Johan Santana going to the Mets

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New York Mets, Minnesota Twins reach tentative deal for Johan Santana

By RONALD BLUM, AP Baseball Writer
January 29, 2008



NEW YORK (AP) -- The Minnesota Twins reached a tentative agreement Tuesday to trade Johan Santana to the New York Mets.

After months of deliberation, the Twins agreed to part with the two-time Cy Young Award for outfielder Carlos Gomez, and pitchers Phil Humber, Deolis Guerra and Kevin Mulvey, two people familiar with the deal said, speaking on condition of anonymity because no announcement had been made.

"If it's true, obviously, you're getting arguably the best pitcher in the game," Mets third baseman David Wright said.

The next step is for the Mets to negotiate a contract extension with Santana, who is eligible for free agency after this season. The three-time All-Star is owed $13.25 million this year and likely will seek an extension of at least five years worth $20 million annually.

Teams are given 72-hour windows to reach agreements on contracts in tentative trades. If the Mets and Santana reach an agreement, players would have to pass physicals and the pitcher would have to formally waive his no-trade clause.

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The Mets emerged as the top candidate for a trade after the winter meetings, when the New York Yankees withdrew their offer, which included pitchers Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy, and the Red Sox refused to improve their proposals, which included pitcher Jon Lester or outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury and prospects.

Twins general manager Bill Smith called teams last weekend and asked them to make their best offers. Smith informed the Mets on Tuesday that he was accepting their proposal.

A left-hander who turns 29 in March, Santana gives the Mets a replacement for Tom Glavine, who left New York to return to the Atlanta Braves. New York's rotation also includes Pedro Martinez, John Maine, Orlando Hernandez and Oliver Perez.

Santana is 93-44 with a 3.22 ERA in eight major league seasons, winning the AL Cy Young Award in 2004 and 2006. He has been less successful in the playoffs, going 1-3 with a 3.97 ERA.

"For our younger pitchers to develop under a guy like Pedro, a guy like Johan, you can't ask for any better situation," Wright said. "He's going to go out there and he's going to give you seven or eight innings every five days and he's going to get you a win. That's just what it comes down to. I've gotten a chance to get to know him a little bit the past couple years. He seems like a great clubhouse guy. He's going to fit in perfectly with the chemistry that we have."

With Santana gone, there is a big opening in the Twins' rotation. Francisco Liriano is on track to return after missing last season following elbow surgery, but Carlos Silva signed with Seattle as a free agent, leaving youngsters Scott Baker, Boof Bonser and Kevin Slowey as the starters with the most experience.

Humber, a 25-year-old right-hander, has made one start and four relief appearances for the Mets during the past two years, and went 11-9 with a 4.27 ERA last season for Triple-A New Orleans. The 22-year-old Gomez batted .232 in 125 at-bats with New York last year and .275 with 19 steals in the minors.

The tentative agreement was first reported by USA Today on its Web site.

AP Baseball Writer Mike Fitzpatrick in New York and AP Sports Writer Dave Campbell in Minneapolis contributed to this report.

Thank goodness he's not going to Boston. I'm also glad the Yanks didn't throw more young talent away for another high-priced pitcher. Now the Mets need to spend too much to keep him. And we see how well the deal for Pedro really worked out for them.

Oh great, another Minnesota team trades another one of their popular players.

In the past 4 years, the following good players were traded, not signed or released:

Randy Moss, Torii Hunter, Manny Fernadez, David Ortiz, Kevin Garnett, and now Johan Santana.

I predict these next star players on Minnesota teams have will be released:

Marian Gaborik
Justin Morneau

After that, we will go in an 8 year span from having the biggest stars in sports inhabit our area to having nobodies inhabit the area.

Let's hope Al Jefferson, Adrian Peterson, Tavarius Jackson, Sidney Rice, Joe Mauer, Brent Burns and Randy Foye can take the torch.

Has anyone heard of these people that he was traded for? I'm curious who got the better end of this deal.

I thought the Raiders got ripped off when they took Moss in exchange for....

...um, who'd we get in that trade?

You forgot Liriano. He will get healthy, have an all-star season, then sign with someone else. From what I understand, the Twins did not get much for Santana. I thought the Red Sox offer was better. Elsbury could be a solid lead-off hitter, maybe another Grady Sizemore without as much power, and Lester is as good a pitcher as anyone they got from the Mets. It must be frustrating to be a fan for a small-market team.

The Vikings coaching staff got piece of mind in exchange for Moss, no?

I hate to resurrect a dead thread, but I was damn near dead on right!

"Oh great, another Minnesota team trades another one of their popular players.

In the past 4 years, the following good players were traded, not signed or released:

Randy Moss, Torii Hunter, Manny Fernadez, David Ortiz, Kevin Garnett, and now Johan Santana.

I predict these next star players on Minnesota teams have will be released:

Marian Gaborik
Justin Morneau

After that, we will go in an 8 year span from having the biggest stars in sports inhabit our area to having nobodies inhabit the area.

Let's hope Al Jefferson, Adrian Peterson, Tavarius Jackson, Sidney Rice, Joe Mauer, Brent Burns and Randy Foye can take the torch."

Morneau looks like he's done, and Gabby's now a ranger.

Furthermore, Al Jefferson is a Jazz, T-Jack is likely not going to be re-signed, and Randy Foye's somewhere in the NBA but not a Timberwolf.