If this ultimately turns out to be true, the New York sports media that recently lamented the Mets lack of structural depth will undoubtedly crucify Omar Minaya.For the Blue Jays, selling high on Halladay allows them to retool their roster and reload with young, controlled talent at multiple positions. With no illusions about contending this year in a loaded AL East, they've decided to follow the example of the AL Champion Rays and the up and coming Baltimore Orioles and provide themselves with some much needed flexibility.
For years, the Mets strategy has been the exact opposite. In the franchise's 37 year history, not one homegrown position player has been enshrined in the Hall of Fame, and not one homegrown number sits retired on the left field wall; Over that same period, the Mets have dealt names like Nolan Ryan, Amos Otis, Lenny Dykstra, Kevin Mitchell, Rick Aguilera, Jeff Kent, Melvin Mora, Jason Bay, and Scott Kazmir.
As Mets fans, we've seen more press conferences than we could handle. Names like Vince Coleman, Bobby Bonilla, Brett Saberhagen, Carlos Baerga, and Frank Viola litter the landscape; We were sold on Kevin Appier, Mo Vaughn, and Juan Samuel. What we haven't seen is pennants.
Should the Mets fail to pursue Halladay or fail to agree to the large number of prospects the Jays are looking for, Omar Minaya will be crucified. To be sure, you will hear names like Alex Ochoa, Alex Escobar and L Millz. What you won't hear about is how all those big ticket acquisitions that produced press conferences never really lead to championships.
Halladay's Cy Young numbers would undoubtedly be even better in the pitchers haven of CitiField and because he'd be throwing back to back with current ace Johan Santana. However the back end of the rotation would still be comprised of basketcase #1 Oliver Perez and basketcase #2 Mike Pelfrey. Every fifth day Tim Redding or Livan Hernandez would remind Mets fans why they have no business in the big leagues, and the lineup would still be devoid of anyone on pace for 20 home runs or 100 rbi's. Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya would certainly get a stay of execution, and that's probably not a good thing. Ultimately, it wouldn't be enough to close the 9 games that currently separate them and the World Series Champion Phillies. The same Phillies who rode a wave of homegrown talent to a championship and have the organizational depth to easily stomach a Halladay trade that is legitimately likely to put them over the top for this year and next.
The Mets would enter next season full of the same promise and optimism that greets the beginning of every Mets season I can ever remember, with two of baseball's best at the top of their rotation and a healthy core, and then the injuries would come; the losses would pile up and the same media hounds would be there, lamenting the Mets inability to build any kind of farm system or make a trade for the kind of big name players to support Johan and Halladay. Round and round it goes. Lots of press conferences, very few pennants. Same old Mets.
Whether it's simply because Bernie's left them busted or because the Mets have realized that the same old approach hasn't gotten them anywhere, kudos to Minaya for not mortgaging whatever is of any value in the organization for a 32 year old pitcher who won't solve many of the organization's myriad issues at the expense of their entire farm system.
Posts
stumble it!