Mets Hot Stove: Friday Morning News

I promise to do my best to get off the Mike Cameron deal. Like I said, it just rubs me the wrong way. I don't feel that this was a disaster like the Kazmir - Zambrano deal, just more of a head-shaker. Trying to move on...

Daily News: Cliff will miss Mike
A lot of people tend to downplay the effect of losing a popular clubhouse guy like Mike Cameron. If you've ever played sports at any level you understand it better. Yes, team "chemistry" can be an overused term. When a team is winning, chemistry is almost automatic. When a team struggles, it matters more. Teams with chemistry tend to pull together, teams without tend to pull apart.

Adam Rubin also lets us know that Kenji Jojima has returned to Japan to "consult with his family about his future." That future almost certainly will not include the Mets. Somehow, this doesn't hurt very much. Perhaps the Cameron trade has steeled me to disappointment.

Lastings Milledge isn't letting the persistent trade rumors get him down, either. I guess they're bothering me more than him. Seems like everyday I read something that makes me like the kid more, and something else that gets me more convinced he'll never wear a New York Mets uniform.

Also, Cuban defector Alay Soler will pitch in the Puerto Rico winter league to prepare for the season, B.J. Ryan made an "informational" visit to Shea, Scott Eyre won't be coming, and the Mets will try to "ratchet up negotiations" with Scott Boras over first round draft pick Mike Pelfrey.

Also in the Daily News, you can count Bob Raissman among the proponents of a Manny to the Mets deal.
Raissman feels that Manny's presence will provide a huge boost for the Mets' new TV network. I can't argue with that, I'm just an old-fashioned guy that tends to rate moves on how they affect the long-term health of the team.

New York Post: More Manny Mania
Mark Hale also talks about the potential Manny deal. He reports (as do others) that there are no active talks regarding Manny between the Mets and the Sox. Not having a GM would tend to limit such talks, I would guess. Hale quotes an AL official that Omar "wants [Manny], but he isn't going to wait around. He doesn't want to get caught putting all his eggs in one basket."

Hale also quotes another AL official on Lastings Milledge, calling him: "among the top 20 prospects in baseball... [Milledge] needs to work on his plate discipline, but has everything else -- a slightly lesser Carlos Beltran."

Finally, Mike Cameron was asked if he was willing to come back to the Mets and play RF again. (Remember, one of the reasons that Cameron's value was down was because he was "demanding" a trade to another team that would let him play CF) Cameron's answer: "I gave it a lot of thought, and yeah, I could have done it. Once it was done, I could have gone over there and done it again. But turns out, I'm going to get another opportunity to go back to my old position." Either Cameron is lying here or someone on the Mets was.

Mets.com: Delgado.
In a story on the Mets' official site, Marty Noble talks about B.J. Ryan's visit, Jojima's snub, and Furcal's likelihood to sign with Chicago. What I found most significant was the Noble really seems to feel there is something to the Delgado trade rumors. I really don't understand why the Marlins would trade Delgado in their own division when there has to be teams that want him outside the NL East. The whole story is weird -- I found it hard to understand last year that Delgado signed without a no-trade clause.

New York Times: Wagner
Ben Shpigel in the Times has a good update on Billy Wagner. Some in the media are painting it as almost a foregone conclusion that Wagner will sign here; but the Phillies -- after really bungling things for a while -- are getting it right under new GM Pat Gillick.

Finally, at Take the "7" Train, Kevin offers a really passionate argument for keeping Lastings Milledge and some of the other kids in the system.