23
2010
We Coulda Been A Contender…
An article by Hojo's Mojo
Stephen J. Dubner of the NY Times interviewed J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics.com about his new book Hot Stove Economics. Among a variety of interesting questions this one came up about the Mets:
The Mets’ poor performance each of the past few years can’t be blamed on a low payroll, as they are almost always at the top of the list in terms of team payroll. They have to be at the top of your list of the most poorly run franchises in Chapter 6, right? I haven’t read the book yet but had to ask.
Right at the top of the list of the worst-managed teams of the 2000s. Not only did the Mets spend a lot, they didn’t win much either. The Mets problem is easy to identify: The Mets have a habit of signing high-dollar stars rather than focusing on building a better internal scouting structure. The Mets have developed some good prospects, but they have a penchant for buying players when they are expensive. Some examples of bad contracts include signing Oliver Perez to a three-year, $36 million contract in 2009, signing Francisco Rodriguez to a three-year, $37 million contract in 2009, and signing Luis Castillo to a four-year, $25 million contract in 2008. In 2010, the team was not ready to contend yet signed Jason Bay to a four-year, $66 million deal. Both Bay and Rodriguez were also huge disappointments in 2010.
I think it’s fun to compare the strategies of the Mets and the Twins, whom I find to be the second best-managed team in the 2000s (the best was the Oakland A’s, but I think that team has been covered enough). During the last decade, the Twins averaged $32 million more in playing value than they doled out in player salaries, while the Mets paid out an average of $25 million more than they received in playing value.
Before the 2008 season, the Mets acquired via trade and then signed former Twins star Johan Santana when his performance was at its peak. Though he has been quite good for the Mets, the Twins had no problem winning and avoided paying the ace starter almost $23 million/year for six years. In the three seasons since, the Twins have made the playoffs twice, and the Mets have missed the post-season every year. How did the Twins do it?
The key to success lies in acquiring young talent when the collective bargaining rules allow teams to pay players far less than their market value. For their first six years of big-league service, the salaries that players receive are restricted by MLB’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. The Twins exploited these rules by developing talent within their organization, while the Mets concentrated on bringing already-developed talent in. Comparing their 2010 rosters, the Twins drafted 21 of their players, which is equal to the number of players the Mets had signed as free agents. By building a strong farm system, the Twins have been able to survive with young and cheap talent.
The Mets’ market size ought to give them an advantage that allows them to sign better players, but the spending strategy the club has adopted clearly hasn’t worked. If the Mets had adopted the Twins’ method of operation — spending far less for players than they receive in playing value — they might be the most valuable franchise in sports.
Whether or not you agree, you must admit this is a compelling argument. The Mets have had a long standing pattern of paying players the most when they were performing at their least. Eventually that catches up to you and one day you find yourself sitting exactly where the Mets are today; paying huge salaries for players whose best years are behind them.
If Sandy Alderson could change that old way of doing things, then by all means let him.
About the Author: Rob Johnson
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 26 | 17 | .605 | - |
| Nationals | 25 | 17 | .595 | 0.5 |
| Marlins | 23 | 19 | .548 | 2.5 |
| Mets | 22 | 20 | .524 | 3.5 |
| Phillies | 21 | 22 | .488 | 5.0 |
Last updated: 05/22/2012
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Write Your Own Mets Post
Shout out to Chris, who posted that yesterday.
Who’s Chris?
Yea saw this in the comments but it’s good HoJo posted it for those that may have missed it buried in comments.
thank you, thank you.
I love the Mets! They are the best run team in organized sports!
I agree. Best run team ever! Happy new year.
When was the last time we developed our own All Star position players? Catcher, probably John Stearns, 1B I don’t think ever. 2B, Ron Hunt SS Jose Reyes, before that Bud Harrelson, 3B David Wright, before him? I don’t think we ever developed an All Star at 3B. LF, Cleon. CF, Dykstra (for Philly) and before that? Never. RF Strawberry and before him, never.
Correct me if I’m wrong but I see it as Grote/Stearns, Hunt, Reyes/Harrelson, Wright, Jones, Dykstra and Strawberry as the only position players in 50 years that we have scouted, drafted, signed and developed that became All Stars.
I can think off the top of my head of about 100 position players we have signed to expensive long term contracts that under performed, got injured or did both, but of all the players we have signed through the years I can only think of two, Olerud and Piazza who both played everyday and made the All Star team as NY Mets.
I wonder if any other team in the Majors can claim such utter incompetence at drafting and developing their own position players.
Hey, how about getting some facts into your arroagnat posts. Tell us great one, what round was Reyes drafted in???? Tell what year Reyes was drafted in? That doesn’t exist.
Reyes was an IFA jackass. IFA’s AND draft choices are the points I’m making. Pointing out trivitalities is just an indication that you have nothing to add to the conversation. My point is that we do not develop any of our own position players. If you have nothing to add to the topic go back and watch another re run of your favorite sport. The ridculous and marketed to morons WWE.
That one answer perfectly sums up the Mets mess and gives the perfect team for us to model ourselves after. It’s almost appaling to read that 21 of our players were not home grown. We say the Yankees spend like crazy, but even they’ve built there success thanks to homegrown players over the years.
Spend the most. Win the least. The Wilpon plan. Under 6 different GM’s. And you guys are OK with this? And not even willing to give the 7th GM one off season before jumping ship? Wow. Twenty five years of the most incompetent ownership this side of Ted Stepian (and only because the Wilpon’s are prohibited from trading their draft choices) flies completely under the radar but your all over the new GM for not resigning two decent relief pitchers to 8 million dollar contracts. But your OK with the fact that we have developed exactly two All Star position players on our own in twenty five years of Wilpon ownership. OK.
when exactly did we “spend the most” ? we don’t even spend the most in the city.
we spend near the top, but not at the top.
if you think about it, that may be part of the problem.
I didn’t write that correctly. What I meant was that we have spent the most per win of anyone in the Majors over the last ten years.
Francis, not meaning this sarcastically, but I have thought about it and it is not part of the problem in any way shape or form. If we had a farm system and a good core under cheap control, spending not enough would be the problem. Because of the lack of this, spending near the top has been our demise. Where the real problem lies is spending the money in the wrong places. It should be spent on the draft, but the Wilpons refuse to do this, instead spending it on past-their-prime long term free agents. Perhaps the Wilpons view it as a waste of money to throw it at barely out of school kids who might not even make it to the majors, but he should take a look at the Red Sox, Phillies, Rangers, and Reds to straighten-out that misconception.
oh yeah and how could I forget the Giants.
To the few of you who understand that the purpose of a professional sports team is to win, support any other team in the National or American League East. Every one of them is doing something these stupid Mets fans don’t support. TRYING TO WWIN.
to all you clowns who write every day how bad it is to try to win, obviously you have never run a business. You run a business to win. You win by making money. In sports you win games, you make more money. You lose you lose money. Sitting around and saying we’ll do something next year is the means to bankruptcy. Well, the Mets fans are bankrupt but now its obvious they are bankrupt mentally.
Happy Christmas and Merry New Year losers1!!!!!!!
I can think of a dozen things we did over the last few years that flat out prevented us from winning. Remember the old adage that sometimes the best trade is the one you don’t make? Sometimes in sports, as well as life, your better off not doing something something than doing something stupid again and again and again.
The only difference between the Mets and the Pirates is that the Mets have more money to blow.
Both are horrible at signing free agents and drafting. The Mets just cover up a little more of their mistakes by having SO much more money to spend yearly.
THAT i will agree with. but it is about to change because we now have competence.
Yup, we coulda been a contender. Shucks, we didn’t hire the GM from the Twins , nope we hired a GM from the roidal era. Sandy give Mauer that deal??? No way. Sandy would let him walk. Isn’t that why Ronny is the big sign of the Winter?
you know what I hear when you and Harry talk? I hear Charlie Brown’s teacher. because that’s what it sounds like….WOMP WOMP WOMP-WOMP WOMP WOMP WOMP. That might as well be what it is because neither of you say anything significant.
Chris, a very serious question for you. Do your puppet strings hurt???? GFY….
Do yours?
Oh parker how deep you are indeed. I bet your fingers shook and your heart exploded when you found the courage to hit the enter key.
I bet chris wishes he had the courage tow write that very deep post.
Too much bull here….No doubt that the Perez and Castillo contracts were bad but why is it that the K-rod contract is bad too? The teams pitching has not been good enough before the ninth inning so he was never going to have as many saves as he did with the Angels. Is his contract bad because he is “hot headed”? He screwed up, he was fined and suspended and that is a done issue because he will be playing this year for his next contract and if he is healthy you can bet he will be motivated because of his screw up to have a big year. The story of this team has been and will be how healthy our best players will be for a whole season. There will be no division titles or playoffs for a year or two but if healthy the team will play competitively.
Sorry..but that is the reality of the situation!
The K-Rod contract is horrible, and it’s because there is a very good chance he will be making 17.5 million dollars to get three outs, which is about 10.5 million dollars more than the top two starting pitchers in the AL Cy Young voting made this year. This is the sole reason why the Mets have been garbage for 20 years.
The closer is the most overrated and overpaid-for role on a major league baseball team and Omar gave into it big time.
not having a closer cost us playoff appearances in 2007 and 2008. i’m sure at the time, that this was omar’s thought process. at least the 17.5 has incentives behind it, and not guaranteed. all in all though i agree, he was overpaid quite a bit. the twins flat out lost their closer, joe nathan, last march, and at year’s end, they had three decent closers ( rauch, fuentes, capps ) that cost very little.
I think Francis it was more of a lack of a bullpen in generel, than no closer. Omar could have taken that 11 million and gotten like three pitchers for the bullpen through free agency or trade, one, or any combination of which could have closed out 35 games, while Parnell was grooming (since he’s prob the future closer anyway). It’s a shame, we’ll prob pay K-Rod almost 30 million dollars over the next two years, and Parnell could be closing for league minimum. All while having maybe two starting pitchers that we coulda bought with that money. That’s where Omar is a dufus. Too many dollars in too few players, and never planning ahead. But morons on here want to pay Cliff lee 25 million dollars when there’s like half a dozen other holes to fill…god I’m so happy there’s someone smart in Omar’s office now.
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