Mets Morning News: Cash Money Millionaires

Meet the Mets

With the recent influx of cash from loan refinancing, Mets GM Sandy Alderson expects to have actual money to spend on free agents now. Maybe even *gasp* major league free agents! Howard Megdal wonders if they actually have any money to spend on baseball players though.

If the Mets do in fact have money to spend on actual baseball players, Carl Pavano might be on the short list. You can discuss amongst yourself in the comments if Carl Pavano still qualifies as an actual baseball player. He has a damn fine mustache though.

Of course there is always Scott Hairston, as the Mets and Yankees appear to be locked in whatever the opposite of a bidding war is.

As you might recall, Jon Niese was scheduled to undergo a minor heart procedure around Christmas, but doctors have decided that the procedure is unecessary.

Wrapping up our Mets links, Greg Prince compares the Mets offseason to a John Hughes movie. Pretty sure it was more Curly Sue than The Breakfast Club.

Yesterday at AA

Rob Castellano once again checked in on the Mets prospects playing in the Winter Leagues and kicked off some prospect list discussion.

Brock Mahan took a look back at Tom Terrific's shamefully non-unanimous vote total in Hall of Fame balloting.

And yours truly blurbed about the Mets bringing back Wally Backman to manage the Las Vegas 51s. Wallyball will never die you guys, it lives inside all of us.

Around MLB

Grant Brisbee investigates who is the best player never to receive a Hall of Fame vote. The answer will probably not surprise you.

More Hall of Fame stuff, as Joe Posnanski writes 10,000 words or so about his actual Hall of Fame ballot.

Multiple teams are reportedly kicking the tires on Chipper Jones in case he's not really retired. Thankfully, it looks like he is really retired.

Presented without comment, Ruben Amaro is now going to focus on "smaller deals."

And finally, Dave Cameron wonders if the Rangers got a bit of a bargain in their one-year deal for Lance Berkman.