Bengie and Mets Nearing Deal

Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports is reporting today that free agent catcher Bengie Molina is finally coming down from his contractual demands. The catcher was initially looking for a three year deal, Morosi says multiple sources are reporting that he’d be willing to settle for two. If that’s truly the case then you have to expect him to sign with the New York Mets, and fairly quickly.

Morosi even says himself the likelihood of a deal with the Mets has increased. Tim Kurkjian of ESPN takes that one step further and says a deal could be completed within 48 to 72 hours.

If Morosi’s report is true then I would agree with Kurkjian this deal will get done fast. The Mets were initially offering only a one year deal with an option for a second. But here’s the deal, Molina has been the catcher they’ve wanted all offseason and if all they have to do is guarantee the second year then they’ll do it. How can’t they?

With his superb defense and his decent offensive production he’d be to hard to pass up if dollar figures are reasonable. His 20 homers last season would of actually made him the team leader last season, which is another reason I can’t see the Mets not guaranteeing a second year.

Omar Minaya feels the team has a serious power void and he’s going to do what he can to address that. Besides offensive, Molina makes all three aspects of the game (hitting, fielding and pitching) better for the Mets. So again if the dollar figures are reasonable a two year deal is just fine.

There’s plenty of things to dislike about the aging veteran but in reality the deal would be its only a two year deal with no other catcher out there as good as he is. And Mets’ fans don’t bring up Josh Thole he’s still a good two years from being ready to start at Citi Field.