Let’s leave aside, for a moment, the arguments over how much the Mets have to spend. Whether payroll is at $200 million, $100 million or $50 million, the way to maximize it is to pay less for more production at every roster spot. That is intelligent operating, and it helps the Yankees as surely as it helps the Athletics, because it frees up other payroll for additional spending.
Sandy Alderson’s first year in charge was an absolute success because of these kinds of moves. From locking in RA Dickey at a below-market rate, to paying Chris Young and Chris Capuano less combined than most single starting pitchers would make (and receiving, for that money, a combined 210 innings of 4.24 ERA pitching), along with successful secondary parts like Scott Hairston and Tim Byrdak, Alderson took an awfully small number of lemons and produced a surprising amount of lemonade.
This winter, similar approaches to things like the Rule V draft and other value signings will be key. So let’s scour the 22 Triple-A free agents- declared free due to six years of pro experience and no claim on a 40-man roster spot- to determine who can help the Mets most. More to the point, the low cost of these guys means bringing them in is nearly entirely upside. My coveted few are below:
Dusty Brown: A right-handed hitting catcher, Brown posted an .806 OPS in 199 Triple-A plate appearances for Indianapolis in 2011. He’d provide depth, and possibly a decent low-cost platoon partner for Josh Thole if Ronny Paulino isn’t re-signed.
Wil Ledezma: A lefty reliever who averaged 12 strikeouts per nine innings in 2011 and 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings in 2010 at Triple-A. Given the team’s relative lack of lefty options other than Tim Byrdak, and the recent loss of both Pat Misch and Mike O’Connor, I’d love to see him in camp. Remember, bullpens aren’t built with questionable long-term contracts for too much money. They are usually built with guys like this.
Lastings Milledge: I just don’t think it is time to give up on Milledge having a productive major league career. Put up an .805 OPS with 12 home runs and 27 stolen bases in 33 attempts (for a Beltranian 82 percent success rate). Could help the Mets in left field or right field. He’d be a solid fourth outfielder next season. And no, I don’t think his baggage would be problematic. The players he clashed with are gone, and he is, by all reports, a very different clubhouse presence than he was.
P.J. Walters: a big, strong starting pitcher with effective strikeout and walk rates, just 26 years old, for an organization in need of pitching depth. He struggled in Las Vegas after going from St. Louis to Toronto in the Colby Rasmus deal, but it was seven starts- I don’t put much faith in the predictive ability of such a small sample. He’s worth a flyer- could help the back of the rotation next season.
11 Comments
I think Milledge could have a career year (he will turn 27 in April), but I also see it more likely that he will have a season like Bay had this year. Mediocre offense and defense where everyone sits there wondering when/if he will every hit.
We don’t a “low cost platoon partner” for Thole. We need a catcher. Brian Schneider was the absolute pits, but at least he could catch. Gamer that he is, If they (literally) got a new glove for Thole, it would be a good trade.
Lasting Milledge is the very LAST guy you need on a young, energetic team. Why not bring Vince Coleman out of retirement?
If the Mets don’t have an effective Santana, pencil in 75 wins max for 2012, and a rapidly declining fan base.
Mark, if he has a career year, great. If he hits like Bay, he costs you almost nothing. That’s why it makes sense to bring him in.
There are a half dozen reasons that the Mets, or anyone else, can have him for well under a million.
Right. There were reasons that RA Dickey made $2.25 million this year. There were reasons David Ortiz made $1.5 million when the Red Sox first signed him.
These are not reasons to stay away from such players.
This guy has never even scared his over-bloated initial projections. On top of that, nobody likes him. Alderson, (and Collins) are trying to create and maintain a youthful, positive attitude in the clubhouse. This guy is typical of previous management’s mistakes, a step backwards.
Only someone who has absolutelky no brain power of his own or someone who is the MEts PR man coyld possibly start off by claiming so ignorantly that Alderson’s first year was a success. The on;y success was in having a worse record, and falling attendance. That’s a success!!! You have no credibility. Just relay all of alderson’s statements as is., You’d have more value than you do being his lackey.
Building a lasting winner in MLB requires investment in the draft and logical player moves to foster long-term success. Just as Frank Cashen shouldn’t have been run out of town after the 1980 Mets struggled, Alderson is off to a strong start doing those long-term things and should be applauded.
Now, I suspect you disagree. Time will ultimately tell which one of us is right. Thanks for reading!
So far, I can’t imagine anyone doing better, considering the circumstances.
Sorry, I don’t understand this article – where did Milledge put these numbers?
I thought he only got a few at bats in the majors in 2011. Maybe these are his minor league numbers this past year?
As a humorous (and true) aside, some years ago, I was in the Town Tavern in Bronxville when, through the large front window that faced the street, the bartender saw Cashen’s car pull up. (He lived in Brooklands, less than a mile away.) He leaned over the bar and asked me to watch and see if Frank had his Mets hat on when he exited his vehicle. When I said ‘Yes,’ the bartender said, ‘Damn, that means he’s already got his load on.’