The point is that the Mets have had prospects but have chosen to trade them for veteran hitters rather than allow them to develop. These moves have helped the Mets become respectable but in order to win in the playoffs you have to have better pitching. The respectability might have helped the Mets sign, say, Carlos Zambrano had he become a FA but this doesnt happen these days (same with Peavy, Santana, etc). So, in this sense the strategy has backfired. Also, Omar has done well to get Maine, Perez and Sanchez, all of whom are young pitchers who have more than substituted the losses of the guys they traded. But the tide may have turned last offseason when Omar traded Bell, Bannister and Lindstrom for essentially nothing.

That said, the pitching we’ve given up has not been terrific. I can only think of one obvious pre-Omar example. In the Omar era, we really haven’t had any top pitchers in the system. You can talk about Bannister’s success, I guess, but he did not have much value until last season. A Burgos was the best they could hope for (though they should have just frigging held onto him.)

Boo, no ace.

This is BAD, because the more teams enter the derby, the fewer pitchers are left for the Mets.

And, to ruin the metaphor and return to an older one, they’re more like a cash crop (hence “farm” system). I don’t think it’s that the Mets have no prosepcts as much as they have no Major League ready prospects, at least in the eyes of other teams. They’re not ready for “harvest.” We have Lowries, but no Lesters, in other words, and at least the A’s and O’s are not dumping off two month rentals. Bedard and Haren are under the control of whomever they go to for at least a couple years. So, their teams figure they can take advantage of a rabid market and get Major League ready phenoms, along with some pipeline players. The Mets’ package is all potential — big potential, in some cases (F-Mart and I have to think Gomez) — but ONLY potential, as compared to some of these guys with a season or half season under their belts. The Mets package looks like something you’d see for a player that a team can no longer afford, or a premium deadline pitcher.

Incidentally, the Mets have traded plenty of minor league prospects over the last three years to help get guys like Delgado, LoDuca, Burgos, etc. I have never liked trading prospects for anything but young pitchers but Omar felt the team had to get on the map before it could sign FAs, etc (he claims having Pedro got the Mets Beltran – I think it was the money not Pedro). The logic has somewhat backfired because the best pitchers dont get to the market unless they are older. So, a team needs prospects to get the pitchers. So, the Mets right now are stuck.