Welcome to New York, J.J. Putz. In case you missed it, the Mets traded Aaron Heilman, Endy Chavez, Joe Smith, and minor leaguers Mike Carp, Maikel Cleto, Jason Vargas, and Ezequiel Carrera for J.J. Putz, Sean Green, and Jeremy Reed. The Indians were also involved, as they received Luis Valbuena and gave up Franklin Gutierrez to the Mariners. Click here for the whole trade.My gut reaction is that it's a good trade that improves the Mets right now. If healthy, Putz is dominant. He and K-Rod would form the best 1-2 punch out of the 'pen in baseball. I also love the idea of Putz being utilized as a "relief ace", coming in to pitch during high leverage situations, no matter if it's the 6th or 9th inning. The 2007-2008 Mets lacked that pre-9th inning guy. However, the Mets gave up 7 players and got 3 in return, 1 of whom (Reed) I don't think is good enough to be on the Opening Day roster. I'll break the trade down later in more detail.
Omar Minaya covered his ass - now no one can say he didn't try to improve the bullpen.
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8 comments:
Surprised you think it's a "good" trade. Its a GREAT trade, IMO. Putz is nasty; arguably better than K Rod. I wasn't that pumped about K Rod b/c of course we'd get a good closer. The 8th inning was the bigger concern, and now that is solved in a big way.
And we got back 2 players that essentially "replace" Smith and Chavez. Finally a great baseball trade by Omar.
Mitch,
Check back later when I break down the numbers. Reed does not replace Endy. Reed is Endy without the ridiculously good D. I don't see how Reed will be on the Mets opening day roster if they sign Dunn/Abreu/Ibanez. You're right about Green - he's basically identical to Smith but a few years older.
Trust me, I like the trade a lot and I'm happy about it. The Mets are a better team today then yesterday. Especially if Putz is healthy. I'm just reading a lot in other places saying the Mets made out like bandits and I don't think that's the case.
Remember, Putz is signed through '09 with an option for '10.
I like the trade for the Mets. Obviously the bullpenn had to get fixed and now it pretty much is. Putz is nasty and is great insurance incase K-rod gets injured. When Wagner got hurt there was no one who could step up. Now you have a proven closer in the set up role. I also like the that the mets have him for one year with an option. If he turns out to be an injury problem then you only have him for a year. Lastly, since when is "PUTZ" pronounced "POOTS"? Your name is Putz dude....embrace it.
Now I just have to pull my hair out over the Yankees looking to deal Melky for Mike Cameron. Cameron is basically Melky except older and no upside. I'm all for trading Melky in a package to get Pevy or something but Cameron?
I'm on the opposite of the Melky-Cameron thing. First I'll admit I'm a fan of Cameron's and don't think much of Melky. But here goes:
Melky OPS+:
2006: 95
2007: 89
2008: 68
Cameron OPS+:
2006: 121
2007: 103
2008: 110
Melky Defense (UZR and +/-):
2006: 1.2, +7
2007: -13.6, -17
2008: -0.5, +6
Cameron Defense (UZR and +/-):
2006: 5.3, +9
2007: -6.9, +2
2008: 9.7, +8
Cameron will be 36 next year, and Melky will be just 24, so that is a definite plus for the Melkman. Cameron costs $10 million and Melky under $1 million, but it's the Yankees, $$$$ is no object. I dunno, OF defense is a big problem for the Yankees and I think Cameron would be an upgrade. Depends if the Yanks think Melky can be more than just a slightly above average fielder with a great arm.
I agree Cameron is a better player but I don't think he's worth it. Yes money is no object for the Yanks but you have to draw the line somewhere. I don't mind overpaying for C.C. but I do for someone like Cameron....if that makes sense. Even though he had a shitty year and actually ended the year in the minors I think the melkman has the potential to be a real stud, and like I mentioned before, I would have no problem trading him in a package to get a dominant player in his prime but it's not like the Yanks would be getting Beltran in return.
Plus they already have an old guy to play center who is a much better hitter than Cameron in Johnny Damon.
haha I know this is a Mets blog but I can't resist. The Yanks and Mets would actually be great trading partners this offseason but it would never happen. Here are some Yankees I wouldn't mind giving up in a trade:
Melky
Cano
Ian Kennedy
Umburto Sanchez
Another one or two relievers ( I love the Yankee bullpenn and could easily part with one or two guys because it's so strong)
I would also begrudgingly part with Phil Hughes if necessary.
Check this out:
http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/last-years-free-agent-bargain
Cameron is probably a steal for $10 million, considering what he brings.
Last Yankees offseason: "We need to stop just buying players - let's hold on to Hughes and Kennedy!"
This Yankees offseason: "F*ck it, let's just buy everyone. Can't decide C.C.? Here's another $20 million."
I love it honestly, and more power to them. If a team has the means to spend like that, they really should. It's a beautiful thing.
Imagine:
1 - CC
2 - Lowe
3 - Burnett
4 - Wang
5 - Pettitte/Hughes (Joba in the pen)
1 - Damon
2 - Jeter
3 - Tex
4 - A-Rod
5 - Nady
6 - Posada
7 - Matsui/Swisher
8 - Cameron
9 - Cano
I doubt they'd have enough $$ for Tex if they sign Lowe AND Burnett, but you never know.
The Yanks can't win in the off season. I think a lot of it comes from fans and media perception. The yanks get criticized constantly for "buying" their teams. So last year they decide to value their farm system over trading for Santana and they get blasted for not wanting to win or whatever.
I hear stuff like this now all the time. The other day I heard an interview with Dick Vitale (who knows why he was talking about anything besides college b-ball)that went something like this: "The Yankees offering all that money to CC, that's just not how's it's done BABBBYYY. You can't win like that BABBBYYY. Take a look at the Rays, they do it the right way! They have a winning style BABBYYY!! ROLEPLAYERS< TEAMWORK BABBBBYYY!!!" Oh yeah Dickie-V the Yankees ( who made the playoffs 13 years in a row with a certain philosophy) have no idea what they're doing but the Rays ( who have been the worst team in baseball for every year of their existence except for one miraculous year) They know how to run a baseball team!
I also love your projected lineup/rotation for the Yanks. Haha it is ridiculous. Although I'm a big Joba in the rotation guy. I think Hughes has proven he needs to be slowly introduced into the rotation through the pen while Joba is a proven commodity. You also don't get Joba's full value in the Penn. He throws 100 mph and has shown that he is ready to start. DO IT CASHMAN.
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