I have learned a lot of things working in Corporate America over the last 11 years. More importantly, I have learned a lot about how to build a team and maintain success being a manager for the last four years.
Anyone who does any type of managing or coaching knows that you will have strong performers on your team and weak performers. It’s just the nature of the beast.
If you have a weak performer on your team, you try to replace them with a strong performer if you can’t turn them around. The goal of any manager or organization is to have as many strong performers as possible working for them.
Some organizations have this goal, some don’t. I believe the New York Mets don’t have this goal.
I really have no idea what is going on with this organization or what they are even trying to accomplish. I really don’t.
Before today, the Mets had a clear weakness at catcher. They planned to go into 2010 with a platoon of Henry Blanco (.228/.292/.366 career line) and Omir Santos (.254/.290/.381). Josh Thole and Chris Coste will also be in camp trying to compete for a job.
The Mets have four catchers in camp, none of which would start on the Cal State Northridge-Southern game I am watching right now on the MLB Network. So how do the Mets solve a weakness? They bring in another weak catcher to add to the problem.
Today, the Mets added former Toronto Blue Jays catcher Rod Barajas to their catching mix. Barajas signed a one-year, $1 million contract. Barajas can also earn another $1 million in incentives.
The 34-year-old hit .226 with 19 home runs and a .258 OBP last season with the Blue Jays. What is interesting about the contract that Barajas signed is that it is a major league contract.
The Mets had offered Barajas a minor league contract earlier in the week, but apparently the Mets couldn’t lose out on a guy who had a .258 OBP last season, so they upgraded their offer. GM Omar Minaya must have learned his negotiating skills from Frank Drebin of Police Squad.
Can Barajas occasionally hit a home runs? Sure he can. But the reality is, he is not better than anything that the Mets have now. The Mets will go into camp with three catchers who don’t have a career OBP above .300.
With the catchers the Mets have in camp, I would say there is a very good chance Barajas will be the Mets’ Opening Day catcher. I don’t think that is what Mets fans envisioned when the offseason started.
The Mets addressed their weakness by bringing in another weakness. Not the way to do business.
You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments