Gary Carter’s health has taken a turn for the worse.

The 57-year-old Hall of Fame catcher, diagnosed last May with a
malignant brain tumour, received results of his latest MRI exam
Thursday, according to the online journal of his daughter, Kimmy
Bloemers.
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The Mets have settled all four of their potential salary arbitration cases, agreeing to one-year contracts with pitchers Mike Pelfrey, Ramon Ramirez and Manny Acosta, and outfielder Andres Torres.

Pelfrey gets $5,687,500, Ramirez $2.65 million, Acosta $875,000 and Torres $2.7 million in the deals announced Tuesday.
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Sixteen months after shoulder surgery, Johan Santana hopes to be back on the mound for the New York Mets when the season starts. He just doesn’t want to commit to it.

“It’s going to be tough for me to guess, because I don’t know how I’m going to be in two months,” the injured left-hander said Thursday.

The two-time Cy Young Award winner hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since Sept. 2, 2010, 12 days before an operation repaired a torn anterior capsule.
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Outfielder Fernando Martinez has been claimed by the Houston Astros off waivers from the New York Mets.

Martinez hit .227 (5 for 22) for the Mets last season with one home run—at Houston against Bud Morris on May 13.

The 23-year-old Martinez spent most of the year at Triple-A Buffalo and hit .260 with eight homers and 30 RBIs. He has a .183 career big league average with two homers and 12 RBIs in 131 at-bats over parts of three seasons.

To make room on the 40-man roster Wednesday, the Astros designated right-hander Henry Villar for assignment. He was a combined 4-5 with a 5.45 ERA last year at Triple-A Oklahoma City and Double-A Corpus Christi.

The New York Mets have agreed to minor league contracts with right-handers Miguel Batista and Fernando Cabrera, inviting both to spring training.

The 40-year-old Batista split last season between the St. Louis Cardinals and Mets, going a combined 5-2 with a 3.60 ERA. He appeared in 35 games, making five starts.

Batista was 2-0 with a 2.64 ERA in nine games (four starts) with the Mets after they called him up from Triple-A Buffalo. He became the oldest pitcher in club history to throw a shutout when he beat Cincinnati 3-0 in the season finale.

Cabrera, 30, spent last season with Triple-A Sacramento in the Oakland Athletics organization. He has pitched out of the bullpen in the majors for Boston, Baltimore and Cleveland, going 8-7 with a 5.24 ERA and one save in 132 games.

The Mets also signed shortstop Sean Kazmar, who will report to minor league camp.

Fernando Martinez was once considered to be the future of the Mets. Now the former top prospect’s major league future doesn’t seem so certain.

The Mets have placed Martinez and reliever Daniel Herrera on waivers, according to multiple reports.

The moves were reportedly made to make room for outfielder Scott Hairston and shortstop Ronny Cedeno on the 40-man roster.
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A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that shortstop Ronny Cedeno and the New York Mets have agreed to a $1.15 million, one-year contract.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity Friday because the deal, which also includes performance bonuses, is subject to a physical.

Cedeno, who turns 29 next month, hit .249 with two homers and 32 RBIs last year for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He figures to back up Ruben Tejada following the departure of All-Star Jose Reyes, who agreed to a $106 million, six-year deal with the Miami Marlins.

The financially troubled New York Mets have hired the consulting company that worked with the Texas Rangers during that team’s bankruptcy in 2010.

“Mets Limited Partnership engaged CRG Partners to provide services in connection with financial reporting and budgeting processes,” the team said in a statement late Thursday, responding to a report by SBNation.

On Friday, the Mets added on their Twitter account: “To be clear: CRG’s services aren’t bankruptcy-related. There are no bankruptcy services being provided by anyone.”
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Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Mets have re-signed Scott Hairston.

Exact terms aren’t yet available. Hairston, 31, batted .235 with seven homers, 24 RBI in 145 plate appearances in 2011 before suffering a season-ending oblique injury in late-August.

He’ll function as a reserve outfielder and right-handed bat off the bench again in 2012.

Why are the Mets re-signing this garbage again? The bottom line, Hairston is cheap and no one else wanted his services.

Two-time All-Star Melvin Mora is retiring from baseball, five weeks shy of his 40th birthday.

Mora played 13 seasons in the big leagues, 10 of them with the Baltimore Orioles. He began last year with the Arizona Diamondbacks, was released on July 1 while hitting .228 with no home runs and did not play again in the majors.

“It’s a very difficult decision because this has been my life, but it’s time to do it,” Mora said Thursday at a news conference in Valencia, Venezuela.
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