… the more they stay the same. That’s the saying, right?

If you saw this printed somewhere today, I bet following snippet would not be surprising:

This ship has been off course for three seasons, not because of a lack of resources, but because of a lack of judgment. The Mets began the year with a payroll … which is second only to the Yankees’ … They have nothing to show for it but a clubhouse of aging stars with big names, big contracts and big injuries.

(the GM) sold Wilpon on the notion that you had to win with big names in New York, that the fans weren’t patient enough to wait for rebuilding, that you had to do it now. Forget the farm system.

But Wilpon apparently came to the conclusion that the Mets’ salvation was not exclusively found in high-priced stars. Yesterday, he made an intriguing observation. He said he knows now that a hefty payroll does not ensure success. ”We’ve learned that painfully.”

More than once yesterday he said, ”We’re going to get younger and more athletic.”

But you might be mildly surprised to find out that the above was published on June 13, 2003 in The New York Times.

If you don’t remember, these were the words printed when GM Steve Phillips was fired. Jim Duquette replaced him on an interim, and then “permanent” basis, and within a year Scott Kazmir was traded for Victor Zambrano and Ty Wigginton for Kris Benson so that the Mets could “play meaningful games in September”. Not long after that meaningless September, Omar Minaya was hired to right the ship.

Speaking of, does this sound familiar? (from the September 29, 2004 edition of The New York Times):

It is difficult to determine the impact of any Mets general manager because the team’s power structure so often appears split. Although major league executives generally believe the best way to run a team is to let the general manager make the most important decisions and then receive clearance from ownership, the Mets rely on committees to hash out strategy, usually soliciting a wide range of opinions.

Jeff Wilpon directs the day-to-day operation of the club, the superscouts Al Goldis and Bill Livesey have input, and veteran players and coaches sometimes offer opinions, too. Minaya knows from experience what he is getting into. Having emigrated with his family from the Dominican Republic to Queens as a child, he became an assistant general manager for the Mets in 1997 and became a senior assistant general manager one year later.

I.e.: the “collegial organization” that Steve Phillips referred to recently.

Minaya hired manager Willie Randolph in part because of Randolph’s excellent reputation for working with youngsters such as Alfonso Soriano. You see, the Mets were going to build a pennant contender through their farm system and around their youth — David Wright and Jose Reyes. That idea went out the window a year later, when Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran were signed to obnoxious contracts.

Today, Joel Sherman touched on this subject as well — and interestingly, holds “conspiracy theories” similar to the ones we’ve been drumming up here for a while:

In the past week, Minaya proclaimed the Mets “buyers” in the trade market at a moment when they were six games under .500, fourth in the NL East, and tied for eighth in the wild card, 7 ½ back. Good tickets still available at Citi Field in case you are interested.

and …

The Wilpons’ 1-2 strategy was to make sure the criticism was deflected away from them — because ownership can talk accountability, but it really is not great at accepting it — while beginning the process of convincing fans that the following season would be different. Translation: What do we have to do to begin motivating you to start buying tickets again? So Art Howe was fired as manager and Jim Duquette was demoted from general manager to go sit in the corner. A good leaking campaign ensued blaming that duo for everything short of the Hindenburg going down. You were supposed to be distracted from remembering that the Wilpons hired the people who messed up.

Sherman goes on to predict that the Mets will “…try to recruit a big-name general manager with the idea of convincing fans that different leadership would know properly how to surround a talented base of Santana, K-Rod, Beltran, David Wright and Jose Reyes with better supplementary players” and, failing at that, hire Tony LaRussa as manager, who “… would bring along his trusted pitching coach Dave Duncan, with the idea being that they always seem to get the most out of whatever talent is put in front of them”.

It’s not that far-fetched a theory, and it fits the pattern that the Wilpons have been following for over a decade. The names may change, but the story remains the same.

Back on October 21st, we threw out the idea of the Mets trading Luis Castillo to the Dodgers for Andruw Jones. Exactly ten days later, Joel Sherman dreamed up the same deal (hmm …. is it possible he reads MetsToday?). On Monday afternoon, Buster Olney reported that the Mets were indeed talking to the Dodgers about Andruw Jones — however, those talks did NOT necessarily include Luis Castillo. Naturally, there is already at least one source poo-poohing Olney’s scoop. Seems everyone wants to be either the first to report a rumor, or the first to squash it.

So let’s pull back for a moment, and look at this rationally. First, the Dodgers have absolutely no interest in Castillo. A month ago, when the left side of their infield was empty due to free agency, they might have, but in the last few weeks they signed both Casey Blake and Mark Loretta (as well as Rafael Furcal). Blake almost certainly will start at 3B, pushing youngster Blake DeWitt to 2B. Loretta is the ideal backup for all infield positions and insurance if DeWitt suffers a sophomore jinx. In other words, Castillo doesn’t fit. So if Jones comes to the Mets, it’s a near guarantee that Castillo will not be wearing Dodger blue.

But that doesn’t mean Jones to the Mets is dead — the Dodgers are still desperate to shed his contract, and are operating as if he was not on the roster. Otherwise, why would they be kicking the tires on Adam Dunn, Bobby Abreu, and, of course, Manny Ramirez? Clearly they’ve given up on the idea that Jones can succeed in LA, and — come hell or high water — he’ll be gone before spring training. There aren’t too many other teams in MLB who have the money to take a gamble on the $15M left on Jones’ contract … heck, few teams can handle taking on HALF of it. The Mets have the resources to do it, though, and might be willing to do so if it costs them next to nothing in return — and if the Dodgers are willing to throw in a young pitcher such as 24-year-old LOOGY Greg Miller.

But then what about Castillo? Is there some way that he can be jettisoned while Jones jets his way into Flushing? Perhaps, but only if a third team is involved. Is this getting too complicated? Too unbelievable? Maybe, but it’s happened before. One need only look to the immovable contract of Mike Hampton back in the winter of 2002. If you remember, the Rockies were on the hook for around $70M over 6 years at the time, and Hampton was coming off a miserable 7-15 season with a 6.15 ERA. However, they managed to move his hefty contract — eating a nice portion of it — by involving both the Marlins and the Braves, as well as seven players. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Can Omar Minaya pull off a similar heist? Time will tell, but one thing’s for certain — Orlando Hudson is waiting very patiently, quietly, and idly, hoping something breaks with one of the two New York teams. He won’t wait forever, but it’s kinda strange that not a peep has come from his camp this winter. Methinks that Minaya has made a contingency offer to the O-dog, perhaps with an expiration date.

Personally, I like the idea of rolling the dice on Jones. When he’s right, he’s a rare talent, with the ability to put a team on his shoulders and carry it. If he wants to play in MLB beyond 2009, he will have to put up decent numbers, so one would think he’ll be motivated to, at minimum, arrive to spring training in shape, ready to rock and roll. My inside source confirmed that Jones’ major issue at the plate had to do with his leg injuries — it’s hard to hit when you don’t have solid legs beneath you — and that his condition was exasperated by being overweight and out of shape. The same source also told me that, in-season, Jones worked his fanny off — there was only one player who put more time in after hours, and that was Manny Ramirez. I’m betting that no matter where Jones winds up, he’ll have a better year than most corner outfielders.

Whether that year will occur in Queens is anybody’s guess. In the meantime, keep your hands away from the hot stove — the fire is still stoked and going strong.

In his most recent column, Joel Sherman is reporting on several rumors. We’ll go over them one by one.

Jenks / Dye / F-Mart
Sherman claims there is nothing to the rumor that the Mets will trade Fernando Martinez to the White Sox as part of a package for Bobby Jenks and Jermaine Dye:

“Talked to a few Met officials who called it nonsense. The Mets have made Martinez all but untouchable.”

J.J. Putz
However, Sherman does report that the Mariners are making J.J. Putz available:

What falls under the category of real, the Post has learned, is that the Mariners have made J.J. Putz available.

Gee, thanks for scoop! However the rest of the planet above that rock the Post has been under, heard this about a month ago.

Sherman goes on to state:

“The Mets like Putz as much – or possibly more – than any of the available free-agent closers.”

Not sure why they’re so high on Putz, though I like him better than Fuentes. Do they know he’ll be 32 years old in February? That his walk rate increased dramatically in 2008? (From 13 in 72 IP in 2007 to 28 BB in 46 IP in ’08.) Do they know he had a balky elbow last season, one that put him on the DL for a month? I’m not sure I’d be so quick to trade young healthy prospects for this guy.

and

“I do keep hearing from both inside and outside the Met organization that they really are dead set against giving either Rodriguez or Fuentes more than three guaranteed years. They certainly are not going to give more than three years unless an agent for Fuentes or K-Rod can show an offer from somewhere else for more than three years. It is hard to unearth a team that is ready to go to four years for one of them. The Mets are scared about Kerry Wood’s injury history, but if he were willing to do a two-year contract and come to New York he would become as appealing to the Mets as either K-Rod or Fuentes.”

Have to agree with Sherman here — it makes no sense for the Mets to go more than three years for either K-Rod or Fuentes, when it’s unlikely anyone else is willing to give them a longer deal. I bet Kerry Wood is willing to take a two-year deal — the only issue is whether he wants to pitch in New York. Why give three years plus your #1 pick for the other guys when you can get someone nearly as good for two years and no pick? Of course, an MRI of his shoulder is a prerequisite, but Rodriguez and Fuentes do not come without risk — either may be on the brink of a breakdown, for all we know.

Chad Bradford
Sherman says the Rays offered ChadBrad to the Mets, but there was no interest:

“The Rays offered Chad Bradford to the Mets because $3.5 million is too much in Tampa’s world for a set-up man, and Ray officials were shocked when the Mets told them it is too much for them, as well.”

If this is true, I’m equally shocked — beyond belief. After seeing Bradford pitch better for one season than any other 6th-7th inning guy in Mets history, and seeing him continue to be effective after leaving New York, and knowing that his underhanded style allows him to pitch, literally, every day, and seeing how cheap he is relative to other middle relievers, there simply is no logical explanation for the Mets to balk at such an offer. Now, if the Rays were asking for Daniel Murphy, I understand. But if it was a salary dump, and the Rays were looking to open a conversation, this makes no sense.

The only reasoning that makes sense — again, if the rumor is true — is that by bringing back ChadBrad, the Mets think it will make them look like the bungling idiots for allowing him to walk away in the first place. Because if you remember, they thought Bradford wasn’t worth a 3-year deal (but somehow, Scott Schoeneweis was).

C’mon now …. swallow your pride, admit your mistake, and trade a bag of balls for Chad Bradford. He can pitch in ANY relief situation (including closer, if necessary), he’s cheap, he has one year left, and he’s better than anyone currently listed as a reliever on the 40-man roster.

Joel Sherman’s latest claim is that the Mets offered Aaron Heilman to the Rockies in return for Huston Street, and then refused to make the deal when Colorado insisted on the addition of Pedro Feliciano.

This is so laughable on so many levels I don’t know where to start.

First of all, if the Mets thought another team would think so highly of Aaron Heilman, why didn’t they offer him straight up for Matt Holliday? After all, that’s basically what they were telling the Rockies — since Street was the centerpiece of the Holliday deal with the Athletics. If I was Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd, and Omar Minaya proposed Heilman for Street right after I obtained Street for my franchise player, I’d not only tell Omar to stick it, I’d never take another call from him. Yes, I understand that other players were sent to the Rockies, but Street is the guy who has the most value at this moment.

Even sillier is the idea that the Mets would balk at adding Feliciano to such an unrealistic deal. Are you kidding me? Last I checked, there were about a dozen LOOGYs available on the free-agent market, for cheap, who can do what Pedro Lite does.

While it’s true that Huston Street’s stock has plummeted somewhat, he’s still a 24-year-old with almost 100 big-league saves. No one gives away that type of asset for two middle relievers entering their 30s and coming off their worst seasons. Remember what the Mets received in return for the Turk Wendell / Dennis Cook package? Exactly.

Now, if the Mets offered Heilman plus Jon Niese plus another youngster, I might believe it. Or if they offered Heilman and Ryan Church, I’d consider it realistic.

Personally, you know I think Heilman is much better than what he showed in 2008. But his current street value is nowhere near what Sherman is suggesting.