can blame Toasty Joe for this pain.

1. Ed's "dream car" is a 1968 Plymouth Barracuda.

2. When younger, Ed disliked chinese food. Now, he eats it way too often.

3. Ed is happy Jackie Hyland is back doing the news in NY. He was sad when she left the CW11.

4. Ed is able to quote lines from way too many bad movies.

5. Ed has never seen Field of Dreams start to finish in one sitting.

6. Ed finally read Moneyball this past summer. (bonus fact - Ed thinks Billy Beane comes across as an arrogant jerk).

7. Ed thinks Mike Milbury knows how to draft talent. It's TRADING that gets him into trouble.

8. Ed's first time on an airplane was on his honeymoon. In Greece.

God, I hate these things.

Anyhow, one week left until the Super Bowl. One more week of everyone trying to figure out if Brady is really hurt. One more week of Ed laughing at how much energy is being expended on that wild goose chase. If Brady did sprain his ankle, the best thing would be this week off. Let's not get excited until say next Friday if he isn't practicing.

Knowing that asshole Belichicken, it could all be a ploy anyway.

I the pundits would just up and admit they don't have a fracking clue where Santana is going or what the offers are. The same stories every week. Cripes, I felt like what the Post and Journal News had today was nearly word for word the same. Yes, we all know the Mets could use Santana. Yes, we know the Yanks and Sox have good deals offered. Yes, we know the Twins would like to deal him before Spring Training. Guess what, we also know that the writers and talking heads are just spewing the same crap day after day, just changing the words around a bit. Enough. Omar made his offer, it is up to the Twins to piss or get off the pot.

Good Luck tonight to Ricky DiPietro. Show everyone Milbury was right drafting you #1 overall.

Monday, January 21, 2008

Has it Been That Long?

I didn't realize it had been over a month since I last bored anyone. I have been inundated with emails (OK, 1 email) from readers wondering where I've been. They (he) wants to read what I think of the various goings on. So, he goes.

FIrst, I've started a new job, so time will be limited in terms of posting, for a while. Plus, there isn't a whole lot going on these days anyway (the hot stove is at a cool place right now). I'm not one of those guys who bitches after every guy signs elsewhere. I trust Omar to make smart decisions. He re-signed Heilman for $1.2 million. Good deal. Aaron is one of the top set-up guys in the game. Plus, you never know, we may need him to start. OK, that's a reach.

Now, we are left with Church, Chavez, Perez and a couple of others to sign before arbitration. Signing Ollie to a 2 or 3 year deal is a must. I knwo Boras is his agent, but Ollie ain't got a lot to back himself up right now. He is going to need at least 2 more years of solid pitching to get PAID. et 'er done Omar. The others shouldn't be too hard, and the distance in dollars isn't that great.

Enough baseball for now. Congratulations to the New York Giants on reaching the Super Bowl. Can they win? Who knows. They've got as good a chance as anyone. The Pats are good, but they can be had. If the Chargers were healthy, they could have caused Tom and his mates a bit more trouble. So long as the Giants can get healthy, and not take stupid penalties (SAM MADISON!), they could shock the Pats. So long as it doesn't come down to a field goal try that is (am I the only Jets fan who had visions of Doug Brien yesterday?) It would be especially sweet for the Pats season to end in a Super Bowl loss. The benefit to me is that the wife wants to watch the game, so I shall be having a few friends over for some wings, chili and other fine foodstuffs. And beer. Lots of beer.

On the ice, the Islanders have been up and down. As it stands, they are in the top 8. As expected, scoring goals has been an issue. The goals for is among the bottom of the league. In net, Rick DiPietro has been fantastic. He was named as the back-up for the All-Star game. Do others have better stats? Sure, but no other goalie is as relyed upon as Ricky. Remember, this team is going to score an average of 2.5 goals a night. They need a goalie who is going to keep the opposition below that. RIcky has done that for the most part. He is making that 15 year contract look like a smart deal by Wang. He has won 5 times against the Devils this yea, and has won 3 against the Rangers, even the two losses were close. He is going to be a very good goalie for a very long time. And soon, we will see Kyle Okposo on the wing. I can't wait for that.

That's all for today.

Next time, my thoughts on Santana. Should he have recorded "Smooth" with Rob Thomas or not.