David Lennon makes the case for the Mets to keep Johnny Estrada as the Mets #1 catcher. Lennon points out that the staff ERA when caught by Estrada improved at each of the teams he’s played for. Lennon also hints that all the “between the lines” most of us have been doing on why Omar wants no part of Paul LoDuca is off base. It looks like it’s more about Dookies age, health and his defensive breakdown as well as money that has him left out in the cold.

By the way. can you all stop with this pipe dream that the Mets bring back Mike Piazza as a third catcher/pinch hitter. It’s over for Mikey here there or anywhere. Oh by the way the picture taking up the bulk of this post is of the greatest catcher in Mets history Jerry Grote. 

Duaner Sanchez is trying to become a big league pitcher again under the watchful eye of Randy Neiman done in Port St Lonesome. The good news is Sanchez has his arm slot back to where it was in 2006 and he is able to throw effectively. The bad news, he won’t be pitching in the Winter Leagues but Neiman puts a positive spin on it that he will get his work in done in St. Lonesome and be ready to compete for a job come March. Let’s see. 

After watching the Knicks and Jets self-destruct, Ian O’Connor sets his sights on the Mets off season. After exhaustive investigation O’Connor has come up with a theory that Omar needs to go hard after Johan Santana in a deal with the Twins. WOW Really?

O’Connor also trots out the old “the Mets need to take back the city from the Highlanders” lament which is older than Bill Madden’s suits (our weekly Bill Madden dig)

I feel bad for O’Connor and his fellow sports columnists as they have run out words to describe the suckitude of the Knicks and Jets (whatever happened to Man-genius?) the Giants are pretenders plus Coach Coughlin is on happy pills. No one likes hockey and the Nets are well the Nets. So all that’s left is to beat the living shit out the Mets.

I have always been a fan of Freddy Garcia and so has Omar Minaya. Minaya, according to the NY Daily News has contacted Garcia’s agent that the Mets are interested in the rehabbing Chief. Garcia is coming off labrum surgery and would not be ready until the second half of the 2008 season but if Omar could get Garcia under contract that would be high risk, high reward move that be applauded. This doesn’t mean you get out of the Johan Santana sweepstakes at all it just means you try to add as much pitching as you can.

I can see the Garcia deal with the Mets happening as Omar wanted him from the White Sox but the trade price was too high now with just dead presidents standing in the way, this could be on of Omar’s best moves ever.

When I first started this blog I took issued with something Bill Conlin had written in the Philadelphia Daily News, I can’t remember what exactly it was that Colin wrote that annoyed me but I made a wise crack about his girth in the post something like the strike zone being as tight as Conlin suit jacket and I also cracked about how it annoyed me how he never put down his damn coffee cup when he was on Sports Reporters. When I saw his e-mail address on the bottom of the article, on a whim I e-mailed him a link to my site.

When I saw that Conlin e-mailed me back I was happy that a “writer” would read the site and e-mail me back. When I opened the e mail I was surprised by the message, Conlin told me to “go fuck myself”. I laughed then I got pissed off and I wrote him back and called him a fat fuck. He returned with a missive that he was going to kick my ass.  I wrote back and said I’d roll his fat ass down Roosevelt Ave. This went on for a couple more e mails until I decided this is even too childish for me and I not only never e mailed him again I haven’t read and of his column since.

I bring this up because on Deadspin I saw where a Phillies blogger wrote him to make his case that Jimmy Rollins did not deserve to win the NL MVP over David Wright. Now the blogger wrote to Conlin very politely and professionally identifying himself as not just a blogger but a Phillies fan as well. Here was Conlin’s response:

Don’t you need to contact the 30 electors–including the two Mets beat writers–who failed to give write a single first place vote instead of a commentator who does not vote for the awards. You’re a Mets fan and you had your little bubble of arrogance and smugness burst. Your team choked big time, an epic gagaroo. At least the 1964 Phillies had an excuse–they were probably no more than the Cardinals, Reds, Braves, Dodgers and Giants that year. One question: When a Mets team chokes in a forest and nobody is there to hear it, does it make a gagging sound? Next time bring more to the table than wishful fan numbers that bear no semblance to reality. I wonder how it feels to be the Phillies bitch.

As I said the blogger is a PHILLIES FAN but that is the venom that is Bill Conlin

So Mets fans why not drop Billy Cheesesteak a line and tell him what you think of him.

And if you think this can’t get worse well, Conlin is a notorious blogger hater and just when you think you heard it all, well boys and girls read this response that Conlin sent the Phillies Blogger:

The only positive thing I can think of about Hitler’s time on earth–I’m sure he would have eliminated all bloggers. In Colonial times, bloggers were called “Pamphleteers.” They hung on street corners handing them out to passersby. Now, they hang out on electronic street corners, hoping somebody mouses on to their pretentious sites. Different medium, same MO. Shakespeare accidentally summed up the genre best with these words from a MacBeth soliloquy: “. . .a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. . .”

How fucking ignorant! Guys like Conlin are scared of the blogging community because we are a threat to a dinosaur like him. OOOOOOOOOHHHH look out Billy the Boogie Blogger may get you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you sick bastard!!!!!

After getting totally frustrated playing Guitar Hero III with my son, I decide to take a look at some baseball stories on the web. I saw this one from the Minneapolis-Star Tribune on Johan Santana turning down a 5 yr/$96mil deal from the Twins. The story states that Santana is looking for a Barry Zito type deal of $126 mil for either 5 or 7 years. I don’t blame Santana and his agent Peter Greenberg for asking that much since Santana is a better pitcher than Zito but it looks like that price may be too rich for Carl Pohlad. Pohlad is so rich is shits out twenty dollar bills. Someone should explain to the eighty plus year old Pohlad, that his family will not be lining his coffin with his billions, so maybe with a new stadium on the way it would be wise to spend some dough on a dominant pitcher like Santana.

But hey, if not I’m sure the Skill Sets will spend the dough. In the article the writer says how the Mets drew a line in the sand on Zito and would go above $75 mil that’s true but there is a big difference between Zito and Santana. Santana is a bona fide ace a stopper something the Mets need desperately and you can bet that Omar will make his case to the Skill Sets that the $126 or $130 mil they spend on Santana will be well worth it.

I have come to the realization that when $iti Field opens  a middle class guy like me will not get to as many games as I did at Shea. With less seats the demand will skyrocket and with that the price of the ticket will as well. So that knocks out a lot of the real fans of the team. Figure every game could be like a postseason game when the corporate slobs grab all the tickets, leaving the great unwashed to watch on TV. So with the Skill Sets making money like Saudi Prince’s  let them spend the dough on talent or buying out non producers (yes you Carlos Delgado) What the hell, it ain’t our money.   

I was reading Jason Starks Rumblings and Grumblings column and it looks like the Omar is committed to make a big deal and bring back a top flight pitcher. For Johan Santana Stark mentions dealing Carlos Gomez, Fernando Martinez and Mike Pelfrey plus $18-$20mil a year for the Mets to secure Santana. If that’s the fact where do I sign? Omar would make that deal in a Santo Domingo minute are you kidding me? As for the contract, I would be willing to wave my 3 yr only policy of pitchers contract as pitching is so scarce that you would have to lock up Santana for (gulp!) 6 years at $20mil which is well within the Skill Set budget.

I want to wish everyone a wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving and just to give my thanks for all of you who come by here and read the posts and leave comments and drop me e mails for that I am thankful for all of you and thankful that we all have the common bond of rooting for the New York Mets.

First baseman Josh Phelps has been designated for assignment by the Pirates who have 10 days to trade Phelps or lose him to free agency.  Signing Phelps would be a strong move by Omar to add a righty bat and to have back up for Carlos Delgado. Phelps hits lefities (.296/.364/.500) so adding Phelps looks like an upgrade over Jeff Conine who played that role last year.   

Obtaining Johnny Estrada while not earth shattering is a positive step by Omar Minaya just for the fact that he got rid of Guillermo Mota. Not only did he dump Mota but the Brewers took all of Mota’s contract (over $3mil) and sent the Mets a catcher that if he sticks is more than serviceable and if he doesnt , won’t cost a penny as he is arbitration eligible. So why would the Brewers help the Mets like this?

Estrada is coming off a season where he was pretty bad behind the plate as his knee problems prevented him to get a good push on his throws to second base and base runners ran at will against him. Estrada seems to be a bit of a malcontent as we saw first hand last year when in a game against the Mets, Estrada and manager Ned Yost went to blows in the Brew Crew dugout and then down in the tunnel leading toward the clubhouse. He also had words with pitching coach Mike Maddox on how to handle the pitching staff. The Mets will become Estrada’ fifth employer in eight years which is a big red flag. But this is a very good move by Omar.

Estrada is arbitration eligible which still gives the Mets flexibility when it comes to dealing for an upgrade in the catching department. I still think Minaya has his eye on Ramon Hernandez in a deal that includes Erik Bedard from the O’s. If that deal doesn’t happen or if the foundation for a deal for another front line catcher like Mike Olvio or Ronny Paulino isn’t there then Estrada, a one time All Star and when healthy and more than descent defensive catcher becomes a nice partner to Ramon Castro.

I saw on Yahoo that the Dodgers and Orioles and looking to put together a deal with Erik Bedard and Matt Kemp as the headliners. Andy McPhail is in renovation mode in Charm City and let’s face it with the Highlanders and Red Sawx in the same division your not going to out spend them so you have to get younger, leaner and meaner. The problem the Mets have is the Dodgers farm system is like a South American sweat shop with so much young cheap labor that they can afford to deal two or three young studs to fortife their rotation.

Let’s hope that Omar can get into the bididng here.