The Mets lack of pitching depth has been widely discussed this spring. Look past the starting five, and you don’t see many options that make you warm and fuzzy. Perhaps Matt Harvey and Jeurys Familia will change that mid-season, but neither should be put into the equation on March 20th.

With the new rule that provides veterans with six years of service time a 100k bonus if they are sent to the minors (including a June 1st opt-out), there could be a pool of players available at the end of spring that normally wouldn’t be out there. One of the first to hit that list is RHP Joel Pineiro.

The Phillies released Pineiro earlier in the week after signing him to a minor league deal that would have earned him $1.5 million if he made the big league club.

He was a good “depth signing,” but the Phillies are one of the few teams that have little need for a veteran starter. They are set with a rotation of Halladay, Lee, Hamels, Worley and Blanton. Instead of paying Pineiro 100k to play at Triple-A, where he could have opted out on June 1st, they decided to let him go and pursue other opportunities.

Pineiro didn’t pitch much for the Phillies this spring. In 6 innings he allowed 3 earned runs, struck out 3 and walked 2. He is only 33 years of age, and has a prior track record of National League success, albeit it was in St. Louis and under Dave Duncan.

There is one concern, as Phils pitching coach Rich Dubee told reporters Pineiro is dealing with a “cranky shoulder.” It’s an injury that plagued him with the Angels last season.

Again, a minor league deal that is structured in a similar fashion to the one he signed in Philadelphia shouldn’t be all that risky for the Mets.

If healthy, Pineiro is a control pitcher that could provide the Mets with league average innings. Think about 12 wins and a 4.50 ERA. The fact that he is an extreme ground ball pitcher would be helpful with the shorter Citi Field dimensions.

I bet you would sign up for that type of season from Mike Pelfrey.

The Mets and Pineiro do have an odd prior history. During the offseason of 2009-2010, I supported the Mets signing Pineiro to a short-term deal. As it always seems to be with the Amazin’s, their courtship of Pineiro was controversial.

Adam Rubin of ESPN NY said that Mets representatives “were willing to meet or narrowly exceed” the contract that Pineiro got from the Angels, but the club felt that “Pineiro wasn’t sincere” in his desire to become a Met.

Pineiro’s story was a bit different, as he told John Harper of the Daily News that he considered the Mets the frontrunners. His neighbor was Alex Cora, who was under contract with the Mets, and told him the team would be making an offer. An offer never came until the Angels s stepped up with a 2-year deal. The Mets came in under the Angles offer at the last minute, an odd strategy for a team that needed affordable pitching. The lukewarm courtship was described as “weird” by Pineiro.

Mike Silva is a freelance writer and radio host since March of 2007. This website is his own personal "digest" of New York Baseball He's also hosts NYBD Radio on Blog Talk Radio and 1240 AM WGBB. Check out his sports media commentary at www.sportsmediawatchdog.com. Check out his official website, www.mikesilvamedia.com

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Tags: Joel Pineiro, Los Angeles Angels, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St Louis Cardinals