People forget about about how many good things Omar Minaya has done. (PHOTO BY ICON SMI)

BY MATTHEW JAKL
STACHE WRITER

Let me start by saying these words are my own and in no way reflect the views of the Daily Stache. With that said, I like Omar Minaya.

I realize the laundry list of reasons you all will give me to prove my stupidity, but hear me out.

What is the job of the general manager? To represent the franchise?…Propaganda. To make sure the organization is running smooth and everyone is behaving properly? Not buying that either. The ’86 Mets went through cocaine and women like sunflower seeds. That was a good year for the Metropolitans.

The job of the GM is to put players on the field that give the team the best chance to win. I understand we are not winning. And when New York teams lose, their fans go head hunting like a gun toting Sarah Palin in hunting season. (Not an insult. I think that’s badass). But you can’t blame this year’s replaceMets on Omar.

Now I’m not going to say every move he has made has worked out in the Met’s favor. It hasn’t. But I do know this.

His first year as GM he brought 3 time Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez and Carlos Beltran (arguably the best center fielder in the bigs). Not too shabby. He changed the culture of the Mets by outbidding the Yankees to get Beltran, giving him 119 for 7, the largest contract in Mets history at the time. Beltran, needless to say, has been great…hitting 125 hrs, wining 3 gold gloves, two silver sluggers, and going to 4 all star games as a Met.

Ok Carlos Beltran is good. But Omar still saw no promise land. In 2005 Omar acquired Carlos Delgado and Billy Wagner. Two players who went on to be a major piece in the upcoming season; a season ending one devastating curveball away from the World Series.

Now mind you, Omar was able to get Pedro, Beltran, Delgado, and Wagner without giving up Wright and Reyes. Omar set the Mets up with a team that should have won the NL running away in 2006. We all know what happened. Worst collapse in baseball history. Not his fault. Games are won and lost on the field, not the front office.

So what does Omar do? He steals Johan Santana. Literally steals him, giving up Carlos Gomez, Phil Humber, Deolis Guerra, and Kevin Mulvey for arguably the best pitcher in baseball. I don’t know if Omar drugged someone but whatever it was, he did something right.

Interesting side note: Omar even helped the Mets when he was the GM of the Expos. While there, he gave up Jason Bay, Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore, Brandon Phillips, and Chris Young. The Expos obviously went on to become the Nationals, and are the only team in the NL East worse than the Mets. If he kept these players for the Nationals, the Mets would be looking up at the Nationals from dead last.

Even the resigning of Oliver Perez could be worse. It was between Ollie and Derek Lowe. Lowe got $60 million. Ollie got $36 million. Both suck.

Ok, I will stop the boring history of Omar and go onto the juicy stuff…the Adam Rubin scandal. I know this got a lot of Mets fans angry. My question is why?

If Omar is telling the truth, isn’t this something that brings up a legitimate case against Rubin’s journalistic integrity? If, and the key word is if, Rubin really was looking for jobs within the Mets front office…am I the only one that sees this as a conflict of interests?

What if the political correspondent for the NY Times was lobbying for a job in the Obama administration?

Now I understand sports reporting is not as important(no one is dying from any of these stories), but the ethical dilemma remains the same. Do they not both sway public opinion? Does public opinion not affect the outcome of the hirings and firings of these officials.

And why is it the press is allowed to reveal scandals in the front office but the front office is not allowed to reveal scandals about the press?
I have no idea if Omar’s accusation was accurate. It is a very bold claim. But if it is, then why shouldn’t he say it. The press has a huge impact on his future as general manager of the Mets. Would you want the person who asks you for a job going home after an interview to write an article on how you are doing as boss? I’m not saying Rubin let his ambitions effect his journalistic integrity, but there is no question there is a conflict of interests.

Don’t try and sell me the excuse “when he does this he’s a distraction”. I don’t buy it for a second. These players are professionals. The best of the best at what they do. I seriously doubt that in the 9th when K-Rod is closing out a game he is thinking about what Omar said in today’s press conference. The players put enough pressure on themselves, Omar’s big mouth does not affect their play on the field.

In the end, players play. Mangers manage. Omar brings in the best players possible for the team..and says controversial stuff. In my opinion he has done a pretty good job of both.

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