Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse twittered that the Phillies have exercised SS Jimmy Rollins 2011 Option.

Yes, you read correctly...2011 Option.

Ok, I understand that Jimmy is a key player for the Phillies on and off the field.  But this move makes absolutely no sense.  Someone please explain to me what good they accomplished by doing this?

Look, Jimmy Rollins is probably going to be a Phillie for a long time, and Amaro may very well wind up executing his option at the end of this season anyway.  But what's the rush?  All  he is doing is limiting his teams financial flexibility; and for a team that is rapidly becoming a "Big Market" team, managing money becomes more important, not less.

What if he sustains a career threatening injury or has an entire year like the first half of 2009?  What if they want to restructure his deal and sign him to a heavily backloaded contract extension to free up money to sign additional players they need?  Exercising Rollin's 2011 option now provides no positives, and only opens up the door a little wider for potential negatives.

I just don't get it.

The Mets announced today that they have signed reliever Ryota Igararashi to a 2 year deal.  It is estimated in the area of 1MM per year.

The Mets got into a slight bidding war with the Red Sox, before finally coming to a deal.  It was said that at least 6 other teams were interested in Igarashi.

He has a fastball that is clocked regularly between 93-96 MPH and his out pitch is an excellent slider.  Supposedly he also has a curve ball, but rarely uses it as a one inning reliever.

Well, it's nice to finally see a Major League addition to their squad.  Igarashi is far from a guarantee as this will be his first season playing out of Japan with a smaller strike zone, however, it is comforting to know that Epstien and The Sox were so hot and heavy after him.  Their scouting department is top notch.  Plus, the Mets didn't break the bank signing him and it is only a two year deal.  So BRAVO, Omar.  It would be nice to see another lefty added to the pen to assist Feliciano, because I don't know if he can continue to be used like he has without his arm falling off.

So cross one need of the list.  Now we need a left fielder (Jason Bay), a Catcher (NOT Benji Molina if it's more than one year), and at least one pitcher (who knows who?).  Other moves would be solidifying the bench and moving Castillo (if possible) in order to sign Hudson.  All these moves are not out of the question.  Let's go Mets!

Update:

The deal is reported to be worth 3MM over 2 years.

Well, I guess that was a result of the bidding war with the Sox.  Anyway, it still looks like a good deal.

It's the end of the decade and everybody is making lists.  And even though this rivalry has only materialized in the last five years, I felt an all-decade team was appropriate.  In order to qualify, a player must have played at least four full seasons for either the Mets or Phillies 2000-2009.  For comparison's sake, statistics are per 162 games.  Here it goes:

Mets/Phillies All-Decade Team

C- Mike Piazza (2000-2005) .286, 36 HR, 102 RBI

1B- Ryan Howard (2004-2009) .279, 50 HR, 142 RBI

2B- Chase Utley (2003-2009) .295, 29 HR, 106 RBI

SS- Jimmy Rollins (2000-2009) .274, 17 HR, 72 RBI, 38 SB, 109 R

3B- David Wright (2004-2009) .309, 27 HR, 107 RBI, 23 SB

LF- Pat Burrell (2000-2007) .258, 31 HR, 105 RBI

CF- Carlos Beltran (2005-2009) .281, 31 HR, 112 RBI, 23 SB

RF- Bobby Abreu (2000-2005) .300, 26 HR, 99 RBI, 110 R, 32 SB

SP- Al Leiter (2000-2004) 15-11, 3.43 ERA, 171 K, 123 ERA+

SP- Tom Glavine (2003-2007) 13-12, 3.97 ERA, 107 K, 107 ERA+

SP- Randy Wolf (2000-2006) 13-11, 4.06 ERA, 171 K, 105 ERA+

SP- Pedro Martinez (2005-2009) 15-10, 3.86 ERA, 194 K, 109 ERA+

SP- Brett Myers (2002-2009) 12-11, 4.40 ERA, 159 K, 99 ERA +, 21 total saves

Closer- Billy Wagner (2004-2008) 3-2, 2.18 ERA, 37 saves, 200 ERA+

Manager- Charlie Manuel (2005-2009) 810-447, 2 pennants, 1 World Series title

A few quick observations

• Final tally: 7 Phillies and 6 Mets.  I counted Pedro as a Met, and Wagner as neither
  
• Man, the pitching on this team is weak.  It would look a hell of a lot different if Johan, Doc, and Lee were eligible
• Writing Glavine's name on there was painful
• Hitting edge clearly goes to the Phillies, Mets get a slight edge in pitching
• Closest race was Rollins vs. Reyes.  Reyes actually has the better numbers, but Rollins gets the edge because of stronger defense, games played, and the fact that he won an MVP during the decade.
• 7 out of the 14 players selected are still active for their respective teams
• 2 players (Billy Wagner and Pedro Martinez) played for both teams
• The majority of the players appear to be from the latter half of the decade

Newly available and currently rehabbing starter Chien-Ming Wang presents a good buy-low pitching option for both the Phillies (who scouted him last season) and the Mets (who expressed interest now). I know what you're thinking, and yes, if the Phillies and Mets face off the Phillies will most likely win -- it's science.  Although, that's not the point of this post, just a sad Flushing reality.  Wang won't be ready to pitch until early in the season, but both teams require some pitching help and both would be wise to pursue the former 19 game winner (twice, actually).

Pitching for the Yankees most certainly helped, however the ground-ball wizard pitched well enough on his own to at the very least support those win totals.  ERAs in the mid 3s and WHIPs around 1.2-1.3 aren't exceptional by any means, but with good support they worked him wonders. '08 injuries and '09 lingering issues caused a two-year drought in productivity, but some time off helps the 30-year-old Wang's value.

For the Phillies, Wang's ground-ball tendencies only make him a better option.  Keeping the ball out of the air in Citizen's Bank is always a good thing.  As for the Mets, well there isn't much staff there and buy low is something a big market team like the Mets can afford to take risks on (I guess the Phillies too for that matter).  Wang's people have expressed a willingness to wait and sign closer to the season, so we'll most likely have to bide our time with other free agents until more time passes.

All word out of the Jason Bay contract discussions indicate that the Mets are the front-runner to sign the former-Red Sox outfielder, in fact they may be the only runner at all.  The Mets have reported offered Bay a four year deal, but he's holding fast for something in the five year range.  The Mets have put together a five-year package also, but this new deal reportedly equals a four-year package in value. Essentially, the Mets are bidding against themselves for Bay's services, which is normally a good thing.  However, you can't count on that with Omar Minaya involved.

Omar's approval rating in New York is not very high right now and if he fumbles this one, things will only get hairier.  Mike Vaccaro (NYPost) writes that this is a classic case of the Mets targeting the wrong kind of free agent and that Jason Bay makes another in a long line of Bobby Bonillas and Kevin Appiers.  Harsh to JayBay, but in my opinion, very true.  Top tier free agents aren't always fiscally possible to sign, however signing the lesser guys to massive contracts rarely ends well.  Matt demonstrated his mild approval last week and, but I disagree with him.  Jason Bay would be a mistake for the Mets, which is exactly while they'll sign him.

Jose Reyes sat down with Mike Francessa on WFAN for almost an hour yesterday and talked about everything ranging from his injury plagued 2009 season, his love for the game, his coaches, who he loves/hates to hit against, possible additions to his team and of course, the Phillies.  Here are some gems from the interview:

"[The Phillies] always have something to say about me...I never talk about them...I love playing against them.

They're mad cause I hit a home run and put my finger up.  In the playoffs Victorino did the same thing.  When you are in the game, you don't think about that stuff, it just happens.

Even when they win the World Series they talk about us!  Why?"

To listen to the entire interview, click here and play the Jose Reyes audio segment.

It was a really good interview (even for Mike Francessa, for whom I detest).  Forgetting all the "team to beat", and hot stove speculations for a moment, I really miss watching this kid play.  Regardless of one's opinion of how good a player he is, one thing is for certain: He is one of the lightning rods for this rivalry.  He makes the games more fun to watch; whether you love to love him, or love to hate him.

So, get well soon Jose.  Don't try to do too much too soon and re-injure yourself.  You are the spark that sets the Mets in motion.  We need you, and so does this rivalry.

Rob Neyer just put out his list of the best players of the 0's (as he calls the decade) and as you would expect there's a fair amount of Phillies and Mets in the list.  I'm not going to copy the whole list, so here are the respective Philly and New York guys:

6. Carlos Beltran
Beltran excelled in all phases of the game -- hitting, running, fielding -- and gets a couple of bonus points for his brilliant run with the Astros in the 2004 postseason.

9. Roy Halladay (he may not be a Phillie yet, but he's of interest)
No pitcher until now? There just wasn't a pitcher who was brilliant for the whole decade, as Greg Maddux and Roger Clemens were in the 1990s or Jim Palmer and Tom Seaver were in the 1970s.

10. Johan Santana
Little separates Santana and Halladay, and Santana's best seasons were slightly better than Halladay's. But Halladay pitched more and did all his work in the game's toughest division.

[well Matt there's a nice opposition to your side of the battle: Roy > Johan]

11. Scott Rolen (doesn't count, just notable)
It's a shame that Rolen wasn't able to stay healthy in the latter half of this decade; otherwise his brilliant defense would have him headed for Cooperstown. (Maybe it should anyway.)

16. Bobby Abreu
It wasn't even one of his best seasons, but in 2009 Abreu finally (if temporarily) lost theunderrated tag … he finished just 12th in the MVP ballot, but that was the best he had ever done.

22. J.D. Drew (hate this fuckin' guy)
Don't laugh. Drew has averaged only 123 games per season, but when he's played he's hit, fielded and run with great skill. The Red Sox knew what they were getting and don't have any regrets.

27. Jim Thome
Thome hit 368 home runs during the decade; only A-Rod (who lapped the field) hit more. Thome also ranked fourth in walks, seventh in OPS and first in 500-foot homers to straightaway center field.

28. Pedro Martinez
Martinez went 75-26 with a 2.53 ERA from 2000 through 2004; in five seasons since, he has just 37 wins with 3.86 ERA, thus making the Red Sox look real smart to let him get away.

34. Gary Sheffield
Devastating hitter through the first six years of the decade -- .309/.408/.564 (batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage) -- but production fell off in later seasons as injuries mounted. He's the closest to Dick Allen that most of us have seen.

36. Mike Cameron
Exactly the sort of player who's usually underrated: Low batting average, but midrange power, solid baserunning and outstanding defense in center field made Cameron better than you probably thought.

37. Chase Utley
Maybe he should rank higher, but this is a lofty spot for someone who's been an everyday player for only five seasons. The National League's best-fielding second baseman and perennial leader in hit-by-pitches.

38. Carlos Delgado
It's hard to believe that Delgado has been an All-Star just twice; for the decade ranks fifth -- behind future Hall of Famers (probably) -- in both home runs (324) and RBIs (1,045).

46. Placido Polanco
Hey, what's he doing here? Well, he's here because he's been a league-average hitter who's played distinctly better-than-average defense just about anywhere they've put him.

52. Jimmy Rollins
56. David Wright
81. Tom Glavine
83. Cliff Floyd
85. Freddy Garcia
95. Jose Reyes
100. Jamie Moyer

That seems like a lot of former and current guys for only two teams.  Neyer mainly used win above replacement and playoff performance to compile and adjust this list.  It's a little surprising that Ryan Howard didn't find himself a place on this list, but remember he only registered 4.5 seasons in the 2000s.  Otherwise this list is a lot of fun to look and complain about.  Obviously I think there are about 6 too many Mets on this list (just kidding... nah for real though).

The Toronto Sun is reporting that one of the players has failed a physical in the Roy Halliday multi-team blockbuster deal.

Depending on which player it is, this could be a huge deal breaker.  Could you imagine if Lee had to return to Philly?  I wonder if he would still demand a trade.  Of course, this could all be moot if it is a lower lever prospect that could be replaced with another.

Regardless this should be fun....

Now that Lackey is off the market, it's time for Omar to turn to plan B.  Forget the Jason Marquis and the Joel Pineiros for now, the guy the Mets should be looking at is Aroldis Chapman.  Although I don't foresee him making an immediate jump to the big leagues, this kid is a special talent, and I think it would be a mistake to pass on him.  He's essentially the left handed version of Stephen Strasburg.

Chapman threw a bullpen session for MLB scouts yesterday, including representatives from the Mets.  The 6' 4'' 22 year old lefty hit 96 on the radar gun, and most people came away impressed.  Said Astros GM Ed Wade, "The kid's got a great arm.  He's a physical specimen. He's left-handed. He throws hard. Obviously, anybody would be interested in an arm like this. He's got some great stuff. The early feedback from our guys, and everybody else, is he's a tremendous talent."  Chapman has been on everyone's radar since he hit 102 mph during the World Baseball Classic, although he seemed to struggled with his command.

The problem with Chapman is the amount of money he is going to command.  I'm assuming that he will use Strasburg's 4 year, $15.1 Million contract as a starting point.  And don't forget he recently fired his agent, so its clear the Chapman is looking for a serious payday.  But at this point, I think he is a necessary gamble.  Why pay Jason Marquis $10 Million per year to be a mediocre starter, when you can give Chapman $3.5 Million with the potential for greatness.  There should be a major bidding war for Chapman in the coming days, and I would hope that the Mets at least submit a competitive offer.  Especially if they lose out on Bay and Holliday.

He isn't even officially on the team yet, and the Philly media is already annoying the hell out of Roy Halladay.  Kudos to The Fightins for passing this along.

Obviously Roy isn't allowed to comment on a trade that hasn't officially been completed.  But its still a hilarious "welcome to Philly" moment for Doc.