Francisco Rodriguez, Milwaukee Brewers -- After watching Jason Isringhausen show his age and Bobby Parnell show his unpreparedness for prime time, it's perfectly OK to admit that you miss K-Rod a little -- and not just because the Mets are paying $5.9 million for the privilege of seeing their former closer pitch for another team. Yes, Minaya overpaid him and yes that 2012 vesting option hung over Metsopotamia like a guillotine's blade. Let none of that blind you to the fact that he was one of the more effective Mets relievers in recent years. Maybe not $17.5 million good, but good enough. Then again, Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez was one of the linchpins that brought Johan Santana to Flushing. So it's a toss up, but there's no losers here. - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2011/9/30/2459916/a-mets-fans-guide-to-recognizing-your-saints-in-the-2011-mlb-playoffs
10-3-11: - http://www.metsminorleagueblog.com/season-review-the-full-season-catchers - Coming into the year, Baseball America ranked Blake Forsythe as the 29th best prospect in the Mets system, the only catcher to make their Mets top 30. Forsythe earned the ranking because he flashed some power, and a strong throwing arm. Then he hit just .220/.295/.353 in 50 games in the first half of the SAL season. He was much better in the second half (and turned 22), both at the plate and in the field. At the plate, he drew nearly twice as many walks in the second half (36) as he did in the first half (20) while doubling his homer output from three to six while hitting .249/.368/.431. That’s the good news. The bad news? He still struck out 68 times in 55 games. For the year, he fanned in 28% of his at-bats. Behind the plate, Forsythe, to my eyes, became a better receiver, and more adept at blocking balls, especially those to his right. He threw out just 29% of opposing runners (20-for-68) this year, suggesting a need to improve his footwork and release.
John Olerud (1999): This one hurts. Ole revitalized his career in New York after then-GM Joe McIlvaine stole him from Toronto for Robert Person. Ole hit .354 for the Mets in 1998 and was the first baseman for “the greatest infield ever” in 1999. He departed after that season for his hometown of Seattle where his offensive revitalization continued. He also logged time with Boston and the Yankees before retiring with a .398 career OBP. To replace him, the Mets signed Todd Ziele, who did an acceptable job at first for a few years before departing via trade to Milwaukee after the 2002 season. The Mets could have used Olerud’s bat in the Subway Series and in their failed defense of the NL title in 2001. - http://www.metstoday.com/7084/11-12-offseason/adios-jose-five-free-agents-who-left-the-mets
10-5-11: - www.newsday.com - When Cam Maron got his call-up to Citi Field last month, it wasn't to be a fill-in behind the plate for Josh Thole. That day may come eventually, but for now, Maron was happy to settle for the next best thing: the honor of receiving a Sterling Award as the Mets' top player at the Rookie League affiliate in Kingsport, Tenn. Maron, a Hicksville High graduate and Newsday first-team All-Long Island catcher, was among 10 organizational MVPs honored on Sept. 14, a group that also included 2010 first-round pick Matt Harvey. But only Maron is a truly homegrown prospect, one that spent his childhood going to games at Shea Stadium and idolizing Mike Piazza, so that took the experience to another level. "There were a lot of emotions running at a function like that, an awards ceremony of that magnitude," Maron said by phone from Fort Myers, Fla., where he is playing in the instructional league. "I think growing up watching the Mets really kind of added more to it. "I didn't come to Citi Field as a kid obviously -- it was to Shea. But coming to Queens and being in that area again, it was kind of like, now I'm there. I'm starting to get there. I'm not that fan anymore, that kid. It was just an honor to be named in that class, among those guys."
Detroit Tigers farmhand Timo Perez, who helped the Mets reach the World Series back in 2000, was among four minor league players who were suspended by the commissioner's office Tuesday for violating the league's drug policies. Perez got a 50-game suspension for testing positive for Ritalinic Acid and Methylphenidate. Both drugs are used to treat attention deficit disorder. Perez has more than 600 big league games under his belt but has been in the minors since 2007; the 36-year-old hit .304/.344/.410 at Triple-A Toledo this season. - http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/2011/10/timo-perez-among-four-minor-leaguers-suspended
