Omar Minaya Trade Profile (Mets)

Well Omar almost traded Gomez to the Giants for Sanchez.

I don't know how you call his tenure a mixed bag. He added maine, perez, el duque, sanchez, delgado, castillo, green, mota, and lo duca by trade. At the same time, the best player he gave up is probably heath bell. I don't know how you call that anything short of success.

I thought at the time the Fish won getting Owens and Lindstrom, and Owens has been injured, but also closed and setup a failed closer with good success.

Today, the Marlins are WELL in front on that deal.

I guess going from a winning percentage of .466/.410/.438 before a GM arrives to a winning percentage of .512/.599/.564 isn't good enough for fans of other teams to admit success. Trades are always gambles, you win some and you lose some. Omar is not afraid of failing so some of his deals he will lose on. But I have a hard time believing that losing on Heath Bell/Brian Bannister/ and 1/3 of a season from Henry Owens out weigh the additions of Delgado/Loduca/Maine/El Duque/Perez.....

I didn't clearly demonstrate how Omar's bad decisions kept the Mets out of the playoffs in 2005? How quickly we forget.

More bad decisions are the reason the gap between the Mets and other NL East teams isn't huge right now.

Easily a mixed bag. I'm a neutral third party, and you're probably not. He had a fine run that lasted less than one year.

"I didn't clearly demonstrate how Omar's bad decisions kept the Mets out of the playoffs in 2005? How quickly we forget."

It wasn't his decisions, it was the players. Beltran and Mientkiewicz were awful, if both (especially Beltran) had been able to contribute more then things might have been different. But getting them deep into the playoffs was not going to happen in one off-season. He had a lot of work to do and had to clean up Duquette's mess.

The reason the gap between the Braves/Phillies and Mets is so small isn't because of bad decisions, it is because of the players. Everyone is having a down offensive year save Wright and Reyes. They had a lot of injuries in one period as well. Both teams have also improved themselves and their players are performing better.

Heath Bell would never work out with the Mets. He did not get along with Rick Peterson and never came through when given the oppurtunity.

Check out Bannister's game log. The only teams he's beaten that are good are the Indians and Tigers, each once. He has an awful K/9 ratio so his success will be limited. By the end of the season, it will look like a good move.

You forgot about the Luis Castillo trade. Also the Victor Diaz to the rangers as well.

Omar didn't keep the Mets out of the playoffs in 05, they were clearly not a playoff team that season. Reyes was no where near the player his is now, the cleanup hitter was a past his prime Piazza, There were huge holes in the bullpen, right field, 1b, and 2b. Even with those holes the team still improved from a bad team to a near playoff team.

And as for this year, I have no clue what you are talking about. The Mets have the best record in the NL dispite fielding a split squad team for half of this season due to injuries. Omar has done a good job at building a team 35-40 players deep. It really doesn't matter that they aren't ahead by more games then they are, because all it takes is to be in first by 1 game at season end. Which they are on pace to do.

I'm not saying that Omar is the best GM in baseball, but he has been a good gm for a lot more than "less than a year".

Im a little hungover so maybe I'm missing it but Luis Castillo trade for 2 minor leaguers.

Anyone can look great when their team says to use as much money as you want on who ever you want. You can tell a great GM are by their playoff success and the success of the little trades. Anybody can sign Beltran when their team lets use as much as you want to sign him. It takes a good GM that make a trade for Maine.

"You can tell a great GM are by their playoff success"

No way, man. Like Billy Beane says in Moneyball, the playoffs are a crapshoot. (I guess he says, "it's f***ing luck."

"Anybody can sign Beltran when their team lets use as much as you want to sign him."

Not true. Anyone can sign Johnny Damon or Juan Pierre too, but those are bad signings. No matter how much money a team has, it can still throw good money after bad players because it doesn't know how to value them.

"...and the success of the little trades."

This is very true. It is here that Minaya has been a mixed bag, despite that incredible run of awesome trades last year. Part of it is luck, but a lot of it is that Minaya is willing to sell high and buy low. Ambiorix Burgos and Ruben Gotay were awesome acquisitions; people look at lack of success at the major league level and fail to notice that the Royals are calling these guys up at 21, 22.

The Mets could do a lot, lot worse than Omar Minaya. He's not in the top 5 GMs in baseball (Beane, Shapiro, Towers, Epstein, Scheurholtz), but he's up there. I think Mets fans are extremely happy to be free of the Steve Phillips reign.

"Anyone can look great when their team says to use as much money as you want on who ever you want."

Good point. To get 2 players like Carlos Beltran and Pedro Martinez and only increase payroll by 800k does say a lot. Then the very next season to add guys like Delgado and Wagner and DECREASE the payroll says even more.

Smar, in my honest opinion (and I'm a Braves fan), has had a very good run as the Mets GM. People overvalue him because he followed the catastrophe that was Steve Phillips and some underrate him because he's done it at the helm of a big-market team. On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give him a 8. Turning Cameron into Perez (via Nady) and Benson into El Duque (via Julio) is amazing, but the rest of his transactions aren't all that impressive.

Smar = Omar

Diaz I purposely left out because I'm not convinced it will have any ramifications on any team.

Castillo should be included...but I'm kind of neutral on it.

You can't blame Mientkiewicz for 2005. He played as expected, which makes the signing, not the player, the problem.

You can say the Mets weren't a playoff team in 2005, but they were right there if they had a real 1B. That was Omar's decision. And once in the playoffs, anything can happen.

If Omar has been a good GM for over a year, show me the time period based on his trade record.

I'd say that most of his bad trades were as the GM of the Expos. What I've noticed with him is that he'll make a trade for the hell of making a trade. Take a look at that Heath Bell deal. We traded two perfecly good relievers for another reliever and a 4th or 5th OFer. We didn't need Ben Johnson since we had Endy Chavez and Lastings Milledge, and we didn't need Jon Adkins because we had a whole slew of relievers, yet something prompted Omar to make a trade. I admit that I am always critical of his trades initially, but take a look at our rotation. 3 out of our 4 good starting pitchers are from low-key trades Omar has made. If that's not impressive, I don't know what is...

being a good gm is not all about trades. It's about trades, managing money, bringing in the right free agents and creating a team that not only looks good on paper, but can perform on the field.

Omar took a team comming off 2 last place finishes and a second to last(Expos). The team had bad chemestry and even worse contracts. In his first season, nobody expected him to make a run at the playoffs. If you feel that if he had a 1bman then it would have got him over the hump, then that is to his credit. The 04 Mets were awful. The reason that 1bman wouldn't sign with the Mets is because he wanted to play for a playoff team, something he and everyone else but you didn't think the Mets were in 05. 3rd place is fine for a team in thier transition year.

So far this year and last year they have had the best record in the league. I don't know what else you need to see. Bottom line is he took a last place team and after one transitional year, they have been the class of the national league for the last 2 years. You want to kill the guy because Brian Bannister has had a decent season pitching for a bad team? that's fine cause the true sign of a good GM is putting a winning team on the field year after year. For the last 2 years, no other NL GM can say they have had a better team.

"You can say the Mets weren't a playoff team in 2005, but they were right there if they had a real 1B. That was Omar's decision."

The guy they sent to talk to Delgado really ticked him off which was why he didn't want to sign with them. If Beltran had been at least average, they might have gotten closer.

The only reason the Mets can say they've been great the past two years isn't because of Minaya, it's because of Reyes and Wright. Minaya didn't sign, draft, or develop them.

I'm tired of hearing this Beltran crap. Mets fans are always saying "well Beltran had a bad year" and always blame him for their struggles this year. He's been the model of inconsistency, yet you expect last year's numbers every year.

Minaya is a decent GM, but certainly not great.

"The guy they sent to talk to Delgado really ticked him off which was why he didn't want to sign with them."

Did Omar decide to send the person who ticked of Delgado?

Heath Bell compared to Oliver Perez, Maine and El Duque.....wow!!!

This site is officially worthless.

ALso, let's ignore the fact that Omar has built a top bullpen TWICE made of guys nobody else wanted....and you're worried aobut losing Heath Bell?

Bell sucks. Give him time.

ALso, let's ignore the fact that Omar has built a top bullpen TWICE made of guys nobody else wanted....and you're worried aobut losing Heath Bell?

It's called risk vs reward wihch is probably too complicated for you guys to understand.

Omar can build a bullpen from nothing. To give up a low upside guy like Bell is meaningless in the context of all his moves.

Being a MLB GM is chess, not checkers. If you can't get the big picture, just dont comment on it.

I take that back.....this isn't worthless. You just have to stick to the news and ignore the editorials.

Tim analysis is like absolving a portfolio manager for buying google during it's IPO but failing to capture 2% on some shitty sneaker company. It's annoying when pinheads fail to see the big picture.

great article.

http://globalnym.blogspot.com

"Did Omar decide to send the person who ticked of Delgado?"

I'm not sure. The guy was trying to appeal to Delgado's ethnicity which ticked him off. The guy apologized when Delgado was traded to here. Omar did get Delgado and he's not even paying his whole contract.

Also, this whole analysis excludes FA signings. You have the stinkers like Mota and Schoeneweis. But there's Pedro, Wagner, and Beltran. Then the re-signings like Glavine, El Duque, and Valentin (who played well until his injuries).

Just two things:

1. He made some impressive deals last year, and the starters he's acquired are pretty much the only reason the Mets are in it this year. Major, major props for finding cheap, good starting pitching while everyone else is out there complaining about how expensive it is.

2. It's easy to look better than you are when the guy you're replacing is Steve Phillips. Almost all of the past failure of this team rests on Phillips' shoulders. This team has the payroll and support to be the favorites in the division each year, so I'm not 100% impressed when that's all they accomplish.

"More bad decisions are the reason the gap between the Mets and other NL East teams isn't huge right now."

Yeah, or the fact that Beltran, Delgado, Green, Alou, Lo Duca, Valentin, Pedro, have all either been, hurt, ineffective, or a combination of the 2. I cant blame Omar for these guys not performing. Your telling me if Delgado and Beltran were even having like 85 percent of the seasons they had last year and Alou had played like 75 games the Mets wouldnt be blowing the doors off the NL east? I agree they should be further ahead, but I cant blame Omar, the guys just havent produced. They look like theyre finally startig to roll now though.

The bottom line is the Mets were a mess when Omar got here, like the Orioles are now, but with no Erik Bedard or Jeremy Guthrie, or the Giants with no Cain or Lincecum. Now they are arguably the best team in the league 2 years later. I guess time will tell with Omar, but for now I couldnt be more pleased. Getting El Duque, Maine, and Perez for Kris Benson and Xavier Nady far over shadows the bad moves he has made, aka Heath Bell. Thats how I feel anyway. And I am still calling B.S. on the Gomez to San Fran thing.

"Smar, in my honest opinion (and I'm a Braves fan), has had a very good run as the Mets GM. People overvalue him because he followed the catastrophe that was Steve Phillips and some underrate him because he's done it at the helm of a big-market team. On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give him a 8. Turning Cameron into Perez (via Nady) and Benson into El Duque (via Julio) is amazing, but the rest of his transactions aren't all that impressive."

Thats fair. Also though, when Omar wants somebody, he does everthing he possibly can to get it done. I remember reading about how he recruited PEdro in the Dom Rep. in Pedros living room. I still dont think that Beltran was coming if Pedro didnt. He was a superstar, which gave then credibility, even if the contract had to be an extra year which might cost them later. That was the first step in turning around that team. I dont think a lot of guys could have made the mets this good this fast starting with the mess that Duquette left him.

"The only reason the Mets can say they've been great the past two years isn't because of Minaya, it's because of Reyes and Wright. Minaya didn't sign, draft, or develop them. "

I am pretty sure Omar was an assitant GM with the MEts at the time and had a part in getting Jose Reyes. I may be wrong but I am almost sure he was here when Reyes was signed.

The same guy who signed Reyes, signed Gomez and Martinez so that guy along with Omar know how to scout players.

My only complaint about Minaya is also what I feel is his greatest strength at times: he knows what he wants and gets it. He doesn't go inbetween. If he wants the best position player available, he goes all in. If he likes a particular player, he's comes a knockin at the first sign he's available.

The reason this can be a weakness is two-fold. In the case of a guy like Moises Alou, he simply isn't what he was when Minaya became infatuated with him.

In the case of a guy like Carlos Delgado or Pedro Martinez, Minaya has a tendancy to tip his hand. Everyone knew he was in love with Delgado, and he's lucky he got him as cheaply as he did. And everyone (everyone being Theo Epstein) also knew Pedro's arm was going to fall off, and Minaya was the guy willing to give him four years. That worked out in terms of drawing other big names, but Pedro has only been Pedro for about a third of his Mets tenure so far.

He is savvy though, and he picks up on things a lot of other GMs might not. He works very well with his scouts, and sees things in guys like John Maine and Oliver Perez that no one else does. At the time, the deals that brought those two over looked like slight losses. Now they're massive wins, probably his two most brilliant career moves. Sure some of it can be attributed to Rick Peterson, but isn't that also Omar playing to his organization's strengths?

I don't know why people think Nady for Roberto Hernandez and Oliver Perez was such a great trade. Omar panicked and traded his starting right fielder and #7 hitter for a washed up 41 yr old relief pitcher after Sanchez's auto accident. Yes, he lucked out to a certain extent as Perez is a serviceable, but inconsistent starting pitcher, but let's be honest. Perez is, at best a #4 or #5 type starter. In case you haven't noticed, Nady's loss CRIPPLED the Mets batting order for the rest of 2006. Floyd was pitched around and the warts on Endy Chavez began to show when he began to play every day. When Valentin went into the tank in September and October, the Mets bottom of the order was a big zero in October and THAT is the reason we couldn't beat the Cardinals. Getting a washed up Shawn Green didn't make up for the loss of Nady. While no superstar, Nady was an 18-20 HR, 75-80 RBI guy batting SEVENTH in our line-up. The Mets have never recovered from that trade as the putrid offense (led by Shawn Green's 32 RBIs)in 2007 is a carryover from October 2006. Omar also continues his purge of white players as was seen in the fire sale of Bannister, Bell, Ring, Ownes and Lindstrom for the likes of Burgos and Vargas last winter. After he trades for or signs a Latino catcher this winter, David Wright will be the only white starter on the team and yet, Omar is somehow given credit for being a "visionary" and a creator of a "melting pot" team when instead his overly biased acquisitions should receive scrutiny. I have zero problems with Latino players. I loved Rafael Santana and Edgardo Alfonzo and others, but when the team is more than 60% Latino, this is not a melting pot - it is a problem in the clubhouse. If Omar signed the entire 25 man Dominican national team and put them in Mets uniforms, would we have a good team? Of course we would, but so would a 25 man team of the best white or black players in baseball. The team needs better balance in terms of make-up.

Please correct me if I'm wrong...I might be...but didn't Omar also send Scott Kazmir to the Rays for Victor Zambrano in a mid-season deal when the Mets weren't really in contention anyway? How are you not KILLING him for this?

Great site by the way...thanks and keep it up. Go Cubs!

You know what...I WAS wrong...my appologies. I guess Victor Zambrano is the reason Dan Duquette is gone.

Sorry again...next time I'll research first.