The next two weeks will likely make or break the Mets’ season with series against the Braves, Rockies and Phillies (two). For general manager Omar Minaya, another season without playoff baseball in Queens could cost him his job.
Minaya’s career with the Mets has been a series of ups and downs. After a miserable 2004 campaign in which New York only won 71 games, Mets owner Fred Wilpon hired Minaya as GM to bring a winning team back to Queens.
Minaya got started right away, signing high-profile free agents Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran prior to the 2005 season, and the Mets improved to 83 wins.
In 2006, the Mets — thanks to Minaya’s signings of All-Stars Carlos Delgado, Paul LoDuca and Billy Wagner — won the NL East by 12 games and fell one game shy of the World Series, losing to the Cardinals in Game 7 of the NLCS.
But since that game, it’s been an uphill battle for Minaya and the Mets. New York blew a seven-game lead with 17 to play to the Phillies in 2007, and then succumbed to Philadelphia’s pressure again in 2008. In 2009, plagued by injuries to just about every star player on the team, the Mets finished with just 70 wins.
This year, the Mets are back in playoff hunt, but are hanging on by a thread. What’s more, Minaya did not pull the trigger on a deal before the July 31 deadline, as the Mets watched the Phillies acquire Roy Oswalt and the Braves strengthen their offense by trading for Rick Ankiel from Kansas City.
The lack of moves from Minaya — who is normally known for his tendency to "wheel and deal" — signals a couple of things to Mets fans, as well as the rest of the baseball world.
First, it shows that Minaya was unwilling to unload expensive veteran contracts — like those of Beltran, Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo — because he still believes that "the time is now" for the Mets to make a run at the postseason.
Secondly, Minaya’s inability to bring in an extra piece shows that he believes the Mets have a chance in 2010 and thinks the current roster is good enough to get it done.
Mets fans might not agree with that sentiment. After all, New York hasn’t made the playoffs since 2006, with virtually the same roster every year during that span. Furthermore, while Atlanta and Philadelphia each beefed up its weak spots at the deadline, the Mets’ offense (.705 OPS, 23rd in MLB) remains sluggish.
Perhaps Minaya didn’t make moves to improve his team because he was financially hamstrung. Or, maybe he didn’t unload his veterans because he didn’t want to send the wrong signals to Mets fans and, more importantly, the New York media.
Whatever the reason, things don’t look good for Minaya and the Mets with nine weeks left in the regular season. Unless New York pulls off a stretch of eight or nine wins in a row sometime soon, 2010 could be the end of the line for Minaya, once the most highly regarded GM in Mets history.
