GaryMrMets
01-05-2005, 04:20 PM
http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/nym/news/nym_news.jsp?ymd=20041221&content_id=924822&vkey=news_nym&fext=.jsp
01/01/2005 8:00 AM ET
Mets gaining steam toward 2005
Minaya nabs Pedro, makes splash as new GM
By Kevin T. Czerwinski / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- Omar Minaya said he wanted to shake things up and improve the Mets any way he could when he took over as general manager at the end of September.
Well, true to his word, Minaya didn't waste time grabbing headlines or putting his stamp on the club, as he eschewed hiring a veteran skipper like Jim Leyland, Carlos Tosca or Terry Collins before naming Willie Randolph as the manager of the Mets. It's Randolph's first managerial gig and it's also the first time an African-American has managed a baseball team in the Big Apple, giving Minaya the opportunity to be something of a trendsetter.
Minaya didn't stop there, though. He stormed into the Winter Meetings with a clear agenda, one that he kept mostly to himself. And as he left Anaheim and headed home from the meetings, Minaya was about to make some of the biggest news of the offseason.
Minaya had been courting free agent pitcher Pedro Martinez for several weeks, beginning with a Thanksgiving meeting in the Dominican Republic, intent on adding a power arm after jettisoning Al Leiter earlier in the offseason. While all indications were that Martinez would return to Boston and finish out his career with the team he had just helped win a World Championship, Minaya had other plans.
Martinez was offered a four-year, $53 million deal that he gobbled up without much thought, pointing to the fact that Minaya had showed him the respect that Boston management had failed to do. The two Dominican natives forged an alliance; one that Minaya hopes will bear fruit not only throughout the rest of this offseason, but for many years to come.
Minaya pointed to the signing as a move that will benefit the club not only throughout the life of the contract, but for the years following Martinez's stint in a New York uniform. By signing a national icon, Minaya is hopeful that he can tap into the baseball-rich Dominican Republic and stock the Mets' minor league system with a bumper crop of players who want to follow in Martinez's footsteps.
"[The signing] is about the kid we don't know about yet, that Pedro Martinez that you don't know about and that I don't know about that might be in the marketplace down in the Dominican Republic or in Venezuela," Minaya said. "That kid knows what he wants to be today. He wants to be a Met. That's the value of Pedro Martinez.
"In my opinion, no other free agent in the marketplace has that value, not only in pitching, but transcending what he means to us -- five years from now, 10 years from now. Someday there will be a young pitcher pitching for the Mets who will say he wanted to pitch for the Mets because of this signing."
Minaya also believes his job the rest of this winter will be easier because of bringing Martinez into the fold. He is pursuing other free agents such as Carlos Delgado and Moises Alou, both of whom have expressed legitimate interest in joining the Mets. Minaya said that many other big-ticket free agents have also called since Martinez signed, saying they wanted to be Mets as well.
"We believe in this and it's not just about one year," Minaya said. "It's about setting up something that's going to have implications beyond wins and losses in the year 2005, 2006 and 2007. We are going to win and we have a plan. When that's going to happen, I don't know, but we're going to win."
With nearly seven weeks before the beginning of Spring Training, Minaya has plenty of time to continue shaking things up, plenty of time to ensure that the Mets have a better chance of winning in 2005.
Offseason report card: By signing Martinez, the Mets gained a huge measure of credibility. The organization had been stagnant for so long that this move could be the one that jumpstarts New York back into contention in the National League East. But his job's not done yet, so give Omar Minaya a grade of "B" for what he's done, what he's tried to do, and what he says he's planning to do between now and the time pitchers and catchers report.
Arrivals: LHP Felix Heredia [trade]; RHP Pedro Martinez [free agent].
Departures: LHPs Al Leiter, John Franco, Mike Stanton and Vic Darensbourg; RHPs Ricky Bottalico, Jose Parra and Grant Roberts; OF Richard Hidalgo and Gerald Williams; IF Todd Zeile and Wilson Delgado.
Did you know? David Wright hit 32 homers and drove in 98 runs last year while playing at three different levels. Wright played in a career-high 160 games and showed no signs of wear in September. He hit .293 with the Mets, but his average for the combined season was .320 [192-for-600]. He also had 52 doubles and 28 stolen bases playing for Double-A Binghamton, Triple-A Norfolk and the Mets.
Kevin Czerwinski is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/2004/07/31/BldsniZL.jpg
The Mets also re-signed right-hander Kris Benson to a three-year contract. (John Bazemore/AP)
Season in Preview
A lot can change by Opening Day, but as 2004 becomes 2005,
this is who is projected to take the field for the Mets:
SS Jose Reyes
2B Kaz Matsui
3B David Wright
RF/1B TBD :notme:
C Mike Piazza
LF Cliff Floyd
RF/1B TBD :notme:
CF Mike Cameron
SP Pedro Martinez
SP Tom Glavine
SP Kris Benson
SP Victor Zambrano
SP Steve Trachsel
CL Braden Looper
01/01/2005 8:00 AM ET
Mets gaining steam toward 2005
Minaya nabs Pedro, makes splash as new GM
By Kevin T. Czerwinski / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- Omar Minaya said he wanted to shake things up and improve the Mets any way he could when he took over as general manager at the end of September.
Well, true to his word, Minaya didn't waste time grabbing headlines or putting his stamp on the club, as he eschewed hiring a veteran skipper like Jim Leyland, Carlos Tosca or Terry Collins before naming Willie Randolph as the manager of the Mets. It's Randolph's first managerial gig and it's also the first time an African-American has managed a baseball team in the Big Apple, giving Minaya the opportunity to be something of a trendsetter.
Minaya didn't stop there, though. He stormed into the Winter Meetings with a clear agenda, one that he kept mostly to himself. And as he left Anaheim and headed home from the meetings, Minaya was about to make some of the biggest news of the offseason.
Minaya had been courting free agent pitcher Pedro Martinez for several weeks, beginning with a Thanksgiving meeting in the Dominican Republic, intent on adding a power arm after jettisoning Al Leiter earlier in the offseason. While all indications were that Martinez would return to Boston and finish out his career with the team he had just helped win a World Championship, Minaya had other plans.
Martinez was offered a four-year, $53 million deal that he gobbled up without much thought, pointing to the fact that Minaya had showed him the respect that Boston management had failed to do. The two Dominican natives forged an alliance; one that Minaya hopes will bear fruit not only throughout the rest of this offseason, but for many years to come.
Minaya pointed to the signing as a move that will benefit the club not only throughout the life of the contract, but for the years following Martinez's stint in a New York uniform. By signing a national icon, Minaya is hopeful that he can tap into the baseball-rich Dominican Republic and stock the Mets' minor league system with a bumper crop of players who want to follow in Martinez's footsteps.
"[The signing] is about the kid we don't know about yet, that Pedro Martinez that you don't know about and that I don't know about that might be in the marketplace down in the Dominican Republic or in Venezuela," Minaya said. "That kid knows what he wants to be today. He wants to be a Met. That's the value of Pedro Martinez.
"In my opinion, no other free agent in the marketplace has that value, not only in pitching, but transcending what he means to us -- five years from now, 10 years from now. Someday there will be a young pitcher pitching for the Mets who will say he wanted to pitch for the Mets because of this signing."
Minaya also believes his job the rest of this winter will be easier because of bringing Martinez into the fold. He is pursuing other free agents such as Carlos Delgado and Moises Alou, both of whom have expressed legitimate interest in joining the Mets. Minaya said that many other big-ticket free agents have also called since Martinez signed, saying they wanted to be Mets as well.
"We believe in this and it's not just about one year," Minaya said. "It's about setting up something that's going to have implications beyond wins and losses in the year 2005, 2006 and 2007. We are going to win and we have a plan. When that's going to happen, I don't know, but we're going to win."
With nearly seven weeks before the beginning of Spring Training, Minaya has plenty of time to continue shaking things up, plenty of time to ensure that the Mets have a better chance of winning in 2005.
Offseason report card: By signing Martinez, the Mets gained a huge measure of credibility. The organization had been stagnant for so long that this move could be the one that jumpstarts New York back into contention in the National League East. But his job's not done yet, so give Omar Minaya a grade of "B" for what he's done, what he's tried to do, and what he says he's planning to do between now and the time pitchers and catchers report.
Arrivals: LHP Felix Heredia [trade]; RHP Pedro Martinez [free agent].
Departures: LHPs Al Leiter, John Franco, Mike Stanton and Vic Darensbourg; RHPs Ricky Bottalico, Jose Parra and Grant Roberts; OF Richard Hidalgo and Gerald Williams; IF Todd Zeile and Wilson Delgado.
Did you know? David Wright hit 32 homers and drove in 98 runs last year while playing at three different levels. Wright played in a career-high 160 games and showed no signs of wear in September. He hit .293 with the Mets, but his average for the combined season was .320 [192-for-600]. He also had 52 doubles and 28 stolen bases playing for Double-A Binghamton, Triple-A Norfolk and the Mets.
Kevin Czerwinski is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/2004/07/31/BldsniZL.jpg
The Mets also re-signed right-hander Kris Benson to a three-year contract. (John Bazemore/AP)
Season in Preview
A lot can change by Opening Day, but as 2004 becomes 2005,
this is who is projected to take the field for the Mets:
SS Jose Reyes
2B Kaz Matsui
3B David Wright
RF/1B TBD :notme:
C Mike Piazza
LF Cliff Floyd
RF/1B TBD :notme:
CF Mike Cameron
SP Pedro Martinez
SP Tom Glavine
SP Kris Benson
SP Victor Zambrano
SP Steve Trachsel
CL Braden Looper