Tonight, tonight, tonight it’s PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL, our first show for the new year. Joe myself and Joe McDonald tonight at 9pmET on Blog Talk Radio as we discuss the Jason Bay signing, the Hall of Fame voting and what will be the next move made by the Mets front office. Our call in line will be open for business so call in and join in the conversation at (646) 595-4462. If you can’t join us live, you can listen to the podcast right  here at Kranepool Society, at our Pro Baseball Central site or at Blog talk Radio   

Posted under Pro Baseball Central

 

Join us tonight  at 9PM EDST for PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL and our guest Bert Sugar as we talk about his new book Bert Sugar’s Baseball Hall of Fame: A Living History of America’s Greatest Game (Running Press) We will also talk about the Mets-Pirates mantinee at PNC and the injury epidemic hitting the Mets. Listen live at Blog Talk Radio or listen to the podcast here or at the Eddie Kranepool Society.

Posted under Pro Baseball Central

It’s starting to look like the Mets are going to go after Derek Lowe to fill their starting pitching needs.

Of course, he’s the best pitcher on the market, but is he worth it? Think about it. Lowe will be 36 in June and if the Mets have to give him a four-year, $60 million contract, the team will be paying him $15 million to pitch when he’s 40. To me, that’s not a good investment.

Sure Lowe will give you over 200 innings a year and will throw to a low-3 ERA, but for how long. Just looking at the recent history of four-year contracts the Mets gave out to pitchers in their mid to late 30s, you can see how the team has gotten burned.

Tom Glavine never regained the Hall of Fame form he had in Atlanta and while he had some good seasons, they were dominate. Pedro Martinez’s arm went out during his second season of a four year contract and Billy Wagner will get paid around $10 million in 2009 to rehab his arm.

This is not to say Lowe will be like those players, but he’s hardly a Hall of Famer, and if history shows us one thing, it’s that older pitchers break down much, much easier.

Personally, I would like to see the Mets re-sign Ollie Perez, who is 27 and has shown no signs of breaking down. A four year contract will put him at 32 when a four year deal ends, since his birthday is in August.

The Mets are better off paying a guy for what he will do, not what he did for other teams.

Posted under Commentary, Free Agency, Hot Stove

Tracy Ringolsby of The Rocky Mountain News is in the writer’s wing of the Hall of Fame for a reason. He knows his stuff. Covering the NL Division Series, Ringolsby is reporting Manny Ramirez’s agent, Scott Boras (what a surprise), wants a five-year deal worth $85 million.

In 53 games for the Dodgers, Ramirez batted .396 with 17 HR and 53 RBI. No doubt, despite that short window of playing time, he’ll get some MVP consideration.

That’s fine, as long as the Mets don’t give him any consideration in the off-season. The Mets, their problems hitting with RISP, were still second in the league in runs scored. They need to spent the money on pitching.

Posted under New York Mets

Someday, Jon Niese might become a viable major league pitcher. That he started such a critical game last night indicates the seriousness of the Mets’ pitching woes and I’ve drawn these conclusions:

1. John Maine is too valuable for them to screw around with in the bullpen considering his health issues. He’s not going to be the difference. They will not win the World Series this year. Shut him down and have him be ready for spring training.

2. Pedro Martinez has had a Hall of Fame career. But, those days are gone. If he comes back next year, it should be as the fifth starter. They should cut ties with Martinez, but I’m entertaining his return because I anticipate Oliver Perez’s departure and Niese not being ready.

3. It is a sad state of affairs Perez will become richer than beyond his wildest dreams for being mediocre. He’s pitched well this year in parts, but his record screams mediocrity.

4. Of course, the records of Maine, Perez, Johan Santana and even Mike Pelfrey are below what they should be because of a bullpen that blew 29 saves. The pen has to be overhauled.

Posted under New York Mets