Mets Land Johan Santana

In a recent article on the Phillies, I said that the Phillies have improved while the Mets had not. Now, the Mets have acquired Johan Santana, the most coveted prize of the offseason. The deal could be nullified if the Mets fail to extend Johan Santana's contract, but that is unlikely. The Mets have come all this way knowing what Johan Santana wanted, so they won't bail out now.

Most notably, the Mets gave up very little in the Johan Santana deal. They lost outfielder Carlos Gomez, who was once a high-ranked prospect but has yet to prove he can hit. Of the three pitchers they traded, only one (Guerra) has the stuff to be a number one starter, and he's still a kid in the minor league system. Johan Santana was dirt cheap for the Mets.

Johan Santana going to the Mets changes the face of the NL East. The Mets offense was only slightly less impressive than the Phillies offense, but the pitching - before today - was heavily in the Phillies favor. The Mets now have the best starting rotation in the division and possibly in the league. Johan Santana is the best pitcher in baseball. He'll be followed by Pedro, one of the better #2 starters, and John Maine, a potential future ace.

That's all on paper. The Mets are the better looking team, but they still have some changes to make. Changes that neither Johan Santana nor any player could make. They are maturity changes. The collapse of 2007 still pervades the psyche of the Mets. Many of them mouth off, like Billy Wagner, saying the Mets are the third best team in the NL East. The Mets need to grow up, plain and simple. They need to take baseball as the business it is, or every Johan Santana in the world won't turn them around.

Still, adding Johan Santana is nothing but good news for the Mets. It restores the Mets' confidence in themselves. Not to mention that Johan Santana was unhittable in the American League. In the National League, where pitchers bat, Johan Santana should dominate. He's just what the Mets needed.