Could Mets Be Favorites To Sign Lowe?

[ljshorty89]

Central Maine Sports Blog: Yankees Sign Burnett, May Be Out on Lowe

In an e-mail from ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, I asked him if he thought the Yankees would still be in on Derek Lowe now that they have signed AJ Burnett. His response...

I don't think the Yankees want to make another long-term commitment for a pitcher. They'd like to bring in Andy Pettitte or (if that doesn't work out) Ben Sheets on a short contract. But after investing $243 million in two guys, I don't think they want to spend $60 million more on Lowe.
I'm not sure how Lowe's market is going to shake out. The Red Sox would only be interested if he comes cheap, the Phillies just spent $30 million on Raul Ibanez today, and the Dodgers don't expect to bring him back.
Everybody thought the Braves were the likeliest fit, but they're not interested.
To me, that leaves the Mets as the best fit for Lowe. But I don't think he's going to sign for anything close to what Burnett received.

The blog itself may not be reliable, but Crasnick certainly is. And it entirely makes sense too. As he says, the Yankees probably don't want another long term high priced starting pitcher, the Phillies just spent money on Ibanez(AND still need to re-sign Moyer) so they probably won't overpay for Lowe. The Braves have said they are not interested, the Dodgers have said they don't expect him back, and the Red Sox certainly have enough starting pitching and have no reason to overpay for Lowe....

Could the Mets actually be the favorites to land this consistent starting pitcher?

[cjkalt]

he did well in the market where no one cared he couldn't handle the pressure in boston, be interested to see if he could handle it in NY

[ljshorty89]

He seemed to do pretty well all except his last year with the Sox, and he was always pretty solid in the Postseason. He handled the big media market, and since you all disregard "pressure", I'd definitely take him in my rotation.