Consistent with the moves that the Mets have made this season, they have acquired shortstop Chin-Lung Hu from the Dodgers for lefty Michael Antonini.
This is a move that will likely have little impact on the Mets next year. Hu will most likely serve as a back up to Jose Reyes. Hu also has limited experience at second base (38 games), but he may be in the competition for the starting job.
Hu was once a highly-regarded prospect. Baseball America ranked him as the 55th best prospect in baseball before the 2008 season. He saw regular playing time in the majors in 2008 after getting called up, but has not been able to play consistently since then.
In 173 plate appearances in the majors since 2007, Hu has posted a .191/.241/.283 line along with two home runs, 17 RBI and three stolen bases. Hu is a career .299 hitter in the minors over 754 games, so there is a chance that he can be a serviceable backup in the majors.
Michael Antonini spent time at both AA and AAA last season. He went a combined 8-12 with a 4.49 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 168.3 innings. He was left unprotected during the Rule 5 draft this year and he went unclaimed.
Antonini was thought to have a chance to become a member of the Mets bullpen prior to the 2010 season. It is likely that Antonini will pitch in the minors for the Dodgers with a chance to win a spot in the bullpen during Spring Training.
This deal likely does nothing more than give the Mets another potential option for their second base vacancy. It makes me wonder if management has forgotten about Daniel Murphy.
Murphy had a good year with the Mets in 2009. He hit .266 with 12 home runs and drove in 38 runs in 2009. Murphy missed most of the 2010 season due to injury and was only able to play 11 games in the minors.
He is likely the best option that the Mets have at second base, but it appears that he may not be the favorite for the job.
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