9/29/09

Minors Stuff




The Herd:


The Boston Red Sox have designated Chris Carter for assignment, according to a press release. The 27-year-old outfielder played in 13 games for the Red Sox in 2008 and 2009, and was hitless in five plate appearances this season. The New York Yankees claimed him off waivers a month ago in an attempt to complicate Boston's roster moves, as Carter was thought to be the player to be named later in the deal that sent Billy Wagner to the Sox.


B-Mets:

Lucas Duda will round out the Mets' Arizona Fall League contingentRead more:
Queens:

“I wish them nothing but the best,” Jeff Francoeur said, “but to be honest with you, there’s not even a .1 percent chance that I’d want to be back there right now. It has nothing to do with the people there because I love Bobby [Cox] and I love that team. But sometimes you just gotta get out of the situation, and I was a guy that needed to get out.”
..."I don’t think a lot of people went through what I went through as far as being from Atlanta,” Francoeur said. “Everything for 2½ years was great, and then it just kind of ended. I know people will say you can’t be having fun now, but I see the big picture. I see what we can do next year and the following years here. We’re not going to have this kind of team.”
Francoeur, 25, is so comfortable with the Mets that he wants to sit down with Omar Minaya this offseason to talk about a multiyear contract that would buy out his remaining arbitration and keep him here for an extended period. If Francoeur can be this happy - and productive - during the worst of times, that might not be a bad idea.
“I’d love for that to happen,” Francoeur said. “I think there’s a lot to be said when you feel like you can pencil a guy in for 158 games and not have to worry about rightfield. It can help a manager, and it can help a GM when they’re putting a team together. Hopefully, that’s how they feel.”

http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/files/newsstand/discussion/newsday_francoeur_its_great_to_be_young_and_a_met


The Mets plan to go retro with their pinstriped home uniforms next season. Those uniforms will change to off-white, as they were in the 1960s, from their current bright white. That will also serve to differentiate the pinstriped uniforms from the solid home uniforms, which will remain the brighter white.


Nick Evans arrived with a bang — three doubles in his debut in 2008 — but 2009 has not gone according to plan. After a solid spring, he was sent to Class AAA Buffalo out of camp and promptly performed so poorly that he was shuffled all the way to Class A St. Lucie for physical and mental rehab. He made it back to the majors as a call-up Aug. 25, but has managed just 21 plate appearances and hasn’t started a game since Sept. 11 (and just three since the call-up).


World Cup:
RP - Orlando Roman (Puerto Rico) - His ERA (2.45) in six games was high but his 26 strikeouts led all pitchers, including starters. That 2.45 ERA does not include 5 innings of shutout relief

Free Agents: -

Major League Baseball today lifted the suspension of Dominican center fielder Eladio Moronta, who MLB had suspended earlier this year for misrepresenting his age. Moronta's agent, Charisse Espinosa-Dash of the New York-based Draft Picks Sports Agency, confirmed that Moronta is no longer suspended and is now a free agent.Moronta, who is 6-foot-1, 183 pounds, is 20 years old and turns 21 on December 16. He is an athletic righthanded hitter with plus-plus speed, flashing a good arm and raw power potential. Aside from Cuban defectors, it is incredibly rare for Latin American players who are older than 17 to command a big bonus, which is one reason so many of them misrepresent their ages and identities. Moronta, however, has the caliber of tools that might make him an exception.
6th Pick – Mets - Yordy Cabrera, SS - Lakeland HS (FL)The Mets have a ton of needs for their farm system at the moment. Fernando Martinez is the crown jewel and 2010 will be his season. I would love to see the Mets go into a full rebuild mode (not sure how that would go over in New York but I think it is needed). The Mets do have a strong core of players in David Wright, Johan Santana, and Carlos Beltran. However, their is not much to surround them unless Jose Reyes goes back to form and Martinez ends up being the real deal. The Mets to me should pattern their plan after Boston's. Build a farm system starting with trades for multiple prospects for guys like Santana or even Wright and then draft good young talent. The Mets then have the financial resources to surround these players with some big money free agents. Right now I think the Mets need to take one step back to move two steps forward. Yordy Cabrera would be a perfect fit as he brings a young athletic infielder who can play all over. He hits for power and would be a great start to a new farm system. He has committed to play college ball at the University of Miami.

http://mlbresource.blogspot.com/


Currently considered the #1 high school prospect available in the 2010 draft, Jameson Taillon continued to impress in his COPABE "AAA" Pan American Championships debut for the 18-and-under USA team. Taillon threw six strong innings, yielding just three hits and two walks, while striking out 12 in Team USA's 14-0 drubbing of Panama.

AJ Vanegas improved his stock and got the USA rolling in the opening game against Aruba. Vanegas lasted just four innings, but allowed one one run on three hits and five strikeout while Team USA won 13-3.

Phillip Pfeifer pitched the middle game of Team USA's three game start, going six innings, yielding just two hits while striking out 11. Pfeifer's effort propelled Team USA to a 14-0 win over Argentina.

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