NYT: Alderson Remakes Needy Mets From Bottom Line Up

Phillips, Duquette, and Sirius checking in.

Since he came aboard in October 2010, Alderson has been obligated to take a payroll that was over $140 million and cut it to about $90 million. You can make that kind of huge and swift reduction only if you repeatedly acquire players who will cost very little.

“I don’t think people really understand how constrained he really is,” Steve Phillips, a former Mets general manager, said of Alderson. “There’s no team in the last year and a half that’s been as affected by financial challenges as the Mets.”

...“They’ve been in a bottom-feeding mode when it comes to the free-agent market,” said Phillips, who is now a host on SiriusXM’s Mad Dog Radio channel. “They are trying to catch that lightning in a bottle, that diamond in the rough.”

...Jim Duquette, who served as the Mets’ general manger in 2004 and now works as an analyst for SiriusXM’s MLB Network Radio, said Alderson was in a tough spot.

“I can’t see how he or even the team’s ownership could have predicted beforehand the extent of the financial issues they currently face,” he said.

Alderson and his deputies have shown some willingness to be assertive with the resources they have available to them. Breaking with the team’s previous stance, they bypassed the essentially unenforceable guidelines set forth by the commissioner’s office for signing bonuses to sign several draft picks last summer.

Megdal: A Note On Access And The Mets

or as Howard just tweeted…“Write a book critical of the Mets, lose media credentials.”

I thought I ought to pass along this bit of news, so all of you have a sense of what the blog will and won’t be this coming year, and why that is.

Since taking over the LoHud Mets Blog in March 2011, I have been credentialed numerous times by the New York Mets-100 percent of the time my editor here, Sean Mayer, has requested credentials. This is nothing new. In my years covering sports, I have been credentialed by every major sports team in the New York area, writing for ESPN.com, The New York Times, New York Magazine, The New York Observer, and many other outlets.

So it was odd that last week, Sean received a call from Jay Horwitz, the Director of Media Relations for the New York Mets, telling him that while the Journal News can continue to receive credentials, the Mets would not be credentialing me.

Sean asked why that was, and Jay responded that the Mets “don’t like my reporting”. The team declined to respond to my multiple attempts to reach them for a fuller explanation.

...What the Mets manage to do by keeping me out of the clubhouse is deny my the chance to give you a better sense of the Mets players as people, thus giving the fans a greater stake in the success and failure of the team. Why they think that is somehow to their advantage, I couldn’t possibly say.

Maese: Super Bowl 2012, for much of America, offers a lot to hate

Tim Groseclose, a professor of political science and economics at UCLA, has spent a professional lifetime studying politics, media and biases, and when it comes to big East Coast cities and their sporting teams, there’s little to debate.

“We Arkansans and Oklahomans sometimes call people from Boston or New York ‘Yankees,’ which we mean as a synonym for ‘rude, Northern person,’ ” Groseclose said. “Hank Williams Jr. might have said it best: ‘If heaven ain’t a lot like Dixie, I don’t want to go. . . . You can send me to hell or New York City. It’d be about the same to me.’”

In the oft-times insular world of pro sports, the nation’s attitudes for New York and Boston are no secret. The successes of their teams serve as inspiration for taunts and barbs. Road trips in the NFL are merely sleepovers in a lion’s den. . . .

The successes of the sports teams serve as kindling, while the more potent fuel for many is a perceived overexposure of East Coast teams. And critics point to a singular culprit.

“Ask anyone in Chicago, Detroit, Iowa, Minnesota — it just feels like a large portion of the country gets ignored,” said Steve “Sparky” Fifer, a sports talk radio host for WSSP-AM in Milwaukee. “So it’s not necessarily a hatred or dislike for the team specific teams, it’s the dislike for ESPN and the coverage they provide. From a fan perspective, if you turn on ESPN during the baseball season, good luck seeing Brewers highlights. Right now, regardless of how good the Knicks are, you’ll see Knicks and Celtics every night.”

John Ourand, who covers media and television for the SportsBusiness Journal, said “East Coast bias” is a real phenomenon but not necessarily a true bias. Television’s decision-makers don’t favor particular teams; they favor money, he said.

“There are markets that have teams and people follow that passion whether they like them or hate them,” Ourand said. “Even when you hate them, you’re watching.”

MLB: Jose Reyes gets dreadlocks shorn for charity (Video)

Cripes, I remember when a $100 bag of Thurston Moore’s muggy hair sat grewsomely for years on our record store wall…with little feedback.

Jose Reyes took one for the team Friday night.

To conform with Miami Marlins policy, the 28-year-old shortstop cut off his famed dreadlocks, which he had sported the past three years as a member of the New York Mets.

The Marlins have a strict grooming policy, and Reyes met it in grand style. On Friday night, the four-time All-Star had his hair cut on MLB Network’s “Hot Stove” show, which aired at 6 p.m. ET.

“It’s going to be a little bit emotional, because I’ve spent three years with this hair,” Reyes said shortly before sitting in a barber chair set up in the studio. “At the same time, I understand it’s a rule of my new team, the Miami Marlins. I’m a team player, so I have to cut it off.”

...Reyes used his platform on MLB Network to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of South Florida.

Reyes’ hair has been packaged and authenticated by Major League Baseball. It is now being auctioned on eBay.

Madden - Gary Carter attends Palm Beach Atlantic University baseball game

In his continuing battle against brain cancer, Gary Carter made a rare public appearance Thursday, visiting the Palm Beach Atlantic college baseball team he coaches near his home in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Carter, 57, has spent nearly his entire time confined to his house in recent days as his condition has worsened.

However, according to family sources, he was determined to make it to Palm Beach Atlantic’s opening game of the season and was driven to the game by family members — whereupon he arrived at the field riding in the back of a golf cart shortly before the playing of the national anthem.

“He wanted to be here for his guys, here for opening day,” Carter’s daughter, Kimmy Bloemers, was quoted as saying by the Palm Beach Post.

Carter spent only a few minutes with the team, shaking hands with the players and grinning broadly, while repeating: “Let’s get a win tonight.”

He then spent about three innings watching the game from a private booth in the press box, accompanied by former Montreal Expo teammates Tommy Hutton and Jeff Reardon, both of whom live in the Palm Beach Gardens area.

On Jan. 21, Carter was honored with the Milton and Arthur Richman “Ya Gotta Have Heart” award at the New York Baseball Writers dinner but was too ill to attend. Instead, the award was accepted by his son, D.J., and his two daughters, Kimmy and Christy, who asked the audience to pray for their dad.

Since then, family sources said doctors elected to cease a lot of the medication — chemotherapy and radiation — Carter was receiving as it was no longer containing the tumors and making him feel worse.

He was said to be spending most of his time at home in a weakened state, and the family website has not had an entry since Jan. 19, when Bloemers reported, “This past week has been one of the hardest weeks for my dad. Every day is exhausting and every move takes great effort.”

Thursday, at least, was a better day, as Carter fulfilled his vow to his players to be there for them on their opening day of the season.

Adam Rubin: SNY bailing out Mets

According to the report, Time-Warner and Comcast—the Mets’ business partners with SNY—authorized the purchase of 16 percent of the ballclub to prop up the Mets, which in turn should help ratings. The $80 million infusion should allow the Mets to meet this year’s debt obligations.

Makes some sense, to the extent their fortunes are already intertwined.

Source: Mets to sell 10 shares of team

We went from the Mets closing in on 20 shares sold by end of January to 10 shares by end of February. Nope. No problems here.

The Mets expect to sell 10 minority shares of the team by the end of February, a person familiar with the process said Monday. The units, priced at $20 million each, would raise $200 million for the cash-strapped franchise and be used to pay existing loans and operating expenses for 2012

RLYW: Too-Early Marcel 2012 Season Forecast

Crikey, such excitement in the NL West!

This is current through Francisco Cordero signing with Toronto, and assumes Prince Fielder at 1B and Miguel Cabrera playing a terrible version of 3B for Detroit in 70% of their games, and DHing in 25% of them.

Megdal: John Franco gets his due from Mets; now how about John Stearns?

Including the Stearns, “Three Fingers of Scotch” card!

Stearns played a decade in New York, from 1975-84, and was a lifelong Met, except for one unfortunate appearance for the 1974 Phillies. He was even acquired for another Met Hall of Famer, Tug McGraw. His four All Star appearances were usually the bright spot for Mets fans in an otherwise Met-free series of games, and he was a justifiable choice for the team.

Stearns was tremendous defensively, throwing out 37 percent of would-be base-stealers in his career. He added a propensity for the stolen base, exceedingly rare for a catcher, reaching double figures in steals four times, with a high of 25. He had some pop, and at a time when the Mets didn’t have a ton to cheer about, and his football-style of play made him a favorite, along with Lee Mazzilli.

For a team looking to honor its entire past, what could be more fitting than to admit John Stearns into the Hall of Fame? In a season like the upcoming one, showing appreciation for a Met who played on weak teams would be a useful example.

[John] Franco to be inducted into Mets Hall of Fame

The Mets on Thursday announced plans to induct former closer John Franco into their Hall of Fame this summer, making Franco their fifth new inductee in three years.

Wait for it…

“I am truly honored and humbled by being elected into the Mets Hall of Fame,” Franco said.

Wait for it…

“Growing up as a kid in Brooklyn

THAR SHE BLOWS!!!

Alex Cora announces retirement

Former Nationals utility infielder Alex Cora played winter ball and was the Captain of the Caguas Criollos of Puerto Rico. After the Criollos final game of the season tonight, he announced his retirement from baseball.

Alex Cora, 36, was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the third round of the 1996 draft. Cora has played all over the infield for seven MLB teams: Dodgers, Blue Jays, Indians, Red Sox, Mets, Rangers and Nationals Maybe he’ll follow in his big brother Joey’s footsteps and coach.

...(Translated by Bing):
MESSAGE from our captain ALEX CORA announcing his retirement: thank you all for the support they gave me for 16 seasons. We enjoy and we suffer, we won and we lost but heart I can tell you that being Creole is the best there is. Now close a chapter in my career and in the bottom of my heart I say that I do with the high front because I am and always will be pure strain Creole! Thank you all.

(confuded) Maybe the Red Sox still have a shot at him!

Carlos Beltran tells Met fans: Time to get over 2006 and move on

Work together to realize the progressive promise of our Met Nation!

There is no need to update Carlos Beltran’s relationship status with the people of New York to “it’s complicated” — that has remained unchanged since 2005. So if you have any feelings about his decision to sign with St. Louis, Beltran has a simple response: Get over it.

“Actually, I’m not thinking about the fans, I’m thinking about myself,” Beltran said at Tuesday’s Baseball Assitance Team charity dinner at the New York Marriott Marquis in Times Square.

...It might strike partisans as strange that their longtime center fielder is now a Cardinal, having agreed last month to a two-year deal with the team that eliminated the Mets in that franchise-altering NLCS that ended with Beltran staring at an Adam Wainwright curveball. But Beltran sees it differently.

“I just want to have the opportunity to be in the playoffs,” he said. “What happened in 2006, you have to turn the page. That’s over. We can’t bring 2006 back to 2012. It has been six years. If they want to continue to think about that moment, then that’s their problem. Like I said, I have turned the page. I have really moved on.”

Kahrl: Will Jose Iglesias be the new Rey Ordonez?

Up The Sandbox Defense! (bust flop of the year?)

Something approaching normalcy from those hitters would make Iglesias that much more palatable if Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine—the man who managed Ordonez over the bulk of his “productive” career with the Mets—takes a shine to Iglesias in camp.

In the meantime, Boston’s fall-back options are fairly reasonable. Like Scutaro, Punto is neither the best or worst defender at short. The difference in their career OBPs (.338 vs. .325) is narrow enough to suggest there won’t be any drop-off with a change to the identity of the ninth-slot hitter in Boston’s lineup, and Punto actually has a higher walk rate for his career (10.2 percent to Scooter’s 9.1). That’s without getting into why Aviles might have been the best right-now option of the three. After getting jerked around by the Royals ever since coming back from the Tommy John surgery that put a dent in his future in 2009, he still profiles as a good bat and playable glove at short.

But it’s Iglesias who represents the team’s long-term future at short. And it’s Rey Ordonez’s old manager who will be helping to decide whether or not he can use the latest slick-fielding Cuban kid at short, sooner or later.

NYBD: Silva: Tom Seaver, Born to be a Dodger?

I had an opportunity to chat with Steven Travers last night, author of a new book called “The Last Icon: Tom Seaver and His Times,” on my radio program. Never before has someone delved into the career of the man known as “The Franchise.”

...Sutton was 32-years old, the same age as Seaver, and was entering the late prime of his career. He still had plenty left as from 1977-80 he went 54-39 with a 3.21 ERA. In comparison, Seaver went 63-34 with a 3.00 ERA. The Mets never could have received comparable value for Seaver; Baseball-Reference ranks only two pitchers (Roger Clemens and Walter Johnson) with more value in the history of the game; but Sutton was as fair a deal as they could have made.

Imagine the course of both teams history if Seaver wound up signing with Los Angeles. He could have taken over as the ace of the franchise for Koufax, who retired the year before Seaver’s debut. He might also have won far more than the 311 games which he finished.

During the 70s, he often had terrible offenses supporting him. Travers believes Seaver could have won 30 games during his 1971 season; a year that many believe was his best ever. Seaver finished 20-10 with a 1.76 ERA and set, the then, strikeout record for a RHP with 289. Ironically, Ferguson Jenkins won the Cy Young Award due to his 24 wins, despite posting an ERA a run higher.  ”Seaver could have won 30,” Travers said. He had 36 starts and I believe 31 to 35 of them are absolute possible victories. If he gives up 3 runs, forget about it, much less two. He has to win 1-0, 2-1 to win games. He could have been 31-3 in 1971, that’s how good he was.”

(grumble~grumble) Hey, pitch to the damn score and you won’t feel so franchiseled! (grumble~grumble over)

Judge Jed Rakoff profile

Don’t think it even mentions the Mets-Madoff stuff but maybe this thread will distract the lawyers around here.

Mike Piazza wants to go into HOF as a Met

“Its a bacne to bacne!...and a belly to belly!” (interleague allowance cheat)

Last night, Mike Piazza was in attendance at the Knicks 119-114 loss to the Nuggets at Madison Square Garden, and appeared on Celebrity Row with Jill Martin during halftime.

When asked what hat he wants to wear if elected to the Hall of Fame, he responded:

  “It’s gotta be the Mets. No question.”

Piazza is eligible for election to the Hall of Fame next January, and the Hall of Fame chooses the hat an elected player wears on his plaque.

NYT: Q. & A. With Tom Seaver

Q. Ryan has campaigned against pitch counts. Do you agree?

A. There’s nothing wrong with pitch counts. But there’s an addendum to that. I presume Nolan thinks the same way. But it isn’t a blanket pitch count. People say, “I bet the pitch count drives you nuts.” Heck no. I had a pitch count. My pitch count as a general rule was 135. And I knew how many pitches I had when I went to the mound for the last three innings. And I wasn’t going to spend eight pitches on the No. 8 hitter. On the second or third pitch, he should be hitting a ground ball to shortstop. It might not work like that all the time. But theoretically, you have an approach about how you’re spending your bullets.

There’s nothing wrong with pitch counts. But not when it’s spit out by a computer and the computer does not look at an individual’s mechanics. And you can’t look at his genes. It should come from the individual and the pitching coach and the manager.

Q. Will your former manager Gil Hodges, a former Dodger, ever get into the Hall of Fame?

A. I don’t know. Everybody in the New York area wonders why he’s not in. His numbers are high middle. But what else did he do? He was the leader on that ball club that went to the World Series and beat the Yankees. He was the leader of a ball club and franchise that went to the World Series. If you look at his body of work I say yes. Absolutely.

Q. Should steroid users be allowed into the Hall of Fame?

A. The commissioner and baseball has to figure that out. They’re going to have guys that have great numbers not in the Hall of Fame. They have to figure that out.

Thanks to Wrecki.

SI.com: Economic considerations at heart of Carmona’s decision

An interesting analysis of signing ages, signing bonuses, and success rates in the Dominican Republic, by Melissa Segura of Sports Illustrated ...

Teams pay premiums for 16-year-olds for two primary reasons: One, because teams often want to be the first to sign a promising player and, thus, avoid bidding wars with other teams; and two, clubs prefer to develop their players’ skills under the watchful eyes of their own club personnel rather than under those of unqualified and unaffiliated coaches or trainers.

But are 18-year-old Latin American players really worth 70 percent less than their 16-year-old counterparts? Here’s another data analysis that calls into question the industry practice of placing a premium on youth. Let’s assume the most basic marker of a successful signing is making it to the majors. We’ll make it simple and look at the 79 players who have made their major league debuts from 2008-2011 from Carmona’s Dominican Republic. Of those 79, only six were signed as 16-year-olds. The debuts suggest older players were more likely to advance to the majors. ...

[...]

What’s more, SI tracked down the bonus data for 60 of the 79 players. Fernando Martinez, signed by the Mets in 2005 for $1.3 million, was the only one to receive a seven-figure bonus. Only nine others signed for six figures and one — the Rockies’ Juan Nicasio — received nada to sign, according to the data obtained by SI. The median signing bonus among them tallied a paltry $35,000.

Camden Depot: Rick Peterson Breaks Fewer Pitchers?

Jon Shepherd takes a first look at Rick Peterson’s record in keeping pitchers off the disabled list.

Rick Peterson and his pitching lab will apparently be in full effect for the Orioles in 2012.  His analytical technique has been hailed as a major prevention tool against injuries.  I have disabled list numbers of starting pitchers from part of his tenure with the A’s and all of his tenure with the Mets, giving us a time line from 2001 to 2007.  I also have disabled numbers of Orioles’ starting pitchers in 2009 and 2010.

Davidoff: The Mets on trial

I don’t know but yesterday seemed kinda odd
No billion-dollar liability from the law, no smog
And my stadium wasn’t surrounded by wild dogs

yesterday was a good day for the Mets , thanks to U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff, who denied Irving Picard’s appeal of Rakoff’s recent ruling that decreased the Mets’ potential Madoff clawback payment from $1 billion to $386 million.

What yesterday’s ruling also did, however, was set in motion the trial for this case, which is scheduled to begin on March 19 _ and proceed right into the start of the baseball season…

I’m not going to pretend to be qualified to appreciate every nuance of the determining laws here. But this is a jury trial, which means that more than the letter of the law will come into play. Performance matters. Delivery matters. An ability to connect with the jury matters.

And now Fred Wilpon - who is widely liked and respected throughout both the baseball community and the business community, but not gifted with great PR skills - will have to deliver the performance of his life. Same goes for his brother-in-law, Saul Katz, who has preferred to remain out of the spotlight, with the very notable exception of his self-assessment in the infamous New Yorker story.

You can’t imagine that Wilpon and Katz are going to gain much sympathy with the “We generally savvy businessmen were duped!” narrative. They’ll have to, if they want to not only save the roughly $300 million - crucial in their efforts to retain the Mets - but preserve their reputations.

If Wipon can prevail in this trial, then for as much as anyone suspects wrongdoing, then Wilpon can just say, “Scoreboard.” ... A Wilpon victory also would make it far easier for Bud Selig to continue his vocal support of his pal.

RLYW: Salvaging a Sunken cost

Burnett projects to have an RA of 5.03 in CAIRO.  The following possible starting pitchers project better than that.

CC Sabathia (3.57)
Michael Pineda (4.37)
Freddy Garcia (4.55)
Brad Meyers (4.56)
Hiroki Kuroda (4.57)
Phil Hughes (4.63)
Ivan Nova (4.93)
...

If that’s true, then every start that goes to Burnett is a start that should be going to one of the above.

...

Unfortunately, since Burnett is owed $33 million over the next two years, the Yankees probably feel obligated to try and get some value out of him.

I don’t think they can do that by pitching him…. trading Burnett’s bad contract to another team for their bad contract might be a way to recoup some of that value.

Josh Lewin leading candidate to replace Wayne Hagin

I would take a mutant like Josh Clay over Wayne Hagin…but I will settle for Josh Lewin.

According to Newsday’s Neil Best, “Josh Lewin has emerged as the leading candidate to replace Wayne Hagin alongside Howie Rose in the Mets’ radio booth.”

Last month, Mike Puma of the New York Post said WFAN recently auditioned Jim Duquette for a spot in the Mets radio booth, since “Wayne Hagin is not expected to return.” According to the report, Billy Sample, WFAN reporter Ed Coleman and SNY host Chris Carlin were also being considered.

Retrosimba: An interview with former Cardinals pitcher Al Jackson

Q: You began the 1967 season in the Cardinals’ rotation and in April pitched a one-hit shutout, beating the Astros, 4-0, in Houston. Bob Aspromonte broke up the no-hitter with a leadoff single in the eighth. Do you recall what happened?

Al Jackson: Yes, I do _ big-time. It wasn’t so much the no-hitter. I just wanted to maintain the stuff that I had that night, the control that I had. I wasn’t throwing as good as I was earlier in the game but I also knew that when I got a little tired, I was a better pitcher because I could keep the ball down. Against Aspromonte, I got the groundball I wanted. The pitch may have been down the middle because it was hit in the hole between short and third. If I had thrown it a little further away, the ball may have gone to the shortstop. I wasn’t worried about losing the game. I just wanted to stay on top of mine.

I also had pitched a one-hitter with the Mets against Houston. Joe Amalfitano got the hit. Boxscore Later, I was asked to speak at a dinner in New York. I began by saying I disliked Italians. The room was full of Italians and they looked at me like I was crazy. Then I had to explain: the two guys who broke up my no-hitters are named Amalfitano and Aspromonte. It got a laugh.

Q: Musial was 4-for-5 in his career against you. He batted .800 against you. You were smart to put him on with the walk…

Al Jackson: I’m glad I had a place to put him. I was asked after the game, “Why would you walk him? He’s a left-handed hitter.”  I said, “Why? That’s Musial.” Just look at his record. He’s known for beating teams. And here I am in that small ballpark _ just 250 feet down both lines. I know he can hit for power down both lines. And I never thought about striking him out. That wasn’t on my mind at all.

Thanks to Heck.

MLB Trade Rumors: Bartolo Colon Agrees to Sign With Unknown Team

Bartolo Colon has agreed to a deal with an unknown club reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today (on Twitter). The right-hander wouldn’t divulge the team because he has not yet passed his physical.

Pretty sure it’s either the All-Stars or the Champs.

Dickey: Reaching the Summit of Kilimanjaro

See, realizing that I have to pitch to every lineup other than the Mets’ would increase my misery.

We had been briefed at our 5 o’clock dinner that night that we were leaving for our summit attempt at 10:30 p.m. sharp… Five hours into the climb, aside from having extremely cold hands, we were all feeling pretty good… Another hour passed and it seemed as if the climbing got significantly more arduous. We had passed a half-dozen people who had to stop and turn back because of fatigue or altitude sickness. The extreme gradient of the slope partnered with the duration of the ascension to form a tag team that was kicking my butt.

I thought of my family back home playing games, and what the kids were doing in school. I began to think of the money we were raising to help the Bombay Teen Challenge. I visualized pitching to the all the teams in the N.L. East, batter by batter. I thought of anything I could to distract me from the misery I was in. Finally, about seven hours into the climb at around 18,500 feet, I had to ask our guide to stop. I sat on a rock to the side of the trail feeling nauseated and lightheaded.

Joshua, our guide, rushed over to me and filled a small cup with hot tea from a thermos he pulled out of his pack and placed in front of my face. The lightheadedness graduated to dizziness as I reached for the cup, missing it by six inches. Again I reached for it, only to miss it again. I felt my innards convulse. Joshua took my hand and placed it on the cup.

I told him to get me a Diamox that I had in the top pocket of my pack. He gave it to me and I immediately chewed it, hoping the medicine would enter my bloodstream more rapidly. I took a sip of the tea and sat there in silence, praying that my symptoms would abate.

After a couple of minutes, the fogginess lifted and the nausea subsided… I felt a second wind, and we pushed on slowly. Minutes later, we arrived at Stella. We were at 18,800 feet. There were climbers all around who had collapsed from fatigue or were experiencing severe symptoms of altitude sickness. Dave Racaniello, a member of our party, also began to feel poorly.

Joshua talked to him, and decided it was best to give him a hit of oxygen. That allayed his symptoms, and we continued to Uhuru Peak. After another 550 feet of gentle climbing, we reached the summit just as the glow from the sun was trying to make its way over the eastern part of the mountain.

Kevin Goldstein: New York Mets Top 11 Prospects

Five-Star Prospects
1. Matt Harvey, RHP
2. Zack Wheeler, RHP
Four-Star Prospects
3. Jeurys Familia, RHP
Three-Star Prospects
4. Brandon Nimmo, OF
5. Juan Lagares, OF
6. Jordany Valdespin, 2B
7. Jenrry Mejia, RHP
8. Reese Havens, 2B
9. Cesar Puello, OF
10. Michael Fulmer, RHP
11. Kirk Nieuwenhuis, OF

Nine More:
12. Cory Mazzoni, RHP: 2011 second-rounder was great in brief debut; will move to rotation in 2012.
13. Akeel Morris, RHP: 20-year-old Virgin Islands native has big, but unrefined, power arm.
14. Darin Gorski, LHP: Had arguably the best stats of any pitcher in the system, but he’s older and has more finesse than stuff.
15. Phillip Evans, SS: Over slot 15th-rounder profiles as offense-oriented second baseman
16. Wilmer Flores, INF: Bat has never taken expected move forward while scouts see big moves down defensive spectrum.
17. Jefry Marte, 3B: Age and strong showing in Arizona Fall League saves him; some scouts still believe in the bat.
18. Juan Urbina, LHP: Shows flashes of high-ceiling potential, but not enough of them.
19. Chris Schwinden, RHP: Reached the big leagues, but what you see is what you get with potential to be a number-five starter.
20. Darrell Ceciliani, OF: Plus speed and a leadoff man’s approach, but never got going with the bat in full-season debut.

Michael Kay Bets NYBD on Mets Win Total

Winner gets a vintage Kay/Silvatone Guitar!

Earlier today I called out Michael Kay for his statement regarding the Mets winning between 55-60 games this coming season.

Kay has taken to Twitter this week and done a great job interacting with fans.

Kay responded to my post about his statement asking me how many wins I see for the Mets.

Okay, mike, you’re so objective, how many will try win? Honestly. If I’m the shill, tell me how many they will win in your unbiased opinion.Thu Jan 12 18:05:29 via Twitter for iPhoneMichael Kay
RealMichaelKay

I responded that 77-81 is not out of the question. Regardless, they won’t be near the 55 to 60 games he predicted.

So here is our bet :

@NYBD you’re right, mike, they’re never devastated by injuries. What was I thinking? Betcha my 55 to 60 is closer than your 77 to 81.Thu Jan 12 19:34:04 via Twitter for iPhoneMichael Kay
RealMichaelKay

...Looks like the Mets are going to need to win more than 68 games for me to prevail.

Mets sign Miguel Batista, Fernando Cabrera & Sean Kazmar

It will be hard to be ripped off in any future S. Kazmar trade.

The Mets have signed free-agent RHPs Miguel Batista and Fernando Cabrera to minor league contracts, according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

Also, the Mets have signed SS Sean Kazmar,” who will go directly to minor league camp,” Adam Rubin added on Twitter.

Batista appeared in nine games for the Mets and 26 games for the Cardinals in 2011. Overall, he had a 2.42 ERA in five starts and a 4.50 ERA in 30 relief appearances, during which he struck out 31 batters in 59 innings.

F-Mart to the Houston Astros

Shop smart…

One-time top Mets prospect Fernando Martinez is now a Houston Astro.

Houston, which has first dibs in waiver claims by virtue of its MLB-worst record in 2011, selected the 23-year-old outfielder…

Because Martinez has an option remaining, he needs to remain on Houston’s 40-man roster, but can be optioned to Triple-A in spring training if he does not make the major league club.

Martinez is a lifetime .183 hitter with two homers and 12 RBIs in 131 at-bats spanning the past three seasons. His biggest obstacle has been injuries, including an arthritic knee that severely limits his mobility, even when technically healthy. Including his major league activity, Martinez has averaged only 77 games a regular season since 2006.

Source: F-Mart, Herrera on way out

F-Mart is now eligible for the Met Hall of Busted Prospects, which will induct Lastings Milledge later this year.

One-time top prospect Fernando Martinez as well as left-hander Daniel Herrera may be in their final days with the organization. A source told ESPNNewYork.com that both players are on waivers to clear the roster spots for Scott Hairston and Ronny Cedeno.

Martinez, 23, has faded as a prospect because of continual leg injuries. Even when healthy, an arthritic knee limits his mobility in the outfield. If Martinez clears waivers, the Mets can option him to Triple-A Buffalo. But Martinez’s reputation could prompt another team to claim him at least to take a shot.

Martinez hit .227 in 11 games with the Mets last