If serving as a general manager can be equated to shopping, then Minaya proved himself capable of doing two things at least adequately. Minaya could go into a high-end store and whip out his credit card, pointing at all of the shiny Pedro Martinez, Carlos Beltran, and Jason Bay baubles and having them wrapped up for the little Mets fans for Christmas. Minaya deserves some kudos for his salesmanship in convincing these stars to choose New York's other team, but signing them was not a matter of good taste, discernment, or insight—these were often the most obvious candidates for large free-agent contracts, and Minaya bought because the Mets had both the need and the budget. Minaya also demonstrated the ability to dive into the dumpster behind that store and—after rifling through the garbage of others—occasionally come up with a Jose Valentin, Fernando Tatis, or (most recently) R.A. Dickey whom the Mets could utilize. Sure, they were a little used, and they may have had the stench of failure on them, but when employed correctly they had their uses. Minaya's bargain-hunting wasn't always successful, and sometimes the pieces he picked up stuck around longer than they should have or were already past their expiration date and beginning to decompose—Fernando Nieve comes to mind—but the GM had no problem rolling up his sleeve and shoving his arm into the waste basket on the off-chance that he might find something useful and free. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/card/card.php?id=BELTRAN19770424A
Mookie Wilson, one of 12 children, is the son of a South Carolina sharecropper. His real first name is William, but his mother called him “Mookie” as a pet name and that name stuck. He came to the New York Mets in the early 1980s when the team stunk. He played center field, and could run. When Mookie was rounding second base, heading for third for another triple, Jim recalls, “It was worth the whole 145-mile trip from Holyoke. He played with such exuberance and flair. He was considered one of the game’s good guys. He also hinted at the promise of better days.” Which arrived in 1986. The Mets won 108 games and their division by more than 20. http://www.masslive.com/tomshea/index.ssf/2011/10/tom_shea_mookie_wilson_and_new.html
It’s time to see where Sandy Alderson views as pros, cons, strengths and weaknesses of this team. I had a conversation with Metstradamus a few days ago about how he could have bettered the team going into 2011, like trading Angel Pagan and/or Mike Pelfrey when they were at their highest value. Now they have about as much value as dog poop under a shoe. The point is, in 2011, Alderson was damned if he did, damned if he didn’t…do anything, that is. If he traded Pelfrey, we would have screamed as he had a better in St. Louis or someplace like that. People would have “never rooted for the team again” if Angel Pagan their darling who clearly peaked in 2010, was gone. Of course, I am exaggerating but this was something that clearly could have been something positive for the Mets if Alderson had gone the proactive root. http://citifield.wordpress.com/2011/10/22/which-way-do-we-go-george
Can this team have success with a payroll under $120 million a year? I think absolutely and if you want empirical evidence that it can, just look at the teams that have made the playoffs this year. Of the eight teams in the playoffs this year only 2 had payrolls over $110 million. The Yankees and Phillies combined for over $375 million in payroll. The Cardinals and Rangers have payrolls no greater than $105 million. Of course that may change for both teams as both have potentially high-priced players entering free agency, Albert Pujols being the most obvious. - http://www.metstoday.com/7125/11-12-offseason/time-to-let-the-grown-ups-do-their-job
The ’09 Yankees were a batter away from setting up their bullpen bridge and establishing a commanding 3-0 lead in the best of 7 Strat-O-Matic Sim Series. John Milner had other ideas as he hit a 3-run homer off David Robertson in the sixth to tie the game and erase Yankees leads of 5-0 and 8-4. The teams would exchange zeroes until a Hall of Famer scratched a run, literally, off Mariano Rivera in the 13th to win Game 3, 9-8. A series that has seen pitching and defense as the headliners through two games, saw offense rule last night as the Yanks jumped all over Jon Matlack for 5 runs in the third inning. The big blow was a two-run double by Jorge Posada with the bases loaded. Nick Swisher added an RBI single two batters later to make it 5-0. With Andy Pettitte on the mound you figured the lead was safe. The Mets left 14 men on base in Game 2, and had scored only 2 runs through 21 innings. Just like their improbable ’73 pennant, they began an improbable comeback in the bottom half of the third. http://nybaseballdigest.com/?p=40905
