Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Omar, Mets, Swindle Twins

Well Mets fan (no that was not a typo, there's only one of those in the world right?), Omar finally woke up from his slumber, remembered he was a GM, went to work for a day this winter - and, what does he have to show for it? He made the weakest offer, and pending a contract extension, landed the biggest fish in the pond - #57 (the pitcher not the blogger)

As a Yankee fan I am at ease knowing this player is not going to the sworn enemy and that we are not mortgaging the farm, giving away future superstars and a 9 figure contract to get this guy.

If I'm a Boston fan, I'm breathing a sigh of relief for the exact same reasons.

If I'm a Twins fan, I am rioting in the streets and burning the Metrodome to the ground. When faced with the potential of landing names like Lester, Elsbury, Hughes, and Cabrera - they end up getting four nameless prospects of questionable immigration statues and have lost the best pitcher on the planet the last 4 seasons. Talk about high crimes and misdemeanors.

At the end of the day though, you have to feel bad for the Mets fans. They are on an emotional high right now, and are perhaps coming around to the idea that they no longer suck. Dreams of a Wild Card or divisional crown start to creep into their minds. Then they wake up. Then, they realize: they just got rid of their top two prospects with whom they had under contract for about $9/hr. They acquired a pitcher in his late 20s with an arm that is heading into its early 40s and the price of admission will be a daunting, guaranteed contract of 7 years and $150 million plus incentives. That kind of jack can, and will likely be tough to get over when Santana starts to pull a Donovan McNabb every season going forward and not play in the final month due to injuries. Mark my words: The contract the Mets will be offering to Santana, will make Mike Hampton's contract look like a bargain and will be the source of such pressure that it will cause a downward spiral that could last for years, if not decades, and will have the team thinking about relocation. Mets games in the Dominican anyone?

Is that kind of risk worth the reward?

14 comments:

57 said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Tough, disappointing loss for Rudy.

old professor said...

Mid, I cannot see the Mets coming up with a seven year contract at $20m per year. If they can than good for them.

Santana is no out of the American League eliminating the two times the Yankees would have faced him and he is not going to the Red Sox. Strange, but it would appear the Met's offer was the weakest of the three teams competing for him.

As for Rudy, you may remember in many of the conversations we had (not necessarily on this Blog) he indicated Rudy would not be the candidate for the Republicans. He will now come out and support McCain. McCain will have a tough financial road to run against Romney. However, he probably will get the nomination. Don't be surprised to see him tap Huckabee for his running mate.

57 said...

Prof, the Mets would not go this far without knowing that they have the cash and fortitude to make this deal. It would be a collapse of immense proportions if they lose Santana.... sort of like losing a 7.5 game lead with 17 games left.

Anonymous said...

Is McCain the candidate for Republicans?

He may poll well with vets, older people, and immigrants, but I'm not yet convinced the base is going to give him the push.

The union is pushing the Santana deal - they want him to ask for more than the 7yr/$150.

Anonymous said...

Kudos to Minaya, he woke up long enough to make the deal. They gave up half of the organizations top prospects (very Steinbrenner-esque) for a chance to win now. The only kid that is worth anything is Gomez. He projects better than Melky and Elsbury. But the pitching they got is questionable at best and Lester, Bucholz, or Hughes would be much better than all 3 of them combined.

Mid actually got this one right. If I'm a Twins fan I'm ticked off. This isn't the same as getting Nathan and Liriano for Pierzynski. Twins going from being in contention for the post-season to battling the Royals for the AL Central Basement. This deal was so inferior to the Yankees or Red Sox "reported" offers, that it makes me think both teams may have pulled out and just weren't interested.

This deal makes the Mets the hands down favorite for the NL East, if not the NL pennant. I think Pedro can still put together a very nice season and is most likely the best #2 guy on any staff in baseball. Then follow that up with a Maine or Perez. That is the kind of pitching you fear in the post-season. Maine and Perez had nice seasons last year despite trying to carry the load for a weak pitching staff. Maine and Perez may not be #1 or 2 starters, but they will do real well in the 3 and 4 spot. This also allows the Mets to develop Pelfry instead of forcing him into the rotation.

old professor said...

Mid, The Republican base you refer to is the conservative base/religious right. They don't hold the political power to influence the election like they once did. In addition, the country has had enough of the Bush/Chaney thought patterns (if there is much to any thoughts they have). If by some devine intervention, Romney becomes the candidate - the majority of the population in this country has real issues with someone who can buy the presidency. Besides is there any side to an issue he has switched to?

As for Santana signing with the Mets, hope it happens because if the deal falls through, the Twins will return to talking with the Yankees and Red Sox.

57 said...

if it does fall through, I will never be a Mets fan again.

57 said...

Boy McCain came off very weak tonight and Romney was pretty good (even though I am a fan of neither). Huckabee is great and probably will be Romney's VP mate. CNN focused on Romney and McCain too much, and the two candidates who had a lot of very good things to say, were left out to dry (Huckabee and Paul).

Anonymous said...

Give Omar his due. He stole Santana. Other than Gomez, the prospects he gave up are not projected to be anything special.

I agree with Crash, for the Twins to take that deal the Yankees and Sox HAD to pull their offers off the table. Cashman all but said so when he spoke at William Patterson the other night. He said his recommendations was that they keep the kids and build a top line pitching staff from within. While I applaud the new strategy (simply because the old one hasn't won a title since 2000, I sure hope that they don't go overboard and decide to bring the payroll down to a "respectable" level.

All that being said, the Mets are a better team today (assuming they sign him) then they were yesterday and have leapfrogged the Phillies as the favorite in the NL East.

I, along with every Yankee fan are just glad that he didn't wind up in Boston, and I'm pretty happy that we will see what Hughes can give us for a whole season.

Bummed about Giulianni....Get ready for a good ole fashioned "knock-down/dragout" between McCain and Romney for the nomination.

old professor said...

Seven year contracts for any pitcher is a stretch. Let's remember Mike Hampton and it should also be remembered Mussina originally signed a six-year deal when he came to the Yankees (they should have ended that relationship when the contract expired). The Twins gave it a shot at signing Santana with an offer of five years for twenty mill per year and it was turned down.

As for Guilianni, his campaign was poorly run and it almost seemed he didn't have the heart to go through the process - maybe he thought he was the anoited one.

Scooter you are right about the looming battle between McCain and Romney. McCain knows how to battle, don't be surprised if he makes Romney look foolish over the next few weeks.

57 said...

Romney will win.

Mid, you had better take your Giuliani link off of your blog and put Romney there... or even Huckabee...what a ticket that would be.

Anonymous said...

It looks like the Mets and Santana are still off on the contract. It would be great irony if the Mets can't get him signed and the deal falls apart over a disagreement on 1 year (the Mets want to sign a 5 year deal, Santana asking for 6). I guess we'll know by 5pm

old professor said...

Apparently the Twins were forced into the trade with the Mets. Santana told them that if a trade wasn't made by Tuesday, he would not waive his no trade clause and play the season with the Twins opting for Free Agency at the end of the season. If the contract with the Mets can't work out will the Twins revisit the Red Sox or Yankees? Neither team has to step up with the previous package.

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