New York Mets Win Johan Santana Sweepstakes

Early on it looked like the Johan Santana Sweepstakes was going to be between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, but the New York Mets swept in and got the Minnesota Twins pitcher.

The New York Mets now have a legitimate ace after having to rely on an aging Tom Glavine and injured Pedro Martinez for the past couple of seasons. The New York Mets got the ace in Johan Santana that they needed but the cost was a big hit to the farm system.

The New York Mets had to give up four prospects including Carlos Gomez, probably their best position prospect, and Phillip Humber, one of their top pitching prospects. Earlier this offseason the New York Mets made one of those awful trades that only their organization can make when they sent Lastings Milledge to Washington. With Milledge and Gomez out of the picture the Mets will have to depend on Endy Chavez and Ryan Church in right and left field.

A lot of baseball fans and experts have been very critical of the New York Mets for not making any moves this offseason but the addition to Johan Santana is the most impactful move that any of the National League East teams made this offseason.

The Philadephia Phillies have added Pedro Feliz to play third base and Brad Lidge as a closer. The Atlanta Braves added Mark Kotsay to play in center field and added Tom Glavine to their pitching rotation but lost Andruw Jones and Edgar Renteria. The Florida Marlins biggest move was trading away their best player Miguel Cabrera along with Dontrelle Willis. The Washington Nationals most significant move was getting Lastings Milledge from the Mets.

The addition of Johan Santana bolsters the New York Mets starting pitching quite a bit. Johan Santana will be the ace and if Pedro Martinez is anywhere close to healthy he'll be a good number two pitcher. After that the New York Mets have John Maine and Oliver Perez, a combo that both had ERAs in the 3's last year, and El Duque, who has been good when healthy, but is rarely healthy. The New York Mets could also give Mike Pelfrey another on the major league roster.

If the New York Mets offense plays like it can then the Mets should be the best in the National League East as far as their lineup and starting pitching go. The bullpen is still a concern for the New York Mets but the closer Billy Wagner, and the possibility of Duaner Sanchez and Aaron Heilman pitching well are far better than the other team's options.