Exclusive Interview w/ Iconic Sports Writer Roger Kahn at 12:00 PM Sunday!

If you want to start out your Sunday off in just the right way, join us at 12:00 PM (4/6/08) on BASEBALL TALK Radio with your hosts Carl the Cabbie & Dugout Joe. Our guest will be iconic author and "The Dean of Sports Writers", Roger Kahn. He is the author of over 20 books including the baseball classic, "The Boys of Summer", a narrative about growing up next to Ebbets Field, working for the Herald Tribune in the Jackie Robinson Years, and a collection of interviews with many of the players long after they retired. If you want to discuss anything about Mr. Kahn or baseball, call in between 12:30-1:00 PM at 646-478-4570. We promise you'll get on!

If you want to listen live, or even if you wake up too late and miss the live interview, you can always hear it any time you like by clicking on the link below:

           Baseball Talk w/ Carl the Cabbie & Dugout

                                   (Click Above To Listen)

As managers trot out one prospect after another, and painstakingly analyze the good, the bad, and the ugly of their prospective teams, fans anxiously tap their collective feet, counting down the days until the regular season kicks off. The long and dreary days of spring training can be just as monotonous for fans as it is for veteran players practicing the "wheel" play or hitting the cut off man for the umpteenth time. So, whenever there's a chance to break up the toil with some fun, or manufactured excitement, players and fans alike get a little giddy.

Giddy is exactly how many baseball fans felt today when the Yankees squared off against the Pirates in what would normally be just another Grapefruit league game. What made this game different was a small lifelong Yankee fan wearing the # 60 in honor of his 60th birthday. Leading off for the Bronx Bombers was none other than comedian Billy Crystal, or the Yankees "Designated Hebrew" (DH) as he likes to call himself. It was a perfect moment of levity and anticipation that makes these ultra-long days of spring barely bearable for the baseball fan.

To his credit, Crystal actually got ahead in the count, 3-1, against Pirates lefty Paul Maholm. He even hit a foul chopper down the first base line. But then Maholm, making sure not to be the butt of jokes for the rest of spring training, bared down. He threw two 88 mph fastballs, that the 60 year old comic swung over, "strike three, yer out!". The fans rose to give him a standing ovation, while Yankees' third baseman Alex Rodriguez retrieved the ball as one more birthday gift, a gift this life-long Yankee fan will probably hold as dear as any of his many entertainment awards.

While this moment might not ever be as memorably odd as 3 ft. 7 in. Eddie Gaedel stepping in the batters  box for the St. Louis Browns; or Grandstand Manager's Day, where thousands of fans got to manage the St. Louis Browns for a game through raised placards; or the White Sox' infamous Disco Demolition Night, legendary major league baseball team owner Bill Veeck (the greatest baseball promoter of all-time) would have been proud.

Bill Veeck Would Have Needed Weight Watchers

On the opposite spectrum of odd promotions, the Pittsburgh Pirates have announced that they will designate certain seating sections this season, "All You Can Eat" sections. So, as Pirate fans gear up to endure a record tying 16th straight losing season, they can anesthetize themselves on all the hot dogs, hamburgers, nachos, or ice cream that they want. And if you're health conscious, don't worry, you can even chow down an unlimited amount of Salad. Ugh!

***Below are You Tube links for anyone who missed Billy Crystal's Yankee AB:

Billy Crystal Strikes Out!

Billy Crystal Strikes Out!---Take Two

Exclusive interview with Tampa Rays' GM and Executive VP of Baseball Operations, Andrew Friedman this Sunday (2/10) at 12:00 PM EST.

Entering his third season overseeing Tampa's baseball operations, Andrew Friedman has added to and helped speed up the improvement of the great talent base he inherited from former GM Chuck Lamar after the 2005 season.

Among some of Friedman's early successes have been the development of long time prospect B.J. Upton, the revitalization of the career of 2007 Most Improved Player Carlos Pena, the continued progress of ace left handed pitcher Scott Kazmir, and the low-cost addition of former Japanese player Akinori Iwamura.

One of Friedman's first moves was to hire a man who had never been a full-time manager in the majors to lead his incredibly young team. So far, so good as the young Rays' players have responded extremely well to Joe Maddon.

Two of Friedman's most important moves to date have been the drafting of left handed stud pitcher David Price in last year's draft and his recent blockbuster deal that sent the multi-talented outfielder Delmon Young to the Twins for top young right hander Matt Garza.

The Rays' system is loaded, the lineup should once again be the youngest in the AL, and the future looks bright for Friedman and his Tampa Bay Rays.

Join us Sunday (2/10) at 12:00 PM EST as we welcome Andrew Friedman as our guest on BASEBALL TALK w/ Carl the Cabbie & Dugout Joe. If you want to tune in live or listen at your own convenience, just click on the link below. If you want to talk to Andrew Friedman, the call in # is 646-478-4570. We'll open the lines around 12:30 PM.

                    Baseball Talk w/Carl the Cabbie & Dugout Joe
                                                     (Click above to listen)

Exclusive Interview w/ NY Post Writer Joel Sherman at 12:00 PM Sunday!

If you want to start out your Super Bowl Sunday the right way, join us at 12:00 PM (2/3/08) on BASEBALL TALK Radio with your hosts Carl the Cabbie & Dugout Joe. Our guest will be acclaimed author, journalist and the NY Post's baseball writer, Joel Sherman. Joel became the Post's New York Yankees' beat writer in 1989 and has been a columnist with the Post since 1996. He is the author of "Birth of a Dynasty", the ultimate retrospective on the 1996 Yankees and the beginning of the Yankees' latest great run that began in the mid-1990's. If you have a question for Joel or want to discuss anything baseball, call in between 12:30-1:00 PM at 646-478-4570. We promise you'll get on!

If you want to listen live, or even if you wake up too late and miss the live interview, you can always hear it any time you like by clicking on the link below:

           Baseball Talk w/ Carl the Cabbie & Dugout

                                      (Click Above To Listen)

The routine mantra of most GMs is, "never give a starting pitcher more than a five year deal". The thinking being that the proclivity for injury in that time span is just too high. But, if there's one exception to that rule, it is probably Johan Santana- the best pitcher in baseball.

SI.com and FoxSports.com have just confirmed a deal between the Twins and Mets for Johan Santana. The Mets now have a 72-hour window to come to terms with Santana on a contract extension. It's believed that the Mets would like to sign the left handed 28-year old pitcher to a five-year deal, while Santana is seeking a six or seven year deal. If you consider that Barry Zito, who is ten months older than Santana, received a seven year deal from the Giants last season, Santana is almost a lock to receive the same length of contract. It is also highly unlikely that the Mets would agree to this deal if they weren't willing to meet Santana's contract demands.

While the nuts and bolts are being fastened, Mets' fans should expect to pop the champagne cork by this Friday at the latest. While the names of the players going from the Mets to the Twins hasn't been confirmed, USA Today is reporting that the quartet heading to Minnesota will be, OF Carlos Gomez, SP Deolis Guerra, SP Kevin Mulvey, and SP Philip Humber. Jon Heyman of SI.com mentions that there has been talk of substituting swing pitcher Jorge Sosa for Humber, and there have been rumors that the the Mets' top prospect, OF Fernando Martinez could still replace Gomez. However,giving more clout to the USA Today report is the news that the Mets did call Gomez back to the states the other day even though his winter ball team was in the midst of the Caribbean World Series.

If the Mets indeed have dealt Guerra, Gomez, Mulvey, and Humber and we were to use the Baseball America's 2008 Top Prospects list as a barometer, then the Mets would be dealing their # 2 (Guerra), # 3 (Gomez), # 4 (Mulvey), and # 7 (Humber) prospects for the right to sign the best pitcher in baseball to a deal that should be the richest contract ever signed by a pitcher. The contract will probably end up looking something like 7-years/$150 Million.

Once the deal is finalized, the Mets will enter the 2008 season with a rotation that will be hard for the rest of the AL East to compete with:

# 1- Johan Santana

# 2- Pedro Martinez

# 3- John Maine

# 4- Oliver Perez

# 5- Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez

So, rejoice Mets' fans, it's almost time to celebrate. Get ready to don your # 57 jerseys, break out your "You Gotta Believe" signs, the Mets just got a WHOLE lot better, and Santana-Mania is about to hit the Big Apple!

                        GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO METS!

                                                                                                                                                            

 

                                                                                                                                Carl the Cabbie

How much is an all-star RHSP, a solid switch-hitting corner OF, and a gimpy CF who is on the better side of thirty worth in today's market. Well, if you consider wunderkind GM Billy Beane the Alan Greenspan of baseball, the answer is 11 prospects. To be more accurate, that would add up to 3 Gold Star prospects, 3 Blue Chip prospects, 3 Above Average prospects, and 2 Average prospects.

In the space of one month, Billy the bean counter has not only rebuilt the A's farm system with legitimate prospects, he has acquired one of the toughest things to acquire in baseball---lefthanded starting pitching. Of the 11 players acquired in these three deft deals, 4 of them are LHSP, 2 of which are Gold Star, top of the line prospects.

Breakdown of Trades

Dan Haren Deal

Twins GM Bill Smith might want to study this deal when negotiating the bounty he is seeking in return for Johan Santana. If we simply go by Baseball America's 2008 Top Prospects list, Beane  traded his ace pitcher for the Diamondbacks' # 1 (outfielder, Carlos Gonzalez),  #3 (left handed starting pitcher, Brett Anderson), # 7 (outfielder, Aaron Cunningham), and # 8 (first baseman, Chris Carter) prospects, plus two average left handed starting pitcher prospects (Greg Smith and Dana Eveland).

Another way to look at it is that Beane traded an all-star RHSP, who has three financially controllable years left on his contract before he hits free-agency, for what will likely be the A's starting RF in 2009 (Gonzalez); a LHSP (Anderson) that should be a member of the A's rotation by 2010; their possible fourth OF (Cunningham) by 2009; their possible 1B or DH (Carter) by 2010; and two LH pitchers (Smith and Eveland) who could compete in 2008 either as back-end starters or long relievers.

This trade by Beane is another feather in his cap when you consider that by the time the A's are good again, Haren will be a free-agent, a free-agent that the A's would never have been able to afford.

Nick Swisher Deal

This deal might end up even better for the A's than the Haren deal. While Swisher is a solid, young switch-hitting OF/1B with good power, what the A's received fromm the White Sox for him is astonishing. In a three-for-one steal, the A's received the White Sox' three top-prospects. Though this trade occurred before Baseball America's 2008 Top Prospect compilation, OF Ryan Sweeney (Baseball America's # 1 White Sox prospect in 2007), LHSP Gio Gonzalez, and RHSP Fautino De Los Santos almost assuredly would have topped the list.

Gio Gonzalez (the Sox' 2004 # 1 pick) might be ready to contribute as soon as 2008. After having been dealt to the Phillies for Jim Thome in 2005, he was traded back to the Sox for Freddy Garcia in 2007. Only 21 years of age, Gio dominated the Southern league last year in his second season at Double-A. If he continues to improve, he should join fellow southpaw Brett Anderson in the A's rotation by 2009.

While almost every scout who has seen them agrees that Gio Gonzalez and Fautino De Los Santos were the White Sox' top two pitching prospects, some feel De Los Santos could be even better than Gonzalez. De Los Santos dominated A-ball opponents in 2007 and though not as experienced as Gonzalez, many scouts feel he could arrive in the majors in a hurry, possibly as a member of the A's rotation in 2009.

The caveat to this trade could be OF Ryan Sweeney. The left handed hitting 23-year old could end up being a better overall player than Swisher, albeit less power. In 2007 Sweeney probably possessed the best throwing arm in the entire White Sox system, and is a far superior defensive outfielder to Swisher. In  his last two seasons in the minors, he finally started to show some power and because of his short compact swing, his .289 career minor league average should translate well in the majors. Sweeney has a good chance at being the A's fourth outfielder in 2008 and could contend for the starting CF or LF job in 2009.

Mark Kotsay Deal

At the rate Billy Beane is going, he could pass Ricky Henderson on the all-time "steals" list sometime soon. After letting Andruw Jones walk, the Braves needed a CF so badly that they decided to part with their 2005 # 1 pick, relief pitcher Joey Devine, for a 32-year old left fielder whose best days are behind him. Just to make sure the trade was lopsided enough, the Braves threw in A-ball prospect, RHP Jamie Richmond. Kotsay's bum back has been so bad the past two years that he's missed a total of 139 games in that span. Besides grabbing a young power throwing right handed reliever who could turn out to be the perfect set-up man to Houston Street, Beane saves a nice chunk of change, $3-million, for the 2008 season.

While Devine struggled with his confidence through a rough 2006, he was absolutely dazzling in 2007 in Double and Triple-A. Don't be surprised if the 24-year old Devine ends up as one of the best set-up men in the AL when 2008 is all said and done.

Final Overview

By the time 2010 or 2011 rolls around, when Dan Haren is looking for the highest bidder on the free-agent market, and Nick Swisher is spittng sunflower seeds on the bench as the White Sox DH, and Mark Kotsay is looking into his first coaching job, the A's should be ready to contend again.

With probable deals for Joe Blanton and Eric Chavez on the way, the A's farm system will be bulging with top prospects. In three years, if things work out for Beane and his scouts, the A's could be the giant once again looking down at the rest of the AL West. And we can all look back at the winter of 2007-2008, and say that was the year Billy the bean counter built a new beanstalk.

 

           Amount Billy The Bean Counter Saved A's For 2008

 

            Mark Kotsay-  $3-Million (A's pick up about $5-million of his salary)

            Dan Haren-     $4-Million

            Nick Swisher- $3.5-Million

            *Subtract  approximately $2-Million for the 11 prospects

 

             Approximate Total Savings For 2008- $8.5-Million

If you want to listen to an insightful round table discussion about the Mitchell Report with three baseball pundits, join BASEBALL TALK  w/Carl the Cabbie & Dugout Joe. Click below to listen:

Mitchell Report Round Table on "BASEBALL TALK" w/Carl The Cabbie & Dugout Joe

      

 

The Astros signed Kaz Matsui, the best 2B on the market. The Halos shocked the monkey when they landed good guy Tori Hunter, the best CF on the market. The Tigers never even let Pudge Rodrigueztest the waters, taking the best catcher off the market. The Red Sox gave the rest of the league about a week before re-signing Mike Lowell, the best 3B on the market. Are you getting the drift? 2008 is shaping into the weakest free agent market since the days when the likes of Steve Kemp and Ed Whitson ruled the roost.

It's so bad this year that even the few good relievers out there have almost completely disappeared. Heck, as a fan you know it's bad when you find yourself kicking the kitchen table because your team missed out on signing a 38-year old middle reliever who has barely pitched half a season over the last three years. That's exactly what I did when I heard the Tampa Rays gave Troy Percival a two year/$8 million deal.

Thankfully, for some teams they had the foresight to look to the Far East to bail them out of this bear market. While this latest class of Japanese ballplayers might not include a Daisuke Matsuzaka or Ichiro Suzuki, they do offer their new clubs solid resumes at a decent value. As for the teams that missed out on the Seven Samurai, it might be time to start drooling over Carlos Silva and calculating how many Silva dollars to throw his way. Here now is a look at the five Samurai that will be joining the majors in 2008.

Scouting The Seven Samurai

OF   Kosuke Fukudome (Cubs)- The 30-year old Fukudome is the top talent in this year's Japanese free agent class. While the Padres and White Sox were in on the bidding, the Cubs, desperate for a lefthanded bat, won out. They will reportedly give him $48-million over 4 years to be there new right fielder.

Many scouts project Fukudome to to put up similar production to Hideki Matsui, but with less power.  Over his nine year career for the Chunichi Dragons, Fukudome  had a .305 career average, a .397 OBP and a .543 SLG. In 2006 he was the Central League batting champ with a .351 average. While Fukudome averaged 21 home runs a season for Chunichi, Japanese hitters traditionally lose power when they come to the majors because of the bigger stadiums.

As long as Fukudome can handle the NL left handers he will be the Cubs' starting right fielder and probably bat sixth in the lineup. If he should struggle against southpaws, he'll probably end up in a platoon with right handed hitting Matt Murton.  There's always the possibility that he could play some center field also if youngster Felix Pie is still not ready, though he'd be a below average man in the middle.

Projection

.290 Avg.   18 HR    90 RBI

At His Best              At His Worst

JD Drew                    Luke Scott

SP   Hiroki Kuroda (Dodgers)- The Dodgers have always been ahead of the curve when it comes to scouting the Far East. When they signed Hideo Nomo to pitch for them in 1995, *Nomo became the first Japanese citizen to pitch in the major leagues. Nomo and his tornado windup were an instant success. Since then La La Palooza has been hit and miss in the forays into the Japanese market. In 2002 they signed left handed pitcher Kaz Ishii. He pitched three mediocre years for them before a brief stop at Shea on his way back to Japan. In 2006 the Dodgers hit the jackpot again though when they signed Japanese reliever Takashi Saito. Saito has turned out to be one of the best closers in the NL over the past two seasons.

In 2008 they will be trying to hit the lottery again. The right handed Kuroda has reportedly agreed to a contract that could be worth $30-million upwards for 3 years. Kuroda passed on similar deals from the Mariners and Diamondbacks for the right to pitch at pitcher friendly Chavez Ravine.

The 32-year old Kuroda has a 103-89 record in 11 seasons for the Hiroshima Carp of the Central League. Like Fukudome, his best season was in 2006 when he went 13-6 with a 1.85 ERA in a 189.1 IP. Fukudome's career ERA is 3.69. While Kuroda is not an overpowering pitcher like Dice-K, he possesses great control- 42 BB in 179.2 IP in 2007 and 21 BB in 189.1 IP in 2006. He throws in the low-90's and like most Japanese starters has at least four pitches in his arsenal. Along with his fastball, he relies on a forkball, a slider, and a screwball. Scouts project him as a middle of the rotation guy who should net production somewhere between a Brian Bannister and a Joe Blanton. The Dodgers plan on slotting him in as their fourth or fifth starter (depending on the health of Jason Schmidt).

Projection

14 Wins  3.80 ERA  190 IP

At His Best                At His Worst

Joe Blanton               Jeff Suppan      

 

RP    Masahide Kobayashi (Indians)- In this day and age of specialization, the bullpen has become more important than ever before. Almost every team seems to be on the look out for some relief pitching. The Angels were the first to discover the boon that Japanese relievers offered to MLB bullpens, when they signed Shigetoshi Hasegawa in 1997. But, it wasn't until the new millennium  that teams really started to dabble in the Japanese bullpen market. While there were some misses, the payoff from the hits was significant enough to continue the investment.The Mariners struck gold with dominating closer Kazuhiro Sasaki in 2000. The Padres hit pay dirt with Akinori Otsuka in 2004. When the Dodgers signed Takashi Saito in 2006, they got maybe the best closer in the NL. And then last season when everyone was guffawing over Dice-K and Kei Igawa, the Red Sox quietly brought in one of the best left handed relievers in baseball when they signed Hideki Okajima.

This year the benefactors of the Japanese bullpen market could very well be the Cleveland Indians. When the Tribe signed the right handed 33-year old closer of Bobby Valentine's Chiba Lotte Marines to a very reasonable 2-year/$6.25 million contract, it marked the first time the Indians have signed a Japanese ballplayer. As one of only three relievers to ever save at least 200 games (227) Kobayashi is one of the best closers in the history of Japanese baseball. He is the only Japanese pitcher to ever record seven straight seasons of at least 20 saves.

His arsenal is made up of three pitches. He throws two fastballs in the low 90's and likes to use his two-seamer to get right handers out. But, his best pitch, his out pitch, is a hard slider that he can throw for strikes with precision. In 2007 he had 27 saves and a 3.61 ERA, though his lifetime ERA is much lower (2.79). The Indians will most likely use him as a co-setup man with Rafael Betancourt. But, if Joe Borowski should struggle, don't be surprised if Kobayashi turns out to be the one putting the Ki-Bosh on lineups in the ninth inning.

Projection

6 Wins  2.60 ERA  1.25 WHIP

At His Best                At His Worst

Scott Shields             Luis Vizcaino

RP    Yasuhiko Yabuta (Mariners)- If the Indians don't turn out to be the greatest benefactor of the 2008 Japanese market, then the Royals might very well be. The right handed 34-year old Yabuta was Kobayashi's set-up man on Valentines's Chiba Lotte club. The Royals gave him a similar deal to Kobayashi. 2-years/$6 million. Some of you might remember him for his great run in the 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC). In a tie game against the U.S. he struck out Alex Rodriguez to end the seventh-inning. In the eighth he got Chipper Jones on a weak grounder before  striking out Johnny Damon and Derek Lee. Royals' new manager Trey Hillman will certainly remember Yabuta as his Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters regularly faced Chiba Lotte in the Japanese Pacific league.

Yabuta was Bobby Valentine's favorite setup man, and was named the Pacific League's best middle reliever after going 4-6 with 4 saves, a 2.73 ERA, and 1.18 WHIP in 62.2 IP. Since converting to the bullpen in 2004, he has a 2.80 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP in 250.2 IP.

In the tradition of many Japanese pitchers, Yabuta has a very deceptive delivery and throws a tank-load of pitches. He hits between 88-92 mph on the gun and also throws a change-up, a slider, and likes to use a split-fingered fastball on left handed hitters. He will most likely replace David Riske as the Royals main setup man.

Projection

5 Wins  2.75 ERA  1.20 WHIP

At His Best                At Worst

Chad Qualls              Matt Wise

RP    Kazuo Fukumori (Rangers)- At 31-years old, Fukumori is younger than both Kobayashi and Yabuta, but he's also the biggest question mark. He has been the closer for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Pacific League for the past three seasons. In 2005 when he saved 11 games with a 3.57 ERA, Fukumori's skill level seemed to be ratcheting upward. In 2006 he had his best season to date when he saved a career high 21 games while posting a dominant 2.17 ERA. But, last year Fukumori's suspect control did him in and he ended with a 4.75 ERA and only 17 saves before his season was curtailed by bone chips in his elbow.   

If latest reports are true, then the Rangers aren't gambling too much on Fukumori, offering him a 2-year deal worth around $3 million. Fukumori doesn't throw especially hard (88-90 mph range), but does have a funky delivery and a pretty good split-fingered fastball. He will slot in somewhere at the back-end of the Rangers' bullpen and possibly become their sixth or seventh inning guy.

Projection

4 Wins  4.25 ERA  1.40 WHIP

At His Best                At His Worst

Jason Frasor             Jason Grilli

 

OF    Kazuhiro Wada (Free Agent)- The biggest problem for Wada in his search for a MLB team is his age. Wada will be 36-years old next summer and it's highly doubtful anyone will sign him. But if they did, they would get a .317 career hitter who in 2005 won the first Pacific League batting title (.320) by a right handed hitter since 1993. Wada was a member of the Japanese team in the 2006 WBC and is a former teammate of Kaz Matsui. He has hit over 30 HR three times and hit .315 last season for the Seibu Lions. He would probably make a very good fourth outfielder/pinch-hitter for a year or two.

Projection

.300 Avg.  5 HR   30 RBI

At His Best             At His Worst

So Taguchi              Jason Lane

RP    Kazuhisa Ishii (Free Agent)- Remember him Dodger fans. Ishii pitched three season with LA before spending a year with the Mets on his way back to Japan. Overall, he turned out to be a fairly effective left handed starter albeit a wild one. In his four year MLB career he was 39-34 with 4.44 ERA, a 1.53 WHIP and almost as many walks as strikeouts.

Since 2006, Ishii has been pitching for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of the Central League. He's still Only 34-years old and coming off a 2007 campaign where he had his best BB/IP ratio ever (2.65 BB/9 IP). Okay, so he'll never be Greg Maddux, but with the dearth of good left handers in the majors, somebody might just want to give Ishii another chance.

Projection

12-10  4.50 ERA  160 IP

At His Best                At His Worst

Oliver Perez               Kaz Ishii         

If you want to be a star during your water cooler conversations at the office, a good way to remember all these new Japanese names is to tune in to the 11/25 installment of our radio show, BASEBALL TALK w/Carl the Cabbie & Dugout Joe. Enjoy the rhythmic rendition of the special Japanese free agent song, sung by none other than Carl the Cabbie. To listen click below and then press play on the 11/25 show.    

 

Carl the Cabbie's Japanese Free Agent Song 

And remember, BASEBALL TALK is on the air every Sunday at 12 Noon :

Baseball Talk w/Carl The Cabbie & Dugout Joe

* While Hideo Nomo was the first Japanese citizen to play in the major leagues (1995), pitcher Masanori Murakami was the first Japanese born player to play in the major leagues. Murakami, who shares the same birthday as Carl the Cabbie (May 6th) pitched for the San Francisco Giants from 1964-65.

 

 

Grab your coffee Met-lo-maniacs! Here is the quick & dirty guide to making the 2008 edition of the Mets better. So, sit back, relax, and enjoy my Cabbie three-course meal, specifically prepared for your Mets' 2008 dining pleasure.

Appetizer

Both Paul Lo Duca & Ramon Castro are free agents, so the Mets need a catcher. Sure the easy thing to do would be to re-sign both guys and maintain the status quo. This would be fine if there was nothing better out there. And if your looking for something better in the free agent pool you certainly won't find it, unless your fond of a guy who likes to punch out his pitchers (Michael Barrett), or you honestly think that Jorge Posada will jump ship (Not!). No, to find the pearl, sometimes you have to go diving.

My first Cabbie tip for Omar Minaya is for him to use some of those free weekend cell minutes he's been saving up to say "Hey" to Bill Bavasi in Seattle. Start with a little schmooze, "Hey Bill it's Omar, how's it going?... How is old Buzzie doing?... Yeah, I'm sure he misses Montreal as much as I do. Wish 'em my best huh!... Listen, I heard you might be looking for a young starter and maybe some fresh guns to help Putz out in the pen. And with the success you guys have had with that Johjima kid at catcher, I was wondering if you'd figured out what you were going to do with Jeff Clement yet?..." Yada, yada, yada. You get the drift.

So, let's assume Bill decides to play ball. The Mets get their catcher of the future, a young power hitting lefty. A guy who might only be average defensively, but has the potential to hit a good 30-35 home runs a year with a .280 average. Think the next Todd Hundley. The only question now is, what's the final fare? Hmmm, well considering the guy was the # 3 pick in the 2005 draft and he plays a high-need position, you're not gonna just get him for some sandwich meat. But, I'll bet a young set-up guy with plenty of arbitration eligible years left, plus a former 1st round starter could do it.

Mets get C Jeff Clement
Mariners get RP Aaron Heilman and SP Philip Humber

Entree

What do the Mets need more than anything else? How about a couple of RELIABLE relievers. Yes, yes.  But, let's be more specific. Well, it seems that the only good relievers we do have, pitch from the left side. And if we trade Heilman, we'll need at least two good right handed relievers. Some might say we even need three, but I'm an optimist. I'm going to count on either Duaner Sanchez or Ambiorix Burgos staying healthy next year. However, since I'm no longer an idealist, forget about Guillermo Mota or Joe Smith being anything more than extra-inning fodder.

What to do? Ah, I got it! Terry Ryan just left for the president's lounge. That means new GM Bill Smith is probably chomping at the bit to make his mark in Minnesota. Omar, call Bill immediately! He'll probably just be impressed that you know his number. Since he's been in their organization forever, I'm sure you've run into him at a GM meeting or a Rule 5 draft. So, start out like he's your long lost buddy, "Hey Billy boy how's it goin'? Congrats on the job, no one deserved it more than you! Hey listen, I know Pohlad's accountant must be driving you crazy. My hat goes off to you. Figuring out how to keep Johan and Morneau is hard enough, let alone dealing with Joe Nathan and maybe losing Tori this year. But, that's why I'm calling Bill. I think I can help." Yada, yada, yada.

Now, before you get ahead of yourselves Met-lo-maniacs, I'm not even dreaming of trying to trade for Johan Santana. Remember, I'm not an idealist anymore. No, we want Joe Nathan, the perfect right handed compliment to Billy Wagner in our pen. And I think I know just how to get him. When Tori Hunter officially leaves, the Twins will have a gaping hole in center. Perfect! We can offer them either Carlos Gomez or Fernando Martinez, two of the best CF prospects in the game. As the old adage goes, 'you can never have enough pitching', so we toss them a 6' 10"  2nd round lefty stud from last year's draft and WHALLA Nathan is a our new set-up man.

Mets get RP Joe Nathan
Twins get CF Carlos Gomez and SP Scott Moviel

Dessert

This one is simple. It's just about cost and risk. With Nathan aboard we have a dominant set-up guy, but we still need a solid seventh inning guy. Now, before you all jump on me about his injury history, I want to point out five reasons the Mets should sign RP Kerry Wood.

1. He's still only 30 years old
2. He's an incredibly dedicated and hard worker
3. He had a 3.33 ERA with 24 K's in 24 IP after his long awaited return
4. He was clocked at 98 mph by the end of the season
5. He would cost you less than what you pay Guillermo Mota

Let's recap. After this fine Cabbie dining delight, the Mets end up with Jeff Clement as their new catcher, and Joe Nathan and Kerry Wood as their new right handed set-up men. And all this can be ours Met-lo-maniacs for the modest fare of outfielder Carlos Gomez, and pitchers Aaron Heilman, Philip Humber, and Scott Moviel (2007 2nd round pick).

Now Go Chew On That!