Last year, Francisco Rodriquez was the first closer to surpass the 60 save mark. Last year, The Mets bullpen was the first such bullpen to make me break 5 different television remote controls. Simple arithmetic would tell you to add this statistically gaudy save monster to what is currently an embarrassing bullpen looking to improve. However, life and baseball aren't that simple. K-Rod comes at a high price, and his prolific amount of appearances combined with his volatile throwing motion have to put a hesitance in this blogger's mind to sign a closer who finished 6th in AL MVP voting last year.K-Rod has proven to be an elite closer in his 6 years with the Angels, but all closers are risky FA targets when their price tag is at an estimated 15 million per. The Mets have several needs, none greater than the bullpen, but "not one closer does a bullpen make." –Yoda. It may be wiser for the Mets to spread their budget around on several relievers, and add a lower tier yet still above average closer such as Kerry Wood or JJ Putz.
So why not go for the gold and get arguably the best closer in the game (as long as Mariano is around that will always be up for debate - plus some guy Brad Lidge on some team whose name is escaping me did OK last year)? Well, he pitches wild and has had a history of elbow and shoulder problems. He was originally a starter in the Angels organization but nagging arm injuries pushed him to the bullpen where he found his niche. Since then, he has pitched many innings with the same jarring across-the-body pitching motion that deceives hitters. Not to mention, it affects his fielding as he is off balance at the end of each pitch. Now I know the Mets aren't looking for Ozzie Smith-like fielding ability in their closer, but hey, a great fielding pitcher is a plus (see Greg Maddux).
Francisco kind of reminds me of a more powerful John Franco because of his insane slider and hard breaking curve. He gets the majority of his strikeouts from people chasing pitches out of the strike zone. As a Met fan I love John Franco, but I know he didn't obtain the longevity he did throwing it that hard and with such a forceful motion.
I'm playing devil's advocate here, because it is obvious K-Rod is an awesome immediate upgrade over what we have now - but will a long-term investment in him pay off? Maybe. Am I being too harsh on a 26 year old? Maybe. I would love for the Mets to sign K-Rod and have him make me eat my words. However if I were Omar, I would attempt to sign several more affordable relievers, because one large peg does not plug many small holes. I would also try to get Orlando Hudson and ship Luis Castillo to Siberia, but that's a story for another day.
The Mets like K-Rod more than me, but not as much as one would assume given his stats and their situation. This is evidenced by the Mets last night putting an official offer out on the table, but for only 3 years. It seems Mets executives share some doubt in his longevity and don’t want to guarantee too many years. They also don’t feel the need to overextend themselves to any one closer, as Omar Minaya was quoted as saying, “All of these agents think there is more out there, They're going to be in for a shock.” Sounds to me like a take it or leave it type of situation the Mets have offered K-Rod, and it is doubtful such an offer would be accepted after an all time record setting year. However, with meetings set-up later in the week to talk to formidable closers such as Trevor Hoffman and Brian Fuentes, and a serious interest in a possible trade to bring a closer like Bobby Jenks or Jose Valverde to the bullpen, it is doubtful the Mets will lose much sleep over K-Rod’s likely rejection of the offer.
UPDATE: ESPN is now reporting that the two sides are VERY close to a 3 year, 37 million dollar agreement. It looks like Omar was right, and there really wasn't much else out there for K-Rod. For a 26 year old closer to get 62 saves in a contract year, and only a 3 year deal, this recession must be inching closer to a full blown depression. As for my problems with K-Rod, I'm going to keep them in the very back of my mind, but root like hell for guy, welcome to the big apple K-Rod! Hope we're still cool!.
(Now I just secretly hope our technology advances to give him the same operation they gave Wolverine in the first X-Men movie, so we can bond light weight metal to his skeleton, rendering his throwing style and innings pitched a moot point, as he will become indestructible. Retractable Fighting Claws for brawls would be nice too).
Posts
stumble it!