Yes You Can

Already, the excuses:

Mets VP Tony Bernazard said if the Mets strike out through free agency or trade, they're prepared to potentially use Bobby Parnell or Eddie Kunz in the closing role.

"Why not? What's wrong with that?" Bernazard asked. "You can't sign one of those guys, what are you going to do - not play?"

In case you haven't noticed ... America voted for change.

First stop is your bullpen, Tony.

We want change in your bullpen ... or you and Omar go the way of every other old administration that's been voted out before they get another four years.

Omar Minaya: Behind The Blow

Well, another red letter season has come do an end (and that red letter is F ... I'll let you figure out what that stands for.) And believe it or not, I still have s**t to say. The following is one in a series of random stuff I'm throwing against the wall about person or persons of my choosing. These are your New York Mets: Behind the Blow.

I'm not sure there's a more polarizing figure on the Met landscape than Omar Minaya. And I'm also not sure there's a more scrutinized GM in baseball right now either. You love him, you hate him. And after two straight collapses, my guess is that most of you hate him.

There's a lot of angst over Minaya getting a four-year contract ... announced officially after the season was over but leaked before Collapse II, which made it all the more painful for fans to swallow. My response to that is not to get worked up over the length of the contract. It's not good business practice to have anyone ... especially Minaya ... in a position where he needs to make moves with the spectre of not being employed next season looming. That's a recipe for disaster, because Minaya needs to always think "long term" with this organization while he's there. When you see guys like Jed Lowrie and Justin Masterson be merely the latest in a significant line of Red Sox prospects who come up from the minor leagues and make huge contributions immediately, you wonder where that's been in Minaya's tenure.

At the risk of sounding like an apologist, some of that has started to happen. Both Daniel Murphy and Nick Evans have come up and helped the team in varying degrees ... Murphy looks like a keeper, and at the very worst, Evans could be trade bait to help some various holes (cough ... bullpen ... cough) that the Mets have. Whatever you believe about Minaya not being able to shore up the bullpen at the deadline, the alternative would have been to blow young players like Murphy, Evans, Eddie Kunz and the like to acquire from a limited pool of relievers including Jon Rauch and Arthur Rhodes (Rauch was horrible with Arizona and Rhodes ... incredibly ... was outstanding for Florida in his 13 innings. Though with the Mets he probably would have been terrible ... and he's still 38.) And then how would you have felt? The problem in 2007 was that the team was too old and, yes, bored. Minaya has seemingly reversed course and has relied more on the farm system. There's still a long way to go with the farm system, but Murphy and Evans are a start. And those calling for Minaya's head should take a look at the big picture and realize that even with all of Omar's faults, the organization is in significantly better shape now than it was in 2004.

Have we all forgotten 2004? I mean, sure ... you may complain about Carlos Delgado. But would you rather have Wilson Delgado?

But now that the season is over, and seemingly more relievers would probably be available, it would behoove Minaya to make sure that bullpen looks completely different than it did last year, four-year deal or no four-year deal ... because a third disaster will likely mean his head. So they have to pay him to do nothing for three seasons. With all the money they're getting selling their championship banners, foul poles, dugouts, and napkin holders, the Wilpons will barely feel the sting. Let's put it this way, when the first reliever comes into the game at Citi Field, he shouldn't just be announced, we'd better see Ty Pennington with a megaphone yelling "drop that curtain".

In other words, there had better be a makeover ... and it had better be extreme.

But here's what worries me about Omar Minaya and the Mets bullpen ... for that matter, it's the same thing that worries me about Omar Minaya and the rest of the roster: It's his penchant for falling in love with reclamation projects. There are only so many times that turning to the likes of Jose Valentin, Orlando Hernandez, and Fernando Tatis are going to work ... and when they work, the payoff has a limited shelf life. Combine that with the soundbite that came from Minaya (or perhaps it was Jerry Manuel but it's indicative of the same problem) when asked about getting Frankie Rodriguez:

"We're going to be creative with the bullpen."

Creativity takes many forms. Matt Groening is creative. Mozart was creative. So was Roman Polanski. Polanski is also a fugitive from justice for having intercourse with a minor. If you give a five-year-old a crayon and a wall, he can be creative too. But all you get are scribbles on a wall. I got a computer to be creative. But instead of writing the Great American Novel, all I could come up with was a blog where I make jokes about Wilson Delgado.

Creativity could be a good thing with the bullpen. Maybe Minaya will target guys like J.P. Howell from the Rays. Maybe he'll force Billy Beane to take a reasonable offer for Huston Street. Perhaps a guy like Frank Francisco from Texas will be available. Maybe Brian Fuentes will be willing to come to New York and close if K-Rod takes his 62 saves elsewhere. There's a whole host of guys out there who have been successful in the major leagues in the past six months that could be had at the right price. But what worries me is that the Omar Minaya I know has already given orders to the clubhouse staff to sew "Urbina" on a jersey for the first official news conference from Citi Field.

Because as you know, incarcerated relievers are as creative as it gets.

What A Twist!

You want to know what it's like to be a Mets fan?

At about 11:00 every night (except for maybe a day off every three weeks), read "The Tortoise and the Hare". Don't read any other books except that one.

Because the Mets season is the same damn story all the time ... the script doesn't change:

• Score a bunch of runs in the first three or four innings.
• Take a nap.
• Watch the other team pass you at the end and celebrate off your bullpen.

Wash, rinse, repeat.

"But Metstradamus, last night's game was a great game, I'd hardly call it the same old story".

Okay, so it was "The Tortoise and the Hare" adapted by Tolstoy. It doesn't matter. It's the same story. There's a tortoise, there's a hare, and the Mets lose. You could get Martin Scorsese to direct the movie version ... or you could get Ang Lee to direct it. The ending remains the same. Mets lose.

If the 2008 Mets were a sitcom, it would have been cancelled by now for being too predictable.

You could change the players (Luis Ayala as closer ... any more good ideas?) even put some character actors in leading roles (Aaron Heilman as vanquished hero is kinda like Brian Dennehy as Bobby Knight, it just doesn't look right), but it's the same movie ... the same book ... the same poem.

Well screw this, I'm changing the postscript. You see, this is the part where Metstradamus goes insane. Not tonight. In addition to being too tired and too numb from the 4,912th gut wrenching loss in the last two years, I present to you the following: The Mets have come back from many of these types of losses this season with some great efforts ... and they have the right guy on the mound tonight to make it happen. And if he does, it's a split.

There, optimistic and level headed. How's that for a surprise ending.

(And if Santana can't make it happen, then we could always hope for Brian Fuentes to be claimed by the Mets on waivers. Or maybe that nine-year-old that's too good for his little league team can come help out.)

The Benchwarmers

It was one of those games where it was becoming increasingly evident that it just wasn't meant to be. Down 1-0, two outs, two strikes, an all-star closer on the mound, and Damion Easley at the dish. Could one have realistically hoped for Damion Easley to go deep?

Once again, the genius of Omar Minaya is proven. Every season he gets older veterans, and I say: "Omar, have you lost your mind?" And every one of these players come in and contribute in a major way, and I can't complain anymore. I've made a living out of complaining, and Omar Minaya has neutered me like I was a lost dog that turned up in Bob Barker's complex.

Damion Easley, come on down! You're the next contestant on "Metstradamus is Wrong!"

Yes, I once compared Damion Easley to a Twinkie. After tonight, I'm convinced that Damion Easley definitely has nutritional value...he's good for you!!! And he's good for us. A two out, two strike home run to tie the game off Brian Fuentes is good eatin', and the Mets remain in first place after a 2-1, 12-inning victory.

And the 2 was just as good as the 1, as the Mets won the game on a drag bunt by Endy Chavez with second and third and two outs. A drag bunt with two outs is the baseball equivalent of a hook and lateral with eighteen seconds left on a fourth and 18. But Endy was smart enough to realize how far back the second baseman was playing and knew he could pull it off. He still had to hit that slop that Ryan Speier threw, and he did it to perfection.

And speaking of Ryan Speier, nice freakin' balk! That shouldn't be lost on us because without it, Shawn Green doesn't go to third base, and Endy Chavez's bunt doesn't win the game but merely extends it, if he even decides to bunt at all. So good job tripping on your spikes, Ryan (which I assume would be different than "trippin'" on your spikes, which is illegal in 15 states).

***

Speaking of Rocky III (which I was a couple of days ago), you think Carlos Beltran saw Mike Cameron coming at him instead of Shawn Green when they were both going after Troy Tulowitzki's RBI triple off of Billy Wagner? Seemed like he pulled up just a hair on it...and who could blame him if that was the case.

But the real question is this: Is Shawn Green fast enough to get to the same spot that Carlos Beltran did? Or is Shawn Green too slow to catch a ball that was closer to him than Beltran? I'll choose "B" and that's my final answer.

***

My brother informed me that former Met and current Blue Jay Jason Phillips has two stolen bases this season.

He stole them, however, after everyone had gone home. Toronto police are hoping that he'll return them in a timely matter.