January 17: Don’t count on Mets getting Zambrano next winter
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- January
- 17
For those thinking the Mets will swoop in and get “Carlos Zambrano”:http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6559 next winter, think again. Zambrano filed for $15.5 million in salary arbitration yesterday with the Cubs, who will open negotiations on a long-term deal next month.
Word is Zambrano is looking for six-year, $110 million package, which is what the Mets shied away from with Barry Zito. Zambrano is 46-21 with a 3.14 ERA over the past three seasons, which is better than Zito’s numbers over that span, meaning he’s sure to get it.
And, considering how active the Cubs were this winter building their offense, they know they can’t win without pitching. So, I’m guessing they’ll sign him soon to avoid competition in the open market.
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on Wednesday, January 17th, 2007 at 1:00 pm by John Delcos.
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darn, i was really hoping the mets would somehow get to him. in my opinion he is one of the more intimidating power pitchers out there, i thought he coudl be a huge link in the giant puzzle
To Anthony (RE: Zambrano)
It just seems like a long shot. They might cave on the money, but I really see the Cubs moving fast to keep him off the market where his price would jump.
I haven’t seen any realistic fans putting Zambrano in Orange and Blue for ‘08, but haven’t the Cubs also done a great job of proving they can’t win with pitching in recent years as well? All of this money being thrown around means nothing if you still have Ryan Dempster closing games for you…
bren you bring up a good point. lets keep it blue and orange and get rid of the black and fucia and all the other freakin colors. Lets old school the team !
Yeah.
The current colors suck. Go back to the orange and blue and stop trying to be like everyone else with black.
As for the Cubs, they seem to have the money to spend so it won’t be $$ that gets him here.
Perhaps a shot at the title and a better environment will do it.
Dave
If he hits the market the Mets will pay. No doubt on this one John. They were hesitant with Zito because they already had a lefty who pitched like him. Zambrano is a power #1 guy. IF he hits the market the mets will pay. And will give the years considering his current age.
The only way my theory is flawed is if Pelfry and Humber blossom out. Then they might not see a need to pay such a high price. But if Pelf and Hum are no better than 4 and 5 starters then Omar will open up the wallet and give him the years. IF they thought Zito was this type of pitcher that deal would have been done early before San Fran could jump in. But rightfully so they held out and made a good decision. Zambrano is a no brainer the question would be at that point would they get outbid by the Yanks and Red Sox again???
To Vince (RE: Zambrano)
There’s no doubt the Mets would be in it for Zambrano if he hits the market. The Yankees and Boston, too. Maybe a few others. I’m fantasizing here because the Twins won’t pay that much, but he and Santana in the same rotation would be incredible.
If Zito got the years, then so would Zambrano. As of now, I think Pelfrey has a better chance of cracking the rotation than Humber. They do need one of them to pan out, because of the age up front.
John,
While i have no delusions that Zambrano will be on the open market, who is his agent, and isnt it realistic to think his $$$ on the open market would exceed whatever he could sign for now?
jb
of course it would exceed what he gets now, but players like to sign contract extensions and what not, because it gives them security, and also, word is, Zambrano wants to stay with the Cubs, so if he’s a sane normal person, what’s a few million on a hundren million dollar deal? As for Santana and a dream rotation, the Twins don’t need to dream, they already have probably (when healthy) the best #2 pitcher in the league in Liriano, because frankly, the guy is an ace.
To JB and Joseph (RE: Zambrano)
Joseph is right. Either way, Zambrano will be richer beyond his wildest dreams. This isn’t like Zito because there was no way the Athletics would keep him. On the other hand, the Cubs have the money to make this work now. The Cubs have to understand that if you don’t take care of your franchise players that they become somebody else’s franchise player.
I hope Zambrano’s agent took his computer away. I would hate to see such a great career derailed by cyberspace…
If Humber, Perez, Vargas, and Humber do what we all know they can do then the need to go out and sign an expensive ACE is not needed. Carlos Zambrano is due for a flame out in the near future, the guy has pitched a lot of innings, and im shocked his arm hasn’t fallen off yet. In the original article is said that the Mets would probably not go after Zambrano because they didn’t go after Zito because of his price tag well that is not the reason why they won’t go after Zambrano who is a much better fit as a Met then Zito. Zambrano is a true ACE, even when Wood and Prior were completely healhty many thought Zambrano was still the best pitcher of the three. I have no doubt that if the Mets needed to go out and find an ACE they would pay whatever $$$ needed to sign him, unlike Zito who they though as a middle of the line type of guy. I just worry about the wear and tear of his arm and shoulder he has pitched a lot over the past 5 years.
To Robert Griffin (RE: Zambrano’s durability)
You make a good point about Zambrano being due. Then again, the same can be said for any pitcher. One of my concerns with Zito was the accumulation of innings. The same will be for Zambrano. Six years is long for any pitcher.
If all those guys you mentioned pan out, sure, there’s no need to shop for an ace. But, what are the odds of everybody clicking, and at the same time?
Even Money. why? because hey Zito/Zambrano could decide to implode this year. :-)
Hey you never know what Minaya can do. He seems to try to use the hispanic angle to connect to FA latin players. Plus if Chicago has a bad season, like a post said above, the chance at a title could sway him away.
hey derek, you opened a can of worms ;-]
your comment brings up an issue i have. If you are going to play american baseball. and get paid american dollars then you need to be an american. oh yeah and speak the language.
This has been bothering me for awhile now. It is bad enough corporate america does it, but to have the American Passtime do this over and over its very aggravating.
steps off soapbox and hands back megaphone
ok i feel a little better now…