Minnesota Twins GM was named The Sporting News’ Baseball Executive Of The Year last night, with Mets GM Omar Minaya finishing a distant third.
Earlier today, Snakes starter Brandon Webb was named the NL’s Cy Young Award winner. So much for the Mets campaigning for Country Time.
If you can believe Ken Rosenthal’s assertion that there’s trade interest in the Yankees’ Carl Pavano, it’s far easier to swallow the notion that Gil Meche is one of this offseason’s most coveted arms.
The WBC will return in 2009, and hopefully by then, MLB will have appointed a goodwill ambassador besides Tommy Lasorda.
Despite being out of the game for the past two years, Rey Ordonez has signed a minor league deal with the Mariners. In more, former Mets landing-on-their-feet news, infielder Kaz Matsui has inked a one-year deal with Colorado.
Boston’s winning bid for the negotiating rights to Seibu’s Daisuke Matsuzaka is said to top $51 million. If that seems excessive for a pitcher with no big league experience, consider Tim Wakefield’s crummy season, Curt Schilling being 100 years old and improbability of Matt Clement pitching effectively sometime this century. All of that, plus the hope Josh Beckett serves up fewer than 35 home runs in 2007.
Coming off a 74 RBI season with Texas, IF Mark DeRosa has signed a 3 year, $13 million deal with the Cubs. Cub Town’s Derek Smart writes,
My initial reaction is a combination of relief that Ronnie Cedeno will not be cracking the starting lineup on a regular basis, and “You’re paying how much for what, now?”
Perhaps as the evening wears on I’ll be more sanguine about the thing, but my in-the-moment-no-information-thought is that it appears Ryan Theriot just got screwed.
Oakland have reportedly narrowed their managerial choices down to Jamie Quirk, Bob Geren and Orel Hersheiser. The A’s unveiled plans for their new Freemont ballpark on Tuesday, and Catfish Stew’s Ken Arneson was amongst the interested observers.
As much as I like the “Cisco Field” name, I hate the news that “of Fremont” will be part of the team name. The Angels have an excuse for such a goofy name, because (1) their lease required it, and (2) Anaheim is the home of Goofy.
The only way I’ll ever say the words “of Fremont” is if we can convince the other AL West teams to follow the same convention. Somethingorother Athletics of Fremont. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Texas Rangers of Arlington. Redmond Mariners of Seattle.
When Billy Beane said we can start rooting for players instead of just for laundry, I thought two things: (1) The A’s believe they’re gonna make a lot more money in this ballpark, and (2) I wonder if giving Billy Beane more money to play with is actually a good thing.
Beane’s record with signing free agents has been spotty at best. Arthur Rhodes, anyone? But perhaps his record has been spotty because spotty players are all he can afford. Maybe with some more money, the A’s can actually pursue players who are more of a sure bet. Can you imagine the A’s signing a top-tier free agent? Seems impossible today.
The placement of Jackie Robinson Rotunda at the Mets’ new megamall ballpark isn’t nearly enough to pacify Jaap from Archie Bunker’s Army.
What I would have liked to have seen was discussions on how each section could be themed after a neighborhood in Queens or to the rich and diverse culture of Queens rather than the simplistic and automotonic paen to the rich and corporate. Is that baseball’s message? I suppose it is, sadly so. Nonetheless, I would like to have seen a rich, carb and fat-laden Dominican menu, as unhealthy as it is, in honour of all the Dominicans who work for the Mets both on and off the field. For example, instead of the Boog’s BBQ like they have at Camden Yards, a job for retired Pedro, like Pedro’s Pastelones and long lines for the sancocho, aspopado or chicharrones de pollo. In fact, why stop at the Dominicans, why not a whole Latino section, right next to the Jackie Robinson rotunda, dedicated to Hispanic culture generally?
Because they don’t make enough fucking money that’s why. They can’t stuff Wilpon’s gob with dollar bills and turn this into a fat and sadistic revenue producing bonanza to lead them into the 21st century of modern baseball, that’s why.
All I can say is Wilpon and Citibank had better put the best bloody team in baseball on the field after this blatant pandering to filthy money. And CitiField should be about winning and winning is about money. The Mets should change their jerseys to white and Citibank green with the sort of pinstripes going through the jersey numbers like lines going through the S of a $ sign. Yeah, I like that. A team with class. More toilets, bigger restaurants and more money machines to buy it all with. They’ve got their new stadium, their own revenue-producing baseball channel, and the wind of soul-less capitalism at their sails. They’d better start winning every World Series for the next decade because otherwise, I’m going to have to start rooting for a team like the Mets that I root for used to look like – a simple, every day working man’s baseball team. Not a cheap history-poor version of the Capitalist Pig Yankees.