I apologize for the lack of updates here lately but, frankly, the Mets have provided very little inspiration to write anything. I guess I would rather write nothing than the depressing thoughts that seep into my head every time I turn on a Mets game.

But over the last few days, I’ve found new found fire. There’s been a sensational amount of criticism over the last week of the Mets organization. Everyone from the Wilpons to the training staff has come under journalist’s and blogger’s critical lens. Any time a professional sports team comes into a season with the second highest payroll in the league and struggles to stay close to .500 deserves criticism. However, what the Mets have had to deal with this season is different. So if fans want to say that they are disappointed with all of the injuries then that’s fine. But some of the critics out there are talking straight out of their asses.

I have read way too many articles lately about how Omar Minaya has done such a terrible job putting together a team for this year and how the ’09 Mets are financially the biggest bust in Major League history. I understand a lot of people want to avoid using the “injury excuse,” but that is exactly why this season has gone so awry; and there’s no other reason why the Mets have played so poorly. No team in baseball would be able to overcome the amount of injuries the Mets have had this season. They have lost three irreplaceable hitters in their lineup, multiple bench players, two starters, two replacement starters, and their setup man.

A lot of these critics are saying that the Mets had a lot of problems coming into this season. While it probably won’t win me any popularity points, I’m going to defend Omar Minaya’s moves last off season. I’m not the biggest Minaya fan but I think he has come under unfair scrutiny this season. Below are some of the criticisms I have read/heard over the last few weeks and my attempt to show their irrelvance in the realm of logic and history:

1) “The Mets should have gotten a #2 starter to back up Santana during last off season.”

Fans saying this seem to have forgotten all about Mike Pelfrey’s great season last year. The Mets were grooming him to take over as a top of the staff starter, and after 2008 it looked like he would develop into a great starter. Last season Pelfrey threw 200 innings and sported a 3.72 ERA with a 110 strikeouts to64  walks. At 24, that was his first full season as a Major League pitcher; how could you argue against the fact that he was clearly on his way to developing into a solid #2 starter, if not a future ace?! Pelfrey has taken a substantial step back this season but he has yet to reach the prime of his career and absolutely has a shot of regaining that fine 2008 form. Hence, to criticize Omar Minaya for not signing a #2 starter during the offseason is ludicrous.  I doubt those same fans thought Pelfrey would struggle so much this year.

2) “We spent too much money on Oliver Perez and Frankie Rodriguez.”

First I’m going to address the K-Rod signing. Number one: we got him for a bargain of what he was originally seeking. Number two: he was by far the best option to fill in the closer role for the Mets, which was the biggest blemish in the entire organization (or perhaps second to Carlos Beltran’s massive mole). Number three: he was by far the best option in the FA pool and the Mets had no one to rely on within their farm system to take on the closer role. Number four: K-Rod’s not even having a bad season; his numbers are down from his career averages but he’s still putting up very good numbers for an MLB closer (3.35 ERA, 25/30 in save opps, 53 K’s in 51 IP).

The Ollie situation is a little bit tougher to defend. Randy Wolf and Derek Lowe were available and both would have made quality second/third SP’s. Here’s why I liked Minaya’s decision to sign Perez: he’s entering the prime of his career, while Lowe has two or three quality years left and Wolf is no spring chicken at 32 years old. Wolf has had a good career and it’s almost a certain that he’ll give you a very mediocre year. Over his 11 year career, he sports a middle of the line 4.18 ERA and has made 30 starts in only four seasons. He’s solid but not the type of pitcher that puts a team over the top.

Lowe has had a strong career but was a tough sign because of the multi-year, $15 million contract that he was asking for. Ollie, on the other hand, is still only 27 and while he’s been as inconsistent as a pitcher can be, has shown brilliance especially in clutch situations. In 2007, his first year with the Mets, Perez pitched his way to 15 wins with a 3.56 ERA and was instrumental in the Mets’ deep playoff run. Last season, he was one of the top performing pitchers after the all star break. Plus, the contract we signed Ollie to was – like K-Rod – substantially less than he was originally asking for (it’s also two million less than what Lowe signed for). In hindsight, Wolf would have been the best pitcher to sign but at the time I liked the risk/reward in signing Ollie.

3) “The Mets have struggled so much this year because Omar Minaya has depleted the farm system.”

First of all, no team has a farm system that can replace Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran, and Jose Reyes at once. Second, Minaya never had a farm system to deplete. The only trade he has made that anyone could argue “depleted” the farm system was when he traded for Johan Santana. We gave away Carlos Gomez, Phil Humber, Kevin Mulvey, and Deolis Guerra. Gomez was the prize in the deal but he has been largely a bust with the Twins. The other three have yet to make any sort of impact on the Twins organization. The only thing Minaya has failed to do with the farm system is acquire and develop better young talent.

(Side Note: The lack of farm talent is also not entirely Omar’s fault, the Wilpons apparently adhere to a crazy “guideline” in the draft where the commissioner’s office suggests teams not pick players who ask for too much money in the specific slot they are slated to be picked in the draft; i.e. if a player who is supposed to be selected 12th is asking for more money than the player selected 10th, the commish “suggests” that the player be passed over by the team with the 12th pick. I do not entirely understand this scenario and couldn’t find any information about it, so I didn’t want to use it in my argument. If anyone can clarify what exactly goes on with this, please post a comment.)

4) “The injuries exposed the poor supporting cast that the Mets had anyway.”

Seriously? A poor supporting cast? Are there any Mets fans who didn’t have a complete crush on Daniel Murphy last season? He obviously was not meant to play the outfield or hit 4th in the lineup, but I still think he makes a very good 2nd or 6th hitter in a healthy Mets lineup. Ryan Church also played great until he suffered his two concussions last season (perhaps an overlooked foreshadowing of the Mets poor training staff). Then you have Ramon Castro and Brian Schneider catching which isn’t exciting but they have shown that they can get the job done. Luis Castillo was a bit of a question mark at second but he’s shown that he can still play. You have those starters with gritty veterans Alex Cora and Gary Sheffield coming off the bench with talented players like Angel Pagan, Nick Evans, and F-Mart waiting in the wings. You can’t tell me at the beginning of the season that you weren’t excited to see what this lineup would do.

In conclusion, there’s no way anyone could have predicted that the 2009 season could go so awry for the Mets. I don’t completely disagee with the fact that Omar Minaya should be fired but this season should not be weighted as heavily in that decision (other than the Adam Rubin tirade) as his failure to make the right moves during the seasons when the Mets were competing.

There’s my rant, now I’m going on vacation for a week. See you at the end of August.