'Paper' Tiger?

Really troubling article by Jon Heyman in Sports Illustrated yesterday. Here's the long and the short of it:

"While Mets people are all understandably thrilled to be in their comfy new confines, a slow start that has revealed weaknesses in the team's rotation, defense and lineup has offset the jubilation. Although the new season is just seven days old, Mets people seem genuinely dismayed.

'We have a good team ... on paper, anyway,' lamented one top Mets decision maker."

A "top Mets decision maker" is saying that already? Jesus.

Where was this "top Mets decision maker" during the offseason? And more importantly, what part of the Mets' early-season troubles has caught this top decision maker by surprise?

Was it Oliver Perez's inconsistency? Daniel Murphy's fielding problems in left? Mike Pelfrey's struggles? Every single one of these issues was entirely foreseeable.

We all know that Perez is Mr. All-or-Nothing. It was buyer beware that Perez would suck every now and then, and we took that risk.

Murphy's a converted infielder playing left field. Did this top Mets decision maker miss the Todd Hundley show in the late 90s? Or what about the Mike Piazza-to-1st experiment earlier this decade? Picking up a new position is not as easy as it was when you were in Little League. Mistakes are going to happen, and sometimes they're going to cost you a game.

The one that sticks in my craw the most is Pelfrey. What part of his struggles wasn't foreseeable? I had this debate here and on other sites -- Pelfrey had three really good months and three bad ones last year. This offseason the Mets took the glass half full approach to Pelfrey and decided he was a No. 2 starter. However, if you took the glass half empty approach... well, the glass looked more than half empty, put it that way.

I'll say it again, the biggest gamble this season wasn't on Murphy or Luis Castillo or Ryan Church, it was on Pelfrey. Don't get me wrong, he deserves to be part of the rotation. But there was always the potential that dubbing him a No. 2 starter after last season alone was premature. Through the first week of the season we've gotten exposed for it. Let's hope he gets right fast (tendinitis probably won't help, but who knows).

* * * * *

So to the top Mets decision maker Jon Heyman quoted: great job this offseason. Your anonymous quotes in the press are super helpful.

Beyond that, jesus, the quote was given after 7 games. Did the Mets look good in that span? No. But if there was reason to start calling the team a paper tiger I didn't see it. If the negativity and fatalism of the WFAN crowd has seaped into our front office, god help us.

- A.F.O.M.G.