Merry Christmans and Happy Holidays

I was hoping the Omar would have put one of the Carloses under the Mets fan's proverbial Christmas trees this year, but that did not happen. I think we all know it will be after New Year's Day that the two biggest bats left will find their landing spot, but I think we are all getting impatient too.

I know Christmas is supposed to be about giving, but I hope everyone remembered to take care of #1. There were plenty of new Mets goodies out for the holidays like the Doc Good 1987 road jersey, the 1988 Darryl Strawberry batting practice jersey, or the Mex 1986 home jersey. There were plenty more jerseys and they are all on sale. If you didn't get a gift you want, just log onto Mets.com and buy away. Just remember, if you are not happy, how the hell are you going to make other people happy? (that's what I keep telling myself anyway)

That is why I'm continuing with the me me me me theme of Christmas and hoping the Omar gets the Mets two more bats whether it be Beltran/MienLUkjFuckTheYankess3890ukjlactz or Beltran/Olerud or Delgado/Ordonez or or Delgado/Millar (I know people may be confused on this one, but he's played 1st, 3rd, LF, and RF and 18.6 homers per year for the last five years. In a pinch, he'd work for one year) or Delgado/Byrnes or Delgado/anyone but Sosa....whatever, but I want something in the form of one 30+ homerun bat. Once that happens, I'll be in a more giving mood. We all know that they need something else because Pedro won't be able to hit third in the lineup as well as pitch every fifth day and luckily for us Wilpon and Omar know that too.

I was trying to find a Christmas picture of Mr. Met, but to no avail. I did however find this disturbing interpretation of Mr. Met by one little child. Yes, yes, I know it's only a kid and it's pretty horrible to make fun of a little child’s drawing, but it looks like Mr. Met just got hit with the business end of hammer.


My Christmas Wish List:

One new player named Carlos

Philip Humber signed ASAP

Jose Reyes to be healthy in 2005

70 total wins from Zambrano, Martinez, Trachsel, Glavine, and Benson

Two Met players over 30 homeruns

At least one player who hits over .300 that played over 140 games

At least one player with 100+ walks

Plenty of pictures of Anna Benson

A pitcher with over 220 K's on the season

No, no one spiked my egg nog. I just would like to see some great baseball this year from the Mets. The 70 total wins is going to be one tough one to attain, but the Mets have one of the top all around rotations and the best thing about the season not being started yet is anything can still happen.

Some Christmas Optimism

Since it is Christmas, I figured there is no better time to exhibit some optimism with the Mets. I'm sick of all the Met bashers out there and the extremely negative view of this franchise. Yeah, yeah, the last three years were a disaster no doubt, and how the Mets have become a laughing stock. However, they finished in 1st or 2nd place 11 out of the last 21 years. They finished 3rd or above 14 out of the last 21 year while winning a World Series in 1986 and being in one as recently as 2000. Unfortunately the Braves have been a juggernaut for a decade and have blocked the Mets on a number of occasions from the postseason. People love to laugh at the Mets, but there is no doubt that they are looking better and seem to have a new philosophy than the one they started to have in the early 90's which got them nowhere. There is a focus to work on the farm system, increase scouting, not skimping out on the coaching, revamped the front office, and not trying to get lucky with free agent signings and pursuing the best of the best. With their resources and young players making a impact now and plenty more in the farm system if they can manage to hold on to them, I would think a lot of MLB teams wouldn't mind switching places.

1984 90 72 .556 2nd
1985 98 64 .605 2nd
1986 108 54 .667 1st World Champs
1987 92 70 .568 2nd
1988 100 60 .625 1st NL East Champs
1989 87 75 .537 2nd
1990 91 71 .562 2nd
1991 77 84 .478 5th
1992 72 90 .444 5th
1993 59 103 .364 7th
1994 55 58 .487 3rd
1995 69 75 .479 2(T)
1996 71 91 .438 4th
1997 88 74 .543 3rd
1998 88 74 .543 2nd
1999 97 66 .595 2nd NL Wildcard
2000 94 68 .580 2nd NL Champs
2001 82 80 .506 3rd
2002 75 86 .466 5th
2003 66 95 .410 5th
2004 71 91 .438 4th

1659 wins 1510 losses 0.519

The Yankmees finished 1st or 2nd in 14 of the last 21 years (three more than the Mets) and finished no lower than 3rd in 15 of the last 20 years (one more than the Mets). Granted the postseason are 10-4 in favor of the Yankees with a 4-1 lead in WS championships, but not many people have 4 WS or 10 straight post season appearances in the last twenty one years. Over the last twenty years they also have exactly 130 more wins, that is an average of 6.2 wins a year. Most of the difference has been made up in the last three years where the Yankees added an astounding 93 more wins than our lowly Mets. So from 1984 to 2001 the Yankees only outperformed the Mets by 37 wins or 2 wins per year. With a farm system more barren than the Mojave Desert and no regular position players under 30 as of right now, the Spanks days are numbered. The 80's are coming back again. And I know what Yankee fans will say, we'll just buy the players we need like always but that isn't how you won 4 championships you did it with a half home-grown team. Eventually the Yankees are going to have too many extremely over paid players making unworldly amounts of money and getting vastly overpaid like Bernie Williams.

1984 87 75 0.537 3
1985 97 64 0.602 2
1986 90 72 0.556 2
1987 89 73 0.549 4
1988 85 76 0.528 5
1989 74 87 0.46 5
1990 67 95 0.414 7
1991 71 91 0.438 5
1992 76 86 0.469 4
1993 88 74 0.543 2
1994 70 43 0.619 1
1995 79 65 0.549 2 AL WCARD
1996 92 70 0.568 1 WS CH
1997 96 66 0.593 2 AL WCARD
1998 114 48 0.704 1 WS CH
1999 98 64 0.605 1 WS CH
2000 87 74 0.54 1 WS CH
2001 95 65 0.594 1 AL Pennant
2002 103 58 0.64 1 AL East Champs
2003 101 61 0.623 1 AL Pennant
2004 101 61 0.623 1st AL East Champs

1860 wins 1468 losses 0.559

What is my point? My point is the Mets were actually a very successful franchise spanning the mid 80's through 2001. They did some real big damage in 2002, 2003, and 2004 and their name has become synonymous with the words inept and incompetent. It is astounding how much negativity has been tied to this franchise that was actually pretty successful over a 20 year span and posted a .533 winning % from '84 to '01. The Mets are in dire need of some stability and some winning years fast. They need a PR overhaul badly to counteract the damage done. The Mets were not being outperformed by wins and losses much from 1984 to 2001, but the Yankees did put them to shame with post season performances, but no one has done what the Yankees have done in terms of reaching the post season outside of the Braves. To compare anyone with the Yankees post season performances is just silly, they are in their own league when it comes to that and spending money. The Mets can get good again, although sometimes it does not seem that way and they have the resources to build a sustained winner. Minaya has shared his vision with the Mets fans and if he sticks to it and makes a few good moves and has some luck on his side, it may happen sooner than later. Despite moving Kazmir, Peterson, and Huber they still have a solid foundation in the minors with two future cornerstones of the franchise on the left side of the infield and future masher for a corner outfield spot in 2006. I'm optimistic this turnaround can happen soon and will happen with plenty of homegrown talent to boot. The Mets can make themselves more relevant in New York City and hopefully Omar can take some steps to bringing back some credibility and some life back to Shea in 2005.

* * *

Gerald Williams is back again.

The Mets also signed minor-league deals with righty pitchers Juan Padilla, Grant Roberts and Scott Strickland; catchers Ramon Castro and Andy Dominique; infielder Marlon Anderson; infielder-outfielder Luis Garcia; and outfielders Kerry Robinson and Gerald Williams.

Game....Set....Match

If I were Carlos Beltran, I'd sign in Houston. I'd sign with them right away now that they gave me a monstrous 6 year, $96 million offer. No state income tax in Texas makes this deal far more expensive. Even if the Yankees outbid the Astros, the Astros are still in it. Boras has said that a minimum seven year offer is needed or else do not even try, but this is very good start point for team that has Beltran's attention as a place he has a good comfort level with. Top that all off with a Stadium that is conducive for hitting many, many homeruns and you have a 40/40 man year in and year out. He's a special talent, but not worth the money he is going to get. He does everything well and he's the right age so people are going to overpay for the prize of this off season. Omar definitely needs to focus on Delgado at this point as it is going to take a lot of money to sway Beltran out of Houston as McLane has laid his claim on the superstar. There is no other option for Carlos because this is the best option. Roger Clemens will come back if he signs are you have dangerous team in the NL Central again. Minaya should put an offer out there for seven years and comparable money and see if Boras and Beltran bites, but in reality, it just does not look good no matter how enamored Wilpon is with the idea of signing Beltran. But hey, the extra year worked for Pedro so I guess anything is possible no matter how unlikely things look right now.

* * *

Thanks to Benny for getting that Alou story out. No peep was mentioned for quite a while after he found it on the ESPN Deportes . I actually had some breaking news on here that was not found anywhere else.

Moises Alou Signed......but not with the Mets

Thanks to Benny for pointing out that Moises Alou has reportedly signed a deal to play for his father and becomes yet another 39 year old on the ever aging Giants team.

El jardinero dominicano Moisés Alou aceptó un contrato de dos años y 13,6 millones de dólares para reunirse con su padre Felipe en los Gigantes de San Francisco.

Orber Resigns

Thanks to GM for pointing at that Orber Moreno has resigned with the New York Mets.

The New York Mets announced today that they have signed righthanded pitcher Orber Moreno to a minor league contract and invited him to major league spring training camp.
Moreno, 26, went 3-1 with a 3.38 ERA in 33 games with the Mets last season. In 34.2 innings, he yielded 29 hits, 17 runs, 13 earned, with 11 walks and 29 strikeouts.

Orber was placed on the 15-Day Disabled List on July 25th and missed the remainder of the year with a strained right shoulder. Moreno underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder on October 21st.

Moreno retired 26 of 33 (79 percent) first batters he faced which was eighth among NL relievers who appeared in 30 or more games.

Some minor news, but some good news nonetheless.

100 Pitch Pitcher

One thing that keeps coming up when people look at the deal between the Mets and Pedro Martinez is the fact that everyone believes he is a 100 pitch pitcher. I heard it again recently with a radio talk show host basically saying, "the deal is good, but Pedro is still a 100 pitch pitcher who'll go five or six innings." The year is 2004 and not 1910 when the pitcher that started the game was the pitcher that finished the game. The game has evolved so that 100 pitches has been made the standard for when coaches start thinking about pulling their pitchers. Basically, everyone is a 100 pitch pitcher these days so they notion that Pedro is a 100 pitch pitcher is essentially right I guess, but then everyone needs to be talked as if they were a 100 pitch pitcher. I've detailed Pedro's pitch counts here already, but I wanted to take a look at Pedro's pitch count vs. the rest of the leagues pitchers. I wanted to see how he ranks up against the guys labeled as workhorses and the other aces in the league.

Pedro threw 105.8 pitches per game in 2004. His PPG topped Randy Johnson, who threw 103.8 PPG, Mark Buehrle who threw 105.6 PPG, Ben Sheets who threw 105.4 PPG, Roy Oswalt who threw 102.1 PPG, Johan Santana who threw 100.8 PPG, Mark Mulder who threw 99.9 PPG, Carl Pavano who threw 101.8 PPG, Roger Clemens who thre 104.0 PPG, Bartolo Colon who threw 100.1 PPG, Russ Ortiz who threw 102.1 PPG, Jake Westbrook who thre 98.9 PPG, Javier Vazquez who threw 100.3 PPG, Oliver Perez who threw 104.5 PPG, Rich Harden who threw 101.8 PPG, Tim Hudson who threw 102.3 PPG, Jake Peavy, who threw 99.5 PPG, Mike Mussina who threw 96.4 PPG, workhorse Roy Halladay has not topped that mark in his career, Kerry Wood who threw 101.0 PPG, etc...you get the idea.

The only pitchers who beat out Pedro in pitches per game were Jason Schmidt, Robert Madritsch, Livan Hernandez, Carlos Zambrano, Barry Zito, Al Leiter, Joel Pineiro, Curt Schilling, and Freddy Garcia. That's right, only nine pitchers in the entire major leagues threw more pitches per game. Overall, Pedro threw the ninth most pitches out of the entire major leagues. Not bad for a 33 year old guy with a bad shoulder and a 90% torn labrum that cannot throw more than 100 pitches. Really though, in these days of pitch counts, not many people average over 110 pitches per game as only three had done it in 2004. Out of the 119 pitchers to start at least 20 games started, 47 had averaged over 100 pitches per game. Pedro is exactly where he needs to be, and that is at the top of the league in this category.

He was also 10th in the majors with 3.72 K/BB, 7th in the majors with a 9.41 K/9, 12th in the majors with a 1.17 WHIP, 12th in the majors with a .238 BAA, and 13th in the majors with a .299 opponents OBP.

* * *

The Dodgers cold feet basically assures Beltran will be a Yankee, although wouldn’t it be quite a Christmas present if the Yanks don’t get Johnson while the Mets bring in Pedro and Beltran in the same off season? Unrealistic dreams I know, but it sure is fun to think about. Javier Vazquez wanted to remain on the East Cost and refused to take a physical. I'm sure George wants him gone more then ever and Omar should get on the phone. Let's say Glavine for Javy + cash? Maybe even old reliable Steve Trachsel. Whatever the case is, Javy won't be in pinstripes because George cannot be happy that he was the person that stood in the way of his one year quest to get RJ in the Bronx. The Johnson deal is not dead by a long shot though and both sides will be as motivated as ever.

Amen Joel fricken Sherman. Amen. Omar, listen to the man. He seems to be on to to something. Make a move fast before Delgado is off the market so the Mets don't get caught with their proverbial pants down a-la Timo Perez in the locker room a few years back.

As much as I like Eric Byrnes for various reasons, he is not worth Yusmeiro Petit or Lastings Milledge.

The Mets reportedly signed Andres Galaraga to a minor league deal.

JD Drew will be Los Angeles Dodger as he has received a 5 year, $55 million deal.

Carlos Delgado, The Man, The Myth, The Legend

Carlos Delgado will definitely be an asset to any team that he is on, but if the Mets add him, they will need to add another bat as well. Carlos had one of the most tremendous offensive seasons in my lifetime in 2000 when he hit .344/.470/.664, which is just silly. He also knocked an unreal 57 doubles with 41 homeruns and 137 RBIs. In 2003 he hit .302/.426/.593 with 42 homeruns and 145 RBIs. That 2000 year is something he will never get close to again, but his 2003 numbers are certainly within he reach in terms average and OBP. I do not think he'll knock 40 homeruns in Shea but he can certainly top 30 homers.

I know I'm kind of cherry picking numbers here, but if you take out his two best seasons in 2000 and 2003 while averaging the rest of his seasons that he's been a starter out, I think you'll get a picture of the player you'll see at Shea. In seven seasons including the '96-'99 seasons, the '01-'02 seasons, and the 2004 season he hit .275/.380/.545 with 34 homers, 35 doubles, 106 RBIs, 80 BBs, and 133 K's. Basically, he looks like and slighty better and older version of Richie Sexson that bats left handed. In Richie's years that he started and was healthy the entire season, he hit .270/.350/.523 with 88 runs, 27 doubles, 36 homers, 112 RBIs, 64 BBs, and 148 K's. Carlos will knock in some runs, he'll hit his homers and extra base hits, and he'll also K bunch on team that already has it's K issues. In Delgado's two monster years, he hit an average of .323/.448/.629 with 42 homers, 48 doubles, and a 141 RBIs. It is safe to assume he will not be putting numbers like that up since it looks like those were career years for the most part judging by his career averages. He's only topped .280 three times in the nine seasons he's been a regular. The guy can mash, but he is not the only piece the Mets need to add.

If the Mets bring in Delgado, he needs to occupy the #4 spot in the order with the Mets finding someone for the #3 spot. I just would rather see a contact guy in that spot of the order who can also knock a few out and it tougher to strike out. Yeah, I'm asking for a lot, but Omar Minaya has me feeling somewhat greedy lately and I'm looking for him to continue to try and make an upgrade. So who are the options out there? David Wright is a guy that's had a very good OBP% throughout the minor leagues, can hit for a good average, hit for some power, and was on track to K under 100 times when averaged out over the first season, but that would seem like a pretty bold move on Randolph's part and something they really don't seem likely to do just yet. Carlos Beltran is an obvious choice for this spot as well. He's cut his strikeouts down from a career high of 135 in 2002 to 81 in 2001 and 101 in 2004. His walks have been rising from 52 to 71 to 72 to 92 in consecutive years and is becoming a pretty good contact hitter with good plate discipline, but would certainly be a long shot if they bring in Delgado. Everyday that Magglio is keeping under the radar raises more questions on his knee and makes the idea of him take a one year deal to prove his health more and more likely. He's never K'd over 77 times in a season and although he does not walk a ton, he has a career .364 OBP% with a career .525 SLG%. If his price keeps going down and our shiny new doctors look at his medical records and deem him fit to play, he could be a bargain and half. JD Drew is another guy who can fit in here with some pop and will get a base a lot w/o striking out a ton but he seems less and less likely as the Dodgers seem to be waiting on signing him before the Randy Johnson deal is done. So he'll do there. Another choice is the Manny Ramirez. The mets have interest, but this thing is not getting done due to money disputes.

The bottom line is, as much as I like Carlos Delgado's bat and how great he'd look in the Mets lineup, he's not the answer to the #3 hole. I think he K's too much for the #3 spot and his numbers look more like a cleanup hitter. While he would not be the worst thing to have in the #3 hole, he's not ideal in my mind. The Mets would still have work to do if they locked him up in shoring up this lineup and filling in their needs.

* * *

Is anyone else getting mildly annoyed that the Pride of The Yankees keeps appearing on the Mets SportSpyder headlines? If I had any motivation I'd definitely shoot them an email. Lucky for them I don't.

Not that we needed to hear this since we already knew, but Peter Gammons had said on 1050 ESPN that he believes the Mets rotation is one of the top 3 or 4 in the NL. He cited the Cubs and the Braves as the best, but I'd say the Cubs and the Astros with Roger Clemens may be better. The Cubs for sure and the Astros are debatable since it depends heavily on how the rotation rounds out and if the over-rated Andy Pettite will be ready. He also stated that Tom Glavine could have won 16-18 games on another team and he thinks Pedro could win 20 games in his first season in the NL. It's just nice to hear the Mets spoken about positively.

Mike Cameron finally got his wrist taken care of. No swinging the bat for three months according to the doctor and he will most likely miss opening day.

Thanks to 22 for pointing this out. In some minor news, the Mets signed Carlos Beltran.

The NYTimes says the Mets are trying to nab one of the two Carloses.

Should negotiations fall apart with Delgado and Beltran, there is a backup plan. The Mets are attempting to acquire the medical report on Chicago White Sox outfielder Magglio Ordóñez, who had knee surgery last season, and they could pursue him if team doctors give their approval. Otherwise, the Mets may settle for outfielder Moises Alou, who is 38 and hit .293 with 39 home runs and 106 runs batted in for the Chicago Cubs last season.

??? Is Alou signed or what?

The Mets' other arbitration-eligible players are relievers Orber Moreno, who was expected to be tendered, and pitcher Scott Strickland, whom Minaya mistakenly referred to Rod Strickland, a former Knicks guard.

Scott, Rod, Todd...who cares. Just be healthy for 2005.

At least now we can stop worrying about Minaya signing Cabrera and moving Matsui or Reyes.

Whatever It Takes To Win

George and the Yankees have pulled off yet another move. They wanted Randy Johnson? They got him. While the Mets were maligned for their Pedro deal, the Yankees will be applauded for theirs despite the fact that Randy Johnson is a injury risk too. He only started 18 games in 2003 and has a balky knee. He'll be pitching at Yankee Stadium until 2007 if not longer. Is this s good deal for the Yankees? Yeah, it was what they needed and if they had Randy in the playoffs last year, there is not a Red Sox comeback. The regular season is not when he'll pay off. You can put Rick Helling on that team and he'll win 16 games. The playoffs are when he can pitch game 1, game 4 and game 7 if needed. He can be the difference between a winning and losing and he can control the series.

The Yankees gave up a lot in Javier Vazquez, Eric Duncan, and Dioneer Navarro, but the price was going to be steep for Randy and what do the Yankees need with prospects anyway? I cannot see a rookie getting an everyday shot that is not as result of injury ever again on this team.

The Yankees will have 3 guys making over $15,000,000 million in their rotation alone! Randy Johnson is on tap for $16 million ($6m deferred), Mike Mussina is due $17 million, and Kevin Brown is due $15,000,000 (until he's traded, but I cannot see them trusting Kaz Ishii over him). The other two are not doing so bad themselves with Pavano making about $10,000,000 and Wright making $7,000,000.

Their rotation will be making about $65,000,000. That is more than most team's payrolls. In fact it almost beats the Colorado Rockies $ 65,445,167 and the Chicago White Sox $ 65,212,500 and is more than the Oakland Athletics $ 59,425,667, the San Diego Padres $ 55,384,833, Texas Rangers $ 55,050,417, the Minnesota Twins $ 53,585,000, the Baltimore Orioles $ 51,623,333, the Toronto Blue Jays $ 50,017,000, the Kansas City Royals $ 47,609,000, the Detroit Tigers $ 46,832,000, the Cincinnati Reds $ 46,615,250, the Florida Marlins $ 42,143,042, the Montreal Expos $ 41,197,500, the Cleveland Indians $ 34,319,300, the Pittsburgh Pirates $ 32,227,929, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays $ 29,556,667, and the Milwaukee Brewers $ 27,528,500.

Then they are going to have Jason Giambi's $15.5 million (which they will end up buying out the rest of the contract), Derek Jeter's $20 million, Hideki Matsui's $8 million, Jorge Posada's $12 million, Marino Rivera's $10.5 million, A-Rod's $20 million (which they are paying about $16 million of that), Gary Sheffield's $13 million, and Bernie Williams $12 million. Yeah, only two guys will be in their starting lineup making less than $10 million at his point until they get rid of Giambi.

Throw on the $17.75 million they are paying for their set-up men in Tom Gordon, Stave Karsay, Paul Quantril, Mike Stanton, and F-Rod and you have pure lunacy. You throw Rivera's salary into the mix and six people in the bullpen cost more than the entire Milwaukee Brewers team.

Bud? You see anything wrong with this? Anyone that says the Yankees are good for baseball are wrong. You tell a Devil Rays, Orioles, or Blue Jays fans they are good for baseball. Their team has zero chance of winning that division and competing while this spending is going on. With the Yankees, they basically lock up a playoff spot every season knocking someone out that might have gotten in. That means a loss of millions of dollars in revenue for a team. Will it stop there? No. The Yankees are looking at Beltran or Delgado, or maybe both? I have no idea.

People always tell me that it is not that the Yankees spend more than everyone else, they spend it on the right players. That is a laughable notion since they've made so many mistakes that any other team would have been financially buried had they happened to them. They just have enough to pay someone take their mistakes off their hands or just burry their mistakes in more money. Not only that, but they spent $180,000,000+ million in 2004 and had some serious holes in their rotation. Smart spending? Not really, just a lot of it.

They had, Javier Vazquez, Jason Giambi, Kevin Brown, Hideki Irabu, Raul Mondesi, Hideki Irabu, Drew Henson (six year $17 million dollar contract), Steve Karsay, Mike Mussina (due $34 million over the next two seasons making him one of the most overpaid players in the league), Chris Hammond, and Jose Contreras recently. Those are things that would cripple every other team if they happened in such a short period, but they can band aid their's up.

Yankee fans praise their team's whatever it takes to win motto. Whatever it takes to win is outspend everyone until you win. George dishes it out, but no owner can even come close to the Yankees payroll without sinking them into $50 or $60 million dollars of debt for that season and that is undershooting in my opinion. The Seattle Mariners made the most money in 2003 out of any Major League team with $17 million in profit. Their payroll in 2003 was $86 million. Since no 2004 figures are around I'll stick with 2003 for now. That means they would have to lose $83 million dollars just to equal the spending of the Yankees last year. Forget how much they'd be in the red to catch up to their 2005 payroll, that would push them into the $100 million dollar debt range. The perception by Yankee fans is other owners have it, they just won't spend it. That could not be further from the truth. It is generally considered a bad business model to be hemorrhaging money.

I understand the big market/small market idea and how teams have more resources in NY, LA, Boston, and Chicago. But the Yankee spending is making the 2nd highest team's payroll look miniscule in comparison. The 2nd highest payroll in 2005 will be roughly 60% of the total Yankee payroll. If the 2nd highest payroll is $120,000,000 in 2005, the Yankees payroll will be 75% higher if it is $200,000,000. If the lowest payroll is $30,000,000 in 2005, the Yankee payroll at $200,000,000 would 668% higher. Yes, that means for every dollar the team with the lowest payroll spends the Yankees pay $6.68 to their $1. You can kiss parity goodbye in the AL East. I know Selig had put in the luxury tax and the debt rule to try and curtail the Yankees wild spending and I'm not sure what could be effective at curtailing their spending, but I have three suggestions. The first one, which is not that good, basically ties the lowest payroll to the Yankees payroll. The highest payroll cannot be more than 500% of the lowest payroll. This one is bad for a lot of reasons, but I threw it out there anyway. The other idea is that no team can be more than 45% ahead the team's payroll below them. Whether it be 1st and 2nd for 20th and 21st. If the Red Sox are spending $120,000,000 in 2005, then the Yankees cannot spend more than $174,000,000. If the Red Sox remained at their 2004 level, which was $127,298,500 according to USA Today, the Yankees would be limited to $184,582,825.00. If they are a dollar over it, it needs to be heavily, heavily penalized so that it can be enforced with measures that will be a deterrent. At the very least it would cause the Yankees to have to be very creative with their accounting or move someone of value making some good money like Hideki Matsui in order to even try and bring in Carlos Beltran. The last one is have a heavier penality on the luxury tax. This season the Yankees will be about $70,000,000 over and are getting taxed $28,000,000. One would think if that number was doubled even the Yankees would have to think twice. Whatever the solution, when a team outspends the team below them by 75% it is not good for baseball. At the very least, there should be at least one team that can financially complete with every team every season and that is simply not the case with the Yankees.

Fortunately for us Met fans, the Yankees are in the AL and the NL has a much more competitive balance and parity exists a lot more. I know I should not concern myself with what they do, but by basic business, it just does not seem right.

* * *

Just a side note. Javy was one of the premier pitchers in the league and signed with the Yankees. He became a goat and sent off to the Dodgers. He was reduced to a bullpen pitcher in the playoffs while he is in the prime of career. Take note Pavano, Wright, etc, this is what the Yankees do. You may be happy now signing there, but becoming a Real Yankee® is not easy. Javy was a better pitcher than either of those two. Smart money is they will have a 4.50 ERA and they will be in the doghouse by the end of the season. Just another day in the life of being on the Yankees.

Nelson de la Rosa speaks out...and he's not a happy dwarf.

According to the Chicago Sun times, Moises Alou is close to accepting the Mets offer, which is close about $6 million per and they Mets are still heavily interested in Sammy Sosa.

The OC Register insists that the Angels are still interested in acquiring Mike Piazza from the Mets to serve as their DH. If moving him to save some money will free up for Beltran and Delgado, I'm sure Minaya will be all over that.

Omar Has a Pretty Big Christmas Wish List

"That's the guy they want," the executive said. "They're doing everything they can to get him. They're trying to put together a new offer."

The Mets are making a run for Carlos Delgado and they really want him. Although the Mets are nowhere near such a decision, one baseball executive said, "If the Mets come up with the money, they're going to get Delgado. Just watch.". But they still want Carlos Beltran. In fact, according to the NYPost:

And if push comes to shove, one industry insider actually believes the Mets have the resources to outbid the Yankees for the centerfielder.

According to Bob Klapisch:

It's a one-in-a-million chance, but some industry insiders say the Mets could have Beltran's ear by playing to their increasingly apparent strength - the Spanish-speaking clubhouse. Of course, the Wilpon family will have to make an extraordinary financial commitment to even enter the Beltran sweepstakes, but no team in baseball is as determined to make over the clubhouse demographic as the Mets.

According to ESPN News, the Mets are prepared to actually offer Carlos Beltran a contract as they have repoted several times yesterday. The countdown until January 8th is now 20 days. That is when the Astros lose the right to negotiate with him and that is when he is expected to make his decision by. Strangely enough, it looks like Wilpon has given him the OK to go significantly over their $105 million budget and we'll see how this one plays out as he has to have his eye on some advertising cash in 2006 for his shiny new network.

* * *

According to Buster Olney, he thinks it is between the Astros and the Yankee dollars. He says the Yankees may be prepared to go 7 years and $120 million. With all the talk about the Mets being prepared to jump in, he loses credibility with me because he will not even acknowledge the fact that the Mets are in this, however slightly. He’s just another Yankee lovin’ reporter.

Omar's likes his wife’s steamed clams. Exciting I know, but for more Q&A with Omar, check out the NYPost.

The Daily News has the specifics of Pedro's contract.

Pedro Martinez's deal with the Mets includes a luxury box at Shea Stadium for each home game and a hotel suite for all road trips, according to an Associated Press report.

The perks are part of the four-year, $53 million contract Martinez signed last week, which also includes a $3.5 million signing bonus and salaries of $10 million in 2005, $14 million in 2006 and 2007 and $11.5 million in 2008. Four million dollars of his salary in both 2006 and 2007 will be deferred by the Mets, as well as $2 million in 2008.

Martinez gets a $500,000 bonus if he wins the Cy Young award as a Met (he's won three already), $1 million if he wins it twice, $1.5 million if he wins it a third time and $2 million if he wins it a fourth time. He'll get $400,000 if he finishes second in the voting and $300,000 for coming in third.

Martinez would also receive $50,000 for each All-Star appearance, $50,000 for each Gold Glove, $50,000 for winning the league championship series MVP award and $250,000 for winning the World Series MVP award.

The Randy Johnson deal will involve Shawn Green getting a contract extension from the D-Backs. He is looking for two years and the deal is expected to get finalized in the next few days. To me, giving Shawn Green an extension really does not let the D-Backs save money by moving Johnson. He's due the same amount of money this year, and is probably asking to be overpaid in those two years for the extension.

Billy Beane has lost his mind. He inexplicably dealt Mark Mulder with two years left on this contract. At this point, one has to wonder who is next?

According to ESPN Rumor Mill, the Dodgers are looking at JD Drew. The Mets have offered Moises Alou a contract that he is mulling over. They offered it around the winter meetings, but may be since sweetened it. The D-Rays may be shopping Aubrey Huff.