I keep reading quotes from Sandy – the one’s where the Mets won’t be signing a big free agent (not that there’s really anyone I want as Upper Deck GM)….the quotes where the Mets will only sign one player….
This is a team with a new ballpark, its own network, and playing in New York City and there’s only reportedly $5 million to play with?
Perhaps the Mets should take the Davidoff solution (by the way the Newsday paywall is down for the rest of the year):
The Mets should take another shot at lowering those ticket prices even more. Yes, it would be embarrassing, but theYankees did it in the middle of the season back in 2009. Sometimes, you just have to swallow your pride. Honesty usually wins the day: “We’re taking a year to assess what we’ve done before moving forward. We want you to get into the ballpark and assess what we’re doing.”
I think we all know that 2011 is a lost year. I’m fine if Sandy signs nobody, or one low pay guy. I get it. I just can’t believe that these are the ruins Omar left behind.
It really is quite shocking. Anyone know who what the FA class will look like in 2011? I’ve never wished for a season that didn’t begin to be over with already. 2011 will be weird, no expectations…LGM!!!
I meant the 2012 FA class. 2011 is a wash let’s be realistic. 10 players with $115 million? That’s some really bad management. Has Omar written all over it
False. The Mets are not in that bad shape. I don’t know what the plan is, but punting in 2011 is unacceptable. And bad business. They’ll lose millions if they go the rebuilding year route.
Who runs the team is irrelevant. If your buy a new computer and it falls apart, do you forgive Dell because they just hired a new ceo?
It’s not even the rebuilding route, it’s the sit there and do nothing route. It’s worse.
Some may want to blame Omar…I blame the Owners, as they are the ones who have final say on anything and everything. This team will never go anywhere with those small market minds in charge.
100%
Omar left this team in ruins.
He basically sucked as a GM…All I saw was Omar and his boys (the bigoted Tony Bernazard and crew) walking around like big shots.
Any major deal he gets credit for could have been done by any Mets fan. For example Johan Santana, Pedro Martinez, Carlos Beltran, Jason Bay, and K-Rod. Santana fell into his lap after Boston and the Yankees dropped out, and all he had to do for the rest of those guys was to offer the most years, most money and no trade clause.
The Wilpons foolishly trusted in this guy and I could not blame Jeff Wilpon for micro-managing the guy.
And the way Miniya went out….saying it was “time for a change”. Exactly how long was he feeling like that?
Jerry Manuel, Willie Randolph and Met fans were the victims of this fool having access to 100’s of millions of dollars in payroll.
The Mets became a joke around the majors, in the media, and late night talk shows with Miniya as GM.
I don’t see how you can even come close to saying this team is in ruins. Why? Just because they don’t have money to throw at Pitching this year?
Go around the field and tell where (other than 2nd Base) we will be playing an absoloute SCRUB?
The second worst starting positional we will play will be Thole! And he is a pretty decent player who has a higher cieling than we have seen to date! Is he a scrub?
Our OF is Beltran, Bay and Pagan
Our IF is Wright Reyes Davis and potential scrub.
We have 3 fifths of our rotation (Pelfrey, Dickey and Niese) with an ace on the DL. We have both Mejia and Gee who may not be Aces (yet) but could be a good 5th rotation guy.
Thats it folks so why all the hysteria?
There are only two really bad contracts and both are off the books after next season. They amount to a total of 18 Mil which might pay an Ace for a year! The rest of the Salary is in our starters with some waste due to overpaid bench players.
In essence we are one pitcher away if Santana comes back (no guarantees there) and we simply don’t have the money for Lee. Pavano is hardly ACE material either and neither will Lee be in 2 or 3+ years. Even if we HAD the money, Cliff Lee might not be such a great contract to sign considering the years he wants.
This team (if healthy) is good enough to compete. Hell we were in the division race without our biggest bat in there so if he comes back and has no ill affects from the knee we should be just as in it as we were before provided the pitching doesn’t become the issue. And I would point out we were in the division race DESPITE Maine and Perez pitching about 10-15 games for us during that time!
lets stop with all the chicken little posts here.
NO! We are not going to sign a big name FA! sorry but you will not be able to find some new met to draft for your fantasy baseball league!
NO! We are not going to have a fearsome starting rotation next year even if Santana comes back and starts pitching perfect games in May!
YES! We will probably stand with what we have and make minor changes until the trading deadline comes and we decide if the guys who are making the majority of that 130M payroll are worth keeping or trading for prospects (read: Beltran, Reyes, Pagan and Wright!)
If we are in the race then Ownership will probably ease up on the payroll restriction to allow Sandy to go after the ACE(s) we will need to carry us to the playoffs.
If we are not then Diamondvision will feature a big “FOR SALE EVERYTHING MUST GO!” sign and all the guys that have given us any success we have had recently will be traded for prospects.
If you think next season is going to be bleak just wait to see what they will look like after that happens!
This team is not in ruin. It just does not have a lot of payroll flexibility to solve the pitching problems. What we need is to develop and aquire some young arms (ala Gooden, Darling) to invigorate and lift the level of the starting rotation. Who knows if Mejia can be one of those pieces.
The Sky isn’t falling here! We don’t need to pay even more players stupid amounts of money what we need is to get the guys we are already paying stupid amounts of money to play on the field at the same time which hasn’t happened in three years!
And with our ballpark you don’t need a Cy Young guy to get effective pitching performance.
Just stop worrying and let them do what needs to be done.
If your patient you might find that the best move to make is no move at all!
Stockpile draft picks, make some minor trades and aquisitions to upgrade the bench and the pen and keep the guys who are making the 112 Mil Perez and Castillo aren’t getting on the field all at the same time!
I stopped when you said the Mets don’t have money for Lee.
With the geniuses in charge, it’s necessary to spend money to compensate for their many mistakes. That’s why the Yankees are good, it’s not because Cashman actually knows what he’s doing, it’s because $ can cover up any deficiency he may have. (Same reason Joe Torre looked good all those years)
There is some brand argument there as well. If the Mets ‘overspend’ slightly and win an extra 5+ games, think about the boost in attendence from actually competing. Think about the more fans that turn on the tv and buy papers that say Mets on the back. You then take those numbers, turn around and show them to Pepsi and raise the prices for the advertisers, not the fans.
Or you can do nothing, risk the team winning 79 games with 1.5million fans in the game and sponsors leaving or demanding a reduction because they were promised twice as much ad-views as they got.
If you think this team as built is only going to win 79 games do you really think 5 more wins (84) is going to change the attendance situation?
15 More games maybe but not 5!
The only way attendance is coming back is if they lead the division for a good long while and I don’t see getting one big name pitcher changing that. Getting TWO might. The top guy you can sign is Cliff Lee. He’s over 30 and wants a 6 or 7 year contract at CY YOUNG rates.
Let me introduce you to Oliver Perez’s replacement for the Contract poeple bitch about the most!!!
130 Million dollar payroll is enough to win games. The Yankees sure didn’t get any further in the playoffs than teams who spent a lot less.
I think some of us are just Contract junkies and we don’t seem to care that a free agent is actually worth getting or paying for the length of the contract we signed. We will just blast the GM for making the deal we wanted at the time but forgot we wanted it because it didn’t pan out!
my math is that last years team wins 82+ with a manager. Even assuming the same rash of injuries (only Santana so far) one or two pick ups gets them to 87+ wins, which is enough that the games mean something deep into the season and that if the wins bounce the right way (i.e. they get them against the Phillies) they could stay right in it for a while and will draw crowds. If they trade their best players, they’ll draw no one. literally no one.
12 months ago you made this very same “they simply can’t go through a rebuilding process or let go of player ‘x’ because the team will stink and be playing in an empty stadium” argument. 2 months ago, the team was 18 games out and playing in an empty stadium ANYWAY. Enough with the “If only Beltran comes back to form and if only Reyes matures and if we can only get some production out of 2nd base and if only Babe Ruth comes back from the dead and signs a free agent contract and if only a giant sinkhole swallows the entire city of Philadelphia, this team can win the division as currently constructed” business.
How many times is this team going to have to finish in 2nd-4th place before people accept that it is, in fact, only a 2nd-4th place team? Throwing money at a name or or two every winter on the false premise that only a minor tweak or two is the answer has thus far only led to more wasted seasons. If the Mets are going to waste them in the end anyway (and they undeniably have to this point), at least waste them on a different path than the same one we already know doesn’t work. To quote Faith and Fear in their recent “Realization” entry:
“…For now, though, the new front office represents the most crucial Met realization: that what came before wasn’t making the Mets better and that it’s time to try something else…”
If “something else” means wading through the muck for one more season (emphasis on the “more,” as we’re nearing a half-decade since the last playoff appearance as it is) until they can clear some payroll and really get down to business, than that’s more than a fair trade in my eyes.