If it’s so bring them both back to NY. After reading this post, I too would be surprised if Jim Bowden traded Milledge (Wait a minute we’re talking Jim Bowden here just get him liquored up and he might do it) but if he went to the Phillies that would out and out suck. Now Wiggy would fill a great spot for the Mets with his righty bat, versatility and bull dog attitude (add Wiggy and Murphy and the Mets would have that much needed grit) and of course I’d welcome Milledge back to Gangsta’ Land in a heartbeat.

If I were building a football team I’d build I’d do it from the inside out. Which means I’d build my offensive and defensive lines first then go with running backs, linebackers and so forth. It looks like the Mets plan is similar as they look to be going from back to front.

The first order of winter business seems to be closer which is now between Francisco Rodriguez and Brain Fuentes which is fine by me. What isn’t fine is the way the Mets are going about signing these players as they are using the government contract rule where the lowest bidder gets the deal. As someone in government and as a daily passenger of the Staten Island Ferry (4 boats that are less than five years old at a cost of $30mil a piece that breakdown for months at a time) I can tell you this method of business doesn’t always work out for the best.

What Omar and Co. need to do is decided which closer they want and damn the money. If K-Rod checks out medically and he’s the guy then if it takes four years guaranteed then do it. If Fuentes is your man then sign him. Don’t dick around here pick your guy and sign him.

I think they want K-Rod but at a reduced price than he wants and I have a feeling Rodriguez’ agent is at a disadvantage going up against Omar and Tony B.

Still trying to get the cobwebs out of my head from a hectic weekend. I spent all of Saturday and most of Sunday morning on the USS Massachusetts in Fall River MA. We left Staten Island at 6:00AM Saturday. The Massachusetts has quite a history and we spent most of the day going through out the ship from the boiler room to the area where the guns were loaded to the hospital on board and it was very interesting. Then we set up our quarters for the night as we slept on the ship along with 200 other people mostly Boy Scouts (our party had 30 boys/fathers in it)  Our “beds” were four cots hung in bunk like fashion on a big chain down a row. We made sure some of our “bigger” members didn’t take a top bunk. I was in a second from the bottom bunk and one of the scouts who took the top was tossing and turning all night. It was like sleeping on the Wonder Wheel. Not that I slept much as when lights out was given at 11pm the boys all went back to their bunks the adults went upstairs to a room where we played a game called “Pigs” it’s two little pigs that you toss like dice and how the pigs land determine the amount of points you receive or loses. Of course we made up different rules as we went along as the night got later and later the rules got even more ridiculous such as expulsion from the game if your pigs landed in an “inappropriate pig touching manner”. The game broke up a 1:30 AM as some people trying to sleep below us begged us to keep quiet and with 6:30AM revelry we deiced to call it a night. Only one father in our group severed in the armed service and he was in for 15 years. As we were going to our bunks he said to the group that he was thankful none of us served with him as he was sure we all would have wound up in the brig at one time or another.

Happy Birthday to The Franchise who turns 64 today.

The more info I get on the Mets obtaining a closer the more my head hurts but one thing is for sure they are in the driver seat and they will get THE closer they want. The way it looks is they are torn between Franscio Rodriguez and Brain Fuentes and who ever takes the 3 years plus option on a fourth year will be the man. The one consistent in the reports you read is the most important feature in making a deal for the Mets is length of contract and not money.  As much as I started the Bobby Jenks bandwagon if the price is F-Mart and Bobby Parnell that’s to much to give, unless Jermiane Dye is in the mix and Ryan Church could replace the Teen Age Hitting Machine in the deal, but the Mets Brain Trust is as high on Parnell as a player as they are on F-Mart so unless the price were to drop significantly on Jenks that deal will die.

The more you read about Kerry Woods the more intriguing a candidate he becomes and I’m a little surprised that the Mets are not mentioned more when it comes to Wood. After reading this post from ChicagoCubs online my interest in Wood piqued even more.

It looks as though the bullpen for the 2009 Mets could look as follows:

K-Rod/Fuentes

Juan Cruz

Joe Biemel

Joe Smith

Pedro Feliciano

Kunz/Parnell/Brad Holt?

Throw Chad Cordero in the mix on a spring training contract and I would bring Brandon Knight in camp as well. Also we still have to see all the non-tenders (Jason Issringhausen?) Rule 5’ers minor league free agents and international free agents as well but if Omar can get the closer he wants and adds Cruz and Biemel I’ll be impressed.

Is “$iti” Field on life support? Not the ball park but the name as it seems CitiGroup is some tough financial shape an looking to layoff personnel. If that happens how does the company continue to pay the Mets for the naming rights of their play pen? Can you say Shea II? Or Gil Hodges Field?

You could say with a half descent bullpen behind him, there would have been a first time press conference at $iti Field today to announce Johan Santana as the 2008 NL Cy Young Award winner but instead the award goes to the Frisco Phenom Tim Lincecum and it’s hard to argue the choice. I know it really doesn’t matter who comes in 2nd or 3rd in these awards contests but how could 9 voters not give Santana either a 2nd or 3rd place vote?

Joel Sherman at the NY Post thinks it would a good idea if the Mets hooked up with the White Sox in a deal for closer Bobby Jenks. Yes that is the same Bobby Jenks I called on Omar to pursue about three weeks ago. I give Sherman credit for putting this out on a Wednesday when that’s my day to take care of things around the house so blogging takes a back seat with me. Also Joel if you need ideas for your column just e mail me and we can work out a payment schedule like stand up comics do for jokes from other comics even though I just some dumb ass blogger (not in my basement today but in my dining room and I’m full dressed as I post this). You might as well take my trade scenario the whole way and throw AJ Pierzynski in the deal as well.

I’ll let this one go for free but if you steal my Matt Capps/John Grabow deal then I’m taking you in front of the hottest judge on TV for justice.

I’m happy for Willie Randolph that he was named to Ken Macha’s coaching staff in Milwaukee. After watching Willie’s time with the Mets I feel this is the best spot for him as a coach as he has proven to be a terrific teacher but he isn’t much of a communicator that seems to be the major part of being a manager or head coach in pro sports today. All the best, Willie

Oliver Perez has no bigger backer than Howard Megdal and Howard has written a great piece on why the Mets should do the right thing and resign Ollie to a long term deal. Howard makes some great points in his article especially when comparing OP to Derek Lowe. I have to say I’m up in the air with re-signing OP. I’d love to have him back in the fold but at what price? If Ollie had an agent who wasn’t a ruthless prick like Scott Boras this would have been worked out already and you would think that OP would want to be a Met as his career which was as close to the dumpster as you can find was revived with the Mets.

I haven’t seen anything written on what kind of contract OP (or should I say Boras) is looking for but one would think it would nothing short of 5 years and in the 30Mil-plus category, for a pitcher who would be a number 3 or number 4 starter on the Mets. The one positive is that Boras and Omar have a good relationship or as good as you can have when I guy wants to hold you up so I would hope that some kind of deal could be worked out as this is a case where both the pitcher and the team need each other.

Check out more on the Ollie Perez debate at NY Baseball Digest.

Back to Mets stuff. It seems that Omar is looking toward Tampa for pitching help and the Rays supposedly are dangling Edwin Jackson and Andy Sonnanstine for Aaron Heilman. Heilman seems to be in play with the Rockies, Cubs,Cubs and Snakes who fancy him as a starter. Now of course if the Mets kept with the plan they devised two seasons ago when they sent Heilman to Winter Ball to stretch out his arm to begin 2006 as a starter instead Heilman got beaten out for the #5 spot by Brian Bannister, only because the Mets felt Heilman would adjust to long releif better than Bannister. Then with players like Lima Time, Victor Zambrano and other pitching rejects getting a shot at the rotation over him is one of the reasons Heilman looked beaten the last two season. That’s not to excuse him from being ineffective in relief and not stepping up when he was needed but anyone is the poster boy for a change of scenery it’s Aaron Heilman and if the Mets could land Andy Sonnastine for Heilman that would be a great trade.

Thank you Mark Healy for the hat tip from Gotham Baseball.  Heals, echos the feeling that the attituted of the Mets needs a blast from the past.

Yes, Greg Prince, Next Year can not get here soon enough for me either.

I think my head is still swiming from the managerial screw up by both Good O’ Cholly and Joey Specs so read the lay of the mis-managerial land from Beyond the Box Score.

Eddie Kunz is not having a good go of it in the AFL as lefties are whipping his ass and it has me worried

I wanted desperately to go to bed but I was I got to involved in last night’s late night with the Used Car Salesman and now I have to scramble as if it’s  Sunday it must be High School Open House Day as I have to go with my son to two more schools on his list.  So ‘ll be brief. Very sloppy game on both sides with bad base running and errors with the Rays not living up to their rep of top fielders and strong bullpen and the Upton run scored reminded me of little league but the game was compelling and I guess MLB had no choice but to start the game at 10PM but I doubt to many people stayed up for the end unless they were coming home from a night of partying.

Saw this today that the Fish are looking to deal Kevin Gregg and though tif not a closer for the Mets a great 8th inning guy and the Mets and Fish have worked deals before so I’m sure Omar will be dialing Larry Beinfest. Or one would hope