My Kingdom for a Quality Starter

I'm trying really hard to find some good out on the free agent/trade pitching market, but it's just not happening. Though I shouldn't be surprised, as most players that are good usually stay with their teams this time of year, there's nobody out there who's even kind of tempting. Lists have popped up with names that may be available through trade, including:

Brian Anderson - He is lefthanded, he throws down in the zone like Rick Peterson preaches, and is yet another former "talented but erratic" pitcher. But his one good year is looking more and more like it was a fluke, and he's being paid around 3.5 million next year because of it. On top of that, he was one of the worst pitchers in baseball last season and his K's per nine innings have been consistently declining since he first started pitching. His career ERA is 4.69, and that's with his flukey 3.78 career year. Bad all around.

Byung-Hyun Kim - Otherwise known as Benitez with the ability to start. He has the talent, he has the stuff, and he has a wacky delivery. He also has a long injury list, would probably require something of value in a trade, is the exact opposite of clutch, and has a Jae Seo case of the "uncoachables". Although he's an extremely talented pitcher, I'd much rather have a guy like Matt Ginter who'll listen and learn for free than Kim who'll do neither and cost a solid prospect. Pass.

Chan Ho Park - Five words: Two years, twenty-seven million. Nuh uh.

Shawn Chacon - This is the only guy who may have a chance to be better than the bunch of "in house" guys being considered. Chacon (a former All Star!) is only twenty-seven, has a 92-94 MPH fastball, a nice changeup, an average cutter and a really nice curve. He was given the closer role last year for some reason, and it was not a success (7.11 ERA, 128 base runners in 63 innings). But the guy has talent, and getting him out of Coors and into a rotation would do wonders for him regardless. He's relatively cheap (1.85 million) and considered a solid teammate. If the asking price isn't too steep, I wouldn't mind the Mets taking a flier.

And that's about it. I don't care if Pete Munro is from Flushing, he could have been born in Shea for all I care. If the guy's control isn't absolutely on, he gets hammered, and the latter happens way more than the former. Aaron Heilman would be a better option than Pete.

So, there we have it. If Petit isn't making the jump for AA (and all indications are he will not), then the Mets have to pick and choose from guys in the organization who have been below average starters the past couple seasons, or try and spin another team's straw into gold. Either way, it'll be a long and frustrating experience for all involved.