Your Saturday morning dose of New York Mets and Major League Baseball news, notes, and links.
Meet the Mets
The YankeesintroducedCarlos Beltran yesterday and the outfielder had some bad things to say about the way the Mets organization tried to scapegoat him near the end of his tenure with the club. Beltran the best.
Greg Prince wrote about the Mets' habit of bashing players going out the door at Faith and Fear In Flushing.
Jordany Valdespin has agreed to a minor league deal with the Marlins.
Around the Majors
Grant Balfour's contract with the Orioles is dead, as the team said that Balfour's physical turned up a shoulder issue. Balfour, however, says he's healthy and has the proof of multiple doctors to back him up. The closer is considering filing a grievance against the O's and now the division rival Rays are said to be interested in bringing him back.
Kevin Youkilis is going to play in Japan for the Rakuten Golden Eagles this year.
The Phillies and Orioles have talked about a Jonathan Papelbon trade for some reason.
Grant Brisbee tries to predict the next time the Yankees will be truly awful.
Jeff Sullivan wrote about young pitchers with declining strikeout rates over at Fangraphs.
If you read an article or find a link that you think would be a great addition to a future edition of Mets Morning News, please forward it to our tips email address tips@grission.com and we'll try to add it in.