MLB 2008 Season

Figured this would've been up by now...

You know what's cool? Seeing Lastings Milledge belt a homer on opening day, you know, just in case I forgot. And, on top of that, seeing the two bats the Mets acquired for him batting behind the immortal Angel Pagan.

"Coming up big" is awful subjective, though, isn't it? I mean, they're all going to be on severe pitch counts this year (Joba isn't even going to start until, what, after the All-Star break?), so, even good performances will be tempered by the fact that they're not going to be able to go all that deep into games. So even if they do look great, you're suddenly relying even more on the likes of Kyle Farnsworth and LaTroy Hawkins.

But don't listen to me, I'm just projecting. The Mets just lost Pedro Martinez, and I don't care how hard they try to sugar coat it, I don't expect him back until June—at the earliest.

And you know what the difference, potentially, between a closer and a starting pitcher is? Let's think back to 2003, the last time the NY Yankees made it to the World Series. Who do you think had a larger impact on that series, 2003 World Series MVP Josh Beckett and his 16.3 IP and 1.10 ERA, or Mariano Rivera's 4IP and 0.00 ERA?

That may have been a rhetorical question...

Choosing between a potential ace and a potential closer is not a choice at all, and that's all Joba Chamberlain has, potential. 2007 doesn't prove Joba's any more capable of replacing Mariano Rivera than becoming the NY Yankees answer to Josh Beckett.

Erm, I may be late to the party, but this post is just ridiculous. First, Omar Minaya wasn't the GM of the Expos when they "let go" of Pedro Martinez, that was Jim Beattie. Then again, the very idea that the Expos ever had a choice when it came to keeping prospective free agents is absurd, as they were never in a position, financially, to retain them (the one caveat being Vladimir Guerrero's first contract, but that exists as nothing more than the exception that proves the rule).

But yeah, you're fucking right about Minaya letting Guerrero go. I mean, sure, Guerrero was a free agent, and the Montreal Expos were being run by MLB, but I'm sure Minaya could have convinced ownership – a collective consisting of opposing owners – to come up with the resources necessary to beat Anaheim's $85 million dollar offer, with contraction looming no less.

If you want to attack Minaya's tenure with the Expos, you go after the Bartolo Colon trade, which, if you completely ignore context, looks ridiculously awful.

How the fuck can you possibly excuse trading Grady Sizemore, Brandon Philips (the centerpiece at the time) and Cliff Lee for Bartolo Colon you deranged Mets fan? Well, when managing the resources of a team that was to be contracted at any moment, chits like A ball prospects are practically meaningless. The Expos were looking to win now, as tomorrow was hardly a guarantee.

As far as his run with the Mets is concerned, Minaya's worst move to date was exposing Jesus Flores to the Rule V draft. One of the better Mets prospects at the time, and seemingly unaware of the rules in place, the Mets thought the chances of a team keeping an A ball catcher on their Major League roster for an entire season were minimal. But, apparently, they never met the Washington Nationals.

His next blunder was the Lastings Milledge trade, which, even in it's current state, I'm still firmly against. Beyond that, you're picking nits. Minaya convinced the Wilpons to open their wallets, traded Kris Benson for John Maine, and, for the most part, have yet to sign a single debilitating contract. Coming from where they've come from, Minaya's run is easily their best since Frank Cashen's (God, what an awful organization).