The Paul LoDuca era is over in New York as the Mets will be more defensive behind the plate in 2008. The Mets have acquired 31-year old right swinging Brian Schneider from the Nationals to take over as the starting catcher. Schneider played in 129 games last season for the Nationals and he was 96 for 408 (.235 avg, .661 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 6 homers and 54 RBIs. He is a good defensive catcher however as he nailed 29% of the runners that tried to steal on him last season. Pitchers had a 4.79 ERA when Schneider was catching last season but that was an very good when you consider who the Nationals were trotting out to the pitching mound.

32-year old Ramon Castro will be the backup catcher for the Mets again in 2008 and his biggest asset is his power. He played in 52 games last season for the Mets and he was 41 for 144 (.285 avg, .887 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 11 homers and 31 RBIs. The thing that has held Castro back is his throwing. He only nailed 7% of the runners that tried to steal on him last season but Mets pitchers had a 4.27 ERA when pitching to him so all was not bad on defense for him.

35-year old Raul Casanova will probably be an insurance policy for the Mets in AAA ball this season. He played in 29 games for the Devil Rays last season and he was 20 for 79 (.253 avg, .834 OPS) with 12 runs scored, 6 homers and 11 RBIs. Casanova has a good arm as he threw out 31% of the runners that tried to steal on him last season, but, Devil Rays pitchers had a 6.99 ERA when throwing to him.

26-year old Gustavo Molina is a defensive specialist. He played in 17 games last season for the Orioles and White Sox and he was 3 for 27 (.111 avg) with 1 run scored and 1 RBI. Pitchers had a 4.26 ERA when throwing to him but he was 0 for 2 throwing out runners. He’s unlikely to help the Mets at all even if he gets a chance to play for them.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR 2008 SEASON: C

Trading for Johan Santana was a master stroke by GM Omar Minaya as he didn’t give up anyone that he will miss. Santana gives the Mets a dominant #1 starter which is something that they haven’t had in a long, long time. The Mets also added Tony Armas, Matt Wise and Ruddy Lugo on the cheap and they should all help the Mets at some point in 2008. The Mets wanted to get rid of Lastings Milledge and they got two solid players (Ryan Church, Brian Schneider) back for him. Schneider should work well with the pitching staff as he is a huge improvement behind the plate over Paul LoDuca. Church will likely start in RF for the Mets. Outfielders Angel Pagan and Brady Clark were brought in to battle for jobs off the bench.

OFF SEASON GRADE FOR THE FRONT OFFICE: A

The Mets have signed Brady Clark and Ben Johnson to minor league contracts. The 34-year old Clark will likely have a decent shot of making the Mets Opening Day Roster. Clark played in 68 games last season with the Dodgers and Padres and he was 28 for 107 (.262 avg) with 13 runs scored and 11 RBIs. Clark has now played in 778 games in his major league career and he is 557 for 2,007 (.278 avg, .745 OPS) with 264 runs scored, 36 homers, 209 RBIs and 47 stolen bases. 26-year old Ben Johnson will be competing with Clark for a job on the Mets bench. Johnson played in 9 games last season for the Mets and he was 5 for 27 (.185 avg, .455 OPS) with 2 runs scored and 1 RBI. Johnson has now played in 98 games in his major league career and he is 51 for 222 (.230 avg, .727 OPS) with 31 runs scored, 7 homers and 26 RBIs. Signing these two guys was a smart move by the Mets to provide outfield depth.

The Mets have signed 37-year old corner infielder Olmedo Saenz to a minor league contract. Saenz had a year to forget last season with the Dodgers as he played in 92 games and he was 21 for 110 (.191 avg, .640 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 4 homers and 18 RBIs. He has now played in 733 games in his major league career and he is 438 for 1,663 (.263 avg, .805 OPS) with 226 runs scored, 73 homers and 275 RBIs. This was a nice low risk move for the Mets as Saenz has been a very productive bat off the bench in his major league career.

The Mets have signed 29-year old righty Tony Armas to a minor league contract. Armas will likely be in the bullpen at the start of the season and provide insurance against the health of Pedro Martinez and Orlando Hernandez. Armas pitched in 31 games (15 starts) for the Pirates last season and he was 4-5 with a 6.03 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP. Armas has now pitched in 182 games (166 starts) in his major league career and he is 52-65 with a 4.62 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. This was a nice low risk/high reward signing as Armas still has good stuff.