Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Mets trade Mota!! (for Estrada)

Well, past Lo Duca and Torrealba, the Mets seem to have gotten their catcher, and it's Johnny Estrada. But that's not even the best part.

Guillermo Mota is gone!

I would've been more than happy to get rid of Mota for nothing. I'd be glad if we even paid to get rid of him. But not only did we get rid of him, but we also got a piece of the puzzle back in return!

Now, Estrada isn't one to get all too excited about. Neither were the other options, though Estrada probably even less so than those. But considering these other options, Estrada comes with much less commitment than guys like Paul Lo Duca, Yorvit Torrealba, or Ramon Hernandez would have taken. Plus there's the huge added bonus of not having to deal with the liability that is Guillermo Mota. One less bullpen problem to deal with.

So, we secured left field, second base, catcher, and our bench, plus added by subtraction in our bullpen. Now it's time to focus on the starting rotation.

Back and forth, back and forth....now I can sadly say with clarity (I think), goodbye Lo Duca.

EDIT, 11/21: I'm no expert on contracts and arbitration and all that, so I'm not exactly sure how this works. But it seems like Estrada is not necessarily definitely going to be with the team next year. The Mets can still find a better option at catcher and choose to not give Estrada a contract for next season. Basically though, the deal takes away any worry about filling the hole, as it is currently filled by Estrada, but if we can upgrade without giving up too much, then there's no problem losing Estrada. And we still don't have Mota or his contract.

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