Dear Often Angry Mets Fan,
I don’t know if the 2009 Mets season made me a tougher fan, or if writing for this blog site did, but man you need to quit crying. Let’s talk about reality for a second.
The New York Mets cannot get every player in the MLBPA. It just can’t happen. John Lackey is reportedly getting a five year deal worth what, over 82 million dollars?
Look, that is a LOT of money to pay a #2 starter. It just is, and you need to get over it. I am a huge Lackey fan, I like watching the Angels play and I have watched him closely for a while. He has had arm problems, and it seems that everybody who is crying about Omar Minaya letting Lackey sign with the Red Sox just happen to be the same people who would protest all the way to Citi Field if Lackey got hurt after year 2. “Why did they give him a 5 year deal!” would be the rallying cry.
Lackey is a good pitcher, but I am a gambling man, and I’d gamble that by year #3 starts the Red Sox are looking to deal Lackey or regret that contract. The Mets are not in a position to throw years away in a contract. The Mets do not need 1 or 2 great years out of Lackey, they need 3 or 4. What’s your plan when he turns 33 and his health problems get worse?
Look, I get it, he’s a very good pitcher and probably would fit the Mets very nicely, but I believe the Red Sox overpaid. I do, and if the Mets signed him for that deal I’d say “wow, they overpaid.”
The double whammy was of course Roy Halladay being traded to the Phillies. If the Lackey signing didn’t send you into a hissy fit, this trade did the trick apparently. Man, I am sick of it! The Blue Jays wanted Jose Reyes involved in a deal for Halladay. Are you telling me you’re interested in trading a SS in his prime for a 33 year old pitcher? Get real.
The Phillies LOST that trade in my opinion. I don’t know all of the details yet, and frankly I do not need to. Sources say either Drabek or Happ left in this deal. That means the Phillies now have a gap in their rotation for 2010. I know that the Phillies traded away a lefty former Cy Young winner who was their ONLY hope in the 2009 playoffs for a 33 year old right handed pitcher who has never pitched a big game in his life. Look, Halladay to me is the best pitcher in the game, right now. However, if you’re asking me which pitcher I want in 2013, it’s Cliff Lee.
Let’s not forget, Lee is hitting the open market next year. That’s why the Phillies made this deal. The Marines are gambling, but it’s a low cost gamble to them. I’d rather bid on Cliff Lee next year.
You need to get over the fact that you think you are smarter than Omar Minaya, and that you think you have any idea what goes on inside the Wilpon’s office. Minaya is going nowhere until the 2010 season is done. The Wilpon’s are going nowhere, period. Let them build a team for the 2010 season, and then judge them.
You have no other choice. I’m tired of the constant complaining whenever ANYBODY signs a contract with another team. The Mets only have 25 active slots, and they don’t have room or money for everybody. You love this team because they are NOT the Yankees. Quit trying to make them the Yankees and demanding they buy every player.
This team was predicted to go to the World Series last year and then had what Bobby Cox said the most devastating year in terms of injuries that he has ever seen. Why in the world are you acting as though they won less than 81 games with a healthy Reyes, Beltran, Delgado, Wright in the lineup?
Lastly, everybody mocking the small moves the Mets are making, you have a right to do that. However, THOSE are the moves that make or break a General Manager. Anybody can sign John Lackey, it takes a good GM to find talent where nobody is looking. For those calling WFAN or writing here saying they are not purchasing tickets, good, more for us and less for you. I don’t boo the team I root for, and I certainly don’t cry in the off-season, especially when it’s DECEMBER! It’s not even April yet, and you are acting like the Mets season is done.
So pick yourself up off the floor, wipe away those tears, and let’s start being realistic and enjoy the GAME.
Of course, that’s just my opinion, I could be wrong.
Best Regards,
Realistic Mets Fan.
