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| photo by Mack Ade |
yahoo - When you have a team that has Jose Reyes, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Jason Bay, and Angel Pagan after a big year, you'd say you yourself, "Boy, that's not so bad." But for whatever reason, it hasn't worked out there, especially the past two seasons when they've been under .500 with a high payroll. I don't think it's a "blow it up and start all over" deal. The new general manager — usually when you go to a team that's been under .500, you say, "Boy, we really have to re-do this thing." I don't think the Mets are that kind of team. Watching the San Diego Padres this year, if you can pitch it and catch it, you can be in it.
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| photo by Mack Ade |
metstradamus - I still maintain the following: Omar Minaya isn't the worst GM the Mets have ever had ... far from it. Anyone who thinks so obviously wasn't around for Al Harazin. Minaya has always had certain strengths and weaknesses, and in 2005 the strengths were just what the Mets needed, which was the ability to lure the big name player and an ability to scout decent minor league talent (the minor leagues are probably better now than when Omar first came, if you can believe it). But in 2009 and 2010 when what the Mets needed was somebody who was good at the very things that Minaya couldn't provide, which was the ability to construct a deep roster from one all the way to 25, the Mets instead believed that Omar was all of a sudden going to be good at what he was bad at. It was the belief that the Mets were still one player away, and all that spaghetti thrown against the wall in the hopes that some of it would stick (along with some meatballs that Oliver Perez helped him out with), that proved to be Minaya's downfall. That, and the contracts of Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo, of course.
baseballpastandpresent. - This one’s for Rory Paap of www.PaapFly.com who left a comment last week on my starting lineup of players not in Cooperstown. I picked Don Mattingly to man first, and Rory said: I’d go with Keith Hernandez over Mattingly. He happens to be a distant cousin of mine, but still!! Check his career numbers…he was better than most people realize and an astounding defender. Hernandez is definitely better than I realized. I had no idea he had so many Gold Gloves or such a high WAR ranking, 61.0, which is worse only than Dick Allen and Mark McGwire for eligible first basemen not in Cooperstown. Hernandez also had the All Star nods, defensive accolades, and 1979 National League MVP award, and in his prime regularly hit .300, boasted a .400 on-base percentage, and helped two teams win World Series. His appearances on Seinfeld can’t hurt either.
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| photo by Michael G. Baron |
NYT - Minaya opened the door to Latin America, and terrific players walked in, from Martinez and Beltran to Johan Santana, Pedro Feliciano, and Carlos Delgado. Jose Reyes blossomed into the most exciting player in the league until injuries slowed him. The next off-season was no less fruitful. He grabbed a trio of stars: Delgado, relief ace Billy Wagner and catcher Paul Lo Duca. And he sorted deftly through the consignment bin and added another trio: Endy Chavez, Julio Franco and Jose Valentin. He also off-loaded Kris Benson and his wife (best known for playing a voluptuous Mrs. Claus at a Met Christmas Party for children) for John Maine, who turned in several fine years before his shoulder fell off.
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| photo by Mack Ade |
nj.com _Mets_ownership_doesnt_keep_promise.html - But it wasn’t just one pitch or one World Series they missed. The Mets were doomed by the inferior managers they kept hiring after Bobby Valentine: the out-of-touch Art Howe, the ever-negative Willie Randolph and the ultimately overmatched Manuel. For his part, Minaya gambled too heavily on the free agents who somehow underperformed as Mets. Pedro Martinez survived only a year and a half before disappearing on to the DL, Francisco Rodriguez ended up in handcuffs, Jason Bay’s home run stroke didn’t translate away from Fenway, Ollie Perez stole millions. So did Luis Castillo. Even Johan Santana, who’s undergone three surgeries in three years, likely will be a disappointment by the back end of his contract. By the end, Minaya realized he’d lost the war, telling reporters Monday, “I agree it was time for a change. Four years is a long time. We just didn’t get it done.”
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