Joey's Soapbox: I'm Okay With Sandy Standing Pat

Hello, everyone!  This is Joey Beartran.  Today's trade deadline combined with my Studious Metsimus colleague having a fever has allowed me to get on my soapbox for the first time since Scott Atchison was still a Met.  Needless to say, I've had a lot of things on my mind since my last soapbox rant, but today is not about ranting.  In fact, it's about giving praise to Sandy Alderson.

You see, while teams like the Tigers have been trying to employ every Cy Young Award winner on the planet and the Red Sox have been involved in two blockbuster trades involving all their John/Jons (Beantown says goodbye to Jon Lester, Jonny Gomes and John Lackey, while Yoenis Cespedes, Joe Kelly and Allen Craig are all shipping up to Boston), the Mets decided they're better off not forcing any deals.  And that's just fine with me.

Ten years ago yesterday, then-general manager Jim Duquette pulled the trigger on two ill-advised deals, sending Ty Wigginton and Jose Bautista (yes, THAT Jose Bautista) to the Pirates for Jeff Keppinger, Kris Benson and Anna Benson.  Duquette also sent Jose Diaz and former No. 1 draft pick Scott Kazmir to Tampa Bay for Victor Zambrano and Bartolome Fortunato.

Keppinger played just 33 games as a Met before being traded to Kansas City, while the Bensons combined for 14 wins, a 4.23 ERA, a sexy Santa and a whole lot of controversy.  Meanwhile, Wigginton and Bautista have combined to produce 371 homers and 1,098 RBI since removing their "Property of the New York Mets" T-shirts.

Although the loss of Jose Diaz didn't hurt the Mets much, the loss of Scott Kazmir did.  Kazmir has been wobbly at various points of his career, but he has still reached double digits in wins in seven seasons and is currently having the best year of his career, going 12-3 with a 2.37 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in his first year with the Oakland Athletics.  He also earned his third All-Star selection in 2014.  What legacy did Zambrano and Fortunato leave behind?  Well, Zambrano failed to be "fixed in ten minutes" by pitching coach Rick Peterson and posted ten wins and a 4.42 ERA in three mostly uneventful seasons with the Mets.  Meanwhile, Fortunato had a 7.06 ERA in 17 relief appearances, which is the sixth-highest ERA for a Mets pitcher with that many appearances.

Duquette made these deals while the Mets were four games under .500, seven games out of first place in the NL East and seven-and-a-half games out of the wild card spot.  If those numbers look familiar, that's because this year's Mets are four games under .500, seven-and-a-half games out of first place in the division and six games out of the second wild card spot.

The 2004 Mets went 22-38 after their two trade deadline deals, finishing 25 games out of first and costing Jim Duquette his job.  Ten years later, Sandy Alderson has decided to stand pat and continue with his plan, a plan that includes players like Lucas Duda, Jon Niese, Jacob deGrom, et al.  Alderson has also finally handed over the keys to the bullpen to younger players like Jeurys Familia and Jenrry Mejia, a move that has the Mets steering in the right direction.

It is obvious that there are still some positions that could be improved, but there is no need to force anything now.  Deals for a shortstop can be made in the winter, as can an upgrade to the outfield.  After all, anything will be better than the Chris Young Experiment.

The Mets have players to trade.  They just don't need to trade them now.  They most certainly don't need a repeat of the 2004 trade deadline fiasco.  At least the Mets had the funds then to buy their way out of that hole.  They don't have those funds now.  So it is wiser to be prudent now, especially with Matt Harvey coming back next season to bolster an already strong starting rotation.

I probably would have had more to rant about on my soapbox had Alderson pulled the trigger on a deal today.  But he did not.  And I think the Mets are better off because of it.  The future is bright at Citi Field.  It did not to get cloudy with an unnecessary trade.  Bravo to Sandy Alderson for standing pat at this year's trade deadline.

A Rock N' Roll Pitching Matchup In Cleveland

In 2004, general manager Jim Duquette thought the Mets were a playoff contender, as the team was just three games out of first place on July 22.  But one week later, the Mets were seven games off the pace and falling fast.  Not wanting to give up on the season, Duquette traded away the team's top pitching prospect, Scott Kazmir, to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for pitcher Victor Zambrano.

The Mets finished the year with a 71-91 record, a full 25 games behind the division-winning Atlanta Braves.  Kazmir went on to become a two-time All-Star (2006, 2008), strikeout champion (2005) and helped lead the Rays to an unexpected American League pennant in 2008.  Duquette was replaced by Omar Minaya by the end of the 2004 campaign.

Fast forward seven years later.  The San Francisco Giants were the defending World Series champions and had a 4½-game lead in the NL West on July 20.  A week later, the lead was down to three games.  At the time, Pablo Sandoval was the only player on the team with more than nine homers.  The Giants were also last in the league in runs scored.  They needed an offensive upgrade, and they needed it fast, especially with the high-scoring Arizona Diamondbacks closing ground.  They thought they had that upgrade when general manager Brian Sabean acquired Carlos Beltran from the Mets on July 27.  To complete the trade, Sabean sent the Giants' top pitching prospect, Zack Wheeler, to New York.

Beltran performed well for the Giants, batting .323 with 20 extra-base hits in just 44 games, but his teammates did not.  San Francisco went 25-32 over the final two months of the season to finish eight games behind the Diamondbacks.

Both Jim Duquette and Brian Sabean parted ways with their best young hurlers, each of whom were former first-round draft picks, to acquire players they thought would help them in the short term.  Neither move worked.  But they did work for the teams who dealt for the minor leaguers.

Although Kazmir's wildness cost him a job in Tampa in 2009, he finally made it back to the majors this year with the Cleveland Indians.  Kazmir is 7-7 with his new team and is posting the lowest walk ratio (3.0 BB/9 IP) of his career.  He is also playing for a team that has remained in contention for a postseason berth all season.  Meanwhile, Wheeler is off to a fast start with the Mets, going 7-3 with a 3.36 ERA in his first 14 starts.  Wheeler has been particularly effective over his last five starts, striking out 31 batters and walking only six.  The Mets have won four of those five games.

On Friday night, the Mets will be traveling to Cleveland to take on the Indians in their final interleague series of the season.  Barring injury or bad weather, the pitching matchup for the series opener will be Scott Kazmir vs. Zack Wheeler.  Yeah.

Kazmir will be making his first start against the team that traded him before giving him a chance in the majors.  Wheeler will be taking his unblemished 5-0 road record (and 2.19 ERA) to Cleveland to face the Mets' former hotshot prospect.

Scott Kazmir was once traded away by the Mets to acquire a player who was supposed to help the team make a playoff run.  That move failed for the Mets.  Seven years later, the Mets fleeced the Giants by sending them a player who was supposed to help them defend their World Series title.  That moved failed for the Giants.

Friday night, both storylines will collide in Cleveland, when the phenom the Mets traded away in 2004 faces the phenom the Mets traded for in 2011.  Huey Lewis used to remind us in song form that "the heart of rock n' roll is in Cleveland".  Well, from what I see for Friday's pitching matchup, I believe him.

Scott Kazmir vs. Zack Wheeler.  It will truly be a rock n' roll pitching matchup Friday night at Progressive Field in Cleveland.

The Mets That Got Away: Ty Wigginton

Suppose you're an everyday player in the big leagues.  You're young.  You play hard.  You play multiple positions on the field.  Basically, you do whatever it takes to help your team win.  Then you get traded away because the team feels that a younger player would be even better for them than you are.  I think it's safe to assume that you'd be pretty miffed about that.  You'd also want to show your former team just how much you could have contributed to their success by doing well against them every time you faced them.

Stories like that occur every so often in the big leagues.  It happened to one particular player on the Mets in 2004.

This player was never viewed as a top prospect when the Mets drafted him in 1998, but he worked his way through the Mets' minor league system and forced his way into the starting lineup.  He played at five different defensive positions when he was first called up and showed the same determination to succeed on the field that he exhibited throughout his four-year rise through the minors.

But the Mets had a top prospect who was also climbing the ladder to the major leagues.  And once he got there, no one was going to stand in his way - not even a scrappy, versatile player who had proven that he belonged in the major leagues.  The writing was on the wall for Ty Wigginton, and he has repeatedly done his best to make the Mets pay for their decision to trade him.

Even as a 20-year-old, Ty Wigginton looked like he was going to run you over at the plate.

Ty Allen Wigginton was selected by the Mets in the 17th round of the 1998 June amateur draft.  Wigginton wasn't particularly impressive in his first professional season, batting .239 with eight homers and 29 RBIs in 70 games with the Pittsfield Mets.  But after getting the bugs out of his system, Wigginton blossomed.

With St. Lucie in 1999, Wigginton batted .292, leading the team in home runs (21) and RBIs (73).  Wigginton continued to excel in 2000, leading the Binghamton Mets to a division title.  The infielder finished first on his team in hits (129), doubles (27), home runs (20) and RBIs (77), while maintaining a solid .285 batting average.

Injuries provided a minor setback to Wigginton's advancement in 2001, as he managed only seven homers and 25 RBIs in 89 games.  But at Norfolk in 2002, Wigginton flew out of the gate, batting .374 through mid-May as a member of the Tides.  It was only a matter of time before the Mets would need his services at the big league level, and when infielder John Valentin was placed on the disabled list with a torn rotator cuff, the call for Wigginton finally came.

Although Wigginton only stayed in the majors for the two weeks Valentin was out, he got a chance to experience big league action for the first time.  Used mostly as a pinch-hitter and in double switches, Wigginton only got into six games during his initial time with the parent club, scoring one run and collecting one hit in four at-bats.  By the end of May, Wigginton was back in Norfolk, where he remained for the next two months.  Once he got back to the majors in early August, he never looked back.

As the summer progressed, it was becoming clear that the Mets were going nowhere in 2002.  Subpar performances by offseason acquisitions Mo Vaughn, Jeromy Burnitz and Roger Cedeño doomed the Mets by the beginning of August.  Injuries to second baseman Roberto Alomar (another failed addition to the team) and third baseman Edgardo Alfonzo created a gaping hole for the Mets in the infield.  To patch that hole, the Mets recalled Ty Wigginton from Norfolk and inserted their versatile neophyte into the starting lineup on August 4 against the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Wigginton's first major league start would become one of the best by a rookie in team history.

Wigginton went 4-for-5 in his first Shea Stadium start, providing a game-tying three-run homer in the third inning to erase a 5-2 deficit.  Wigginton also singled twice and hit a double in the 12-7 loss to Arizona.  It was the fourth loss in the Mets' franchise-record 15-game home losing streak.  The Mets failed to win a home game in August 2002, but they also failed to find a reason to take Wigginton out of the starting lineup.

After his auspicious debut as an everyday player, Wigginton continued to tear the cover off the ball.  He batted .500 (11-for-22) with four multi-hit games and five RBIs in his first five starts, then proceeded to have a tremendous month of September.  It was truly a September to remember for Wigginton, as the utility player batted .358 with six doubles, four homers, 11 RBIs and 11 runs scored in only 53 at-bats.  Wigginton accomplished this while playing five different positions, spending time at first base, second base, third base, left field and right field.

By season's end, Wigginton had left his mark on the team.  Although he had just 116 at-bats for the Mets in 2002 (thereby retaining his rookie status for 2003), Wigginton finished the year with a .302 batting average and .526 slugging percentage.  Forty percent of his hits went for extra bases, as Wigginton pounded eight doubles and six homers out of of his 35 total hits.  Wigginton also drove in 18 runs and crossed the plate 18 times, with some of those runs coming at the expense of the opposing catcher.

Wigginton was never shy about bowling over the catcher, doing so on numerous occasions with the Mets.  He got plenty of those opportunities in 2003, as the Mets gave him the starting third baseman's job after fan-favorite Edgardo Alfonzo signed a free agent contract with the San Francisco Giants.  Now guaranteed an everyday job from Day 1 of the new campaign, Wigginton went on to post one of the most unheralded rookie seasons in franchise history.

The Mets' new third baseman played in all but five of the team's 161 games in 2003 (one game was rained out and was not made up), setting numerous rookie records.  No Met rookie had ever played in as many games as Wigginton did in 2003.

In addition to his 156 games, Wigginton also set new club marks for rookies in at-bats (573), hits (146), extra-base hits (53) and doubles (36).  Wiggy scored 73 runs, which was one short of Cleon Jones' rookie record of 74, set in 1966.  His 71 RBIs fell three short of Darryl Strawberry's total of 74, which he accomplished during his Rookie of the Year campaign in 1983.  (Wigginton himself finished eighth in the 2003 National League Rookie of the Year vote, tied with teammate and fellow infielder Jose Reyes.)

But Wigginton wasn't just etching his name atop the Mets' all-time rookie leaders.  He was also becoming a top offensive threat over his non-rookie teammates, leading the 2003 Mets in every cumulative offensive category except home runs and stolen bases.  And he didn't do poorly in either of those categories, as Wigginton was only player on the '03 squad to reach double digits in home runs (11) and stolen bases (12). 

Prior to the 2004 season, the Mets signed Kazuo Matsui to a three-year deal, moving Jose Reyes to second base to accommodate the Japanese shortstop.  Wigginton remained at the hot corner for the Mets, but also started 22 games at second base, filling in at the position while Jose Reyes was on the disabled list.  But things were starting to get crowded for the Mets in the infield once Reyes returned.

Wigginton played all over the infield for the Mets in 2004, starting games at first base, second base and third base.  But veteran corner infielder Todd Zeile was being given an opportunity to start more games at third.  Manager Art Howe was also giving Zeile occasional starts at first base whenever Mike Piazza needed a day off or was catching.  Reyes was back in the starting lineup at second base and was not getting many days off.  And then, there was this kid named David Wright.

Wright was the Mets' top minor league prospect prior to the 2004 season.  The 21-year-old had dominated minor league pitching and was about to be called up to the major leagues.  There was only one problem.  Wright played third base.  So did Ty Wigginton.  Something had to give.  Something finally did.

Nine days after Wright made his major league debut for the Mets, Wigginton was sent packing.  General manager Jim Duquette, in a misguided effort to be a buyer at the July 31 trade deadline despite the team losing ground in the wild card race, jettisoned Wigginton, Jose Bautista and a minor leaguer to Pittsburgh for infielder Jeff Keppinger and former No. 1 overall draft pick Kris Benson.

Keppinger played in only 33 games with the Mets before being traded in 2006.  Since leaving New York, Keppinger has become one of the best contact hitters in baseball, batting .288 and striking out just 166 times in 2,343 at-bats.  Benson won 14 games as a Met and rarely showed the ability that made him the most coveted player in the 1996 June amateur draft.  (His wife, however, was coveted by more than just amateur baseball scouts.)

Meanwhile, Jose Bautista spent a few seasons bouncing around from team to team before finally finding a home in Toronto, where he became a three-time All-Star and two-time American League home run champion.

Ty Wigginton did his own share of bouncing around after leaving the Mets, but unlike Bautista, who waited many years before achieving success, Wigginton made positive contributions to his teams almost immediately.

Wigginton played in 115 games with the Pirates between 2004 and 2005, spending a few months in the minors in 2005.  Once he returned from his temporary minor league exile, Wigginton caught fire.  In 14 late-season starts, Wigginton batted .383 with seven extra-base hits and 13 RBIs.  Two months after his scalding finish, Wigginton was released by the Pirates.

The next stop for Wigginton was in Tampa, playing for the perennial cellar-dwelling Devil Rays.  Wigginton played everywhere for manager Joe Maddon, starting 37 games at first base, 37 games at second base and 32 games at third base.  Despite not having a steady position on the field, Wigginton was as steady as they came at the plate.  Wiggy got off to a tremendous start in 2006, batting .302 with eight homers and 20 RBIs in his first 16 games.  After another wonderful month in July (.317, 5 HR, 11 RBI, .650 slugging percentage in 60 at-bats), Wigginton missed the entire month of August with an injury but returned to hit .300 with six homers and 22 RBIs in the season's final month.

Wigginton had his finest season in the majors in 2006, setting career highs with 24 homers and 79 RBIs.  He continued to thrive in Tampa, collecting 21 doubles, 16 homers and 49 RBIs through the first four months of the 2007 season.  The Devil Rays then traded Wigginton to the Houston Astros on July 28, dealing him for his former Met teammate, Dan Wheeler.  Wigginton continued his strong season in Houston, batting .284 with 18 extra-base hits in 50 games.

In 2008, Wigginton began his first full season in Houston and quickly became a fan-favorite.  He also was finally playing for a winning team.  After six consecutive years playing for sub-.500 teams in New York, Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay, Wigginton got his first taste of a pennant race in Houston, although it didn't look like the Astros were going to be playing meaningful games in September for most of the season.

As July turned to August, Houston's record stood at 50-57, leaving them 11½ games behind the wild card-leading Milwaukee Brewers.  But over the final two months of the season, Houston posted the best record in baseball, winning 36 of their last 54 games.  The main reason for their resurgence was the record-breaking performance of Ty Wigginton.

Wigginton tied Jeff Bagwell's team record by blasting 12 home runs in August.  The Astros' third baseman also hit .379 during the month and drove in 26 runs.  By September 11, Houston had moved to within three games of Milwaukee for the wild card lead.  But Ty Wigginton had injured himself running out a ground ball five days earlier and did not play again until September 17.  By the time he returned to the lineup, Houston was in the middle of a costly five-game losing streak that effectively put an end to their playoff dreams.  That wasn't the only thing that ended in the fall of 2008.

In a move that was quite unpopular with Astros fans, Wigginton was not tendered a contract for the 2009 season.  General manager Ed Wade cited financial reasons for the split, but Wigginton was still taken aback by Houston's decision not to offer him a contract.

“I was thinking all along there was no way I would be non-tendered, to be honest with you.  It’s one of those things.  The last three years I’ve been as consistent as anybody out there, and I’ve hit 70 home runs or something like that in the last three years.  I’ve been consistent average-wise, and my on-base percentage keeps getting higher.”

Wigginton was right.  His numbers across the board were getting better and he was one of the most consistent players in the majors.  The Baltimore Orioles were looking for a player like Wigginton, hoping his consistently good play would help the O's end their streak of 11 consecutive losing seasons.  Baltimore signed Wigginton to a two-year, $6 million deal in 2009, using him at third base (a position already held by another former Met, Melvin Mora), first base and designated hitter.  But for the first time since 2005, Wigginton did not have a good season.

After averaging 27 doubles and 23 homers per season with Tampa Bay and Houston, Wigginton managed only 19 doubles and 11 homers with Baltimore in 2009.  Wigginton also scored 44 runs and collected 41 RBIs despite playing in 122 games.  Had the 32-year-old Wigginton not signed a two-year deal prior to the season, he might have had a tough time finding a new team in 2010.  But given a second chance in year two of the deal, Wigginton proved that his 2009 season was a fluke.

In 2010, Wigginton became an All-Star for the first time, leading the Orioles with 14 home runs and 43 RBIs by the Fourth of July.  Wigginton played in 154 games in his second year with Baltimore - his highest total since his first full season with the Mets in 2003.  By season's end, Wigginton was back to being his old consistent self, finishing the year with 29 doubles, 22 homers and 76 RBIs.  One other consistency returned to Wiggy's career - he became a free agent and signed with another team.

Colorado became Wigginton's sixth team in 2011, as the 33-year-old Wigginton once again replaced Melvin Mora as the team's versatile infielder.  Although Wigginton only had 401 at-bats with the Rockies, he still managed 21 doubles, 15 homers and 47 RBIs.

But once again, Wigginton was piling up his numbers with a non-contending team.  He thought that would finally change when he signed a one-year deal to play for the five-time NL East champion Phillies in 2012.  It did not, as the Phillies finished with the year with an 81-81 record.  But Wigginton did get to show the Mets what they had been missing over the years, batting .412 with four doubles, three homers and an incredible 15 RBIs in only 34 at-bats versus New York.

Video courtesy of MLB.com

Ty Wigginton has played 11 years in the major leagues, but has only been involved in one pennant race.  But the final chapter in Wigginton's book has not yet been written, as the veteran utility man signed a two-year, $5 million contract to play for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2013 and 2014.   The Redbirds have had winning seasons in 12 of the last 13 years and have made the playoffs nine times in that stretch, winnings three pennants and two World Series titles.

After years of playing games in September to earn a job the following season, Wigginton might finally be playing for a postseason berth instead.  A player who has fought so hard to achieve everything he has accomplished since receiving that first call-up to the major leagues in 2002 deserves that chance.

Ty Wigginton was never supposed to make it to the big leagues, let alone succeed in the majors for over a decade.  Most 17th round picks don't.  But the gritty, hard-nosed player did make it to the big show, doing it through sheer determination and a strong will to win (even if his teams had trouble doing so).  Although Wigginton only played parts of three seasons in New York, he still played more games with the Mets (288) than he has with any other team.  Yet despite that, Wigginton has still hit 176 doubles and 140 homers (and counting) after the Mets let him get away.

Two years before Jim Duquette traded Wigginton to Pittsburgh, he had this to say about the infielder:

''When we got him, he wasn't where he needed to be, defensively, at the professional level.  But through his work ethic alone, he's turned himself into a solid second baseman.  He hasn't been exposed as much at third, but we're going to look at him.''

Duquette thought the Mets had a solid second baseman in Wigginton, but manager Art Howe played him at third in 2003.  Wigginton remained at third base in 2004 because Jose Reyes was the team's second baseman.  For the record, Wigginton has played a total of 168 games at second base in his career, making 14 errors at the position.  But the Mets never thought to play him there.  Meanwhile, the team used Kaz Matsui at the position from 2004 to 2006 and Luis Castillo from 2007 to 2010.  That's seven seasons of boos at the second base position.  And seven seasons of wondering what might have been had the Mets just given the position to Wigginton.

Ty Wigginton has made a career out of being a consistent performer.  But the Mets delivered a knockout blow to his career in New York when they sent him to Pittsburgh in 2004.  Wigginton has been doing his best to knock out Mets pitchers and their battery mates since then, batting .313 with 14 extra-base hits and 27 RBIs in only 96 career at-bats against the team that originally drafted him in 1998.  Of course, former Mets catcher Josh Thole wouldn't know a thing about that.  He's still recovering from his close encounter of the Wigginton kind.

Ouch.

Note:  The Mets That Got Away is a thirteen-part weekly series that spotlights those Mets players who established themselves as major leaguers in New York, only to become stars after leaving town.  For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 7, 2013: Nolan Ryan
January 14, 2013: Melvin Mora  
January 21, 2013: Kevin Mitchell 
January 28, 2013: Amos Otis
February 4, 2013: Jeff Reardon
February 11, 2013: Lenny Dykstra
February 18, 2013: Jeff Kent
February 25, 2013: Randy Myers
March 4, 2013: Ken Singleton 
March 11, 2013: Mike Scott
March 18, 2013: Jeromy Burnitz

The Mets That Got Away: Jeromy Burnitz

The Mets have made their fair share of questionable trades over the years.  On occasion, some of those traded players found their way back to New York.  Players like Rusty Staub, Dave Kingman, Tom Seaver and David Cone went on to accomplish great things in between their first and second stints with the Mets.

Staub was an RBI machine in Detroit.  Kingman nearly had a 50-homer season with the Cubs.  Seaver pitched a no-hitter in Cincinnati.  Cone did the same in the Bronx, although his game was perfect and he also added World Series rings for each finger on his pitching hand.

All four returned to New York hoping to recapture their past glory.   But Staub spent most of his time as a pinch-hitter (albeit a great one) before retiring in 1985.  Kingman made Mario Mendoza look like a batting champion before he was released.  Seaver had his worst season as a Met, then was left unprotected in the free agent compensation draft.  And Cone made only four starts before calling it a career.

Staub, Kingman, Seaver and Cone aren't the only former Mets who were traded away before eventually returning to the team.  In fact, one former Met has the dubious distinction of being jettisoned by the team twice, only to see his performance on the field improve exponentially both times he was dealt.

Jeromy Burnitz, in a baseball card photo taken before he was a two-time former Met.

Jeromy Neal Burnitz was the Mets' first round pick in the 1990 June amateur draft.  Burnitz was selected 17th overall, three picks ahead of 270-game winner Mike Mussina.  After splitting time between Pittsfield and St. Lucie in 1990, Burnitz had a stellar season at AA-Williamsport in 1991.  Burnitz's first full minor league campaign resulted in the Eastern League's first 30-30 season, as the outfielder hit 31 home runs and stole 31 bases for the Bills.  The Mets took notice of their young star's performance, honoring him with a Doubleday Award.

Burnitz was promoted to AAA-Tidewater in 1992, but saw a sharp decrease in his power numbers.  The outfielder managed to hit only eight home runs in 121 games for the Tides, just one year after slamming nearly four times that amount at the Double-A level.  In 1993, Burnitz found himself once again at Tidewater, hitting .227 with eight home runs in 65 games.  But the Mets were having a rough time settling on a regular centerfielder, as Ryan Thompson, Joe Orsulak, Dave Gallagher and Darrin Jackson had all started at least ten games at the position before spring turned to summer.  As a result, Burnitz was called up to the Mets on June 21.  Eight days later, he let the world know he had arrived.

On June 29, the Mets won an extra-inning slugfest against the Florida Marlins, coming from behind to win, 10-9.  Burnitz went 3-for-5 in the game with two doubles and a home run.  He tied the game in the third inning with his first big league home run.  Four innings later, Burnitz laced an RBI double to give the Mets a temporary two-run lead.  Finally, in the 12th, Burnitz led off the inning with a long double and scored the eventual winning run on a sacrifice fly.

After smoking the Marlins in late June, Burnitz continued to scorch the rest of the National League in the month of July.  In his first ten games in July, Burnitz hit .355 with three homers and 10 RBIs.  But as great as he was in July, Burnitz saved his best game for August.

In a game against the Montreal Expos on August 5, Burnitz became the first Mets rookie (and sixth Met overall) to drive in seven runs in a game.  Burnitz rapped an RBI single in the first and a grand slam in the fifth to give the Mets a seemingly insurmountable 9-1 lead.  By the end of the sixth, the lead had evaporated, as three Mets pitchers combined to allow eight runs.  The game remained tied until the 13th inning, when Joe Orsulak drove in the go-ahead run with a single and Burnitz added two insurance runs - his sixth and seventh RBIs of the game - with a double down the right field line.  The Mets went on to win the game, 12-9.  Burnitz's record-setting performance was accomplished off two of the best pitchers of the era, as his seven RBIs came against Dennis Martinez (245 career wins) and John Wetteland (330 lifetime saves).

Burnitz finished the season strongly, with a .260/.383/.506 slash line in September, collecting nine extra-base hits, scoring 15 runs and driving in ten.  Burnitz only had 263 at-bats for the Mets in 1993, but they were quite productive, as he picked up ten doubles, six triples and 13 homers.  He also scored 49 runs and had 38 RBIs, making it easy to overlook his .243 batting average.  For all the promise Burnitz showed in 1993, he failed miserably one year later.  And his disciplinarian manager was not amused.

Jeromy Burnitz was a hothead.  So was his manager, Dallas Green.  Something had to give, especially after Burnitz lost his temper during a poor spring training at-bat.  When Burnitz was hitting .192 after the season's first month, something finally did give.  Burnitz was sent back to the minors, less than a year after bursting onto the major league scene.

With Norfolk, Burnitz continued to hit with power (15 doubles, five triples, 14 homers) but maintained a low batting average (.239).  After over two months at Norfolk, Burnitz was finally recalled on July 22.  Three weeks later, Major League Baseball was shut down by a players' strike, but not before Burnitz got to play in 18 games.  He continued to be an enigma at the plate, hitting a more respectable .292, but did so without hitting a home run and striking out 19 times in 65 at-bats.

By November, Burnitz had finally found a way out of Dallas Green's doghouse, as the former first round pick was traded to the Cleveland Indians for pitchers Paul Byrd, Jerry DiPoto and Dave Mlicki.  Byrd and DiPoto were both ex-Mets by 1997, while Mlicki hung around until 1998 (one year after famously shutting out the Yankees in the first-ever regular season game between the two New York teams).  Meanwhile, Burnitz was just getting started.

Burnitz only had seven at-bats with the Indians in 1995, as he spent the majority of the year in the minors.  In 1996, Burnitz had trouble getting into the everyday lineup, collecting 128 at-bats for Cleveland.  Of course, anyone would have had trouble cracking a lineup that featured outfielders Albert Belle, Kenny Lofton and Many Ramirez.  Even the designated hitter position was occupied, as Cleveland was using Eddie Murray as their non-fielding batter.

With no definite position in Burnitz's immediate future, the Indians traded him to Milwaukee for six-time .300 hitter Kevin Seitzer.  Seitzer played in 86 games with Cleveland before retiring after the 1997 campaign.  Burnitz, on the other hand, went on to become one of the most feared power hitters in baseball.

After finishing out the 1996 season in Milwaukee, Burnitz had a true breakout year in 1997.  In his first season as an everyday player, Burnitz set career highs across the board, batting .281 with 37 doubles, eight triples, 27 homers, 85 RBIs, 85 runs scored and 20 stolen bases.  Burnitz became the second player in Brewers history to achieve to 20 HR/20 SB season, joining future Hall of Famer Robin Yount, who hit 23 homers and stole 20 bases for Milwaukee in 1980.  As great as Burnitz's season was in 1997, he improved upon it in 1998.

Burnitz was a one-man wrecking crew in his second full season in Milwaukee.  On a team in which no other player hit more than 16 homers or surpassed 68 RBIs, Burnitz had himself a 38 HR, 125 RBI campaign.  At the time, the 38 home runs represented the fourth-highest single-season total in Brewers' history and the 125 RBIs were one short of Cecil Cooper's team record of 126 RBIs, which he set in 1983.  Burnitz also became the eighth Brewer to amass 300 total bases in a single season, joining Robin Yount, Cecil Cooper, Ben Oglivie, Paul Molitor, George Scott, Tommy Harper and Gorman Thomas.  As great as his season was, perhaps nothing satisfied Burnitz more than when he homered off Dave Mlicki - one of the players for whom he was traded - in his first career at-bat against the Mets.

Dave Mlicki might have been able to shut out the Yankees, but he couldn't shut down Jeromy Burnitz.

In 1999, Burnitz finally got some much-needed help in the lineup, as three of his teammates (Dave Nilsson, Geoff Jenkins, Marquis Grissom) reached the 20-HR mark.  Burnitz finished the year with a .270 batting average, 33 doubles, 33 homers, 103 RBIs and 91 walks.  The better plate discipline - which he never had as a Met, much to Dallas Green's dismay - helped Burnitz achieve a .400 on-base percentage for the first time in his career.

It was more of the same for Burnitz over the next two seasons, as his 2000 campaign (29 doubles, 31 homers, 98 RBIs, 91 runs scored, 99 walks) and 2001 season (32 doubles, 34 homers, 100 RBIs, 104 runs scored, 80 walks) were virtual mirror images of each other.

But after hitting .271 over his first three full seasons in Milwaukee, Burnitz experienced a steep decline in his batting average, combining to hit .242 in 2000 and 2001.  The 2001 campaign would be Burnitz's last season in Milwaukee, as the Mets desperately needed to upgrade their offense and thought Burnitz would be part of the solution.  If only they had bothered to notice the downward trend in his batting average.

Following the 2001 season, a year in which the Mets failed to defend their National League crown and needed a strong September to finish the year above .500, general manager Steve Phillips decided the team needed to go shopping.  But with the Mets already trying to pare their lofty payroll, Phillips decided he would have to fix the team's deficiencies via the trade route rather than by signing free agents.

First, Phillips tried to pry John Smoltz away from the Braves to no avail.  When that didn't pan out, Phillips focused squarely on upgrading the team's offense.  By the time the calendar flipped to 2002, Roberto Alomar, Mo Vaughn and Roger Cedeño had been acquired by the Mets.  The Mets then set their focus on acquiring one more big bat, doing so when they traded for Jeromy Burnitz.  However, the cost for reacquiring the lefty slugger was steep, as the Mets lost Lenny Harris, Glendon Rusch, Benny Agbayani and Todd Zeile in the three-team deal.

The Mets were surprisingly competitive over the first four months of the 2002 season.  Heading into August, the team was in second place in the NL East with a 55-51 record, leaving them a reachable 4½ games behind the wild card-leading Dodgers.  The Mets were winning despite not having typical seasons by Alomar, Vaughn and Cedeño.  But the one new addition who really underachieved to the point of having an awful season was Jeromy Burnitz.

Second verse, same as the first.

After reaching the 30-HR mark in each of his previous four seasons, Burnitz failed to hit 20 home runs for the Mets.  His batting average, which had already begun to drop during his last two seasons in Milwaukee, plummeted in 2002.  Burnitz struggled to stay above .200 all year and was drawing fewer walks than he did as a Brewer.  During the Mets' season-changing 12-game losing streak in August, Burnitz managed only three hits and struck out in 40% of his at-bats.  The Mets fell to last place for the first time since 1993, with Burnitz finishing the year with a .215 batting average, 15 doubles, 19 homers and 54 RBIs.

The Mets began the 2003 season as poorly as they finished in 2002.  By May 13, New York was already ten games behind Atlanta and seven games behind Montreal for the wild card.  One month later, Steve Phillips was relieved of his duties, replaced by Jim Duquette.  By the end of June, it was clear that the Mets were not going to compete for a playoff spot, as the team was buried in the NL East cellar.  As a result, Duquette decided to restock the team's farm system by trading off its high-priced players.  One of the casualties was Jeromy Burnitz.

After an immensely disappointing season in 2002, Burnitz had actually earned some trade value during the first half of the 2003 campaign.  Burnitz missed a month of action due to a broken hand caused by an errant Billy Wagner fastball, but once he returned on May 23, he started to tear the cover off the ball.

In his first nine games after returning from the disabled list, Burnitz hit .412 with four homers and 13 RBIs.  By June 1, Burnitz had his batting average up to a season-high .324.  Burnitz had another hot streak shortly before the All-Star Break, driving in at least one run in seven consecutive games from July 2 to July 9.  One week later, Burnitz was gone, as Duquette jettisoned the outfielder to Los Angeles for three prospects, including Victor Diaz.

Burnitz's first-half totals with the Mets were excellent (.274, 18 doubles, 18 HR, 45 RBIs in only 65 games).  With the Dodgers, Burnitz regressed, batting .204 with only four doubles, 13 HR and 32 RBIs in 61 games.  Needless to say, the Dodgers let Burnitz leave as a free agent at the end of the 2003 season.

Now in his mid-thirties, Burnitz was hoping another team would give him a shot to prove that he could still play at a high level.  He did get that shot, and it came with a team that was used to playing at a high level.

Would this be called a "Mile-High Five"?

The Colorado Rockies took a chance on Burnitz, signing him to a one-year deal to play in the Mile High City in 2004.  Burnitz rewarded them immediately, batting .302 with 16 homers and 46 RBIs in his first 53 games.  Burnitz saved his best month for July, when he had an incredible .360/.424/.809 slash line.  During the month, Burnitz collected eight doubles, one triple, 10 homers and 27 RBIs despite starting only 22 games.  His renaissance season saw Burnitz finish the year with a career-high .283 batting average.  He also hit 30 doubles and 37 home runs, while driving in 110 runs and scoring 94 times.

Despite his phenomenal season, Colorado declined to pick up Burnitz's option for the 2005 campaign, allowing the slugger to become a free agent.  Burnitz almost signed with Colorado's division rival in Arizona, agreeing in principle to a two-year deal with the Diamondbacks.  But that deal was pulled from the table after Arizona completed a three-team trade with the Dodgers and Yankees that made Shawn Green their new rightfielder.  The deal also sent Randy Johnson to the Yankees, while the Yankees shipped Javier Vazquez to the Dodgers.

Although he was disappointed that he had just lost the security of a multi-year contract, Burnitz continued to look for a new team and finally found one when the Chicago Cubs signed him to a one-year, $4.5 million deal with a $7 million option for a second year.  But Burnitz was going into a pressure situation with the North Siders, as he was being asked to replace Cubs' icon Sammy Sosa in right field.

Burnitz had a solid season for the Cubs, batting .258 with 31 doubles, 24 homers, 87 RBIs and 84 runs scored while playing in a team-high 160 games.  But those numbers paled in comparison to Sosa, who averaged 48 HR and 123 RBIs from 1995 to 2004.  As a result, the Cubs decided to buy out Burnitz for $500,000 rather than pick up his option for 2006, leaving Burnitz to become a free agent for the third straight year.

Once again, Burnitz had a two-year deal on the table, this time with the Baltimore Orioles.  But because of language in the contract that would allow Baltimore to take their time making the deal official, Burnitz decided to sign a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates with a second year option that would pay him the same amount of money as Baltimore's two-year deal.  Ironically, the Orioles' executive who tried to negotiate the deal with Burnitz was Jim Duquette, who only two years earlier had traded Burnitz to the Dodgers while he was the Mets' general manager.

It's quite possible that one of the underlying reasons why Burnitz chose to pass on the deal with Baltimore was because of his relationship with the former Mets GM.  Burnitz showed no love for his time with the Mets when he mentioned New York fans in a statement he made to reporters after failing to run out a ground ball in Pittsburgh. 

"I apologize for that.  It seems like I'd hit 20 balls in a row like that, rollovers to first.  The fact is, I went and looked at it, and I had no chance.  He would have thrown me out.  But the effort that they expect - and they jumped on me for it - I apologize if I don't play hard enough. I have a reputation for playing hard.  I heard the boos.  And I've heard 'em before.  If I poke my head out of the dugout in New York, there would be 40,000 of them.  Loud, too."

If Burnitz didn't have love for New York, then he certainly couldn't have loved his time in Pittsburgh.  After getting off to a slow start (.234, 8 HR, 26 RBI, .289 OBP in the team's first 50 games) and saying that manager Jim Tracy was forced to keep him in the everyday lineup because he was "Joe High-Paid Free Agent", Tracy decided to put Burnitz in a platoon with some of the Pirates' younger players.

As a result, Burnitz played in just 111 games, his lowest full-season total since becoming an everyday player with the Brewers in 1997.  Burnitz finished the year with only 28 extra-base hits after averaging 29 doubles and 30 homers over the previous nine seasons.  He also hit .230 and had a career-worst .289 on-base percentage, a number that was even lower than his OBP during his forgetful 2002 campaign with the Mets.

At season's end, Pittsburgh declined to pick up Burnitz's option for the 2007 season.  This time, Burnitz was unable to find another suitor, causing him to retire from baseball at the age of 37.

Jeromy Burnitz was a five-tool player in the minor leagues who occasionally forgot to sharpen his fifth tool (batting average), while neglecting to use one of his other tools (speed).  He was a 30-30 player as a Mets' farmhand, but surpassed seven stolen bases in the majors only twice in 14 seasons.  The Mets never got the Burnitz they saw in the minor leagues and gave up on him two years into his major league career.  Nearly a decade later, they gave him a second chance and once again, they decided to send him packing.  Both times, Burnitz proved to the Mets that he was better off without them.

In 5½ years with Milwaukee, Burnitz became one of the Brewers' top power threats in franchise history.  From 1997 to 2001, Burnitz averaged 32 doubles, 33 homers and 102 RBIs per season.  His 125 RBIs in 1998 are more than any Met has ever achieved in 50-plus seasons (Mike Piazza and David Wright share the single-season franchise record with 124 RBIs).  In 1997 and 1998, Burnitz received National League MVP votes and he was selected to represent the Brewers in the All-Star Game in 1999.

On a team that has had great hitters over the years (Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun come to mind), Burnitz was able to crack Milwaukee's all-time top ten list in various offensive categories.  He ranks among the team leaders in home runs (165; 9th in Brewers' history), walks (423; 8th), on-base percentage (.362; 7th), slugging percentage (.508; 4th) and OPS (.870; 4th).  Burnitz's 525 RBIs as a Brewer had him in the top ten until recently, when both Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun passed him.  Burnitz was also the first Brewer in team history to hit 30 or more home runs in four consecutive seasons, accomplishing the feat from 1998 to 2001.  All this from a player who never hit 20 home runs in a season for the Mets in parts of four years with the team.

Although Jeromy Burnitz accomplished many things as an individual (six 30-HR seasons, four 100-RBI campaigns), he always seemed to achieve them on teams that did not go on to great things.  The Brewers finished with a losing record in each of his nearly six seasons in Milwaukee.  All four Mets teams he played for (1993, 1994, 2002, 2003) finished below .500, as did the 2004 Rockies, 2005 Cubs and 2006 Pirates.

Burnitz never got to taste the postseason as a major league player and rarely got to experience a pennant race.  Still, he finished his career with 315 home runs, nearly 300 doubles and just under 1,000 RBIs.  It's not a career that he should be ashamed of.

The Mets gave up on Burnitz twice during his career.  The first time, it was because the manager didn't like him and he was underachieving.  The second time, it was because he had finally started to achieve but was now too expensive to keep around on a rebuilding team.  Both times, Burnitz blossomed after the Mets let him go.  And both times, the Mets became competitive within a few years of his departure.  But despite the team's successes soon after Burnitz's dual departures, the Mets have been missing one thing - a regular rightfielder.

Darryl Strawberry left the Mets as a free agent following the 1990 season.  Burnitz made his debut three years later, and spent parts of four seasons in New York during his two tours of duty with the team.  In those four seasons, Burnitz started 262 games in right field.  Believe it or not, that's more games than any Met has started in right field since the Straw Man's departure.  The only other Mets to start more than 200 games in right field since 1990 are Bobby Bonilla (226 starts) and Butch Huskey (202 starts).  Strawberry started 1,064 games in right field during his eight years as a Met.  That's just 48 more starts than Jeromy Burnitz had as a rightfielder for the other teams he played for during his career.

Perhaps the Mets shouldn't have let go of Burnitz's booming bat.  Perhaps he would have accomplished great things in New York.  And perhaps the Mets wouldn't have gone into a seemingly endless cycle of searching for a regular rightfielder.  But one thing is for certain.  Both Burnitz and the Mets accomplished great things when they weren't married to each other.  The double divorce, though not exactly amicable, was the best thing that could have happened to all the parties involved. 

Now if only the Mets could stop playing musical chairs with the right field position...

   

Judging by these quotes, Jeromy Burnitz wasn't exactly cut out to handle the New York media.  

Note:  The Mets That Got Away is a thirteen-part weekly series that spotlights those Mets players who established themselves as major leaguers in New York, only to become stars after leaving town.  For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 7, 2013: Nolan Ryan
January 14, 2013: Melvin Mora  
January 21, 2013: Kevin Mitchell 
January 28, 2013: Amos Otis
February 4, 2013: Jeff Reardon
February 11, 2013: Lenny Dykstra
February 18, 2013: Jeff Kent
February 25, 2013: Randy Myers
March 4, 2013: Ken Singleton 
March 11, 2013: Mike Scott
 

Joey's Soapbox: Sandy Alderson Should Be Buy-Curious At The Trade Deadline

Hello, everyone.  This is Joey Beartran and although you can’t see it right now, I’m standing on my soapbox.  However, it might be time to get a new soapbox soon as this one is about to give way.  No, it’s not because I’ve been having too many of the new nacho selections at Citi Field (mmm, bacon cheeseburger nachos).  It’s because the Mets have been providing the fodder for me to rant on, necessitating multiple moments of soapbox climbing.

And why am I risking life and paw to climb on my battered soapbox today?  It’s simple, really.  Today I’ll be discussing the upcoming trade deadline and what Sandy Alderson should do as July 31 approaches.  But before I do that, I’d like to give you a little history lesson.

In 2004, the Mets came out of the All-Star Break in the middle of the playoff race, but then went into a sudden tailspin.  General manager Jim Duquette insisted the team was still in playoff contention, but instead of looking for help from within the organization, he acquired two veteran starting pitchers in Kris Benson and Victor Zambrano.  The key player from within the organization that was dealt away turned out to be Scott Kazmir, who went on to lead the Tampa Bay Rays to their first World Series appearance in 2008.  The other players involved were Ty Wigginton and Jose Bautista, who are both still active and quite productive at the major league level.  Needless to say, Benson and Zambrano did not lead the Mets to October glory in 2004.  In fact, they’re not leading anyone right now as both pitchers are out of baseball.

Let’s now fast forward to this season.  In 2012, the Mets went into the All-Star Break with a 46-40 record, half a game behind the Atlanta Braves for the second wild card spot.  Since returning from their midsummer hiatus, the current Mets have made the 2004 team look good in comparison, winning once in a dozen attempts.  Their 1-11 record is worse than the 2-9 record they posted two years ago, when they also came out of the break in the thick of the wild card race.  Then, it was a West Coast swing that put the kibosh on their postseason aspirations.  This time, they didn’t even wait to go out west to start their annual whimper to the finish line.

Before entering this seemingly fatal stretch of games, current general manager Sandy Alderson insisted the Mets were going to be buyers at the trade deadline.  But much has changed over the past two weeks.  Should the Mets pull a Duquette and be buyers before July 31 or should they sell off whatever valuable pieces they have, essentially raising the white flag on the 2012 season?  I have the perfect solution for our GM, who has been quite mum on the topic since the All-Star Break.

Sandy Alderson should just come out already and announce that he is buy-curious.

Don't let the gruff exterior fool you.  Beneath that scowl is one buy-curious general manager.

It’s no secret that Alderson has been talking to some potential partners as the deadline approaches.  These partners might have what Sandy is looking for, while others are probably asking for Sandy to give up too much in return.  Some of these other partners might also be hanging on the playoff fence, making them buy-curious as well.  No one’s telling Sandy to meet up with these fellow buy-curious general managers, but perhaps they have something to offer that the Mets could use to assist them in the future, without having to give up the farm.

The Mets are not the Miami Marlins, who this year basically jumped up and down on the couch to announce they were going to be more than just buy-curious.  They just came out and proclaimed loud and proud that they were buy, buy, buy.  Unfortunately, everyone doesn’t love the Marlins anymore and it’s more like bye, bye, bye these days in South Beach, with the Marlins selling off everything but their autographed Rue McClanahan poster.  (But I’m still watching eBay daily hoping they decide to list it.)

Sandy Alderson has done a good job putting this Mets team together with the chips he’s been given.  The present might be full of dark clouds, but the future is looking bright.  Matt Harvey will not become this trade deadline’s Scott Kazmir.  Instead of packing his bags to head for another organization, Harvey is packing his bags for Arizona, where he will be making his major league debut tonight against the Diamondbacks.  The only names being tossed around at this year’s trade deadline are Scott Hairston and Tim Byrdak, neither of whom have the potential to become this year’s Ty Wigginton and Jose Bautista.

The Mets are seven games behind the Braves for the final wild card spot.  They were closer to the wild card leader in 2004 when Duquette became Trader Jim.  They’re still close enough that they don’t have to follow the example learned by those who attend the Miami Marlins School of Business.  But they’re not close enough where they have to trade off their future to acquire a player who may or may not get them over the top in the present.

For now, being buy-curious might be the safe way for Sandy Alderson to operate.  There’s no shame in making it public.  And he’s surely not the only buy-curious general manager out there.  In fact, if a good trade that will help the Mets in 2013 and beyond pops up, don’t be surprised if Sandy’s trade partner is also buy-curious.  That’s how Frank Cashen operated in the ‘80s (think Neil Allen and friends for Keith Hernandez, Lee Mazzilli for Ron Darling and Walt Terrell (who was traded for Howard Johnson), or Ed Hearn, Rick Anderson and Mauro Gozzo for David Cone), and he was the most buy-curious general manager of them all.

So Sandy, if you’re reading this, you’ve done a fine job so far.  Don’t mess things up by doing something the Mets might regret.  Be buy-curious if you feel it’s best for you and the team’s future.  Just don’t force things to happen.  It didn’t work for Dan Duquette and it didn’t work for those fried fish in Florida.  Let’s make it work this time around, okay?

Now let me get off this soapbox before it collapses faster than the Phillies’ NL East dynasty.  I should probably be a little buy-curious myself about a new soapbox before the Mets give me another reason to hop back onto it.

Sandy Can't "Duquette" Out For Help This Year

Eight years ago today, the Mets came out of the All-Star Break with a win against the Philadelphia Phillies in extra innings.  Although they were only two games above .500 at the time, the Mets were in the thick of a tight four-team race in the National League East, with one game separating the Braves (46-42), Phillies (46-42), Marlins (45-43) and Mets (45-43).  The Mets then proceeded to lose eight of their next 11 games, losing some ground to their division rivals, but still only five games behind the division-leading Braves.

Despite their struggles, general manager Jim Duquette considered the Mets to be contenders for the division title (at the time, the Padres and Giants were tied atop the wild card standings, with both teams ten games above .500) and decided to upgrade the team in a last-ditch effort to stay in the playoff hunt.  "Last-ditch" ended up being an appropriate term for the trades orchestrated by Duquette, as the Mets dug themselves a "ditch" that they could not climb out of, while Duquette didn't "last" as Mets' GM, replaced before season's end by Omar Minaya.

Although there were three trades made by Duquette on July 30, 2004, two of them were connected.  The first trade sent top prospect Scott Kazmir to Tampa Bay for starting pitcher Victor Zambrano and reliever Bartolome Fortunato.  Although Zambrano had a 35-27 career mark for the perennial basement dwellers in Tampa, his 4.47 ERA and 1.49 WHIP were not exactly top-of-the-rotation caliber.

In 2003, Zambrano led the American League in walks (106), hit batsmen (20) and wild pitches (15).  Prior to his trade to the Mets, he was once again leading the league in walks (96) and had hit 16 batters in 22 starts.  Clearly, Duquette thought a change in scenery and ten minutes with pitching coach Rick Peterson (as Peterson infamously claimed would be all he would require to "fix" Zambrano) would do the trick.  He thought wrong.

Injuries and poor performances limited Zambrano to 35 starts as a Met, as he went 10-14 for the team with a nearly identical ERA (4.42) and WHIP (1.49) as he had in Tampa.  Similarly, Bartolome Fortunato suffered from injuries (he missed the entire 2005 season) and poor performances on the mound (7.06 ERA and 1.66 WHIP in 17 career relief appearances for the Mets) and was out of baseball by 2006.

Scott Kazmir, although not as successful as a first round draft pick should have been, still became the Rays' all-time leader in wins, strikeouts, starts and innings pitched (he has now dropped to No. 2 in those categories, supplanted by current Rays pitcher James Shields).  Kazmir also led the Rays to their only World Series appearance in 2008, the same year the Mets finished a game short of the playoffs for the second consecutive season.  With a productive Kazmir on the pitching staff instead of fill-ins and journeymen, who knows where the Mets could have gone in 2006, 2007 and 2008?

The other two trades orchestrated by Duquette on that fateful late July day in 2004 featured a player who was barely a Met and a player who now kills his former team with regularity.  First, Duquette traded minor leaguer Justin Huber to the Royals for a little-known prospect named Jose Bautista.  The Mets then sent Bautista and infielder Ty Wigginton to the Pirates for former No. 1 overall draft pick Kris Benson and infielder Jeff Keppinger.

Bautista has since become one of the most feared sluggers in the major leagues, leading all players with 124 HR since the beginning of the 2010 campaign.  Wigginton is not just the last Met to bowl over a catcher at the plate, but he has also become a pretty good hitter in his own right.  Since leaving the Mets in 2004, Wigginton has hit 138 HR for six teams.  In 30 games (24 starts) against his former team, Wigginton is batting .308 with five HR and 26 RBI.  He also owns a .390 on-base percentage and a .560 slugging percentage against the Mets.  In 2012, Wigginton has become a one-man wrecking crew versus the Mets in more ways than one.  In only 29 at-bats, Wigginton has three home runs and 14 RBIs against the team that sent him packing eight years ago.  He also wrecked Josh Thole's head, sidelining him with a concussion in a (you guessed it) home plate collision with the Mets' catcher.

Jose Bautista slugs baseballs.  Ty Wigginton slugs catchers.  Just ask Josh Thole, assuming he can remember.

The two players received for Bautista and Wigginton did not have the greatest success for the Mets during their time in New York.  Jeff Keppinger only played in 33 games for the Mets in 2004, spending the entire 2005 season at AAA-Norfolk, before being traded to the Royals in 2006 for Ruben Gotay.  Keppinger has become a solid utility player since then.  He hit .332 in 241 at-bats for the Reds in 2007, and is now hitting .312 for the Rays in 138 at-bats this season.  In six-plus seasons since leaving the Mets, Keppinger is a .283 career hitter.

Kris Benson was never horrible as a Met (14-12, 4.23 ERA, 1.25 WHIP in 39 starts).  He just wasn't what the Mets hoped they were getting.  Although Benson was only 30 when he pitched his last game for the Mets in 2005, he went on to win 13 more games in the majors for three teams (Baltimore, Texas, Arizona) before calling it a career to become a successful businessman following the 2010 season.

That brings us to Sandy Alderson and the 2012 Mets.  (Finally!)  This year's Mets came out of the All-Star Break a half-game out of the second wild card spot and 4½ games behind the first place Washington Nationals.  One sweep to the Braves later, and the Mets find themselves 3½ games out of the final wild card spot and 6½ games out of first.

With all the talk about improving the league's worst bullpen, maybe Alderson should hold off on making a trade that would only serve to help the team this year.  If he is to make a trade, it has to be one that can also help the Mets in the future, not just one that might be too little, too late to help them succeed in 2012.

If the Mets continue to fall in the standings, similar to the way the 2004 Mets did after the All-Star Break, it would behoove Sandy Alderson not to make any drastic moves.  There's no need to sell off the future in a last-ditch effort to remain in contention in the present.  The 2004 Mets were around .500 when Duquette became Trader Jim.  They finished the season 20 games under .500.  This year's squad might not contend as long as we'd like them to, but they're also not the type of team who will finish so far under .500 that the general manager will be canned.

That was then.  This is now.  And Sandy Alderson is a better GM than Jim Duquette.  If the Mets don't gain ground in the standings prior to the trade deadline, I have full faith in Sandy Alderson that he will either not make any trades or he will only deal for a player who will help the team beyond this season.  Buying for the sake of buying doesn't get you anything but the door slammed behind you on the way out.  Sandy Alderson knows this, and that's why he won't "Duquette" out with other teams for players.  He's a better general manager than that.

Historically Speaking, August Blows For The Mets

As we nervously anticipate the arrival of Hurricane Irene to the tri-state area, hoping not to be blown away by the strong wind gusts expected, we figured it would be appropriate to discuss another "gust", or rather, the month of Au-"gust".

The Mets have reached the postseason seven times in their half-century of existence, but there have been many other times when the Mets had playoff aspirations entering the month of August. Once August began, however, the Mets buckled under the pressure and were blown back from contention to detention. Let's look back at the Mets' history in the month of August to see just how many times the dog days have bitten the Mets' postseason hopes.

Ex-Met Brian Schneider knows a thing or two about things blowing around the ballpark, such as playoff hopes.

Since moving into Citi Field in 2009, the Mets have done fairly well in the first half of the season. They were in first place in 2009 going into the Memorial Day weekend. In 2010, the Mets led the wild card race as late as July. This year, the Mets were sparking talks of competing for the wild card after the All-Star Break as well.

Then August happened.

In Citi Field's inaugural season, the Mets were 10-19 in the month of August. They improved in 2010, although not much, going 12-16 as they were outscored 114-79 in the month. This year, the Mets are bringing August ineptitude to new depths, as they have only won six of 21 games in the month, with four of those wins coming against the last place San Diego Padres.

Quick math tells us that since moving into Citi Field, the Mets are 28-50 in all games played in August. Prior to August, the Mets were a combined 157-157 since 2009. Their .500 record wasn't great, but it was far better than the .359 combined winning percentage over the past three Augusts, which effectively took them out of legitimate contention.

It's not just the last three seasons in which the Mets have played like natural disasters in the month of August. When the Mets collapsed in 2007, they went 15-13 in the month of August, which was only one game better than their September mark that year (14-14). Fans who want to blame the Mets for their play over the final 17 games of the season could like at the seeds being planted in the month of August, when the Mets were swept out of Citizens Bank Park by the Phillies from August 27-30.

The 2004 Mets were only eight games out of first place at the end of July and even closer to the wild card lead, prompting then-GM Jim Duquette to make two separate trades for Victor Zambrano and Kris Benson. All they needed to give up was Scott Kazmir (who went on to win 55 games in five years for Tampa Bay), Ty Wigginton (who's posted four 20+ HR seasons and can play second base, a position the Mets could use some help with) and Jose Bautista (who led the major leagues in home runs last year and is doing the same this year).

So how did the Mets respond to those trades? They went from eight games out of first to 17 games out after their 11-17 August.

Just two years earlier, the 2002 Mets went 6-21 in the month of August, losing 12 straight games at one point, which dropped them from second place in the NL East to the basement.

The 1997 Mets weren't supposed to compete for a postseason berth after their 71-91 campaign the year before, but compete they did. Unfortunately, they saved their worst month of the season for August, going 13-16 in the month, allowing the Marlins to pass them in the standings to clinch the wild card. The Marlins went on to win the World Series that year.

Prior to 1997, the Mets had suffered through six consecutive losing seasons. But the first of those six sub-.500 campaigns did not start out that way. That is, until August came around. The 1991 Mets were in second place in the six-team NL East with a 55-45 record going into the month of August. They then went 8-21 in August, en route to their first losing season since 1983.

I could go on and on with more examples (the 1980 and 1982 Mets were surprisingly in contention at the All-Star Break before an 11-20 August brought them back to Earth in 1980 and a putrid 5-24 August produced the same result two years later), but there's a hurricane we have to prepare for.

So there will be no mentions of the 1972 Mets (who went 11-17 in August after starting the month with a 52-41 record), the 1970 Mets (who lost 18 of 31 games in August after producing winning records in each month from April to July) or the 1966 Mets (the first team NOT to lose 100 games, although you wouldn't have known it from their 11-21 record in August).

Hurricane Irene may be headed to Citi Field, but even the expected high wind gusts can't compare with all the blowing that's been going on in the month of August for the Mets over their history. A hurricane like this comes once every 50 years. Too bad the same can't be said for the Mets in August over the same time period.