What about leftfield?
With this offseason dominated by the closer debate, as well as help for the rotation, there remains the not-so-small matter of what the Mets plan to do about their outfield.
Whether or not Ryan Church is happy in New York seems to be of little consequence because I can't see him being traded at this point. What could the Mets possibly get in return? There's no guarantee Church will ever fully recover from the two concussions he suffered last season, and that is likely to scare other teams away -- or at least severely damage his trade value. The Mets must simply cross their fingers, hope for the best and then maybe make a deal midway through the season if he still has trouble.
The Mets are set in centerfield, obviously, with Carlos Beltran (and his full no-trade clause) signed through 2011. But that brings us back to left, where the Mets apparently have Fernando Tatis and Daniel Murphy ready to platoon again. Depending on what GM Omar Minaya has to sacrifice in order to improve his pitching staff -- in dollars and prospects -- he may choose to go the platoon route again. Don't laugh. If Tatis doesn't dislocate his shoulder on that botched diving attempt in DC, the Mets probably hold on to make the playoffs last year.
But if Minaya does have money left after spending $45-$50 million on a closer and perhaps another $60-$75 million on a starting pitcher, where does he go for another outfielder? The Mets love Raul Ibanez -- as do about a dozen other clubs. But he was offered arbitration by the Mariners and would cost them an additional two draft picks.
Knowing that, as my colleague Ken Davidoff pointed out, would the Mets rather try for someone like Bobby Abreu or Adam Dunn, two players who were not offered arbitration? It's an interesting conundrum. More and more these days, teams are reluctant to part with draft picks, and especially the Mets, who need to upgrade their farm system. By comparison, money is not such a big deal.
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Comments (4)
For a variety of reasons, it looks more and more like the 5 outfielders on the roster in '09 will be: Beltran, Church, Murphy, Tatis and Chavez (With Fernando Martinez probably a call up if an injury occurs).
There may be many outfield bats available but this team was tied for 2nd in the NL in runs scored last year. Offense shouldnt be a priority unless other initiatives don't work out.
Pitching is where all money should be spent and trades (Heilman and others) made.
Sign K-rod or Fuentes (K-rod hopefully) and either bring back Ollie or bring in Lowe or Penny. If available-possible trade Heilman+ to get Huston Street to be our main setup guy.
"If Tatis doesn't dislocate his shoulder on that botched diving attempt in DC, the Mets probably hold on to make the playoffs last year."
Oh, that's a shame. And you had been doing so well.
Ibanez would cost one pick, not two. Moreover, if the Mets were to sign a closer and starter, both of whom cost draft picks, Ibanez would only cost a third-rounder, so the marginal cost is reduced.
That said, Dunn is more valuable than Ibanez *and* would not cost a pick, so it would probably be better to make a play for him.
Omar will not sign anyone with the last name "Dunn." Omar throws these names around every year to hide his bigotry But will sign his country men. It happens every year meantime the diverse teams in the league, Philly-brewers-Dodgers i can go on, win with a group of baseball players regardless of their heritage. Let's see if he hires a black man to a starting position this year?