The Superstah Cometh

The Kaz man, Kazuo Matsui and the Mets appear to have agreed on a deal to bring him to the Blue and Orange.

"The switch-hitting Matsui is known for his speed, defense and batting average and is sometimes compared to Ichiro Suzuki, the Seattle Mariners' star from Japan. Unlike the stoic Ichiro, though, Matsui is outgoing and flashy, at least by Japanese standards.

Matsui is a native of Osaka, which is known for its straight-talking people. At the news conference near Tokyo, Matsui spoke confidently and happily about his desire to play in America, a marked change from Hideki Matsui, who is no relation, who apologized profusely when he said goodbye to Japanese baseball last year to join the Yankees.

When Kazuo Matsui turned professional, he changed the Chinese characters of his first name to mean "top earner in the middle," a nod to his desire to be the best shortstop possible.

Matsui's signing was the Mets' first move of the off-season and was a clear signal that the franchise, after two straight last-place finishes, is more interested in a quick turnaround than any painstaking rebuilding process. Still, the Mets have indicated they will be relatively modest as they move through the winter, and the acquisition of Matsui may be as bold as they get."

Of course, while this was the blueprint for the Mets' offseason, my other little plans, the resigning of Shannon Stewart by the Twins and of Hasegawa by the Mariners means I don't think the Mets should trade the whining, selfish Sheman Mike Piazza anymore. No, leave him in another year, let him platoon at first with a host of others and here's a potential lineup:

1B-Jason Phillips/Mike Piazza
2B- Reyes
SS-Kaz
3B-Wiggington
C-Piazza, Phillips
LF-Floyd

HOLES: CF and RF and almost the entire bullpen and #3/4 starter depending on where one slots Trachsel.

The beauty of this signing is that it can only mean that they are going to make another run, take another shot, load the guns again. They wouldn't sign the Kaz Man and leave him hanging with no one but the injury prone Floyd the injury prone Reyes and the sensitive Piazza to back him up would they? Nah. They will make some more signings before it's all over.

If we take a look at players not offered arb by their respective teams and are now unrestricted free agents, we see that Mike Cameron is now available to play CF for the Mets. Cameron, who turns 31 next month, won his second Gold Glove last season, committing only four errors in 492 chances for a .992 fielding percentage. Cameron hit .253 last season with 18 home runs and 76 RBIs. Something else to consider is the fact that he also set a franchise single-season record with 176 strikeouts in 2002.

Budget accomodations: Cheaper alternative to Cameron is infamous streak-hitter and 36 year-old Reggie Sanders whom the Pirates let free. Sanders batted .287 with 31 homers and 85 RBI last season in 130 games. For his career, which also includes stints in Arizona and San Francisco, he has a career 2.68 average with 249 homers and 802 RBI.

They say Johnny Damon and Trot Nixon might be available in a trade, but at what cost? Will the Sox be trying to dump a little more salary to make way for A-Rod and other off season signings?

Why not sign Reds reject Eric Owens on the cheap? Sure, he doesn't hit for power, but he adds speed and can play all three outfield positions. More speed cannot hurt the Mets plus, even if Cedeno started over Owens in RF, Owens could always be used to spell Sanders in CF or take over when Cliff Floyd suffers his inevitable season-altering injury in Spring Training.

Last word on cheap OF alternatives might be the Jose Cruz Jr, the man who failed to catch a routine fly ball that helped the Marlins' game-winning 11th-inning rally in Game 3. He is another switch-hitter to join Kaz and give greater versatility to the Mets batting order. .250-20-68 is steady enough provided he comes cheap. Plus, more speed (30 homers, 30 sbs in 2001). It appears the Mets would only have to outbid the Rangers and Devil Rays...

So let's look at a batting order that looks like this perhaps:

Kaz-ss
Reyes-2b
Floyd-LF
Piazza-C
Wigginton-3B
Jose Cruz Jr -LF
Reggie Sanders-CF
Jason Phillips-1B

perhaps this beats me previous lineup in a previous blog of:

Shannon Stewart (resigned with Twins)- LF
Kaz -ss
Reyes - 2b
Floyd - Lf
Ty Wigginton - 3b
Travis Lee - (still a Free Agent, unstricted) 1B
Aaron Rowand - (still untraded on the White Sox) CF
Jason Phillips - C

Yes, now that the Mets have Kaz, they should keep Piazza and roll the dice somemore.

Another good Pirate reject might be pitcher Julian Tavarez, 3-3 record and a 3.66 ERA. Other bullpen wish list might include Tim Worrell, whom the Giants set free. Worrell, 36, had a great year, saving 38 games after replacing injured closer Robb Nen. He might not be cheap and thus, might not be worth it in the end.

Who WOULD be worth it, just for the comedic value alone: If you noted, the Mariners declined to offer arbitration to ARMANDOGEDDON. Wouldn't it be funny to see him back at Shea? Yeah. Almost as funny as seeing his barber, Rey Sanchez, also a free agent no one wants, join him. Gaaaak!

Another ex-Oriole and ex-Mariner, Arthur Rhodes, is hanging around with nowhere to go to augment someone's bullpen.

What would Sidney Ponson cost to add to the starting rotation? Of course, he seems to be on the list of alot of teams. He had an initial salary of $4.25 million last year, which is manageable for most teams. He has a very shaky past with the Orioles though, despite last season and the question is, will he fulfill that promise finally, or revert back to his frustrating inconsistencies of the past?

A REAL low budget move might be to sign, as #4 starter: John Burkett is a free man from the Red Sox now. He's gone 109-84 pitching in the National League. Plenty of experience.
Looks like Millwood might stick with the Phillies after all.

I like the rumour that Vlad Guerrero is going to the Orioles. Guerrero, a four-time all-star, made $11.5 million last year for the Expos, and he hit .330 with 25 homers and 79 RBI while missing 39 games because of a herniated disk.

Glad to hear the human headache Gary Sheffield will ink with King George. Those two pigs deserve each other and it spells certain horrific chemistry for the Yankees yet again combined with Giambi's knee problems, the uncertainty over what to do with Bernie in CF and Soriano at 2B. The lack of a starting rotation: So far, Mussina, ex-Expo Javier Vasquez, whom is compared by the Baseball Crank, Choke Weaver, maybe the 40-going-on-100 David Wells coming off back surgery, definately not Clemens and perhaps not Pettite if the Astros can make themselves appealing. A rotten season indeed in store for the Yankees. Oh! If only it were true!

Is it not delicious, the rumours that A-Rod will go to the Red Sox for that whining Dominican, Manny Ramirez.