Meet the Mets
Pitchers and catchers aren't reporting for a few more weeks still, but Terry Collins is already in Port St. Lucie hoping to have 50+ of the organization's players there with him as the team opens up training camp. Over/under on the first ITBSOHL story?
Some important organizational figures weighed in yesterday on how certain players could improve. Terry Collins offered opinions on Josh Thole and Ike Davis. Wally Backman hopes to have Darrel Ceciliani and Cory Vaughn with him in Binghamton by the end of the year. And Brad Holt is happy with the improvements he's made over his winter league season.
John Franco thinks that Sandy Alderson is steering the ship on a good path.
Mets Fever is hoping that 2011 is karmic retribution for the Phillies.
Shannon Shark digs up the 1977 Dick Young column that allegedly drove Tom Seaver out of town. Amazing stuff.
Around MLB
The Tigers have dealt Armando Galarraga to the Diamondbacks.
By no means the most significant trade of the offseason, the Clayton Grant Mortensen for Philip Ethan Hollingsworth swap can probably be considered the whitest trade of all time.
Joe Torre is not done with MLB quite yet and he is likely to take a job with the commissioner's office.
The Vernon Wells trade has taken its place among the Victor Zambrano debacle as one of the most inexplicable trades of all time.
And, finally, the Rangers and Josh Hamilton are about to go to arbitration, an awkward process for all involved. Interesting dilemma for Texas though, do they bring up Hamilton's past drug abuse?