Posts Tagged ‘Jason Bay’

Will this current core be the future core? (PHOTO BY ICON/SMI)

In the last part of the series on leadership in the New York Mets club house, we will look at several player options. Those options include Carlos Beltran, Jason Bay, Jeff Francoeur, Rod Barajas, Ike Davis and Jose Reyes. We have reviewed Johan Santana, David Wright and Francisco Rodriguez.

Now, moving on, let’s further examine the rest of that list, starting with Carlos Beltran. Beltran was brought in to be the playoff-tested veteran. He was supposed to bring experience and leadership to a young core to push them over the top. He has brought the experience, but he never has brought that leadership the team sought.

Too often, his mouth has written checks that his abilities couldn’t cash. That has gotten his reputation into poor standing in both the league and the club house. Then, his health became an overwhelming issue. It still is. A leader, as previously stated, must be both on the field and produce.
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Takahashi came to the rescue yet again

BY AARON YORKE
STACHE WRITER

The Mets employed Zombieland’s rule #2 today versus Los Angeles. Johan Santana and the ensemble shut down the Dodgers in the afternoon with a 4-0 shutout, and then the orange and blue crew finished the job at night with a 10-5 thumping. That means it’s now six in a row for the Mets. It’s safe to say things have been going swimmingly for the past week.

In the opener, Johan Santana continued the theme of awesome Mets pitching by getting out of an early jam and then continuing to have another really good outing. Super Johan didn’t make things look exceedingly easy, but as we learned from Big Pelf on Sunday, not all shutouts are pretty. Johan struggled through six innings, throwing 115 pitches in the process. All three of his walks came in the second inning, but he got out of it by striking out his counterpart Hiroki Kuroda with the bases loaded. In the third, Reed Johnson blasted a triple to center with only one out, but Johan escaped trouble again with an Andre Ethier line out and a Matt Kemp ground out.
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A shaky Marlins bullpen couldn't totally ruin Nolasco's start

The Mets lost a doozy to the Marlins tonight. Florida jumped out to a 6-1 advantage led by homers from Jorge Cantu, Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla. It looked like the Mets would fade away thanks to a strong performance from Ricky Nolasco, but the Marlins’ bullpen helped to make things interesting. The Mets hit just three singles in the 7th and 8th innings combined but still crossed the plate 5 times because Florida pitchers Renyel Pinto, Jose Veras and Leo Nunez couldn’t keep the ball in the strike zone. With the game tied in the 10th, Hisanori Takahashi let up a Ronny Paulino single with Wes Helms on second base. While Helms chugged around towards the plate, Gary Matthews threw home from center field. Rod Barajas fielded the throw cleanly, but his diving tag of Helms was late by the narrowest of margins and the Mets couldn’t recover against Tim Wood in the 9th.

What we learned from tonight after the jump…
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Jason Bay will learn what the Mets are like soon enough

BY AARON YORKE
STACHE WRITER

During the will-they-won’t-they Bay drama that was this winter, a lot of pessimistic Mets fans were worried that the Mets couldn’t land the all-star left fielder because of the miserable state of the organization. After signing on for four years and $66 million, we’re finally getting a hint as to why Bay chose the Mets. Either he didn’t have any other offers, or he just didn’t know what he was getting himself into.

Bay told the New York Post about his perception of the Mets. “I obviously knew their performance record-wise last year wasn’t what people wanted, and I also understood there was a lot of injuries,” he said, “But I couldn’t really understand where all the animosity was coming from given the fact you look at the team … that’s a pretty good team.”

Ah, how adorable. In stating why he thinks there shouldn’t be any animosity towards the Mets, poor Jason Bay ironically hits the nail on the head as to why people are so miserable about the team. I guess Bay never thought that the fact the Mets are talented is what gets their fans so riled up.
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If the Mets don't want 5 years of Bay, they shouldn't feel pressured to offer it

BY AARON YORKE
STACHE WRITER

I’m getting a little annoyed at the panic-stricken nature of Mets fans this winter. For every day that passes without a major announcement and for every R.A. Dickey-type signing, the fanbase seems to grow more desperate for a huge contract. Even Mike Francesa, perhaps taking a cue from his callers, has said the Mets need to make a move just for the sake of making a splash. Ugh… give me a break.

One day it’s “Oh no! Omar’s bidding against himself again!” The next, it’s “Bay doesn’t want to play for us!” I’d love for someone to show me a player who actually wanted to play for the Mets… before they offered him the top contract offer. Jason Marquis doesn’t count. He played WAY over his head (and his K/BB ratio) last season and is not worth 2 years for $15 million. Of course, if you compare that to Ollie’s contract, the Nats got a GREAT deal, but let’s move on.

The point is, the Mets play in the same town as baseball’s most popular team, so anyone who specifically wants to play in New York is automatically going to prefer the Bronx. Tradition, championships, whatever; I don’t really need to get into why. Yet somehow the Mets landed Carlos Beltran after the 2004 season and 4 straight years of no playoffs. Was Beltran a fan of the Mets organization or a fan of 7 years and $119 million? I can’t say I know for sure, but that is a heck of a lot of money…
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Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the most complete player of all?

BY AARON YORKE
STACHE WRITER

It’s not often that competing sports agents get into a media-fueled brawl, but that’s what we might have on our hands after the agents of Jason Bay and Matt Holliday traded claims of having the best player on the market.

According to Jon Heyman, it started when Joe Urbon, who represents Bay, called his client “the most complete player on the market.” This, of course, startled Scott Boras, who is notorious for always having the most complete player on the market. He claims that his client, Matt Holliday is “the only young complete free agent player available.”
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Matt Holliday would be a nice fit in Queens. (PHOTO BY ICON SMI)

BY MICHAEL GANCI
EDITOR

Two players that are going to be near the top of the Mets’ wish list this off season are Jason Bay and Matt Holliday. The Mets have a gaping hole in left field and a need for power, and one of these guys would certainly fill the void perfectly. We have seen reports that would suggest that the Mets prefer Holliday, and his performance with St. Louis (other than the big error) has done nothing to hurt his value.

Recently, we have seen both of these players voice their desire to remain where they are currently employed. Holliday has said that he greatly enjoys playing with Albert Pujols, and Pujols feels the same way about him. Jason Bay has also played the wounded dog angle. He seems nervous about testing the free agent market for the first time, and he has voiced a willingness to remain in Boston.

I think both of these guys are jockeying for position, and they are doing exactly what their agents are telling them to do. They are gaining leverage with the teams that they aren’t currently on. Smart move guys.
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BY MICHAEL GANCI
EDITOR

Can you picture the scenario? The season is about half way gone by. The Mets are 45-36. They trail the Phillies by two games in the NL East. The Athletics have already proven that they are tanking in the AL West, and they have no shot. They have made it clearly known that Matt Holliday is available. The Mets need that power right handed bat. Could he potentially end up in Queens? The scenario, although unlikely, could happen.

Holliday is on a contract year, which makes me a bit weary of the situation. I have never been a big advocate for acquiring a player on a contract year just for one run for the World Series. Did you see what happened last year when the Angels acquired Mark Teixeira? They didn’t go deep into the playoffs, and he played them like a flute in free agency before flocking over to the Bronx on the monstrous contract that we all expected him to get. I do not want the Mets to be had like that.

Also, you would expect the Athletics to have a huge price on the slugger. I would expect that it would take a stud pitcher, a young MLB-ready outfielder and maybe another prospect to get the deal done. So that probably means that Brad Holt and Fernando Martinez would be their starting request, which is something I truly hope the Mets aren’t willing to consider. The guy is a very good player, but his numbers are notoriously better at Coors Field than anywhere else. I do not think he is worth sacrifices the two blue chips of the farm.

Now, what if Holliday came with a guaranteed extension? To be honest, I am still not in love with the idea. I am a much bigger fan of a current Red Sox outfielder who will be hitting the market after the 2009 season, Jason Bay. Bay has excelled in Boston and in Pittsburgh, and he is one of the most under appreciated hitters in the game.

My wish is that in October, the Mets will be putting a new Bay in Citifield. We will have to wait and see.