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Mets Want Manny or Sammy

According to Newsday, the Mets are having internal discussions about acquiring either World Series MVP Manny Ramirez or fading superstar Sammy Sosa. Both would cost around $20 million per year, with Manny having four years left and Sammy, after a trade, having two guaranteed years plus a buyout. This is apparently an example of new GM Omar Minaya "thinking outside the box".

This has to be a joke. If the Mets are willing to pay upwards of $20 million per season for a player, why would they settle for Sammy Sosa? Manny will be 33 next May, and is still one of the best players in the game, but is useless in the field (save that throw home in Game 3 of the Series). Why would they even comprehend spending that kind of money on a player with known deficiencies when they could have this guy? He's not perfect: his average could be higher, and I hear he ties his shoes funny.

Here's another bit of bad news/good news from the article:

In yet another example of outside-the-box thinking, the Mets are for the first time willing to entertain offers for prized young shortstop Jose Reyes. There has been speculation regarding a Reyes-for-Alfonso Soriano deal, but the Mets won't consider that because Soriano will make $8 million in arbitration.

Here's my own attempt at outside the box thinking: why don't the Mets hold on to the players that actually don't suck and work at getting rid of those that do, big time. Is Sammy Sosa really worth taking back even if it means unloading Cliff Floyd?

Talk amongst yourselves. I need some aspirin.

Cablevision Rebuffed

According to Mets.com, Cablevision's request to prevent the Mets from moving forward with their new television network has been denied.

Cablevision's request for a temporary restraining order against the Mets' plans to grant their telecast rights for 2006 and future seasons to the new regional sports network -- formed recently by Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, LLC, Time Warner Cable and Comcast Corporation -- was denied by Justice Helen E. Freedman at a hearing held in New York State Supreme Court.

This may not be the end of Cablevision's petty grandstanding, but these events don't bode well for those of you out there with Cablevision who are expecting to see Mets games in 2006.

Wally Out. Willie In?

According to ESPN.com, Wally Backman has declined to interview for the Mets managerial opening after initially agreeing to. He is rumored to be a frontrunner for the Diamondbacks position, along with ex-Mariners' skipper Bob Melvin. And on it goes...

Curse This, Biotch!

Congratulations to the Boston Red Sox!

Backman Interview Official

As mentioned first by Matt in the comments, the New York Times is reporting that Wally Backman will indeed interview sometime within the next week. The Times mentions the knocks against Backman:

There are different concerns about Backman, known for his spunk and spirit as a player and manager. This year, Backman was ejected six times and suspended 10 days for bumping an umpire. Last year, the Chicago White Sox voted Backman their Class AA manager of the year, but they fired him for reportedly rooting against the major league team so Manager Jerry Manuel would be dismissed.

Fire and heart are important qualities in a manager, particularly in this city. That last one is troubling, though the validity of the claim is certainly open to debate.

Other Articles:

Mets.com
Newsday

In other news, ESPN.com is reporting that the Phillies will request permission from the Cardinals to interview Jim Leyland for their vacant managerial position. Leyland is rumored to be on the Mets short (but growing) list of candidates, so it remains to be seen if the Mets will ask for permission as well, once the World Series is over.

Stay tuned.

Backman to Interview

According to the Daily News, two new candidates have emerged as possible suitors for the Mets' vacant managerial position: Jim Leyland and one Walter Wayne Backman (aka Wally).

It appears that both would be longshots, however.

Jim Riggleman?

In case you haven't heard, Mets GM Omar Minaya announced that Dodgers' Bench Coach Jim Riggleman will interview for the Mets' vacant managerial position this coming Wednesday. Jim Rigglewho, you ask?

Riggleman managed for parts of three seasons with the Padres and five seasons with the Cubs in the 90's. How did he do? Well, his teams, for the most part, were not very good. His managerial record is 486-598, or 112 games under .500.

Unforunately, our methods for evaluating managers are far less sophisticated and ubiquitous as those we use to evaluate players. Bill James, in The Bill James Guide To Baseball Managers, notes:

People like to talk about baseball managers, about Tony LaRussa and Bobby Cox and Joe Torre. The talk focuses almost entirely on who is a good manager and who is a lousy manager. The average fan has a one-dimensional image of a manager: He's good, or he's bad. If he's real good, he's a genius. If he's real bad, he's an idiot.

When the discussion turns to why a manger is good or why he is bad, you realize how little solid information is being used. On a talk show, 97% of all explanations as to why the local manager is an idiot will begin with the words "Well, one time he..."

Some believe that comparing a team's Pythagorean record to its actual record is a good measure of a manager's effectiveness. The thinking is that a good manager will be able to "get more" out of his players than they would otherwise be able to produce under an average or poor manager. For better or worse, here are how Riggleman's teams fared in this regard.

JIM RIGGLEMAN'S MANAGING CAREER

              RS   RA    W-L    PW-L   Diff
1992 Padres    35   40   4-8     5-7    -1
1993 Padres   679  772  61-101  72-90  -11
1994 Padres   479  531  47-70   53-64   -6
1995 Cubs     693  671  73-71   74-70   -1
1996 Cubs     772  771  76-86   81-81   -5
1997 Cubs     687  759  68-94   74-88   -6
1998 Cubs     831  792  90-73   85-78   +5
1999 Cubs     747  920  67-95   66-96   +1


For those who don't know, Pythagorean winning percentage is calculated thusly:

RS²

Eric | 01:51 AM EST | TrackBack: 0
Category: Mets Rumors

A Nation Victorious

Thoughts:

1) I am very, very happy right now.
2) Willie Randolph has plenty of time to arrange an interview with the Mets, now. Rumor has it that the Mets are already very high on him, and all it will take is a solid interview to land him the job.
3) With the exception of bringing in Petey last night, Terry Franco did an ungodly job of cobbling together outstanding relief pitching in these past four games.

Links:

1) Check out Bill Simmons' articles from today and yesterday. In fact, go read everything he's ever written.
2) Mike and BigK at East Coast Agony had a running commentary on yesterday's events. Be sure to check out BigK's entries from each of the previous games of the series, they're funny as hell.
3) Alex Belth at Bronx Banter has the short side post-mortem, and is classy as always.

Questions:

1) Does this virtually assure that the Yankees will sign Carlos Beltran and push their payroll into the $230 million range?
2) Does this horrendous Yankee collapse and miraculous Red Sox comeback erase the horror of 2003, 1999, and 1978?
3) Could Rick Peterson fix Derek Lowe?

Mets On The Move

According to Mets.com, the Mets have reached an agreement in principle with Time Warner Cable and Comcast to launch a new regional sports network in 2006 that will be the exclusive cable home of the New York Mets.

The Mets will constitute the bulk of the programming, as the network will obtain the rights to telecast up to 125 regular-season games in addition to preseason games and other Mets-related news and features. The network is expected to carry all Mets home games and select away games in high-definition TV (HDTV), as well as video-on-demand content. Additional professional and amateur sporting events will be carried on the network. An announcement as to what those events will be is expected at a later date.

It'll be nice to have a place to watch all of the Spring Training games, better pre-game and post-game coverage, and the Butch Huskey Metsography we've all been clamoring for.

Free IPODs

If anyone is interested in helping me get a free iPOD, please drop me a line. If you sign up at FreeIPODs.com and complete an offer, I will send you a free copy of Baseball Prospectus 2001 ($21.95 at Amazon).

Chuck 'n' Duck

Andy Hintz has a new Mets blog called Chuck 'n' Duck. From the looks of his first few entries, it'll be a good one. Hopefully his eternal optimism will get us through the offseason.

Slammin' Sammy at Shea

With rumors a'flyin', two sources today indicate that Sammy Sosa most likely will not be coming to the Mets via a trade this offseason. The Post and Newsday both consider this move a longshot, as Mark Hale of the Post explains:

Why? Sosa is nearly 36 years old, slumped to .253 with 35 homers and 80 RBIs this year and is due approximately $35 million over the next two seasons (if Sosa gets traded, his 2006 option automatically gets picked up).

[...]

Also, Sosa may be wearing out his welcome in Chicago. On Sunday, he left Wrigley Field before the Cubs even played their final game of the year, and yesterday he lashed out at his manager, saying, "I'm tired of being blamed by Dusty Baker for all the failures of this club."

So, $35 million for the next two years of Sammy Sosa. He will be 36 and 37 in those years, but what if the Cubbies took back Cliff Floyd and his hobbily legs and $13 million over the next two years? That makes Sammy's contract a net $22 million over two years. What if Omar Minaya could also convince them that a crafy lefty setup man like Mike Stanton is exactly what they need to get back to the playoffs? That would be another $4 million off the books. Just throwing it out there. Thoughts?

The Rumor Mill

Jeremy Heit mentioned it the other day, but Peter Gammons finally put it in print today:

The Mets won't have fun, fun, fun until Daddy takes the Lear Jet away. Omar Minaya is a very good evaluator, but Junior Wilpon made trades and blamed Jim Duquette. Between Junior and their New York PR guy, the Mets provide us all with a ton of laughs. Right now I'd bet on Jose Reyes going to Texas for Alfonso Soriano, to play right, with Omar-favorite Orlando Cabrera signing with them for $32 million and four years.

I'm not sure which suggestion is the most absurd:

a) Trading Jose Reyes for Alfonso Soriano
b) Having Soriano play right field
c) Paying Orlando Cabrera $8 million a year for four years

Cabrera has a .725 career OPS and a .316 career OBP. He'll be 30 in a month. I sincerely hope Gammons is joking.