Matt Holliday is said to be on the trading block, but the cost will likely be more than the Mets are willing to offer.

BY MICHAEL GANCI
EDITOR

Coming into the season, not many people would think that Omar Minaya was doing such a terrible job. He had acquired premier players like Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran, Johan Santana and more since he came to the Mets. People were taking this club more seriously, and even Sports Illustrated picked the Mets to win it all this year.

Excuse me if that looks like a bit of an aberration.

Last night’s game was a perfect example of how bad this team can be because of injuries. The Mets are counting on guys like Gary Sheffield, Ryan Church and Alex Cora to help David Wright carry the team until the reinforcements return, but these guys are not those type of players. Church and Cora are complimentary guys. They are not meant to be in the forefront as one of the team’s most dangerous players.

As for Sheffield, his days of being one of the game’s most dangerous power hitters are far behind him.

Don’t get me wrong. These guys have been good this year, but they are supposed to provide the extra spunk for the club. Without guys like Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado in there every day, it is tough for this team to compete. The last two days we have seen C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett cut through the Mets’ lineup like a steak knife through butter, and frankly, it has been pretty nauseating to watch.

But what is Omar to do? There were many discussions revolving around Indians’ super utility man Mark DeRosa, but he was dealt to the Cardinals late last night in exchange for Chris Perez and a PTBNL. If you translate that cost into Mets’ terms, it probably means a Bobby Parnell or Eddie Kunz would have been going the other way along with a prospect. I am not too disappointed that the Mets passed on the cost.

The teams that seem most likely to be sellers at the deadline include Baltimore, Oakland, Kansas City and Washington. The guys who would probably interest the Mets from each of those squads are Aubrey Huff, Matt Holliday, Jose Guillen and Adam Dunn.

None of the names really excite me all too much.

We saw what Huff can do when the Mets visited Baltimore. He pretty much won two games by himself, including one instance where he hit a moonshot off of Pedro Feliciano. He is a first basemen by trade, but he also has experience at third base and in the outfield. A lot of people seem to think that he would be one of the cheaper options. I think a package of Murphy and a decent prospect might suffice. Sorry to all the Murphy lovers, but I would probably pull the trigger on that deal.

Matt Holliday is hitting just .274 with eight homers and 39 RBI. Rumor has it that the Athletics are open to trading the former Rockies’ all star, but Billy Beane is known for ripping off the teams he trades with. He is an expert at waiting until a team is desperate so that he could clean out their pockets. In the Mets case, this could mean a price of Fernando Martinez, Niese and another mid level prospect. As much as I like Holliday’s all around game, I will pass.

Jose Guillen can take a walk. We don’t need the headache.

The most likely target still remains Adam Dunn. I think this might be a move the Mets should consider. He can hit the ball out of any ball park, but his game does come with some shortcomings. He strikes out a ton, is a suspect fielder and is as slow as Mo Vaughn. The Mets have a hole in the lineup though, and he would help fill a major void. The cost would probably be Parnell and a couple of lower level prospects. I am really torn if I would do it or not, but games like last night sway me towards doing it.

Let’s see what Omar does to try to get this team over the hump.

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