What are the Mets waiting for? They don't exactly have a starting rotation like their crosstown rivals. The opportunity to get Derek Lowe came and went this week as Lowe signed a 4 year, $60 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.

Not only did they not get Lowe, but they let him go to another team in the division. $15 million a year is too much money for Lowe, which is why they probably stood back from Lowe but he was the best option available for the Mets, who need pitching. It would've been ok if they overpaid for Lowe simply because he's a solid workhorse. He'll get you 200 innings and about 14 or 15 wins, something the Mets desperately need after Johan Santana in the rotation. Don't forget the Mets are also moving into a new stadium this year and need to put a playoff caliber team on the field, especially after their late season flops in '07 and '08.

The next target is Oliver Perez, who is another Scott Boras client. In other words, they're probably going to overpay for him, so my question is why don't you just do that for Lowe. Perez is too inconsistent to be overpaid. Ben Sheets would be a nice risk for the Mets. I think he would be a better fit for the Mets than he would the Yankees. If Omar Minaya plays his cards right why not get both. If both pitch up to their capability then the Mets should find themselves playing October baseball again. Until then, the waiting game continues.

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Tags: Baseball, Ben Sheets, Derek Lowe, Johan Santana, Mets, Oliver Perez, Scott Boras

The Yankees are looking to trade Xavier Nady, a move that most fans are not too supportive of. It's either trade Nady or Nick Swisher.

The Yankees are looking to trade Xavier Nady, a move that most fans are not too supportive of. It's either trade Nady or Nick Swisher.

Going in Swisher's favor is the fact he's a switch hitter and makes $21 million over the next three seasons as opposed to Nady who will be a free agent at the end of the 2009 season. Nady is also represented by Scott Boras which ultimately means he will walk come season's end because the Yankees probably won't give Nady the money he'll be asking for.

Nady was acquired in late July in 2008 and helped proved pop in the lineup. He was a consistent force in the liuneup behind Alex Rodriguez, especially with the Yanks missing Hideki Matsui and Jorge Posada for an extended period of time. The Nationals are the only team that have publicly had interest in both Nady and Swisher. I would take there's more teams in the mix but for right now things are quiet on the trading front.

I personally would like to see the Yanks retain both men and think they should take their chances come next winter with Nady. They do have Matsui and Johnny Damon also coming off the books so they're going to need some outfielders. I trust Brian Cashman so I'm not going to worry. But if we do trade Nady we better get a good pitcher in return.

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Tags: Alex Rodriguez, Baseball, Brain Cashman, Hideki Matsui, Jorge Posada, Nick Swisher, Scott Boras, Xavier Nady, Yankees

According to Buster Olney of ESPN.com the Mets are in a good position to sign free agents Derek Lowe and Oliver Perez. That's because the Cardinals, Brewers, Dodgers and Braves are no longer in the mix for both starters.

The Mets reportedly want to have this situation resolved by the new year. If the Mets can somehow find a way to add both men then they will certainly find themselves as the team to beat in the NL East, if not the entire league.

With the market dropping for both men, the Mets can sign both at a price more to their liking instead of overpaying. The Mets found themselves in a similar situation earlier this offseason when they signed Franciso Rodriguez at a reasonable price. It might be a hard task to achieve given that both are represented by super agent Scott Boras. He's known to hold out as long as possible so his clients can get top dollar. So far that hasn't worked with Boras' other client Manny Ramirez.

"With [David] Wright and [Jose] Reyes on that side of the infield, Lowe is a good fit," a Mets team executive said.

The Red Sox are still in the running for Lowe but have not made any substantial progress. The Sox should lock up Lowe so it gives them to a rotation to match the Yanks' suddenly dominant staff.

With the new year approaching the Mets want their rotation set, I don't blame them. After all, they need to compete with the defending champs, the Phillies. It's the Mets chance to regain control of division, can they seize the opportunity? They need to.

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Tags: David Wright, Derek Lowe, Franciso Rodriguez, Mets, Oliver Perez, Scott Boras

According to the NY Daily News, Manny Ramirez is seeking at least a three-year deal from the Yankees. This is something I don't think will happen but I also didn't think Alex Rodriguez was going to come back to the Yankees last winter.

Ramirez is looking for a four-year $100 million deal, but realistically who is going to give him that deal. The way he dogged himself out of Boston, most teams don't want to take the chance on Ramirez doing that to them. So Manny shot himself in the foot with that move. Good advice from Scott Boras, his agent. Boras probably planned that out thinking Manny would cash in this offseason. I think Manny will eventually find a home before the season starts but he's going to have to "settle" for a two-year $50 million deal.

Listen I would love to see Manny bat in front of A-Rod, that would be even scarier than the days of Manny and David Ortiz but the way Manny conducted himself in his final weeks in Boston is the reason you don't want this guy on the team. The Yankees are rounding out a nice little team for next season and Manny would just complicate things. Besides Mark Teixiera, another Boras client makes more sense for the Yankees for roughly the same amount of money. If the Yanks do sign Ramirez then I hope we get the guy who played hard and hustled in L.A. but what happens when Joe Girardi tells Manny to shave and cut his hair? Yea I don't see that going over well and thus we have our first Manny drama. But I have been wrong in the past so we'll have to just wait and see what happens.

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Tags: Alex Rodriguez, Baseball, Joe Girardi, Manny Ramirez, Mark Teixeira, Scott Boras, Yankees