New York Mets' right-handed pitcher Jenrry Mejia has been permanently banned from Major League Baseball for a third failed performance enhancing drug test, the league announced.
Mejia is eligible to apply for reinstatement in one year, but he must sit out a minimum of two seasons even if his reinstatement is granted by MLB. Mejia is the first player in Major League history to be permanently suspended under the new Joint Drug Agreement, established in December 2011. Under the policy, a first-time offender is suspended 80 games. A second-time offender is suspended 162 games. Finally, a player suspended a third time will be placed on MLB's Restricted List. Mejia's first suspension came on April 11, 2015, when he was barred 80 games for the use of stanozolol. On July 28, it was announced that he failed a test for stanozolol and Boldenone and received a 162-game suspension. The 26-year-old Mejia was signed by the Mets as an amateur free agent in 2007 and was rushed to the big leagues in 2010. He came into his own in 2014, going 6-6 with a 3.65 ERA with a 98 to 41 strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.73 FIP) in 93 2/3 innings pitched. Mejia saved 28 games in 31 opportunities. Over his career, Mejia went 9-14 with a 3.68 ERA and a 2.13 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 183 1/3 innings pitched over five years with the Mets. --Devan Fink
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The New York Mets have re-signed outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, Jim Bowden of ESPN.com first reported Friday night.
Cespedes agreed to a three-year, $75 million deal, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The deal includes an opt-out after one season and a full no-trade clause. If Cespedes does opt-out, he will make $27.5 million over a single season, the second-highest annual average value for a position player ever. It was quite a saga for Cespedes, who may have been extremely close to signing with the Nationals on Thursday. Numerous teams showed interest along the way, but the sweepstakes came down to the two National League East rivals. Cespedes reportedly wanted to return to New York, though the team was unwilling to offer him the five-year deal he coveted. Now, Cespedes gets a mid-range deal, but could hit the free agent market again next offseason anyway. One interesting factor in this deal is the fact that it contains no deferred money. The Nationals reportedly offered Cespedes a five-year deal for about $100 million, but with a lot of deferred money, thus lowering the present day value of the contract due to inflation over time. So, Cespedes might end up getting a larger sum of money in this deal with New York than what he would have got with Washington. If (and when) Cespedes opts-out next offseason, he will be in line to make much more money. Cespedes will be one of the best position player free agents in a weak market. He should be able to get the long-term deal he was seeking this offseason. For the Mets, re-signing Cespedes comes as a welcome sight to fans who believed that the team was pinching pennies. The team was the National League champion last year and Cespedes was a big part of that. He is a middle-of-the-order impact bat. The 30-year-old Cespedes hit for a .291/.328/.542 slash line with 35 home runs and 105 RBIs in 676 plate appearances with the Tigers and Mets last season. According to FanGraphs, he was worth 6.7 Wins Above Replacement. While the total guarantee does not look like a lot as compared to other outfielders, Yoenis Cespedes may have found the most creative deal on the 2016 free agent market. --Devan Fink
The Washington Nationals are pursuing free agent outfielder Yoenis Cespedes in free agency, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported Wednesday evening.
Rosenthal reported that the Mets and White Sox remain interested in Cespedes, but only at a three-year deal. The Nationals, who made runs at Jason Heyward and Justin Upton, "possibly could land Cespedes with a longer deal," writes Rosenthal. It is not exactly easy to picture where the Nationals could fit Cespedes in their outfield. With Bryce Harper, Jayson Werth, and Ben Revere, Washington's outfield is quite full. The Nationals could decide to trade one of the outfielders, but after acquiring Revere just recently, Werth appears to be the only option that could be dealt. And even he could cause issues. Werth still has $42 million remaining on his contract and has a no-trade clause. Could the Nationals add Cespedes without a trade? Washington could consider playing either Cespedes or Harper in center field and platooning Werth and Revere in one of the corners, most likely left. Revere could also fill in at the other outfield spots to give either Harper or Cespedes a day off. Joining Daniel Murphy, the 30-year-old Cespedes would be the second Met to come over to play for the Nationals this offseason. Cespedes would be quite an addition for the team, hitting .291/.328/.542 with 35 home runs and 105 RBIs in 676 plate appearances last season. He was worth 6.7 FanGraphs Wins Above Replacement. --Devan Fink
The New York Mets have agreed to sign left-handed relief pitcher Antonio Bastardo, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported.
According to Robert Murray of Baseball Essential, the deal is a two-year pact worth $12 million. Bastardo's average annual value of $6 million per season makes him one of the more pricey free agent relievers, putting him near Mark Lowe ($6.5 million AAV; two years) and Tony Sipp ($6 million AAV; three years). For the Mets, Bastardo adds to an already-solid bullpen as the team hopes to recapture the National League East division title in 2016. Along with closer Jeurys Familia, the Mets boast a bullpen that includes Addison Reed, Jerry Blevins, Carlos Torres, Hansel Robles, and Sean Gilmartin. As a unit, the bullpen had the 11th-best ERA in the Majors (3.48) and was worth 3.6 FanGraphs WIns Above Replacment (fWAR), good for 13th. The 30-year-old Bastardo has spent most of his career pitching in the National League East. He spent parts of six seasons with the Phillies before moving on to the Pirates in 2015. Bastardo posted a 2.98 ERA and a 64 to 26 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 57 1/3 innings pitched with Pittsburgh this past year. For the reliever, $6 million a season definitely seems like a lot from New York. Though, per Murray's report, that may have been the going rate for Bastardo, as the Pirates offered him a two-year, $8 million deal that he ultimately rejected. Relief pitching has struck gold this offseason, as teams try to emulate what the Royals did in Kansas City with their bullpen. Only one relief pitcher on the free agent market had more than 25 saves last year (that was Greg Holland, who will miss 2016 with Tommy John surgery). Despite this, figures of $15 million or more were given to five relievers and five others, including Bastardo, made $10 million or more. It's been a relief pitcher's market and Antonio Bastardo wins out, signing with the Mets on a $12 million pact. --Devan Fink
The Baseball Writers Association of America announced the election of two candidates to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Wednesday.
Outfielder Ken Griffey Jr.and catcher Mike Piazza will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame this summer in Cooperstown, New York, cementing themselves alongside baseball's greatest players of all time. Griffey was almost a unanimous selection, getting 99.3 percent (437 of 440) of the vote. He breaks the record for the highest percentage of the vote, previously held by Mets' starter Tom Seaver, who got 98.8 percent of the vote in 1992. Griffey, known as "The Kid," will become baseball's first No. 1 overall pick to make it to the Hall of Fame. Selected by the Mariners in the 1987 MLB Draft, Griffey made his Major League debut at 19 and quickly became one of the greatest sluggers of his time. He hit 40 home runs in just 493 plate appearances in 1994, winning his first of four home run titles. Just three years later, at the age of 27, Griffey hit .304/.382/.646 with 56 home runs and 147 RBIs in 704 plate appearances, unanimously taking home the American League MVP. Griffey followed up his 56 homer campaign with another one in 1998. He slugged a cool 112 home runs and drove in 293 RBIs in 318 games from 1997 to 1998. He was worth a staggering 15.6 fWAR in those two years combined. Griffey was named to 11 consecutive All-Star Games and 13 total. Spending most of his career with the Mariners, Griffey retired with a career .284/.370/.538 slash line and 630 home runs, good for sixth on the all-time list. While Griffey was the trailblazer in one regard, Piazza is in almost the complete opposite, becoming the latest player drafted to enter the Hall of Fame. Piazza was selected in the 62nd round of the 1988 draft as a favor by Tommy Lasorda, a friend of his dad's. That round no longer exists. All Piazza did was hit. Even with such a low draft selection, Piazza eventually turned heads inside the Dodgers' organization with his explosive bat and made his Major League debut at 23. Piazza went on to become the face of the Dodgers, breaking out in his first full season in 1993. He hit for a .318/.370/.561 slash line with 35 home runs and 112 RBIs in 602 plate appearances. He continued his excellence at the plate, hitting 30 or more home runs every year from 1993 to 2002, excluding the strike-shortened 1994 season (he still hit 24 in just 112 games). Piazza ended up being traded to the Mets in 1998. He then spent the majority of his career with New York. Overall, Piazza finished with a .308/.377/.545 slash line with 427 home runs (the most by a catcher ever) and 1,335 RBIs in 16 big league seasons. He received 83 percent of the ballot in his fourth try. Congratulations to both Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza on being elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. --Devan Fink Full voting results are here. |
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