“In Omar We Trust” or World Series ’08?

On Thursday, Omar Minaya addressed the Jose Reyes rumors by saying, "Jose Reyes is one of our core players. I don’t see us trading Jose Reyes for one of those guys being mentioned. It just doesn’t make sense for us."

Minaya went on to say that the Mets are very happy with Jose Reyes. Minaya declined to comment on Johan Santana. Trading Reyes would diminish the Mets lineup and leave our team with a huge gap at shortstop. The loss of Reyes also means the loss of something special: the loss of our speed. Jose led the majors in stolen bases, swiping 78 bags. He stole more bases than 5 MLB teams.

We’re talking about one of the best pitchers in baseball. We’re also talking about the most exciting player in baseball, the King of Thieves, and a man who has his own song at Shea. I’m glad that Omar has made the decision not to trade Jose. Nobody can replace Jose; sure, Carlos Gomez has the speed. But does he have the offense that Jose provided? Can somebody else step up and become the catalyst that Jose is?

No pitcher is worth the loss of Jose Reyes, not even Johan Santana. I hope the Mets find their ace, but I also hope they go down a more realistic route. Acquiring Dan Haren or Joe Blanton from the A’s seems to be our strongest option, followed by Eric Bedard from the Orioles. Omar wants to win, no doubt. But we won’t do it if we trade Reyes for Santana. He is something special, even Steve Phillips kept him around. In Omar we trust.