Omar: Prisoner Of Circumstances

By Matt "The Stat" Himelfarb
Posted Tuesday, November 27, 2007

It has been almost two months since the imperial Mets fell to the Phillies, and I cannot help but take notice of the fact Mets everywhere are clamoring for one gift this Christmas: major change.

Change, or new blood if you prefer, is a wonderful thing. It is even more wonderful following an epic collapse. We have all acquired this Revolutionary-type fervor not seen since Jefferson’s triumph in the election of 1800. I myself advocated for the firing of Willie Randolph and a shift in the way the Mets do business when it comes to compiling their bullpen.

Oh yes, did I mention how ludicrous the anti-Omar sentiment has become?

Mr. John Coppinger sparked a flare of that in the forums a few weeks back in a column titled “Meet the New Mets… Same as the Old Mets”, and that, in part, ignited a column by another fellow writer of mine, Ms. McIver, aptly titled, “Time for me to cry.” And now all I hear from a large portion of Mets fans is Omar’s failure to bring in any new blood.

With respect to my colleagues, I must ask, has it occurred to anyone but myself that maybe all Omar can carve out of the New Mets are the Old Mets?

Never mind the hypocrisy in the fact that when the Mets somehow manage to deal Guillermo Mota for a catcher likely to give the Mets the exact production Lo Duca gave them behind the plate, everyone is calling for Omar’s head for his failure to speak to Lo Duca. I am not going to touch on Marlon Anderson or Damion Easley, which are ho-hum signings at this point, even if Easley provides a much-needed bat off the bench.

Thus far, Omar has made three “significant”, moves this off-season; he has re-signed Luis Castillo, re-signed Moises Alou, and, well, not traded Carlos Delgado. First, we all know Delgado has never had an easy relationship with the fans, stemming from his reluctance to stand during the playing of God Bless America at Yankee Stadium during the seventh inning stretch, and deservedly so during 2007, where he placed second to last among all qualified first baseman in the game last year in OPS (.781) though he was, contrary to popular belief, somewhat better defensively (17th in Revised Zone rating, 10th in Out of Zone plays). But when people dread the thought of Delgado returning in 2008 (not that the Mets have any trade options for an aging first baseman making $15 million a year), I quietly remind them of the remaining options out there: Sean Casey, Tony Clark, Daren Erstad, Ryan Klesko, Mike Lamb, Doug Minentkiewicz; do I need to keep on going?

Second, though a more obvious signing to some than others, we have Moises Alou. I stood by the Alou signing last year (who was fourth on the team in VORP last year), and if he repeats, will earn his $7.5 million option if he nets the Mets another four wins next year. He is also the right-handed power threat the Mets sorely lacked in 2006 and always seemed to drive the ball into the gap when the chips were down last year. Unless the Mets are able to break the bank on Aaron Rowand next year (who is a center fielder first and foremost), the Mets are stuck with the same alternative options: Milton Bradley, Brad Wilkerson, Jose Guillen, etc.

Lastly, and I know this goes the grain, but I would much rather prefer a Ruben Gotay/Damion Easley platoon than have Luis Castillo bunt the Mets out of contention this year. Yes, the difference in production would likely be marginal, but it is a far more cost effective option. The Castillo signing does, however, give the Mets two advantages:

1) Makes Ruben Gotay, who is now part of a crowded bench, expendable.

2) Makes sure they DO NOT sign David Eckstein.

Mind you, the latter is what Mets fans would consider real change, not Ruben Gotay. To his credit, Eckstein has the pedigree of a winner; no I second that, Castillo also magically enabled all 25 players to play well in the playoffs twice now. As Keith Law put it awhile back, Eckstein does “all of the little things and not many of the big things.” (He has a career high SLG% of .395, and his arm is pathetic at short.) And yes, Law is undoubtedly right; what makes Eckstein “gritty” and “scrappy” is the fact he is “short.”

Perhaps the Mets could have implemented further change by making a play for Ramon Hernandez or Orlando Hudson. Propaganda mongering or not, but the Orioles seems to be intent on receiving a “high end prospect”, for Hernandez, who is coming off an off year, and even more for Orlando Hudson, who is the best available option for any team in the hunt for a second baseman at this point. The only Mets prospects that appear to still have high value are Carlos Gomez, Fernando Martinez, Deolis Guerra, and to a lesser extent, Nick Evans and Kevin Mulvey. The fact none of them dealt for a position player thus far suggests just how high Omar’s resolve is to acquire a front end starter this off-season.

Make no mistake; we would still love to see some change, but change as only as good as the actual improvement it makes.

You can contact Matt at: matthimelfarb@gmail.com