No Manny- No Big Deal

By: Steven Weingarten

Friday night at around 8:30, I was at this bar Cassidy’s in New York having some drinks when I received a voice message from one of my friends. The message was this, “Steve, I just heard on the radio the Mets are close to getting Manny.” I nearly wet myself. This could have either been from the excitement from imagining Manny Ramirez in a Met uniform or from me wanting to wait to break the seal for at least another beer.

As a Met fan I can’t help but say that I am actually happy Manny is not going to be a Met. I am a big Manny Ramirez fan, how can you not be? I know he has  a piss poor attitude and he comes off as a bit of a jerk. But you have to just be amazed at the way he plays the game. First lets break down who the Mets would have gotten in this trade. Manny of course, Danny Baez, and Julio Lugo. All three players fill very big holes for the Mets. First Manny would have added pop in a lineup that recently has had very little offense. Baez would have helped a very shaky bullpen and would have made Met fans feel more secure when they have a one run lead in the late innings. Julio Lugo would have given the Mets another base stealer and a solid second baseman (even though Lugo plays short, he would have moved to second). All three of these players would have drastically helped the Mets possibly make a push for the playoffs.

Now more importantly lets talk about who the Mets would have given up. Aaron Heilman, Yusemiro Petit, Lastings Milledge, and Mike Cameron. This is what troubles me about the Mets. I know they want to win and that this trade would have really made them contenders, but is it enough to ruin a foundation they have promised to build? No, I don’t think it is.

All the Mets have talked about after the Steve Phillips spending spree of players past their prime, is how they want to build a foundation of young “homegrown” players. If you trade Heilman, then you have to count on Ishii for the next 2 years as one of your starters until you go out and buy the next big name pitcher past their prime. Floyd and Cameron are both going to be gone in another year, so if you trade Milledge who are you going to go out and get to fill those outfield spots?

The bottom line is, you want to improve your team. I know Minaya wants to do whatever it takes to turn this team around. But this is a team on the mend already. Wright, Reyes, and Beltran are the foundation of the Mets and will lead this team to a new level. Wright is batting .297 with 15 homers and 56 RBI. He is only 22! Can you imagine the kind of numbers he will put up once he gets bigger and some more experience? We’re talking Scott Rolen type numbers (at least we hope).

Jose Reyes is batting .278 now with 34 stolen bases and an on-base percentage of .309. He needs to learn to be patient, but guess what? Reyes is only 21, patience will come with time. Reyes has shown some signs of greatness this year and Pedro even said, “When I am done I am going to buy season tickets, just to see him play.”

Beltran is having a bad year. But if you look at his numbers he is a lifetime .270 (roughly) hitter. I do think his quad problem earlier in the year has drastically effected his numbers, but needless to say the Mets expected more out of a man they are paying $116 million.

What the Mets really need this year is for someone to stand up in that locker room and say, “I am going to carry you.” For the pitchers, they don’t need anyone to do this because Pedro has been doing it all year. The field players are another story. They need someone who is going to lead them and pick them up when the team is scratching for runs. This was supposed to be Beltran, but I think his confidence is down and he is obviously not performing at his best. To me this person is David Wright. He has been the most consistent hitter in the Mets lineup. All year he has been as steady as a rock and is apparently the only hitter who can knock in a run with the bases loaded with less than 2 outs. But you can’t put all that pressure on a guy who has only been in the big leagues for a year and a half.

So what’s all this about? This is about the Mets focusing on what they have, not what they need to have. They need to focus on developing the young prospects like Yusemiro Petit and Lastings Milledge. They need to remember that Aaron Heilman has been nothing but a model of consistency in both the bullpen and in spot starts. Its hard to build a foundation on players with bad knees, backs, or arms. Would you try and build a foundation of a house with 15 year old wood? I know, weird analogy, but building a baseball team is no different than building a house. You have to take your time, use the proper materials, and have the right people. You don’t have to spend the most money.

So, would Manny, Danny Baez, and Julio Lugo have helped the Mets? Absolutely. But like announcers always say, sometimes it about the deals you don’t make that truly make a difference.