In recent days the biggest news coming out of the Mets organization has been the agreed buyout of left fielder, Jason Bay. I am amazed that not only did the Mets do this earlier than I expected ( I said that it would occur during spring training) but the fact that with the exception of the deferment of Bay’s 2013 salary, Bay will get every nickel due to him – no pennies on the dollar buyout thank you ( Damn I wish I was represented by Scott Boras).
So this got me to thinking ” Who are the worst Mets players by position that became Mets by either free agency or via trade ?”
The only rule that I used during my selection is that players from the Mets teams from the ’60′s would be omitted because the Mets had such god awful players at the time, and it would pollute this list.
Here is my list. some will agree, other will not. If you are in the camp that disagrees I invite you to give your list in the comment section below.
Manager: Jeff Torborg – Torborg came to the Mets with great fanfare in the early ’90′s. He was previously a winning manager for the White Sox, but he was not the right man to pilot a Mets roster that was fraught with conflict.
Catcher: Brian Schneider - Schneider was obtained along with outfielder, Ryan Church from the Nationals for outfielder Lastings Millidge.Schneider was seen as a defensive upgrade ( as well as a cheaper alternative) over the previous backstop, Paul LoDuca, but Brian didn’t acquit himself either offensively or defensively.
First Base : Mo Vaughn – Only the Mets would trade for a injured player after seeing him hit for 10 minutes in a batting cage. Vaughn played one and a half seasons for the Mets before retiring due to a bad back.
Second Base : Roberto Alomar – Alomar came to the Mets with great expectations but once he donned a Mets uniform his hitting and fielding skills eroded considerably.
Short Stop: Mike Bordick – The one strength that the Mets have maintained in the last 40 odd years is they have had great defensive shortstops. Bordick had a good pedigree with the Orioles, but it was astonishing when the Mets traded Melvin Mora for him to replace the injured Rey Ordonez in ’00, Bordick was a total bust.
Third Base: Jim Fregosi – We traded Nolan Ryan for him so you draw your own conclusions !
Centerfield: Juan Samuel. Samuel -known as a second baseman was acquired by the Mets for fan favorites, Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell. The Mets figured with Samuel’s speed and power he would be a natural for center field . HE WASN’T !
Left Field: Jason Bay. You should know why unless you have been living under a rock for the past 3 years.
Right Field: Ryan Church. Church was the other player in the Lastings Millidge trade. Church was expected to give the Mets line up much needed power and bring good offense to the outfield – neither came to pass.
Starting Pitcher: Mickey Lolich. Lolich was the main piece that was obtained in the deal that sent Rusty Staub to the Detroit Tigers in 1976. He at one time was the ace of the Tigers staff. But when he came to the Mets he went 8-13 with an E.R.A of 3.22 before retiring to open a doughnut shop. Honorable mention : Oliver Perez !
Closer: Francisco Rodriguez. Whenever Frankie came into a game – no lead was safe. He was signed to a bloated contract, and the only opponent that he had ease in punching out was his “father in law”
So there you have it – do you agree/disagree ? please let your voice be heard in the comment section.
And with that said…. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!
Mets alumni celebrating a birthday today includes:
Mets reliever from ’05-’06, Roberto Hernandez is 48 (1964).
Spot starter/middle reliever from ’93-’95, Dave Telgheder is 46 (1966).
One of the better Met’s utility men of the last 10 years, Damion Easley is 43 (1969).
Spot starter/middle reliever from ’02-’03, Mike Bacsik is 35 (1977).
The Texas Rangers signed Doc Medich of the New York Mets as a free agent on November 11, 1977.Medich only appeared in one game in his Mets career. His record as a Met was 0-1 with an E.R.A of 3.86.
The New York Mets traded reserve outfielder, Terry Blocker to the Atlanta Braves for middle reliever, Kevin Brown on November 11, 1987.
The New York Mets traded reliever, Mel Rojas to the Los Angeles Dodgers for outfielder, Bobby Bonilla on November 11, 1998. Most Mets fans still wonder why the Mets brought Bobby Bo back for a second tour of duty.
Mo Vaughn wants to do dinner theater !
92 comments
HotRod1962
11/27/2012-4:08pm at 4:08 pm (UTC -4)
Actually, what sets Bobby Bo apart in his need to be on this list, is that he’s still producing! He currently sucks $21 million a year out of the Mets’ paltry coffers as part of the franchise’s All-Time Worst Deal: the Bobby Bo ‘Please Just Go Away!!!’ deal.
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