Reyes still angry at Loria and Marlins

I can’t say I blame Jose Reyes for being pissed off at Jeffrey Loria and the Miami Marlins.

Toronto’s not a bad place to land (I do love Canada and Canadians). But I understand why Reyes is still so angry at his former boss for trading him after just one season in Little Havana. It was further proof that Marlins ownership cares nothing about the players or the fans, who will end up paying through their noses for that brand spanking new stadium.

After leaving the New York Mets, Reyes probably thought he would find stability and peace in South Florida. But that didn’t last very long as he was traded this past offseason to the Blue Jays. At least Reyes will still be paid very well to play baseball north of the border.  

Reyes is not the only former Marlin to vent against his former bosses. Mr. Perfect Mark Buehrle called the Marlins a bunch of liars after the huge trade that made the Jays instant contenders for the American League East division title (thanks a lot, Loria). I doubt many free agents will be willing to sign with the Marlins, who refuse to give no-trade clauses, despite the lure of sunny South Florida.

The Marlins have screwed their fans left and right, but they’re not the only ones getting screwed over. Even time can’t heal all wounds.

Mets' nightmare not close to over

The Mets’ long, Bernie Madoff-induced nightmare continues and they could soon be forced to part with millions of dollars.

A trial is set for March to determine whether Irving Picard, the trustee for the Madoff victims, can force the Mets to give up more than $300 million in principal they invested with the Ponzi schemer. But Picard is not waiting until then to try to compel the Mets to give up the $83 million in fictitious profits than made as part of the scheme. Although the Mets are fighting back and seeking to have the whole case dismissed, even the judge concedes that Picard could prevail in attempting to claw those fake profits out of the hands of Wilpon & Co.

Given the Mets’ precarious financial situation, just losing $83 million would be devastating. Even if the Mets are ultimately successful in preventing the trustee from getting more money out of them, just having to part with that much dough could force the Wilpons to cut payroll and squeeze every last dime out of their baseball operations. What that means is that what is best for the baseball team would no longer matter and any Mets player making decent money that can be moved will be out the door. They already had to sit back and watch helplessly as Jose Reyes headed for Miami. Who will be next? 

This whole situation is just sad, but the trial itself, if it gets to that point, will be fascinating to watch. I’m curious to see how much of an impact the trial fallout will have on the New York Yankees’ cross-town rivals. As I’ve said before, I think it’s better for New York and for Major League Baseball in general to have a healthy (both physically and financially) Mets franchise. But I suspect this nightmare will continue to haunt the Mets well into the 2012 baseball season and perhaps beyond.

For Braun, mum is the word

Ryan Braun apparently gave his version of an Oscar speech in accepting the National League Most Valuable Player award last night. But unlike some Oscar winners, he steered away from anything remotely controversial, namely the positive test result that a lot of people wanted to hear him talk about and try to explain.

Braun was likely advised not to say anything while he was challenging the test result that could get him suspended from baseball for 50 games. So he didn’t. Instead, he focused his speech on thanking a wide group of people, including the players’ union that apparently is supporting him in his battle to get the test results thrown out. Braun made a vague reference to dealing with challenges, but he never said what those challenges were and whether they were even partly of his own making.

The night was not all about Braun as there was what sounds like a very moving tribute to Gary Carter, the former New York Mets great who is battling brain tumors, another lovely send-off for the now retired former head trainer of the New York Yankees Gene Monahan, and a respectful good-bye and thank you from Jose Reyes, who is taking his talents to Miami (but not in the same obnoxious way as you know who).

However, Braun’s appearance seems to have overshadowed the normally festive night, much to the chagrin I’m sure of the other baseball greats in attendance. And they didn’t even get the satisfaction of hearing Braun explain himself to a lot of people who deserve an explanation, including his employers at the Milwaukee Brewers, who apparently are as much in the dark about what’s going on as the rest of us.

For Braun, mum is the operative word and it’s pretty disappointing.

Thanks to Dana Files for the Wikipedia photo.  

Wilson wistful for New York and Yankees

Watching CJ Wilson be interviewed last night by Jack Curry, I felt sorrier for a guy who just got a $77.5 million deal than I ever thought possible.

Wilson was so obviously disappointed that the New York Yankees weren’t interested in him (and reportedly declined his request for a visit to Yankee Stadium). He clearly wanted to play for the Yankees after living in the Lower East Side and would have welcomed the media spotlight, which would have found him due to what can nicely be described as his quirky (Jon Heyman called it flaky) personality. Wilson looked miserable during the interview, didn’t smile even once (unlike Jose Reyes, who was all smiles despite the fact that the Mets didn’t put up a fight to keep him).

“They just weren’t feeling it for whatever reason,” Wilson told Curry in this YES Network video. “They were a place I would have gone for sure because who wouldn’t want to be a Yankee.”

The Yankees weren’t interested because Wilson’s asking price was way too high. Yes, he landed a fantastic deal, but that was mostly because he was the best starting pitcher in a generally weak free-agent class. The Yankees viewed Wilson as no better than a third starter and weren’t willing to pay him as a #1 or #2 and I agree 100%. If Wilson really wanted New York, he had to lower his price a lot. Not that I blame him because it’s hard to walk away from that kind of money.

From a contractual perspective, Wilson rebounded from the Yankees’ disinterest quietly nicely. He landed a terrific five-year deal to play for his hometown Angels, turning down an even richer deal from the suddenly free-spending Miami Marlins. He’s going to be playing for an Angels team that has clearly decided to be aggressive in the fight for the hearts of Los Angelenos, unexpectedly winding up with the big prize of this year’s free-agent class, Albert Pujols.

But Wilson clearly didn’t end up where he wanted to be and I feel kind of bad for him about that.

Thanks to Red3biggs for the CJ Wilson photo.

Mets fans in for some tough times

I feel really bad for my uncles and their fellow fans of the New York Mets. They are in for some tough times.

Just listen to the Mets’ plan now that they have lost shortstop Jose Reyes to the division rival Miami Marlins: Ruben Tejada will move to short to replace him while Daniel Murphy will likely receive the bulk of the playing time at second base. That’s a pretty weak infield even if the Mets keep David Wright at third base, which is no guarantee considering Sandy Alderson’s comments about the Mets losing $70 million. The Mets clearly have no plans to even look at a solid free-agent infielder, let alone someone who could bring some excitement back to Queens.

It seems like a self-fulfilling prophecy: the Mets gut their team because they want to reduce payroll due to diminishing gate returns, with Mets fans abandoning the team in droves because they rightfully don’t want to spend their limited dollars to watch a losing team. The Mets are going to struggle to sell tickets to any 2012 baseball games aside from Opening Day and the interleague series against the New York Yankees. Perhaps they get lucky and some fans turn out the first time Reyes’ returns so that they can say a proper goodbye, but a sizeable number of fans may resent Reyes for following the money all the way to Miami.

I’m not going to gloat to my uncles about the demise of the Mets. In truth, I like it more when the Mets field a competitive team. It makes those interfamily arguments about whose shortstop is better a lot more fun.

End of Jose Reyes era for Mets

The end of the Jose Reyes era in Queens has come, as the free-agent shortstop has reportedly decided to leave the New York Mets for the newly flush Miami Marlins.

The six-year, $100 million plus deal is almost complete, pending a physical, which perhaps means that a final deal is not a certainty given Reyes’ injury history. But if Reyes passes the medical examination, he will leave the only baseball home he has ever known to try to revitalize baseball in South Florida.

I can't say I blame the Mets for letting Reyes walk away, given their diminishing resources. There's no way I would have spent that kind of money on a player with his injury history. He had to sit twice in his walk year because of leg problems. There's no doubt those injuries will get worse as he ages and I’m sure that the Mets wanted no part of a long-term commitment to an aging, increasingly limited infielder (as the New York Yankees have to contend with in Alex Rodriguez for the next six years).

But I also understand why the Marlins signed him. When healthy, Reyes is one of the most dynamic players in baseball. He just won a batting title despite two stints on the disabled list (although his actions the last day of the season to ensure his victory were contemptible). Even if the Marlins stop at signing him and Heath Bell (the team is also reportedly pursuing Albert Pujols and Mark Buehrle), these two signings and a beautiful new ballpark with a retractable roof might be enough to get south Floridians excited about baseball again.

The upside for Derek Jeter and his fans: the Yankees captain no longer has to endure arguments that he isn’t the best shortstop in New York. So long and Godspeed Jose!

Marlins spending dough from controversial new ballpark

The Miami Marlins are opening a brand-new ballpark in 2012, but they aren’t pocketing all the money that comes with the new baseball stadium. They are hoping to spend a huge chunk of that dough on some of the best free agents on the market, namely Albert Pujols and Jose Reyes. But a lot of people in Miami are upset about what they call the sweetheart deal that financed the new stadium. Now the feds are poking around, which could mean big trouble.

You have to admire the Marlins’ aggressiveness this offseason. They are trying to make a splash in the free agent market, paying (and possibly overpaying) Heath Bell to close games for what they hope will be the new and improved Marlins. But Bell isn’t their only, or even primary, target as the Marlins have already reportedly made offers to Pujols and Reyes.

Imagine Pujols and Reyes in a brand-new ballpark with a glittering view of downtown Miami. Everyone has assumed that Pujols will return to St. Louis because he has played there his entire career and they just won another World Series. It is probably the longest of long shots, but until he signs his name to a contract I don’t think you can take it for granted that he will return to the Midwest. Reyes might be a more attractive target because it won’t take nearly as much money or be as difficult to pry him away from the New York Mets.

I had the pleasure of having a private tour of the new ballpark when I was in Miami recently (more on that in a separate blog post). While I got a genuine thrill of seeing a ballpark being built from the ground up, I was informed by my tour leader that the stadium deal is quite controversial because the county will end up paying more than $2.4 billion over 40 years to pay for the new ballpark. As it turns out, the deal may have also been illegal because the US Securities & Exchange Commission is now sniffing around. It is unclear what the SEC is looking for, but if investigators uncover something shady, it could set baseball in Florida back for decades.

Ryan Braun a deserving MVP winner

I believe Ryan Braun is a very deserving winner of the National League Most Valuable Player award. Not everyone agrees.

Those who think that Matt Kemp should have been the MVP point to his slightly superior statistics and the fact that Braun hit in the lineup ahead of the mighty Prince Fielder. But Braun’s numbers were pretty close and the fact that he played on the first Milwaukee Brewers’ team to win their division in almost 30 years and helped lead that same team to the best record in franchise history obviously had an impact on the baseball writers. The vote wasn’t even that close.

No question Kemp had a fantastic year and losing the MVP award doesn’t take anything away from that. He handled the loss pretty well, expressing what seemed to be genuine praise for Braun. Plus, Kemp has better things to worry about, like how he is going to spend all the money the Los Angeles Dodgers are now paying him to play baseball.

I have to admit that I was rooting for Braun over Kemp. While the individual statistics play a key role, I take the word valuable to heart and will always support the guy who is playing for a winning team versus a non-contender. Plus, I thought Braun handled the Jose Reyes controversy wonderfully, showing a lot of class by declining the opportunity to criticize Reyes for bowing out of the last game of the New York Mets season after one at-bat just so he could win the batting title.

As hard as I’ve been on the baseball writers recently, I think they got both MVP winners right (although Curtis Granderson’s fourth place finish in the vote stings a bit). Well done.

Thanks to the Dana Files for the Wikipedia photo.

Reyes injuries could cost him big dough

Fred Wilpon may have been right when he said Jose Reyes will not get “Carl Crawford money.”

Reyes is a dynamic player who would be worth every penny the New York Mets or some other baseball team would pay him as an elite player if only he could stay healthy. But Reyes has never been able to stay healthy. His monster 2011 season has been interrupted a second time by a hamstring injury that again forces him to the disabled list.

Any team that signs Reyes to a long-term, big-money deal is going to be making a really risky bet: that Reyes can be more durable in his 30s than he has been in his 20s. It's not my money, but I for one would not take that bet. All evidence points to baseball players peaking in their very early 30s before a steady (sometimes swift) decline in their performance.

Could Reyes still get a contract similar to the 7-year, $142 million deal Crawford pried from the Boston Red Sox? It's possible, but it seems really unlikely. Aside from his injury history, neither the New York Yankees (after signing Derek Jeter to an extension at $17 million per) nor the Red Sox (after committing big money to Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez this year) are likely to aggressively pursue Reyes in the offseason. Without one or both of those teams involved, it would be difficult to drive up the asking price.

But it's not impossible, especially if some desperate baseball team is willing to overpay for the services of a star in the hopes of putting itself on the map (witness Jayson Werth's mega-deal with the Washington Nationals). Reyes and his agents can still ask for the moon. I just don’t think he’s going to get it.

Star status shouldn't protect bad Mets

The New York Mets and their fans need to stop looking the other way when their stars engage in bad behavior.

Just a few days after a woman filed a civil lawsuit against Johan Santana in which she accused the Mets ace of raping her, closer Francisco Rodriguez was arrested for allegedly assaulting his father-in-law at Citi Field. For that, he was suspended without pay by the team for two games. Two games.

"Ownership and the organization are very disappointed in Francisco's inappropriate behavior and we take this matter very seriously," said Mets COO Jeff Wilpon.

Not serious enough. Carlos Zambrano was banished for a month and ordered to undergo anger management classes before returning to the Chicago Cubs after a dugout confrontation with Derrek Lee. So I guess the lesson learned is that it's better to assault a woman or a family member than a teammate.

For me, this quote from Mets shortstop Jose Reyes about Rodriguez speaks volumes about how their teammates and the organization will happily look the other way because of Santana and Rodriguez's superior baseball skills: "One hundred percent we're behind him. I hope he comes out clean after what happened because we need him here."

Before I get accused of coming down harshly on the Mets because I'm a New York Yankees fan, let me say this: Yes, the Yankees are the poster team for steroids/human growth hormone use in baseball. I've written post after post calling them out for that behavior, which I truly believe has harmed and continues to harm the sport. But Yankee players aren't being accused of beating their in-laws or raping women and that behavior is much worse than cheating.

In Darryl Strawberry's memoir, Finding My Way, the former Mets outfielder describes in disturbing detail the culture of the Mets in the mid to late 1980s: all-night binge drinking before day games, players enjoying sexual favors from the same women. Strawberry even admits to beating his wives on more than one occasion. All this behavior was tolerated for years by the fans and the organization because the bad-boy Mets were winners.

It's clear that the Mets haven't learned anything from those years. If they had, they would have come down with a harsher penalty for Rodriguez. Unlike the he said/she said nature of the accusation against Santana, the Rodriguez incident happened inside their own stadium in full view of family members of other players and the Mets security staff, which reportedly had to pry the closer off of his father-in-law. Mets officials could argue that they didn't want to pre-judge the investigation, but their statement and two-game suspension makes that argument ring hollow.

Like Reyes, the Mets are hoping this all goes away as quickly as possible because without their two star pitchers, the season will be an even bigger disaster than it is right now.

Hughes shows fire, humor in beating Mets

For Phil Hughes, the only remaining question about what he will be doing on July 13 is whether he gets to start the Baseball All-Star game in Anaheim in front of a welcoming crowd of friends and relatives from his hometown or pitch in relief. Either way, he's a lock to make the team after tying David Price of the Tampa Bay Rays for the American League lead in wins with 10 this year.

What was most impressive about yesterday's win for Hughes is that he has learned to pitch on guts and guile and to make adjustments mid-game when he doesn't have his best stuff, as was the case against the Mets. When he realized he didn't have his good fastball, he switched to his curve and settled in, giving up three runs in the early innings, but putting up zeros to end a solid, 7-inning start.

"He was outstanding in the bullpen last year and he's just carried that into the rotation," his manager Joe Girardi said. "We've seen him grow up a lot."

What I liked seeing yesterday was the fire and emotion from Hughes after he induced a ground-ball double play to get out of the 7th inning. It wasn't the exaggerated outburst that we see from Joba Chamberlain, but an enthusiastic yell and fist pump. But it was a great sign that Hughes has gained so much confidence that he still knows he can win even if he has trouble early in a game.

Afterwards, the young righty's sense of humor was on full display. When Kim Jones of the YES Network asked if he made any adjustments to Jose Reyes after giving up two homers to the Mets shortstop, Hughes said yes. "I didn't give him a fastball right down the middle," he said.

The fire and humor are great signs that Hughes is fully in control. It's an amazing show of maturity for a pitcher who will celebrate his 24th birthday this week. The New York Yankees are quite lucky that their future is here already. But for Hughes, the only thing he needs to worry about is what to pack for his trip home to play with baseball’s best.

Yankee offense abandons Andy, Javy

Watching last night's game live at Yankee Stadium, I really felt bad for Javier Vazquez, who was pitching a fantastic baseball game. But for the second straight day, the offense of the New York Yankees abandoned their starter, saddling them with undeserved losses.

First it was Andy Pettitte suffering only his second loss of the season after giving up two earned runs in seven innings against the Philadelphia Phillies. In giving up only one run to the cross-town rival Mets, Javier Vazquez pitched seven innings for the fourth consecutive start, but was tagged with the loss when his offense disappeared, baffled by Hisanori Takahashi.

The normally clutch Derek Jeter was the main culprit last night, twice coming to the plate with a runner in scoring position and failing to drive him in. Jeter's slump has reached epic proportions, with his batting average dropping 20 points in just 10 days. Brett Gardner had a feisty, spectacular at-bat against Francisco “KRod” Rodriguez to set up the bases loaded in the ninth, but Jeter struck out and Nick Swisher popped up.

The Yankees lineup did a little better today scoring five runs and answering back every time the Mets took the lead, with home runs from Mark Teixeira and Curtis Granderson. Phil Hughes struggled in the early innings, giving up a pair of home runs to Jose Reyes. But the young righty had an impressive recovery and finished up strong, throwing only eight to 10 pitches in the latter innings to quickly dispatch the Metsies. Joba Chamberlain had a nice bounce-back performance and Mariano Rivera was his typical, dominant self in finishing off the Mets.

Today was a good day all around for the Yanks, ending a three-day skid. But let’s see if the offense has really shaken its collective slump. Tomorrow the two aces take the mound, but in light of recent history, I wouldn’t expect a pitchers’ duel.

Baseball's PED problem rears its ugly head again

Baseball's problems with the use of performance-enhancing drugs just won't go away.

Every time it appears that baseball has moved on from the PED controversy, it rears its ugly head again. Canadian doctor Tony Galea has officially been accused of providing illegal drugs to several athletes and lying to federal investigators, upgrading this situation from a mere annoyance for Major League Baseball to a legal dispute with potential ramifications for several high-profile players.

As usual, Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees was thrust right in the middle of the PED spotlight. Of course, he has some company as Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran of the Mets have both admitted to being treated by the doctor although they said they did not receive human growth hormone or other illegal drugs from Galea.

But ARod is the biggest name in this story and it's not clear what he would say if he was forced to testify about his interactions with Galea. He had little to say about the most recent developments, but this is just more proof that his steroids use will haunt ARod for the rest of his career, just like PED use in baseball will forever tarnish Bud Selig’s legacy.

MLB asserts its power with ARod

So Alex Rodriguez talks to Major League Baseball about his interactions with Canadian doctor Anthony Galea before he speaks to the government or his bosses. I guess it's clear who has the real power here.

ARod reportedly told MLB officials that he did not get performance-enhancing drugs from Dr. Galea. What else would he say? If he admitted to using PED, he would be risking a lengthy suspension. But was he telling the truth? With ARod, you never know. He has no credibility on this issue so I can't imagine that baseball officials are truly satisfied with his responses. But perhaps they can live with ARod's answers in the hope that the problem goes away.

I understand why Bud Selig would want to get this meeting out of the way. He doesn't want the ARod saga ruining the start of what should be another big year for MLB. But as frustrated as he must be about the entire situation, it's a poor decision on his part to insist on his people talking to ARod before the feds do. There's no way a private organization like MLB should even be seen as possibly interfering with a federal investigation. And I do not buy the notion that the feds are just going to let MLB do their investigation for them and simply subpoena MLB’s notes without talking to ARod.

So it's one meeting down, two more to go for ARod. Why is ARod so hesitant to meet with federal investigators? If what he told MLB is true, then he has nothing to worry about. He has made it clear that he isn't the target of the investigation, but simply a witness. So why not just get it over with? And why would he agree to officials before talking to the government? That can't make the feds very happy.

This whole situation proves that ARod's diva days will never be truly behind him. Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes of the Mets both found plenty of time to answer the feds' questions and the investigation is no longer a story in Mets camp. But by stalling with the feds, ARod drags this issue out longer. You would think he wouldn't want to go into the regular season with this hanging over his head, but I guess getting it over with makes too much sense.

Thanks to edogisgod via Wikipedia for the photo.

Hope injury bug doesn't bite Yanks like Mets

Injuries really are the only thing that can stop the New York Yankees in their quest to repeat as World Series Champs. And they got a fresh reminder of that this week with injuries to their starting first baseman and both catchers.

Mark Teixeira returned to the lineup after missing two baseball games when he was plunked on the elbow. He didn't miss a beat, hitting a single and a double and showing no signs that the injury would interfere with his play. He's still sore, but should be ready for opening day, a huge relief for the Yankees.

But that relief was tempered when Jorge Posada was forced to miss a game due to a stiff neck. Like with Tex, this seems to be a minor injury that will cause him to miss a few days, rather than something major that a 38-year-old catcher would likely have to deal with at the end of his career. But it's problematic with opening day being Sunday and backup Francisco Cervelli also out due to a strained hamstring, a slightly more serious injury that could keep Cervelli off the opening day roster.

These injuries seem relatively minor and nothing like last year when Alex Rodriguez had to have major surgery on his hip and was out for five weeks. But I can't help but look at the cross-town rival Mets and worry. They just announced shortstop Jose Reyes is starting the year on the disabled list. The spate of injuries that hit the Mets ruined last year for them and the current campaign doesn't look promising.

Could this happen with the Yankees? Hopefully, these injuries aren't a harbinger of things to come.

Thanks to Googie man via en.Wikipedia for the photo.

Mets injury woes go from bad to worse

The New York Mets were looking forward to a fresh start in 2010 after the injury problems that ruined last season for them. While the Mets managed to turn the page on the calendar, their injury problems came with them and things just went from bad to worse.

In January, center fielder Carlos Beltran had surgery on his knee, supposedly without the team's consent. Earlier this month, shortstop Jose Reyes, already trying to come back from his hamstring problems, got sidetracked by a thyroid problem that forced him to cease baseball activities for nearly two weeks. Now comes word that first baseman Daniel Murphy will start the season on the disabled list because of a knee sprain. Who will get hit by the injury bug next?

By the way, I would love for the unnamed Met who criticized the team for babying Reyes to come out of hiding so we could ask him where he got his medical degree.

The New York Yankees were pretty blessed last year with good health, aside from losing Alex Rodriguez for the first five weeks, after a 2008 season where they missed out on the playoffs when several key players went down, including Jorge Posada. Health is critical for any team with playoff aspirations and the Yankees proved that last year.

But the Mets have gotten hit pretty hard with injuries for the second year in a row and they haven't even broken camp. You have to figure the next injury is going to be a devastating blow, unless they can get Reyes and Beltran back before it happens.

If it wasn't for bad luck, the Mets would have none at all.

Thanks to Keith Allison via Wikipedia for the photo