Please Check Out Mike's Mets

I am no longer posting on this site. All of my posts can now be found on mikesmets.com

Your Source For Historical Mets Posts

Surprisingly (to me anyway), since I stopped adding new posts, my daily traffic has remained about the same. So, for those of you still looking for my posts on the early-day Mets, I have streamlined the site to include all of those along with what I consider some of my better entries about the current Mets and deleted the rest.

Your continued interest is appreciated.

The Last Post

After 3 years and 105 posts, I have decided that this will be my last. To my small group of regular readers, I thank you for your support. I just didn't feel that a Blog that still draws an average of about 20 hits per day, and less than one feedback comment a month was worth keeping up. In spite of what I thought would be helpful exposure on two other excellent Mets blogs, Mike Steffanos' Mike's Mets and Joe DeCaro's Metsmerized, my readership hasn't grown at all.

If either Mike or Joe would like to run any of my old posts, they are welcome to it. At least I know they will be seen by a substantial number of Mets' fans and that is why I am grateful to them for having picked up some of my posts in the past.

As someone who remembers the Mets of Casey, Marv, and Choo Choo and everything that went on since, I felt I made a valuable contribution to preserving the legacy of the early days by posting my memories. But there are so many baseball blogs and probably several hundred on the Mets alone, so I don't think my voice will be missed.

The Mets are something I just can't get out of my blood. I nervously checked the internet for what seemed like a dozen times every day all winter to see if the Mets made any moves. For quite a while, it looked like a dismal off-season, but our GM not only landed the big prize in Santana, but stayed active after that by taking a flyer on a bunch of players who had some major league success in the past and just might spell the difference in a game or two in 2008. After last season, we know how important that can be.

To my two advertisers - although there will be no new posts, the Metscentric archive will remain available and the site is not being shut down, so if you want to continue to have your links posted after your present contract has expired, that's up to you.

If anyone wants me to be a guest blogger, I will consider it of course. Just drop me an email. It's been fun.

The Johan Santana Saga

After their devastating collapse in 2007, it was apparent that the Mets needed to do something big to get an ace pitcher to lead the rotation. It soon became known that one of the best, Minnesota's Johan Santana, would be on the trading block because he was entering the final year of his contract and the Twins were unlikely to meet his deservedly astronomical salary demands.

Because the Mets were one of the few teams that could both afford and were probably willing to pay what it took to get Santana, Mets' fans and local writers speculated on what possible package the Mets could put together to offer for Santana. The first names that came to mind were Lastings Milledge, a talented young major league-ready outfielder, and Mike Pelfrey, a recently well-regarded potential staff ace who was disappointing in almost every chance the Mets gave him in 2007, with one exception, a dazzling win over the Braves that offered hope that he just might turn out to be good.

Milledge and Pelfrey probably wouldn't be enough so the names of almost every other player in the farm system who showed any potential was suggested by someone - Deolis Guerra, Hector Pellot, Francisco Pena, Mike Carp, etc. In the meantime, it seemed that the Twins were talking to both the RedSox and Yankees, who were able to offer some pretty good packages out of their farm system and probably be able to afford to throw a major leaguer or two into the deal as well.

Rumors were that the Mets wouldn't be a strong contender for Santana and should probably concentrate on one of the A's starters or maybe Baltimore's Erik Bedard. Then, out of nowhere the Mets traded Lastings Milledge to Washington for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider. Seemingly, the best chip they had to obtain an ace was dealt away for a part-time outfielder and light-hitting catcher. Then, word spread that the Mets had found few takers for Milledge and neither the A's or Twins wanted him as the key player in a package.

Another name came to the forefront - Carlos Gomez. The young outfielder was pushed to the big leagues because of multiple injuries to the Mets' outfielders in 2007 and showed himself to be a potentially electrifying talent with dazzling speed and centerfield skills. But his hitting was unrefined, and just how it would develop remained in question. Plus with Beltran a fixture in centerfield, and Reyes providing base stealing speed at the top of the lineup, Gomez's talents were a little redundant for the Mets' needs. I still didn't see Gomez as the key to a Santana deal and I proposed that the Mets offer him to Minnesota for a well-regarded young pitcher, Matt Garza. Soon after that, the Twins traded Garza for one of the best young hitters in the game, Delmon Young. Clearly, Gomez wasn't enough to get Garza.

Then, Dan Haren, another of the Mets' targets was traded to Arizona for an imposing group of prospects that "experts" told us were far superior to anything the Mets might offer. Meanwhile, various Erik Bedard rumors, none of which seriously involved the Mets, began surfacing. It seemed that another potential target was going off the market.

We heard how the Mets were "close" to signing either Livan Hernandez or Kyle Lohse to fill the last spot in their rotation. There was apparently not going to be an ace coming to the Mets, just a seviceable innings-eater. Or so it seemed.

Then, talk of Santana got hot again. Apparently his agent wanted something to get done quickly after he rejected the Twins' "last best offer". We again heard the names of the Red Sox and Yankees bandied about. Which one woud cave in and toss in that additional player that would seal the deal ? Meanwhile, Omar Minaya and the Mets lurked in the background with their offer - Gomez, Phil Humber, Deolis Guerra, and Kevin Mulvey. With the Yankees and Red Sox not showing any great desire to increase or possibly even match what had been their best offers to that point, the Mets suddenly became a stronger possibility.

Now, the rumors said the Mets would have to toss in their very best prospect, Fernando Martinez, or perhaps a proven major leaguer like Ryan Church or Aaron Heilman to get the deal done. It looked like too much to give up and at the same time not enough to entice the Twins. I didn't think it was going to happen.

I recalled when the Mets traded away Tom Seaver in what to this day is still considered a disastrous trade for the Mets and yet at the time it seemed much better than what the Mets were offering for Santana. After all, the Mets got Pat Zachry, just off a Rookie of the Year season, Steve Henderson, one of the best hitters in AAA and considered major league ready, a potential starter at second or short named Doug Flynn, and a pretty good young power hitting prospect in Dan Norman. Did the Mets have anything comparable to offer for Santana ? I suggested that an equivalent deal might be John Maine, Gomez, Ruben Gotay, and since they didn't have anyone with Norman's credentials, maybe another young pitcher like Kevin Mulvey. I thought such a package would be appealing enough to make the deal, but the Mets absolutely could not afford to give up Maine. Yet, I thought ultimately they might do it and then sign someone like Livan or Lohse to fill Maine's spot.

As it turned out of course, the Mets didn't have to give up Maine, Martinez, Church, or Heilman. With the Yankees and Red Sox on the sidelines, Omar didn't have to sweeten his offer and Santana was a Met. Sure, they still had to sign him, but that was practically a foregone conclusion, because if it didn't get done, well I won't even speculate what kind of hit the Mets would have taken for that !

PLAY BALL !!

Congratulations, Omar

Well, Omar Minaya waited out the Twins and got the prize he's been after all along, Johan Santana. The offer on the table for weeks turned out to be the one that was accepted without including Fernando Martinez, Ryan Church, Aaron Heilman, Jorge Sosa, or for that matter anyone who figured to help the Mets in 2008. Now, it's just a matter of working out a contract extension. It's hard to believe either side will hold firm on something that will sabotage the deal, but until the contract is signed, nothing can be taken for granted.

As far as what the Mets gave up, Deolis Guerra has the potential to become a star, but that's OK. Unless you expect him to become the best pitcher in the game, you have to agree to let him go in this kind of trade. As for Carlos Gomez, as I've said bfore, at his best, he duplicates/overlaps the skill of two Mets already signed long-term, Jose Reyes, and Carlos Beltran, so he was expendable. Phil Humber and/or Kevin Mulvey could develop into middle of the rotation starters, or not. This was a deal the Mets had to make.

So, assuming Santana gets signed, does that put the Mets in position to win the division ? Well, they would have to be considered favorites. Still, I'd like to see an addition or two. A solid righthanded hitting outfielder to share time with Ryan Church or spell Moises Alou on occasion might be nice. And maybe another bullpen arm, in case Sanchez is not ready to open the season. But the outlook seems a lot brighter today. So, congratulations to Omar Minaya for standing his ground, putting forth his best offer, and not succumbing to pressure from the fans and media to throw another good player in to hasten the deal.

Old Time Mets - John Stearns

In the 1973 Amateur Draft, right after the Texas Rangers selected the highly regarded and ultimately ill-fated David Clyde with the first pick, the Phillies used the second selection to take catcher John Stearns out of the University of Colorado. The next two picks both turned out to be hall-of-famers, Robin Yount and Dave Winfield. Since Bob Boone was just starting what would turn out to be a long tenure as the Phillies' #1 catcher, it's a little hard to understand why they would have taken Stearns over Yount and Winfield. Stearns, of course, never achieved anything close to HOF level, but after being traded to the Mets, he had a pretty good career. He might have fit in even better with a contending team, but the Mets were awful during Stearns' entire tenure as catcher, while the Phillies with McGraw as bullpen ace and Boone as catcher were perennial contenders in the '70's and early '80's.

The December 3,1974 trade that involved Stearns and Tug McGraw was an interesting one. McGraw had some shoulder trouble during the 1974 season, and the Mets had some doubt whether he would return to form. So, trading McGraw along with two nondescript outfielders for Stearns, one of the best young catching prospects in the game, Del Unser, an experienced centerfielder and well-regarded leadoff hitter, and Mac Scarce, a lefty specialist who looked like a cinch to win a spot in the bullpen seemed almost like a no-brainer.

Stearns wasn't quite ready for big league duty, but by 1977, he became the team's number one catcher and despite a string of injuries, was good enough to represent the Mets in the All-Star game 4 times. Stearns was solid all-around with exceptional speed for a catcher being his trademark, but he never really became a big star and certainly wasn't in the class of Yount or Winfield. Also, Stearns was injury-prone leading to a lot of missed time and ultimately a shortened career, and in retrospect, his numbers weren't all that good, although they were better than what most of his teammates produced.

Stearns will be remembered as a hard-nosed, hustling player on some terrible Mets teams. Unser and Scarce were both disappointing, so the trade will ultimately be remembered as McGraw for Stearns, so Stearns was in effect, "replacing" a true Mets' hero and one of the game's great personalities, and it was kind of unfair to put that onus on him.

John Stearns later served as a coach and minor league manager with the Mets. He is still managing in the minor leagues, and who knows, may yet become a big league manager. Like so many young players who came to the Mets in trades, the fans had high hopes for him which were never quite fulfilled, but Stearns was solid and did put in a few good years with the team.

Mets Trades Of The Past - Dumping The Heroes of '69

The 1969 Miracle Mets inspired dozens of books and for those of us who were Mets fans then, they represented an iconic team that will live in our memory forever. What made them so special was that pitching aside, they were primarily a very ordinary team of journeymen, disappointments, and discarded veterans who came together for one great and totally unexpected season. I can assume that nearly every Mets fan has at one time or another seen the video of this series and the amazing catches made by Tommie Agee, a talented outfielder and Ron Swoboda, who was regarded as a less than adequate one.

Now, no one plays forever (with the possible exception of Satchel Paige and Julio Franco), but it seemed to me that both Agee and Swoboda should have ben effective players for a few more years, and while I'm not one to say that someone should be untradeable, I remember how disheartened I was when both Swoboda and Agee were traded away. Had they brought back legitimate young prospects (several years later, a seemingly fading Jerry Koosman did bring back Jesse Orosco), it might have softened the blow, but I remember how hard I tried to justify the players the Mets received in exchange, knowing all along that they weren't very good.

Prior to the 1971 season, at the age of 26, Ron Swoboda, at one time the shining hope for a legitimate power hitter in the Mets lineup was traded along with minor league infielder Rich Hacker to the Montreal Expos, for of all people, Don Hahn. Now the fact is that Swoboda never got any better after leaving the Mets, but at the time, despite the fact that he wasn't living up to the potential everyone thought he had since he first burst on the scene, this looked like an incredibly awful dumping of a still young player who was clearly a fan favorite. His contribution to the 1969 Miracle team keeps his name alive, but that aside, yes, he was clearly a major disappointment. But to trade him for Hahn, a good outfielder with zero power, and little hope of being anything more than a defensive replacement was a real downer. And plus, it was the Mets who had to throw in a player to make the deal. The fact is that the trade did little to help either team, but at the time, it seemed utterly ridiculous from a Met fan's point of view.

A couple of years later, Agee, for no reason I could figure out, had seemingly lost his centerfield job to a combination of 40-year old Willie Mays and the aforementioned Don Hahn. The Mets traded him to Houston for the uninspiring pair of outfielder Rich Chiles and pitcher Buddy Harris. Now, Agee had a poor year in 1972, but he was still barely 30 years old, and it wasn't like the Mets had someone like Amos Otis ready to replace him. They had Mays, Hahn, and maybe Dave Schneck. The Mets, no doubt, would have been better off keeping Otis and trading Agee after the 1969 season, but that was all water under the bridge. So, when I heard the deal, I kept trying to convince myself that maybe this guy Chiles was really going to be a star. Both Chiles and Harris had some impressive seasons in the minors, but had been busts when given a shot in the majors.

Well, Chiles had maybe 3 hits for the Mets before they dumped him and Harris never even played for the team. It turns out Agee WAS just about done, and he didn't even last a full season with the Astros, but that hardly softened the blow for Met fans.
Remember at the time of these trades, most Mets fans thought that Agee and Swoboda were still pretty good and in Swoboda's case, still young enough to get better. As it turned out, the Mets might have been right about them, but to me, these trades really hurt at the time.