2007 Individual Game Tickets On Sale at Mets.com

While the full slate of games for the Mets 2007 season are not up for sale yet, there are ten dates (not including Opening Day) for which you can now buy Upper Reserved seats for just 5 bucks each. There are also three "Holiday Packs," groups of 5 dates, again none of which include Opening Day, for which you can buy seats for $37 per set. That's less than $7.50 per game! Go here to take advantage.

If only I weren't living in North Carolina I'd be asking for some of these for Christmas.


Meanwhile I still wait for Opening Day tickets to go on sale, or maybe the six-packs. For now just the above deals, Full-Season tickets, Half-season and mini plans are up for grabs. I used to have the Saturday plan and later the Sunday plan. That's when Shea Stadium was my "church!"

Omar Has 12 Shopping Days Left To Give Us A Barry Merry Zito ChristmasMeanwhile...

I will tell you, being now two months removed from the Mets early exit from the playoffs, that I am more firm in my belief that in 2006 the team just wasn't ready. Although they seemed to be ready - with the maturity of David Wright, the playoff acumen of Carols Beltran and Tom Glavine and the leadership of Delgado and Franco - still I think it was just too early. Clearly Mets fans were not ready either. Yes, we were hungry, nay starved for a title, and yet we have not gotten over self-doubt. When we booed Carlos Beltran in April we reeked of a lack of self-confidence. When we chanted "Yankees Suck" after beating the Padres in August it exposed us as a fanbase who were still looking over our shoulders. And in December, when the Atlanta Braves make a relatively minor trade for a set-up man and the commenters on MetsBlog all but lose their sh*t over this brilliant move by Schuerholz, all but anointing Atlanta the 2007 title, it shows we still have a ways to go in our self-confidence as fans of this team. Remember the swagger of 1986? I sure do. It wasn't just Darryl Doc and Dykstra's swagger - we fans had that air of confidence too. We were barely aware of our neighbors in the Bronx. We didn't seat any competitor. We need to get back to that. Pitchers and Catchers report in 66 days. Our self confidence needs to show up soon after.


The Darren Oliver Era: Over. Oliver is signing with the California Angels of The West Coast for 2007. Here's a guy who was all set to retire after the 2005 season, and the Mets invited him to Spring Training. He didn't crack the rotation, but he decided to stick around anyway and help out in the 'pen. He was an MVP (Mets Valuable Player) in the season in that on more than one occasion he bailed out a starter and kept us in the game, while also protecting the rest of the bullpen from being overworked. We won't forget his playoff performance either.

Transplanted Ex-Met Update: Jay Payton signed a two year deal with The Baltimore Birdcraps. He and fellow transplanted ex-mets Chad Bradford and Melvin Mora are headed for another year looking up at the Junkees, BoSox and Blue Jays, and will fight it out with the Florida Rays for the saddest franchise in the East.

Victor Zambrano Era: Over?
The Mets non-tendered Victor Zambrano yesterday, making him a free agent and meaning any other team can bid for his services. I would make a joke here but Tanyon Sturtze found himself a job this offseason so who the hell knows?

The Brian Bannister Era Is Over

Late last night, while transplanted ex-Met Mike Piazza was finishing up a deal to be the A's new DH, Omar made his first move of the Winter Meetings, shipping Brian Bannister off to Middle America for the Kansas City Royals' Ambiorix Burgos. Who the heck is Ambiorix Burgos, you might ask? Well, first of all he becomes only one of two kids named Ambiorix in the Mets organization. 23 year old outfielder Ambiorix Concepcion has been toiling in the lower levels of the Mets farm system for the past few years, but 2007 doesn't look to be the year when two dudes named Ambiorix share space on the same big league roster.

ANYWAY... the Ambiorix the Mets acquired yesterday is Ambiorix Burgos, a hard-throwing 21 year old right-handed pitcher who hails from the Dominican Republic. If he were a fictional character, he would be Charlie Sheen in Major League. This guy throws hard, real hard, but can't find the plate. He spent some time as the Royals closer last season and blew twelve saves out of 30 opportunities. Yes, he blew twelve saves out of thirty. Here's a clue why: He threw eleven wild pitches in 73 innings. Meanwhile, in 2005 he could claim the highest average fastball velocity of American League relievers, at 96.5 mph. Holy mackerel. Imagine being a batter facing this guy? 97 miles an hour and neither one of you have any idea where the pitch will wind up. This could be very interesting. Just don't ask me how to pronounce his name. I'm a blogger, not a linguist.

Speaking of interesting, Gary Carter and Howard Johnson were sitting around, anxiously waiting to find out which one of them would be named the Mets third base coach for 2007. Well yesterday Willie Randolph and Omar dropped a bombshell, indicating that Sandy Alomar will be shifting over to third base next season, and Rickey Henderson is a candidate to become the 2007 first base coach. Whuh??? There may still be an opening for HoJo or The Kid as Willie's bench coach, but we'll find out soon.

Rick Peterson is coming back in 2007. I had wondered if Texas wouldn't have thrown a boatload of cash at Peterson in their efforts to attract Barry Zito, but I guess Tom Hicks will have to stick with cash. Let's all not forget by the way, that Texas has no state income tax, so money from Texas is worth more than money from New York.

Mets Fan Lugo Signs With Sox

31 yr. old Julio Lugo, who earlier this offseason told the press that he grew up a Mets fan, has signed a four year deal with the Boston Red Sox.

Man, I love all these long-term big money deals that are cropping up around the league. Want to know why? I love seeing other teams get bogged down in bad contracts. I give the Cubbies two years before they are trying to unload Alfonso Soriano. Good luck.

There's money to be made this offseason if you're a free agent, and the Mets are wise to sit this one out, with the exception of the Z-man. Let the other clubs lock up their budgets into the next decade. A year from now the Mets will be one of the few clubs with financial flexibility.

Exhausting!

Omar Minaya must be walking around like a zombie right now. I'm not even at the Winter Meetings, yet I am exhausted from all the rumors floating around. I only check MetsBlog and HotFoot about 50 times a day, each, plus ESPN, FOX and SI's websites too.

But since Tom Glavine decided to take the Mets offer over the one he never got from the Braves, there's been no real action for Mets fans to discuss. The Mets want Barry Zito but haven't offered him anything. Is Omar worried that Zito might pull a Glavine and take the offer he has from Texas over the one he hasn't gotten yet from the Mets? No. Do you know why? Because Scott Boras is involved, and there's no room for any of that nonsense, I mean, classiness, that went on while we were waiting for Glavine to make up his mind. Boras will wait until this time next forever for the Mets to make their offer, if for no other reason than to increase his leverage somewhere.

This reminds me of A-Rod a bit, where everyone knew A-Rod wanted to come to the Mets, but the Mets didn't want to overpay, but Texas was willing to break the bank. But, whereas in the aftermath of A-Rod signing with Texas, every Mets fan from here to Long Island was screaming bloody hell about Steve Phillips allowing A-Rod to take Tom Hicks's $250 million, this time if Zito messes with Texas most Mets fans won't give a hoot. Zito would look awfully nice in the Mets rotation, sure, but this guy doesn't strike me as the kind of guy you blow off work to see pitch a day game for, like Pedro Martinez does. They still play day games at Shea, right?

So, we wait. And hit 'refresh'.

Tom Glavine News: No News Is Good News For The Mets

Here are some excerpts from an AP article just posted on FoxSports.com:

Tom Glavine hasn't received a contract offer from the Atlanta Braves as he nears a decision on where he wants to play next season, a development that has increased the likelihood he will return to the New York Mets. Glavine's agent, Gregg Clifton, said the two-time Cy Young Award winner has told the Mets he would make a decision by the winter meetings, which start Monday.

Clifton said he has spoken with Braves general manager John Schuerholz several times about Glavine.

"He can't even evaluate that they really want him if he doesn't have an offer," Clifton said Wednesday. "The bottom line is, we're waiting to see if Atlanta wants to make a proposal to us. We've had really nice dialogue on a few occasions and we've kind of left it: We're open. We're waiting for John to give us a call if he would like to."

"As time has gone on, I think it's actually been the potential pull and the desire to go back to New York and be a Met that has delayed this process and further complicated his decision-making," Clifton said.

Clifton and the Mets agreed that they wouldn't start negotiations on a new contract until after Glavine makes a decision that he wants to return to New York.

"They're showing an incredible amount of class," Clifton said, "because at the end of the day they have allowed him to do everything he asked to, which was to go home, to get back into the normal family mode and give him an opportunity to really think this thing through. I think it's working to their advantage, to be honest with you."

Now before we get all excited, let's not forget that this article is almost certainly part of Clifton's negotiation tactics... It doesn't take a brain surgeon (though it might take a skeptic) to realize that Clifton leaked this news to the press to put some pressure on Atlanta. By making it sound that Atlanta's feet dragging is pushing Glavine to the Mets, it will undoubtedly get the Braves fans all worked up. The skeptic in me thinks that Glavine really does want to sign with Atlanta - otherwise, why would Atlanta's non-offer be an issue?

Dayn Perry: Signing Moises Alou is Best Move in Baseball So Far This Offseason

In a posting for Fox Sports.com, Dayn Perry says that there's only been one good signing so far this season, and it's the Mets signing of Moises Alou to a one year deal. He lists the 5 worst signings so far this offseason, and then says Moises Alou is the only smart move so far.

1. Moises Alou, OF, Mets, one year, $8.5M

In this overheated market — and when you're the deep-pocketed Mets — a one-year, $8.5-million pact is basically free. Alou has poor fielding range these days, and he's gimpy. However, he can still rake (.304 AVG/.371 OBP/.548 SLG over the last three seasons). The Mets badly need better production from the outfield corners, and they also badly need help against left-handed pitching. Alou betters them — by a lot — on both counts. This deal is further evidence that Omar Minaya has developed into one of the smartest GMs in the game today.

So there. Of course, once the Glavine deal gets done, that will have to rank above it, whichever team he decides to go with. So then the Mets will have made the two best signings (or the Braves the best signing).

Popper: Glavine Still Not On Speaking Terms with John Schuerholz

Steve Popper says that although Tom Glavine has yet to decide whether to re-sign with the Mets or go back to the Braves, he's letting his agent find out what the Braves have to offer, presumably because he's still miffed about the breach of trust in GM John Schuerholz's book this past Spring.

Glavine has not spoken to Braves' GM John Schuerholz and won't -- leaving the discussions to his agent after a rift developed when Schuerholz detailed their negotiations in a book.

Popper also believes that the Braves don't have any chance of signing Glavine unless they give him a no-trade clause, something they've never given to any player.

Glavine, according to a person close to him, is still waiting to hear what the Braves have to say. And if the first words don't include a no-trade clause, the discussions will end there.

This article gives me some glimmer of hope that El Duque won't be the Mets Opening Day starter in 2007.

Transplanted Ex-Met Update - Bret Saberhagen Would Decline Hall Of Fame Induction

Bret Saberhagen has only slightly more of a chance than I do of getting elected into the Hall of Fame, but he told the Kansas City Star that he would decline an invitation to Cooperstown if he were elected because of the injustice of keeping Pete Rose out.

Yeah, right. Okay, Bret. Unless you actually have a chance of being elected, it's not a very bold statement to say you'd decline the honor. After spraying the writers whose votes you'd need with a water gun filled with Clorox, I'm fairly certain they might find your name on the ballot had been bleached out.

Alou Vs. Floyd

Since 2000, Alou has played on average 5 games more per season than Floyd.

Since 2003, Alou has played on average 15 games more per season than Floyd.

Face it.  Floyd may be 6 yrs younger than Alou, but Floyd is a 34 yr old trapped in a 60 year old body.

Games Played:

	Floyd	Alou
2000	121	126
2001	149	136
2002	146	132
2003	108	151
2004	113	155
2005	150	123
2006	97	98

Yes, Alou could pull a Mo Vaughn next season, but the difference is that it's really a one year deal and we're not counting on him to carry the offense.  Look at this lineup:

Reyes
LoDuca
Beltran
Delgado
Wright
Alou
Green
Valentin

We could have done a lot worse than Alou in left. Put it this way:  who is available that you would rather have?  Would you rather hand the job to Milledge?

Mets May Sign Alou For Two Years, But It's Not A Handshake Deal Yet

I wonder if we'll ever see any Mets personnel and Moises Alou shaking hands, high-fiving or banging knuckles, unless he agrees to stop urinating on his hands.  In any case, FOX's Ken Rosenthal and Newsday are both saying the Mets are close to signing 40 year old Moises Alou to a two year contract, making him their new left fielder and essentially ending Cliff Floyd's tenure with the New York Mets. 

Alou is only slightly more durable than Cliffy but Omar still seems willing to hand out another multi-year deal to a man on the wrong side of 40.  Julio Franco got a two year deal last offseason, and Orlando Hernandez got one last week.  Wait, you believe El Duque is really 37?  Okay, then Franco is really 51.  We're even.  Tom Glavine might wind up with a two year deal too, but if you believe reports, Glavine's more concerned with a no-trade clause, which the Mets will likely grant but the Braves likely won't.

Anyway, back to Alou.  Here's a guy who was an absolute slugger in his prime, and who can still produce pretty good numbers - when he's healthy.  Some may view his signing as the first step out the door for Lastings Milledge, but I don't see it that way.  I see it as another veteran being brought in to try and smack some sense into the young kid.  Alou appeared in less than 100 games last season, and under 125 the year prior.  Clearly someone is going to have to back him up.  It may be Endy Chavez more often than not, but I think Lastings and Ben Johnson will also be getting 2007 outfield time with Shawn Green's power numbers on the decline.  At some point the Mets have to be thinking about their long-term outfield solutions and Green and Alou don't fit the bill.

Lesson #1 In A Series: How Not to Endear Yourself To Your New Team's Fans When You're A Lifetime .251 Hitter

From Newsday today, new Utility man Damion Easley, who hit .233 last season for the Diamondbacks and just signed a 1 year contract with the Mets:

"I was born in the Bronx and grew up a diehard Yankee fan," Easley told The Associated Press. "I loved the way Willie Randolph played and got a big kick out of meeting him when I was with the Tigers. For me to be playing for him now is a dream come true."

Ooookay. Maybe if you're say, Albert Pujols we don't care which team you grew up rooting for as a kid if you're bringing your bat to the Mets, but if you're a supersub and at-bats come at a premium, just leave it at to be playing for Willie is a dream come true, alright?


In the same article it's mentioned how Tom Glavine still doesn't know where hew wants to play but he'll talk to the Braves on Monday after the Mets, as promised, decline their $14 million dollar team option for 2007. Still confused. Why was agent Greg Clifton in the papers yesterday saying "if the Mets decline the option"? If El Duque is worth $12 million for two years, paying $14 mil for Glavine doesn't seem so far fetched, especially if D-Mat is going to get $45 mil for three years from Boston! And what is all this gentlemanly behavior by Wilpon, giving Tom the opportunity to leave for a division rival? If we hold a team option, shouldn't we pull the trigger on it if it keeps Glavine away from the Braves? This does'nt make sense!! Anyway, Newsday seems to think this will all be wrapped up in some shape or form by December 4th.

Omar says he expects to be busier on the trade front than signing free agents, yet...

The New York Post says the Mets may try to sign Moises Alou. This is one guy who doesn't care how many urinals are at Shea, since he pees on his hands.

and...

The New York Times says free agent Julio Lugo is considered to be the Mets’ first choice to play second, followed by Mark Loretta. Lugo grew up a die-hard Mets fan., but the Red Sox are still Lugo's most likely destination.

Happy Saturday everyone!

Best of The Blogs

At the behest of Hot Foot, I'm taking the time out to post a list of what my favorite bloggers are thinking this week:

Ryan McConnell of Always Amazin thinks that a Shawn Green and Ben Johnson platoon would be the worst rightfield combination in all of baseball, and that the Easley signing doesn't give the Mets anything that Anderson Hernandez can't deliver.

Steve at The Eddie Kranepool Society says the time has come for Omar to bring Manny to the Mets. Meanwhile Steve, who also thinks Jeff Wilpon looks like Moe from The Three Stooges but "Summer Sanders is all that and a bag of chips," thinks that Jeff Wilpon let it slip that this whole Glavine indecisiveness bit is just a ruse to cover up Tommy Union's and the Wilpon's agreement to let the Mets option deadline pass before resigning with the Mets under better terms for everyone. I'm inclined to agree with Steve. Tom will get his $14 mil, which the Braves can't match, but the Mets will take a few mil off the 2007 deal and put it in a 2008 buyout. So this way, only say, $10 mil hits teh 2007 budget, and Glavine gets the other 4mil in 2008 even if he retires. The Braves won't touch that kind of offer.

It's Tom Glavine's 62nd birthday today, and Greg at Faith and Fear in Flushing takes the opportunity to compare the Mets Free Agency strategy of today to thirty years ago, when the Mets failure to sign Gary Matthews may have led to the departure of The Franchise.

Metstradamus notices the Mets curious decision to, on the heels of Mota's steroid suspension, sign a guy named Ben Johnson.


Mr. Met from The Metropolitans still isn't sold on Willie Randolphs managerial capabilities.

Toasty Joe interviewed his dog on the latest goings-on in sports.

Mike from Mikes Mets thinks that when all is said and done, the Red Sox - who everyone is killing for throwing all that money at D-Mat, will look like they scored a bargain compared to what someone else will pay Barry Zito.

Mets Guy in Michigan thinks it's great that the Mets will erect a Jackie Robinson statue at Citi Field, but thinks there should be Tom Seaver, Gil Hodges, Willie Mays, Gary Carter, Keith Hernandez and Mike Piazza statues too.

Dan in Texas at Lonestar Mets thinks something is amiss with this Zito and the Mets situation

Mets Grrl thinks everyone needs to calm down about the Citi Field name and get some perspective. She also is no fan of Bloomberg.

Finally, Zoe from Pick Me Up Some Mets has fun with Photoshop.

Friday Morning Hot Stove Report

Newsday says to expect fiscal restraint by the Mets and Yankees this offseason. As crazy as this may sound, I think that this is a really good strategy. Let all the other teams hand out bad contracts and tie up their payroll. Then, next offseason, the Mets will have an even greater advantage over all other teams, having more payroll flexibility, even before spending Citi's naming rights money..

The New York Post says 5 out of 8 GMs polled think that Zito will wind up with the Mets. Jeez, Joel Sherman is really stretching things to run with that lead, huh? I don't care what the GM's think. It will come down to money. Who else is bidding for this guy, anyway?

Speaking of free agent pitchers, in the Post Tom Glavine says it's 50-50 between the Mets and Braves. What the hell is with this guy? He says he might want to pitch in Atlanta so he can be close to his family. Even if he pitches for the Braves, he will still be away for 81 road games. And the Mets visit Atlanta nine games in 2007. So we're talking about a difference of 72 days here. And from what I understand, the wife and kids live up in Connecticut with Tom when school is out anyway. And isn't October what it's supposed to be all about?????

In the Times, Omar Minaya says he thinks there is going to be a lot of trades happening this offseason. Most of us read that to mean it will mean Milledge Time to head out of town. The Chicago Tribue says that rumors of a Mets-White Sox trade persist. Could Javier Vazquez be coming to Queens?

The Mets signed Damion Easley to a one-year contract worth $850k. Easley hit .233 last season, and can play every position except pitch or catch. Hey, I think we just replaced Joe McEwing!

Mets 2007 Schedule - Mets face tough interleague sked.

All my detective work can come to an end. Adam Rubin has posted a printable version of the Mets 2007 schedule.

The holes I had been missing were an April visit by the Colorado Rockies, the May visit by the Yankees, a June trip to the Bronx, and an August visit by the San Diego Padres.

As previously stated, the Mets kick off MLB's season with a Sunday night ESPN game vs. the Cardinals on April 1st. Shea Stadium's penultimate season begins with the home opener on April 9th vs. the Phillies.

Hat tip to Metsblog for the heads up.

Also stated there is a comment that the Mets interleague schedule has them facing the Yankees, Tigers, A's and Twins. The commonality? All the AL playoff teams!

Meanwhile, the Phillies play the Blue Jays, White Sox, Indians, Royals and Tigers.

The Braves play the Red Sox, Twins, Indians, and Tigers.

The Marlins play the Devil Rays (6 times!), Indians, Royals, White Sox and Twins.

The Nationals play the Orioles, Twins, Blue Jays, Tigers, and Indians.

How is this fair?