During the infancy of the 2009 free agency campaign, Mets General Omar Minaya has fired off salvo’s to the rest of the National League East about as damaging as a mouse passing wind. The hysteria you are hearing is coming from the rival GM’s in Philly, Miami, Atlanta, and be careful, Washington too.
Minaya has his priorities twisted. You fill in the blanks after you land the Great White, not aspire to bag a school of (dropout) minnows. He is a lousy fisherman and I am not alone in losing faith in the Mets fearless (clueless?) leader.
How else can a die hard Mets fan rationalize his first three signings: Alex Cora, Chris Coste, and Henry Blanco? Then again, what do I know? Perhaps the line was as long as the ones that formed in the wee hours of the morning on Black Friday. Perhaps Cora, Coste, and Blanco was much coveted door busters that Minaya sacrificed sleep over.
Speaking of snoozing, wake me up when he gets into the War and starts bidding on World Class talent, such as John Lackey-a must have for a team in need of an innings eater and bulldog. Not a trio of players that surely will still be in the bargain basement bin in February.
Moreover, Minaya’s rancid negotiating skills, the ones that overpaid by $20 million dollars for a nearly washed up second baseman, has reared it’s ugly head again by dolling out twice as much for Cora than the market could possibly bear (inked for the outrageous amount of $2 mill for someone who had both thumbs surgicaly repaired. Makes you wonder if Jeff Wilpon pays an iota of attention when he signs the checks).
What the heck was the rush to overpay for Cora?
Minaya should have been at Lackey’s doorstep at 12:01 when free agency opened, and bulled him over with a SUV fully loaded with greenbacks. He had his chance to set off a howitzer and instead pulled out his pea shooter. My fellow Mets fans, he is not fit to lead us into the new decade.
How about the fact, according to our esteemed Joe D., he doubled Blanco’s stipend after a retched .235 season? And Coste, a career minor leaguer, but fine author, is a catch that should have all Mets fans rushing to the liquor cabinet to rejoice with a celebratory libation.
You build a team with stars and impact players, not with leftovers. It is hard to believe Minaya is still steering our ship-albeit aground.
Anyone seen Steve Phillips lately?
Love your title, great post! Maybe we will get a nice Christmas present, but then again I still believe in Santa Claus too.
Seriously though, I hope the best is yet to come, because so far this is nothing like I expected.
This seems to be a recurring theme everywhere I go. Mets fans and bloggers are up in arms, and rightfully so. I don’t know where this off season is heading, but one thing is certain and that is that all of this is leading up to a huge build up for the Winter Mtgs. Will we come out of it relieved or more peeved?
i’m betting ‘something’ good happens to the Mets next week. Otherwise the 2 catchers we signed and the continuing pursuit of Molina, makes absolutely ZERO sense.
BOB, ZERO SENSE? A MOLINA/BLANCO CATCHING COMBO IS AS GOOD AS IS AVAILABLE OUT THERE. NO?
SOME PREFER BARAJAS TO MOLINA; BUT WHERE DID BARAJAS COME FROM? DIDN’T THAT CRERATE A HOLE NEEDING FILLING? IS THIS YANKEE CATCHING PROSPECT SO GOOD AS TO BE A SOCALLED MUST HAVE? WHERE IS TORONTO GOING TO FIND AN EXPERIENCED CATCHER AT REASONABLE PRICE? WHO WOULD HAVE A HALLADAY INTEREST WITH A SUPLUS OF MAJOR LEAGUE CATCHING? OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS ISN’T THE ‘BIG’ QUESTIOM WHERE IS THE TOPPS’ PICK SANTOS PLAYING?
AHEM! COULD THERE BE AN OFFER IN THE OFFING? INCLUDING A RECENTLY RECOGNIZED YOUNG CATCHER INSTEAD OF THE USUALLY DEMANDED TYPE TOP PROSPECT(THOLE)? IT WOULDN’T BE THE FIRST TIME A TOP CHOICE PROSPECT WAS “HIDDEN” BY AN OVERVALUED OPTION.
NOT EVERY GM IS ‘SMARTER’ THAN OMAR! ESP AN INEXPERIENCED ONE. IF THEY WERE ALL SMARTER, HOW DID 2 ‘UNKNOWN’ 15G WINNERS GET “THROWN-IN”? SAY WHAT U WILL ABOUT CASTILLO, MOST NEGATIVES SURROUND HIS EARNINGS & NOT HIS ABILITIES. WHAT DID OMAR PAY MINN FOR HIM? AN UNKNOWN,UNRATED SINGLE A CATCHING ?.
i meant ‘zero sense’ that we’d have too many catchers. i agree Molina is a fine catcher with decent offense and Blanco, great on ‘D’, but Santos is an over-load…which is why i am certain they trade him in a package…which is why i think ‘something’ is up.
If we are in the bidding for Halladay, a couple things: 1) it won’t be for ‘dreck; we’ll have to give up some of our best prospects; probably 4 guys from a basket of: Pelfrey, Mejia, Davis, Martinez, Tejada, Pagan (don’t laugh–a pretty good 4th OF.
Do we do this? If we took Wells in the deal, how much less in players would we have to give? Somebody tell me, because i agonize over this. i am worried about Halladay’s arm over the next 4 – 5 years.
And yes, the Yankees’ top catching prospect, Jesus Montero, is indeed a monster of a prospect; kid ‘just’ turned 20 and did great at A/AA last year before busting his thumb late in the year.
So, if we want Halladay, we’ll have to give up some of our best prospects, or take Wells in the deal. Who would do that?
For Halladay I would give up Pelfrey along with Mejia, Martinez and Tejada. The question is whether that would be enough to swing it? We switch our SP2 from Pelfrey to Halladay and say goodbye to Mejia, Martinez and Tejada. To me Tejada is the one that hurts, but still worth it.
Not sure if that would do it. Would depend on what the Yanks/Red Sox are offering. i would give that up too, but would not give Davis up, nor would i take Wells’ contract on. That’d be the death knell. If we could do it and not take Wells or give up Davis, i’d do it and say all my prayers every night for at least 4 – 5 years!
Bob L, We see it the same way. I would also would not want Davis in it and I would want to stay away from Wells because that would cut off any other possibilities down the road and tie us up for years. I do not worry about Halladay’s age or durability. Of course, the Mets have to be agressive to pull this off and I doubt that Omar in his good sweet time can do this especially with the competition there will be for him. This is a long shot at best. If it takes more players to get it done, I would add in Murphy and pick up a FA 1B placeholder for a year until Davis is ready. Or throw in Chris Carter instead who we got for Wags could be included, or both Carter and Lora. That way we will have gotten something real for Wags.
BOB, WELLS’ CONTRACT IS A “KISS OF DEATH” DEAL THAT IS LIKELY THE #1 REASON FOR JP RICCHARDI’S UNEMPLOYMENT, HIDDEN WITHIN THOSE MASSIVE ANNUAL SALARY PAYMENTS IS THE FINAL 2010 PORTION OF HIS MASSIVE SIGNING BONUS(25M) WHICH AMOUNTS TO AN ADDITIONAL 8.5M DUE 3/01/10 AS WELL AS THE FOLLOWING PAYROLL INCURRMENTS:
2010 12.5M
2011*23.0M
2012 21.0M
2013 21.0M
2014 21.0M
* OPT OUT YEAR (NO WAY WE’D BE THAT LUCKY)
ADDED TO THAT WOULD BE THE ‘PRIVLEDGE’ OF SIGNING HALLADAY FOR AN INDETERMINENT PERIOD @ LIKELY 23M PER SEASON WITH A FULL NO-TRADE PROTECTION CLAUSE. TO ACCOMPLISH THIS ALL WE’D NEED DO IS GUT OUR LEAN FARM SYSTEM & ADD LITTLE OTHER OFFENSE OUTSIDE OF WELLS’ DECLINING NUMBERS.
ARE YOU KIDDING? ALL THIS WHEN WE COULD INK LACKEY FOR LESS $ & KEEP OUR PIPELINE?
CERTAINLY SANTANA,HALLADAY, ETC IS STRONGER THAN SANTANA,LACKEY, PELFREY,MAINE,PEREZ; BUT BY HOW MANY GAMES? ESPECIALLY WHEN THE OFFENSIVE ADDITIONS WITH HALLADAY LIKELY ENDS WITH WELLS Vs A HOLLIDAY OR BAY WITH A LACKEY SIGNING.
PERSONALLY, I THINK WE’RE BEST SERVED BY TAKING OUR NOSES AAWAY FROM THE DISPLAY CASE AND SIGNING THE BETTER SUITED #2(LACKEY), SWALLOWING HARD & LETTING THE NYY ACCUMULATE ANOTHER STUD SP. OUTSIDE OF 6G/YR THE NYY FRANCHISE IS IRRELEVANT TO THE STANDINGS THAT MATTER. CONSIDER THIS: HOW MUCH GREATER AN IMPACT IS POLANCO OVER FELIZ? WAGNER/SAITO OVER SORIANO/GONZALEZ? CERTAINLY THEY’VE ADDED MORE GLITZ; BUT ISN’T THE RETURN OF REYES,DELGADO?,SANTANA,MAINE,PEREZ?,WRIGHT?,BELTRAN THAT MUCH MORE POWERFUL? FORTUNATELY FOR US NEITHER OF OUR MAINSTAY COMPETITORS ARE MARKETING IN THE SAME NEIGHBORHOODS WE ARE(LACKEY,HOLLIDAY,BAY,MOLINA)SO FAR OMAR/JEFF HAVE ALL OF THEIR ASSETS CASH*PLAYERS STILL AVAILABLE, WHILE BOTH ATLANTA & PHILADELPHIA ARE INDICATING MAINTAINING ’09 PAYROLL LEVELS. I, FOR ONE, AM PRAYING FOR A HAPPY 60th B’DAY(12/10) WITH MANY PRESENTS FROM NYM AS THEY’VE SUPPLIED ME WITH IN THE PAST! I BELIEVE IN STEALTHINESS OF OMAR’S FRONTOFFICE. MOST RUMORS IN PAST HAVE PROVEN FALSE, SOSA,I-ROD,NO SANTANA,ETC.
Now, that’s the Doug Branch I know!
Great title and although things seem slow-going, I’m confident that Mets management ( it’s not just Omar this year, I’m betting ) does have a plan in place and the smart thing to do in this case is wait until players are non-tendered before going all out to revamp this team.
Give Omar a break – we haven’t even gotten to the winter meetings yet. Trust me, I am not fan of Omar, but let’s see what the guy comes up with. What if he comes out of the meetings with a new catcher, signs Matt Holliday and Randy Wolf? Will you post an apology?
Again – I am not saying this is going to happen, and I am as pessimistic as any Mets fan, for good reason. But it is WAY too early in this off season to criticize Omar.
I’m beginning to really believe that the Mets will not be spending this offseason. I’m guessing that Omar has a severely restricted budget so he is snagging as many “serviceable Major leaguers” as possible. Even if he has to overpay a little, it’s better than ending up empty.
The really sad part is that the Mets 4 headed GM monstrosity (Jr Wilpon, Howard, Ricco, and Minaya) has NO clue that die hard Mets fans are on to their clueless ways. They are ignorant of the fact no one has any confidence in them whatsoever. And why should we? $2 million for a utility IF who really isn’t very good. A guaranteed 40 man roster spot to a .220 hitting backup catcher whose only asset is (was) his bat (Coste). Another guaranteed 40 man spot to yet another .220 hitting backup catcher @ 1.5 million$. Gee, I’m sure glad they protected these two from the Rule 5 draft. I’m sure other GM’s would’ve lined the streets just waiting to pick up one of those two on the cheap next week. Gee, it’d be nice if Met management would one day get a clue.
How about if omar is just making these moves so he won’t be caught we his pants down again??? What if he wants to cover himself if a bunch of injuries happen again? Just something to think about??! Not sayin this is the case but just trying to see the other side.
In the real world, you make deals as you make them. There’s not a thing in the world wrong with doing a few housekeeping deals right off. No one against them has come up with a single sensible rationale how these could have prevented the team from getting better players.
Having extra catchers is just smart planning, especially in a year with few good free agent options who can be purchased cheaply. Any money spent in getting Blanco and Coste can be saved in a contract for anyone else, anyway. It allows the Mets to say to Molina, “Gee, we have plenty of catchers right now. You’ll have to accept less.” This is known as “a strong negotiating position.” Your post indicates you’d rather the Mets be desperate to fill a catcher when they talk to free agents — and then you’ll complain that they overpaid. The cognitive dissonance is breathtaking.
“The cognitive dissonance”? Damn I’d better break out my thesaurus to comment further on this topic. Good point, though; I’m of the mindset that the Mets need a stronger marketing strategy in order to sell citifield as a place for top notch players to want to come and play. I don’t think that the most money to offer will be the difference maker for this team this year.
I got one special present to stick in your Mets-Mess stocking: Beginning next year (2011), the Mets owe Bobby Bonilla 1.2 million every July until 2035. Bet that is going to affect some purse-strings! Looks like JW may be signing the Henry Blancos and Chris Costes of MLB for quite awhile…..
realitychuck,
That must have precluded JW to negotiate a good contract with Ollie P. last year given that we had signed a number of marginal FA SPs (e.g., Tim Redding, Freddy Garcia, Livan Hernandez, Tony Armas, etc.). How much did Prince Jeff pay Oliver Perez?
Your rationale is bound to have Benjie Molina’s agent reduce his contract demands so the Mets can sign him!
On the other hand, who needs another 35+ year old ballplayer?
I don’t get how signing Blanco and Coste means they won’t get any good free agents. JUST WAIT.
The Mets have about 40 million coming of the payroll this year. So far the Mets have spent 3.5 million. They still have money left to get somebody good. So stop panicing and Please don’t say the Mets have 20 million to spend beacuse that is compeltely false.
Sorry, Chicho but you’re going to end up really disappointed. There is no way on earth that the Mets are spending $40 million dollars this offseason. I’m basing my guess on the Madoff scandal which seems to have stopped the spending since the Oliver Perez signing. Face it. No Holliday, Halladay, Lackey or Bay. Every rumor of the Mets being connected to a big ticket free agent has been shot down! Nothing that costs money and years. We’ve got our two catchers. We’ll resign Delgado and Pagan will be in LF and Murphy will be playing 1B. A Piñiero type and a couple of relief pitchers will be signed and we will be fed a story about the core coming back stronger and more determined than ever. I can only hope that Omar pulls off a Johan type miracle and can snag an Adrian Gonzalez! Get your IKE shirts now! lol
The Mets did stop spending after Madoff.Not because he took their money it was because there was no point of spending any money. they could have made a trade during the season but it wouldn’t have done much. If they can afford that 40 million last year why can’t they afford it this year? They were paying the 40 mill after Madoff so don’t say that.
So there was not point in signing Abreu? How about Adam Dunn? Keeping Billy Wagner for minor leaguers intead of taking the $3.5 million? How about taking on Cliff Lee so that we could have him this year and beyond?
Last year was a different era in time. Can’t you see that even the Yankees are cutting payroll. Notice that there is interest in Meche and not Lackey. My guess is that the payroll for 2010 ends up at about $117 million and a song and dance about how they will spend at the trade deadline. Stop drinking the funky cold molina.
117 Million? really? Anyway Murphy batted 313 before last year they thought he would be a great player thats why they didn’t sign dunn or Aberu. They didn’t want Lee because he would cost either Mejja or Holt the Mets didn’t want to trade them. They thought they would be better of getting a FA.
They did NOT lose money according to The Wall Street Journal-
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125609397243898233.html
“A partnership connected to the baseball team — which had widely been rumored to have lost money investing with Bernard Madoff — actually gained a net $48 million from its dealings with the convicted swindler, according to a bankruptcy-court filing.”
As Tom points out, the Wilpons did not lose money to Madoff; they made money off him by withdrawing more than they put in before he went belly-up. I believe they have been using the Madoff episode to shortchange the fans. They cut down spending for players and put cash in their pockets. An example is the dumping of Wags for salary. Wag busted his butt to get back in shape as quickly as humanly possible after surgery. The Mets dumped him when he demonstrated he was back in form. That allowed them to stash $3.5 mil in their pockets. Let’s be realistic fans. It’s all about the Wilpons bringing money home for their good life. They clearly made money off Madoff and kept it quiet to avoid clawback for the ill-gotten gains by the authorities. They are clearly trying to avoid payback to those who actually got cheated. At the same time they are snowing their fans into thinking they’re broke and can take the cheap road on player signngs. It’s all about stashing money for them. They are socking away millions after millions while pleading poverty to the misguided fans. Meanwhile, they give us a product that is destined for the cellar.
MASK, DO YOU BELIEVE WAGS WOULD HAVE SETLED TO STAY AS A SETUP? I DON’T, I BELIEVE HIS ONLY GOAL FOR THE BUTT BUSTING WAS A RETURN FOR THE RECORD # OF SAVES BY A LHP. YOU DON’T SMELL THAT ACCOMPLISHMENT SHARING A PEN WITH FRANKIE! BEST WE GOT SOMETHING KNOWN FOR HIM & PLEASE DON’T CITE DRAFT PICK COMPENSATION SINCE THERE’S NO TELLING THAT IN A FEW YEARS ANY DRAFT SELECTION WOULD EXCEED THE ABILITIES OF THE 2 SUSPECTS WE REC’D. HOW’S YOUR CRYSTAL BALL? HOW WILL WAGS PERFORM BACK2BACK? SAY IN 3G OF A TIGHT 3G SET? PRE-INJURY IT WAS A DICEY QUESTION. NOW 2Y OLDER? STILL HASN’T BACKED UP APPEARANCES SINCE RETURN.
MADDEN QUETIONS IF HE’S STILL CLOSER QUALITY OVER SETUP QUALITY. JUST IMAGINE, IF HE WAS RETAINED, THE CARPING & SABOTAGE REFLECTED IN OUR PEN. HIS WOULD BE THE FIRST VOICE SOUGHT BY PRESS AFTER EACH BS FROM FRANKIE. EXPECT HIM TO BE SUPPORTIVE? ASK BURRELL OR MILLEDGE!
It seems like we are having left-overs from Thanksgiving and getting all the sides and not the main meal. What did Wilpon say about making sure we get good players? We have so many positions to fill and now we are overloaded on just catching? Unless this team gets more pitching and hitting, there will be more empty seats next year at Citifield.
Carol
Omar Minaya said any major free-agent signing is more likely to happen later this month than at winter meetings. http://twitter.com/Ledger_NYMets
Now the crying starts.
What is the difference if it is now or later this month?
I’m telling you right now, Chicho is OMAR! He’s too defensive and he’s always spouting about the Mets doing all they could last year and, see how he defends the payroll this year? Look closely people
How did you know?
How am I being defensive? I don’t get what is wrong with getting a major free agent at the end of the month?
HaHAHA, thanks for sharing my laugh.
last 7 years Marlins have 12 more wins, 1 more winning season, 5 more post-season wins than Mets, for $600M les
Wow. Some of you are living in alternate reality. I mean, really. It’s Dec 5th and the Mets are done before they even got started? Unbelieveable. To my fellow Mets fans – stop whining and acting out like petulant children who haven’t gotten their candy today. Dinner hasn’t been cooked yet. Cora, Coste, and Blanco are snacks – not the meal.
I hope you’re right!
So far these signings have all the look of Omar not willing to bid against anyone except himself. He is setting small targets and bidding high to make sure he gets them without opposing bids. This leads me to believe Omar is overwhelmed by the position in which he finds himself. He was discredited last year and is unable to have any real clout with other GM’s. The result is little meaningless deals. The team is in disarray and in serious need of a makeover. Critical holes need to be filled. It looks like Omar will avoid the big battles to fill them. He is in a position of weakenss which will be very difficult to overwhelm. In order to change my view, Omar will have to deliver a significant signing on the order of Lackey, Halladay, Holliday or Bay. One of those will change everything and I’ll recant my position. But for now, Omar will have to prove it ain’t so! The signs so far say this offseason is most likely going to be a disappointing one and the team recovery will take several years as we wait for the Farm to develop new players for us, like Ike, Thole, Mejia, Holt, Neuwenhuis, and Havens. And if any of those wind up getting traded it better be a star like Halladay and not some run of the mill everyday crap.
The real need for this team was a new GM. Unfortunately it may take another bust season to get rid of him.
DOUG, DID I MISS AN ANNOUNCMENT? THAT THE SEASON STARTS JAN 1? FIRST OFF, LET’S ASSUME, THE NYMETS ACTUALLY DID WHAT U PROPOSE BY OPENNING UP THE F/A SEASON WITH A HOWITZER BOMBARDMENT? WHAT DO U THEN SUPPOSE THE OPPOSITION REACTION TO BE? GREATER URGENCY TO RECIPROCATE? AS IT IS BY LAYING A SOLID BASE OF MORTAR FIRST IN PREPARATION FOR A LAYER OF BRICKS WE’CE ALREADY SECURED A POTENTIALLY FULL OPENNING DAY ROSTER WITHOUT AWOL POSITIONS. THERE’S AT MINIMUM A NAME SET FOR EVERY POSITION, ALBEIT NOT THE FINEST NAME OR CHOSEN NAME; BUT THE GLARING HOLES ACTUALLY HAVE NAMES. IF, AS WE’VE ALL RANTED, THE PREMIER QUEST SHOULD BE ROTATIONAL PITCHING, WHAT TARGET IS OFF THE BOARD, NO LONGER ATTAINABLE? THE ONE TRUISM OF FREE AGENCY IN THE 21st CENTURY IS EARLIER=COSTLIER. ONE POTENTIAL TRADE TARGET IS HALLADAY, WHO LIKE SANTANA IS THE FOCUS OF THE 2 BIGGEST VULTURES/HYENAS BOSOX & NYY. OFTEN THE HAYMAN, ROSENTHAL REPORTS GIVE A SLIGHT RECOGNITION TO NYM IN THEIR POSTSCRIPTS WHICH IS EERILY FAMILIAR TO SANTANA NEGOTIATIONS.
WHAT GLARING HOLE EXISTS IN TORONTO? CATCHING! WHAT IS OMAR SEEMINGLY CORNERING THE MARKET ON?
IS IT POSSIBLE OMIR SANTOS’ IS A PLANNED PIECE FOR AN OFFER? CERTAINLY NOT A CENTERPIECE; BUT PERHAPS AN INTEGRAL ONE THAT PROTECTS NY FROM A THOLE DEMAND?
HERETICALLY, I’D PREFER LACKEY TO HALLADAY. HALLADAY IS CERTAINLY BETTER; BUT I FEAR THE FUTURE STAGNATION CAUSED BY 3 “NO-TRADE’ LARGE CONTRACTS.(BELTRAN, SANTANAM HALLADAY)
THERE IS UNWARRANTED FEAR BEING SEWN BY NYPRESSCORPS THAT CITES PHILLY AS A HALLADAY CONCERN. THIS IS NEEDLESS SINCE A FAMILIARIZATION WITH PHILADELPHIA BASEBALL FRANCHISE HISTORY WILL REVEAL A MUCH MORE CONSERVATIVE FISCAL APPROACH THAN NY’s!
THE RACE DOESN’T BELONG TO THE SWIFT; BUT TO THE DETERMINED!
WITH, IN MY OPINION, A MAXIMUM OF $30M TO ALLOCATE IN ANNUAL PAYROLL(MADDEN NEVER EXPLAINED HHIS 10M WITHDRAWAL/DEDUCTION) THE OPTIMUM RESOURCE IS PLAYER/AGENT INSECURITY. LETTING THEM STEW WITHOUT OFFERS IN THIS ECCONOMIC ENVIRONEMENT IS AN ADVANTAGE, METS. ISN’T EVERYONE WAITING TO BE THE “PRICE SETTER” NOTICE NO SP IS OFF THE BOARD THE FIRST DEAL SEETS THE STANDARD FOR FOLLOWING ONES. I EXPECT NY TO TARGET LACXKEY AS A PRICE SETTER INSTEAD OF HAVING TO ADD ON TO WHAT A LESSER PITCHER JUST INKED. IT’S A GOODSTRATEGY ALBEIT A FAN FEAR MONGERING ONE.
DOUG, LET ME CLOSE WITH ONE CAVIAT…”PATIENCE IS THE ONLY VIRTUE IN A STRANGLED FREE AGENT MARKET DURING UNKNOWN ECCONOMIC TIMES”.
62, I can’t help it, but I find some elements of hilarity in your latest post.
“THE GLARING HOLES ACTUALLY HAVE NAMES.” Unfortunately, some of those names are quite pedestrian, such as Catching – Blanco, 1B – Murphy, LF – Pagan. I’m glad we’re not facing nobody in those slots, just next to nobody.
“CATCHING! WHAT IS OMAR SEEMINGLY CORNERING THE MARKET ON?” Cornering the market in catching with Blanco, Coste, and Santos. Not quite Piazza, Bench, and Berra are they? Guess catching must have deteriorated in recent years.
“THE RACE DOESN’T BELONG TO THE SWIFT; BUT TO THE DETERMINED! The Phils signed a quality player in Polanco. We have to look far and deep to find signs of determination from the Mets. Perhaps in this case the hare actually wins the race if he runs without mental impairment.
“PATIENCE IS THE ONLY VIRTUE IN A STRANGLED FREE AGENT MARKET DURING UNKNOWN ECCONOMIC TIMES”. Good players are starting to be taken. Polanco and Figgins are gone. Our patience has netted us 3 toadies so far in Cora, Coste, and Blanco at prices over market value. Let’s see what else Omar dredges up in his own sweet time.
MASK TRY HALF FULL INSTERAD OF HALF EMPTY AS A PERSPECTIVE CHANGE… I DO NOT BELIEVE POLANCO WAS A MOVE WE COULD’VE MADE WITHOUT RIDDING US OF CASTILLO SAME WITH FIGGINS. WHENEVER U ARE KNOWN TO BE DESPERATE TO MOVE A PLAYER, NO ONE WANTS HIM, UNLESS HE’S A SOLID GOLD STUD PLAYER FOR FIN’L REASONS. I, FOR ONE, STILL TRUST OMAR, AS UNPOPULAR AS THAT MAY SEEM. I STILL FEEL PITCHING IS THE KEY FOR OUR SUCCESSFUL OFFSEASON, NOT UPGRADING 2B & NONE OF OUR POTENTIAL TOP PRIORITIES ARE OFF THE BOARD YET OR ARE EVEN RUMORED CLOSE(LACKEY,BAY,HOLLIDAY) THIS ENTIRE MARKET IS MOVING SLUGGISHLY, ATLANTA’S STILL PRIORITIZING OFF LOADING A SP THOUGH THEY HAVE MANAGED TO REPLACE SORIANO/GONZALEZ WITH SAITO/WAGNER. GLITZIER NAMES; BUT PRODUCTION INCREASE? A TOSSUP! POLANCO BETTER SOLUTION #3B THAN FELIZ? MARGINALLY OR AMAZINGLY?
PHILLY TRGETING PEN IMPROVMENT; BUT HAVE LOST MYERS,EYRE,PARK.
Set up carving knives for a big time firing next year.
The Mets are playing games this offseason, but not the kind we want. With their dollars now stretched thin, thanks to the Uncle Bernie caper, they’re getting a bit of big league publicity while their likely trades and signings wind up only stocking Buffalo.
It’s not that the Bisons don’t need a lot of help. Finishing 26 games behind in its division, the Bisons had the worst record in the 14 team International League. But that should not be the Mets priority right now.
Despite their onfield shortcomings, the Mets front office game now is in a bait and switch ploy. Doing a lot of posturing and arm waving, getting some New York newspapers publicity, then making deals, such as Coste and Blanco, that will bring Niagara Falls and Cheektowaga fans into the Buffalo ballpark, even staying past the fifth inning on chilly April and May nights.
62: If you think Omar is stockpiling catching “talent” in order redirect North and bag Halliday, you are delusional. If the new Toronto GM trades the best pitcher in baseball for dreck he will be crucified and fired before he has a footing on the job.
May I remind you the year the Mets lost Hampton to Colorado their procrasitnation in the marketplace forced them into the odious contract signed by Kevin Appier.
Mask is 100% right on, Omar has no juice and the rest of the GM fraternity knows it. He needs to remember to take his shine box to the Winter Meetings next week because the Wilpons have long ago effivercerated his authority.
You know, sadly, the signing of Cora, Coste, et al, might be the guns blazing this off-season. And the Bonilla deal just keeps on smelling. Just goes to prove the Mets have developed more inept general managers than stars since Frank Cashen was in charge.
It is amazing that this guy is still running the team. It is almost like the movie major league. Maybe if they loose a 100 games and come in dead last the owners can move the team to california an rename the team the dodgers. I had season tickets and I am not going back next year. Last year was such a letdown. The park had no mets stuff anywhere until the last month of the season. By then most of the team was hurt or quit playing hard. When the phillies where there at the end of the season there was more phillies fans than mets fans. That was the final straw. If they want mets fans to come back next year they have to do better than cora, blanco, and coste!
Unfortunately, the Yanks now have their act together. http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=Ai8YNFrn6HeFNBpKeKRt4_kRvLYF?slug=ap-yankees-meetings&prov=ap&type=lgns
They have set a budget and adopted a strategy. Their needs are modest and they have plenty of resources to attain them. Quite a different situation than the pack of charlatans we follow with undeserved loyalty. The Yanks have perfection within sight while the Mets have attained total disarray.
MASK, LET’S FIRST START WITH THE NYY BRAND IS MUCH MORE HIGHLY VALUED THAN NYM’s MOSTLY DUE TO OCCURANCES PERFORMED LONG BEFORE NYM LOGO EXISTED. THE STEINBRENNERS HAVE MAXIMIZED THAT EDGE OVER EVERY SINGLE FRANCHISE OUT THERE, WHILE, UNFORTUNATLY FOR US, OUR MINORITY OWNER WAS LEFT AS “LAST MAN STANDING” WHEN THEIR DEEPER-POCKETED MAJORITY OWNER BECAME TOO OLD & TIRED TO CONTINUE. THE WILPONS, IN MY OPINION, ARE NOT FINANCIALLY EQUIPED TO COMPETE ALONGSIDE THE NYY YET ARE MORE WILLING TO OUTSPEND THEIR NL COMPETITION, EQUIVICATING THEM TO NYY-LIGHT WITHIN LEAGUE. WHILE YOU’VE CLAIMED TO BE DISINTERESTED IN THEIR MAINTAINING THE HIGHEST PAYROLL IN NL, CLAINMING BETTER SOLUTIONS SHOULD HAVE BEEN SOUGHT. I MUST CHALLENGE U BY ASKING WHAT BETTER SOLUTIONS THAN BELTRAN,SANTANA,DELGADO,FRANKIE WERE OUT THERE AT THE TIME? IF YOU ONLY REFER TO THE MORTAR SIGNINGS LIKE CASTILLO, AGAIN, AT THE TIME WHO WAS AVAILABLE CHEAPER & BETTER SUITED FOR #2 HITTER OPENNING? VACUUMS ARE NOT JUST FOR USE AROUND THE HOUSE; THEY ARE USELESS IN FOSTERING COHESIVE THOUGHTS. MASK, I RESPECT YOUR OPINIONS; BUT AM OFTEN FRUSTRATED BY YOUR CHOICE TO IGNORE THE GEOGRAPHY OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES SUCH AS NEVER NCURRING LUXURY TAXES & NEVER EATING PLAYER CONTRACTS OR EXCEEDING COMMISSIONER DRAFTING RULES. NOT EVEN CONSIDERING THE DELAPIDATED CONDITION OF OUR MAJOR & MINOR LEAGUE PLAYER ASSETS WHEN DUQUETTE WAS FIRED. (FOURTH PLACE(71-91) ATTAINMENT IN EAST DIVISION, ONLY 1 VIABLE PROSPECT IN MINORS,”MILLEDGE”) TAKE ALL OF THAT INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN CONDEMNING OMAR’S ACTIONS AS WELL AS REMEMBERING TO LEAVE ENOUGH FOR POTENTIAL ADDITIONS IN SEASON, LIKE THE 14M THAT WAS KEPT ASIDE(’09) IN CASE ACQUISITION OF EITHER HOLLIDAY OR HALLADAY WAS DEEMED NECESSARY. CERTAINLY HINDSIGHT IS BETTER THAN PRESNT DAY VISION; BUT TO REFUTE SIGNING PEREZ OVER WOLF & GARLAND. LOWE @ MORE THAN ATLANTA’S 4Y/60M IS LUDICROUS CONCEPT. LEAVING ONLY PEREZ,WOLF,GARLAND AS VIABLE OPTIONS & PEREZ HAD SEEMINLY RESPONDED TO WARTHEN’S ALTERATIONS THAT WERE UNKNOWINGLY TO BE DISCARDED IN WBC WHERE ABUSE LIKELY RESULTED IN INJURY. TO BEGIN THE ’09 SEASON MANY OF US FELT COMFORTABLE AS A CONTENDER. DOES POLANCO OVER FELIZ OR WAGNER/SAITO OVER SORIANO/GONZALEZ CHANGE THAT ASTRONOMICALLY? I DON’T THINK SO. WE STILL HAVE ALL THE CASH & TRADEABLE ASSETS WE STARTED WITH ONHAND FOR USE THIS WEEK.
IF YOU TRY TO CHARACTERIZE MET MOVES IN A CONTEXT WITH YANKEE MOVES YOU ARE DOOMED TO A FOUL MOOD. BETTER CONTEXT IS WITH PHL & ATL. NYY ARE MEANINGLESS WHERE IT COUNTS NL STANDINGS.FORTUNATLY I GET NO NY BACKPAGES OR WFAN IN NC. OUTSIDE OF SNY I’M TOTALLY INEFFECTED BY YANKEE DECISIONS OR YANKEE FANS.
62, I’m not interested in a litany of excuses for the Mets. I do not expect the Mets to be in the same spending league as the Yanks. I do expect them to have a rational strategy going forward. I understand there is a lost of posturing that takes place and there is a need to avoid tipping your hand during the offseason. So if you choose to give Omar the benefit of the doubt, that’s fine. However, I want to see the final report card. Based on his performance during 2009, I’m not expecting much to be accomplished. Hopefully, I’m wrong and he brings home some great players. I’m just not holding my breath for it to happen. Right now the Yanks are postured with a better team, fewer improvements needed and apparently a sound strategy going forward. All we have with the Mets is a giant question mark!
MASK, DO YOU BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED LAST YEAR WAS FORSEEABLE? IT CEWRTAINLY WASN’T AGE RELATED AS THERE WAS ONLY 1 SIGNIFICANT INJURY TO A 35+ AGED PLAYER(DELGADO) EVEN COX RELEGATES IT TO “NEVER BEFORE SEEN” IN ALL MY MNGT YRS STATUS. THERE WERE 2 BIG ? IMN MYU MIND TO START ’09 LF & #2SP, THAT HASN’T CHANGED. ADDED IS, IN MY OPINION, THE OLLIE QUESTION, I WAS LESS CONCERNED WITH LAST SEASON. ENDING ’08 IT SEEMED TO ME PEREZ HAD RESPONDED WELL TO PC CHANGE & MECHANICAL ALTERATIONS, WHO KNEW, HE’D REVERT BACK TO OLD FORM DURING WBC WHILE GETTING ABUSED & INJURED BY POOR WBC MNGT. WITH OLLIE CHOOSING TO FORGO TRAINING BACK IN MEXICO FOR STAYING IN THE STATES, LET’S HOPE HE MAINTAINS HIS DIET & COMES BACK THAT MUCH HEALTHIER TO A FULL ST UNDER WARTHEN(STABILITY) BY VIRTUE OF UNLIMITED SPENDING GUIDELINES THE NYY HAVE AN ABILITY TO ABSORB MISTAKES UNLIKE ANY OTHER FRANCHISE TO INVEST ALMOST A HAL-BILLION IN ROSTER UPGRADES BETTER PUT YOU INTO A FINE TUNING MODE AFTER CAPITALIZING IT INTO A WS TITLE. COMPARISONS TO NYY ARE FRUITLESS AS THEY ONLY MATTER 6G/YR NYM FANS SHOULD IGNORE ALL THINGS YANKEE UNTIL JULY & OCTOBER”(WITH HELP OF GOD) & EVEN THEN SHORT SERIES ARE UNPREDICTABL BY DEFINITION. WE’VE BEEN BOTH THE BENEFACTOR & VIXTIM OF THOSE UNPREDICTABLE QUALITIES. ’73 NLCS,’00 POSTSEASON, ’06NLCS ALL COME TO MIND. EXCEPT AS A MEANS FOR CONTROLLING SPENDING WITH A FAIR ANMOUNT OF MINIMAL SALARIED PLAYERS, I’M NOT OVERLY ENAMOURED WITH THIS HOMEGROWN NEED. THE PLAN, AS I SEE IT, EXISTS, INHERITING A 71-91 FOURTH PLACE TEAM SANS A DEEP FARM SYSTEM, OMAR FIRST CONCENTRATED ON THE MLB SQUAD THROUGH FREE AGENCY. HE WAS BLINDSIDED BY FRED’S EDICT TO ADHERE TO DRAFT SLOT SYSTEM (AS EVIDENCED BY HIS “WE’LL SEE ABOUT THAT” QUOTE IMMEDIATLY AFTER INTERVIEWER INFORMED HIM WHILE IN DR. AUGMENTATION OF DEPTH ENSUED BY INKING DISAPPOINTING YOUNG FORMER-PROSPECTS THAT WERE NON-TENDERED WHAREHOUSING THEM IN AAA ADDITIONAL SUBLEVELS ADDED TO SINGLE A MAKING AA OUR TOP PROSPECT LEVEL WITH AAA THE MLB RESERVE CLOSET. CONSTRAINED BY LUXURY TAX HARD CAP & SLOTTING SYSTEM CONTROL OVER DRAFTEE SIGNING PRICES, THERE ISN’T A LOT OF LEEWAY OR ALTERNATIVES TO IMPROVING AN ENTIRE FRANCHISES THAT HAD BEEN DERAILED BY PHILLIPS REGIME THAT CONCENTRATED ON DRAFTING PITCHING IN THE BELIEF IT COULD ALWAYS BE DEALT FOR POSITIONAL NEEDS. UNFORTUNATLY, JEFF ANNOINTED A PITCHING “GM” THAT HAD A TOTALLY DIFFERENT EVALUATION PROGRAM THAN THAT OF PHUILLIPS & MOST OF PHILLIPS’ SIGNINGS WERE DISCARDED AS USELESS OR UNIMPROVABLE & ‘INJURY RISKS’ (SEE KAZMIR,BELL, LINDSTRUM,OWENS,BANNISTER) ALL CAST OUT BY PETERSON SYSTEM AS UNWILLING TO CONFORM! WE ARE CONTROLLED BY A CONSERVATIVE PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE OWNER SUFFERING FROM POSTDEPRESSIONISM. FORTUNATELY OMAR SEES NYM GM JOB AS A DREAM FULFILLMENT SINCE FEW OTHERS WOULD WORK UNDER THE ASSIGNED CONDITIONS AS A BEARD FOR THE OWNER’S SON’S WHIMS. WHAT OTHER GM HAS FILLED HOLES WITH SUCH QUALITY & STILL MAINTAINED PAYROLL CONTROLS? NEED AN ACE? GOT PEDRO. NEED ANOTHER ACE? GOT SANTANA. NEED A CLOSER? GOT WAGNER. NEED ANOTHER CLOSER? GOT K-ROD & PUTZ. NEED A CLEANUP HITTER? GOT DELGADO. MAIN SETUP INJURED HOURS BEFORE TRADE DEADLINE? GOT HERNANDEZ + PEREZ KICKER.
CERTAINLY MANY OF MY CONTENTIONS ARE CONTENTOUS; BUT WHO’S ISN’T.
UNTIL OMAR MINAYA TOTALLY FAILS ME, I’M IN HHIS CORNER. I CERTAINLY PREFER HIS MODUS OPERENDI TO HIS PREDECESSORS PHILLIPS & DUQUETTE. THE FORMER WENT “NO MAS” ON VLAD & A-ROD. THE LATTER GAVE JEFFY EVERY THING HE DESIRED GOOD & BAD.