As a diehard Broncofan, I was shocked when a text came to my cell phone stating that Mike Shanahan had been fired from the Denver Broncos.  After 14 years, owner Pat Bowlen decided it was time for a change and needed a new direction.  After 3 years of picture perfect mediocre football (24-24 in those 3 years) it makes sense to make a change.  After watching the press conference earlier today, Bowlen looked like a fool.  I lost count on how many times he said that "it was time for a new direction" and refused to elaborate why.  His press conference was nothing more than another owner taking time and really saying nothing. 

I was troubled by Bowlen's message for a few reasons.  The first one is that he didn't clarify what was wrong with the direction the Broncos were going in.  Granted, as we Bronco fans know, mediocrity doesn't get it done.  Putting a defense on the field that gave up 152 points in its final 3 games is far from acceptable.  Why not just come out and say that?  Did he not want to throw his good friend Shanahan under the bus, and sugar coat the truth?  Does he think Bronco nation is full of idiots?  Just come out and say that you haven't liked what you've seen on the field for the past 3 seasons.  We can accept that.  Heck, even Shanahan admitted he didn't get the job done. 

The second, and maybe more troubling, is that he hasn't started any kind of coaching search, or settled on how the front office will be structured.  Are you kidding?  You make this decision less than 48 hours after the Chargers embarrassed your franchise and haven't thought about who the next coach would be?  This is beyond troubling for an organization that has had 3 coaches in 25 years.  I'm not saying to name your guy, but you decide to terminate a legendary figure in your organization and Bowlen came across as if he had no clue what direction he was going to take the search for a head coach, or a GM/VP of Player Personnel. 

Third, he mentioned that Jay Cutler told him he was not upset with the decision, which contradicts Cutler's quote in the Rocky Mountain News, that he doesn't like the decision at all.  Frankly, I believe what he said in the paper, and was paying lip service to the boss and telling him what he wants to hear. 

Overall, I think this is a decision that had to be made if Shanahan would not have given up the player personnel duties.  To borrow from Bill Parcells, he can cook, but isn't all that great at shopping for the groceries.  See drafts from 2001-2005 and 2007 is all the proof needed.  I don't see Shanahan giving that up, so the move was made. 

Bronco fans, we had better hope that Bowlen puts together an extensive search for the right coach.  If it's as bad as he looked today, we may become bottomfeeders in the NFL. 

The most misleading pitching statistic is a pitcher's record.  Often times, pitchers will be saddled for losses when they pitched well enough to deserve a win.  The opposite is also true, where a pitcher can give up 5 runs in 5 innings and still get a win. 

A good example for this season is Johan Santana.  If you looked solely at his record, which is 7-7, you would say that he's had a down year.  And by the standards he's held up to, especially in NY, that is true.  But dig deeper into his numbers. 

His ERA is 2.96, which puts him 5th in the NL, and his 121.2 innings pitched puts him 3rd in the NL.  In reviewing his seven losses, the following has occurred:

Three of his losses have come when he's allowed one earned run (Atlanta, San Diego and Seattle), although he did give up a granny to a pitcher in the Seattle loss, but all those runs were unearned.   His last 3 no decisions, he has pitched 21 innings and gave up a combined 3 runs.  Not 3 runs per start, 3 runs total.  No doubt in each of those 3 starts, he deserved a W, and it's not his fault that the offensive offense put together by the "genius" Omar Minaya hasn't done squat for him.  In five of his past six starts, the Mets have scored two runs or less.  It's nearly impossible for a pitcher to pick up wins when your offense belongs in the minors.

Now, to take the opposite, let's look at Steve Trachsel from 2006.  His record in 2006 was 15-8.  Just looking at that record alone, it's a solid year.  We Mets fans who followed the run to the NLCS in 2006 know better.  His ERA that year...4.97.  Yes, an ERA of nearly 5 runs.  Now, is that a good year, or a byproduct of getting a lot of love from the first eight hitters of the lineup everytime he took to the hill?   His strikeout to walk ratio was nearly 1 to 1 (79 K's with 78 BBs) and 185 hits over 164.2 innings.  Digging deeper into Trachsel's numbers shows you that the record hardly shows what type of year he had.  And the Mets properly awarded him with nothing once the 2006 season concluded. 

The point is that records cannot be the sole gauge of how a pitcher is performing in a season, and the wins and losses are typically the first thing that is mentioned by broadcasters or the anchors on Baseball Tonight or whatever baseball show you may be watching. 

It's a common sight to see superstar athletes with a God complex that have no clue what goes on around them.  They can't see the forest from the trees in regards to their actions.  Carmelo Anthony epitomizes this. 

This comes from an article on the Denver Post (www.denverpost.com) website.  Melo was was asked if he needs to mature more.  This is how Melo was quoted in the Denver Post:  "Mature more, meaning what?  I don't feel like I did anything wrong." 

Melo, newsflash, drinking and driving is WRONG.  Then Melo just three weeks later was pulled over for speeding.  Forget setting an example to the community, but what about to your own son?  If he doesn't feel drinking and driving is wrong, then he's a complete idiot.  If he feels like he did nothing wrong, then why did the Nuggets suspend him for the first two games of the regular season?  Guys who do something wrong get suspended. 

Melo goes on to say, "The (DUI) incident I had, I didn't blame anybody.  As far as being more mature, how can somebody say that? I don't understand when they say that.  What can I do?"

How can someone say that Melo?  Simple, you got behind the wheel drunk, put other people's lives in danger and thankfully got caught by Denver police before you injured an innocent party.  Then, after getting busted for it, just a few short weeks later, while most people who get a ticket are far more careful, you get busted for a 60 in a 45 zone.  Other brilliant incidents include the DVD made several years ago in Baltimore, getting caught with weed trying to board a plane, the 15 game suspension for the brawl in Madison Square Garden to name a few incidents in your brief NBA career.  I don't recall other big names in your draft class in this much trouble. 

Melo, you are the most recognizable athlete the Nuggets have ever had.  No one has joined the Nuggets franchise with more fanfare than you.  In fact, no one, with the exception of John Elway, joined any franchise in Denver with more fanfare than you.  You have a higher expectation to live up to. 

Melo asked what more can he do.  It's simple.  Don't drink and drive.  If you get hammered, call a cab, a limo, whatever...you can afford it.  Be responsible.  That's what more you can do.  Not only are you a role model to many kids in the Denver area, most importantly, you're a role model to your son. 

Melo, ask yourself this question...would your son be proud of his father's behavior?

While the Mets are free falling and Wilie Randolph is unfairly twisting in the wind, the man behind the aging unproductive roster, Omar Minaya, has failed his manager in putting pieces in place for a successful roster in the short and long term.  It's not on Willie that his penciled in starting left fielder on opening day just needs to sneeze to land of the DL (Moises Alou).  It's not Willie that signed an aging Luis Castillo, or pulled the trigger on boneheaded moves that I mention in my last post.  So, Omar, it's time to take a page from the Boston Red Sox, and the best GM in baseball, Theo Epstein.  Look at the Red Sox roster. 

Farm System.  A key to success.  Developing players on the farm allows you to either deal blue chip talent (as the Red Sox traded Hanley Ramirez, the best SS in the NL,  to Florida for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell), or keep the talent and let them be a big part of the team's success (Jonathan Papelbon, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, among many others).  To say the Mets farm system is a disaster is too high of a compliment.  It's a disgrace.  All you have to do is look at the Mets roster to see 3 catchers on the roster (Casanova, Castro & Schneider) because there isn't any talent in New Orleans Zephyrs' outfield that would make any difference. 

Free agent signings.  It's important to spend your money wisely.  Just because there is a lot of money in the coffers doesn't guarantee success.  The Red Sox spent money wisely on Dice-K and Okajima.  The Mets spent cash on Moises Alou and Matt Wise, each spent more time on the DL than on the active roster...enough said. 

Ultimately, the key to success is a smart guy pulling the trigger.  Theo Epstein has done a remarkable job in shaping that roster with a great mix of bringing guys along in the farm system and good free agent signings.  His Mets counterpart, on the other hand, found great value in bringing in old guys like Moises Alou and Luis Castillo.  It's time for Minaya to follow the Bo Sox blueprint of building a major league roster, and history tells us Minaya is incapable of doing so.  He's just not as smart as Theo. 

I'm a die hard Mets fan, and for myself and all my fellow Mets fans, to say we are disappointed is an understatement.  It's beyond disappointment.  It's anger.  It's frustration.  With a $140 million payroll comes $140 million expectations and reality is far from the expectations.  Willie Randolph is on the hot seat, as he should be.  This team is underachieving, and fails to have any kind of fire when they'r e out there, this according to David Wright.  We've heard Billy Wagner pop off to the media wondering why he's being talked to when he didn't play.  Willie stirring up a controversy with his comments regarding how he's portrayed on SNY, which is owned by the Mets. 

I want to say on record that Willie should be fired.  From June 1st of last season on, the Mets are a below .500 team.  They had a historic collapse blowing a 7 game lead with 17 games to go, and while he claims they've gotten over it, results seem to prove otherwise. 

This Mets mess is far from the manager's fault.  It's not like the GM, Omar Minaya has done WIllie any favors in giving him the parts he needs to be successful.  Too many of Minaya's trades not only haven't worked out, but have been downright disastrous.  Let's take a look at some of the deals that Omar Minaya has made since taking over the reigns as GM. 

1.  Trading Brian Bannister to Kansas City for Ambiorix Burgos.  In 2007, Bannister went 12-9 with a 3.87 ERA in 27 starts.  This year, he has slipped to a 4-6 record with an ERA of 4.94 in 10 starts.  Burgos in that same time frame hasn't thrown a pitch in 2008, and he was 0-1 with a 3.42 ERA in 17 appearances.  I'd rather have Bannister in the five spot than the enigma that is Mike Pelfrey right now. 

2.  After the 2006 season, Minaya sent Royce Ring and Heath Bell to San Diego for Ben Johnson and Jon Adkins.  Ring is now in Atlanta and hasn't been effective for the Braves in 2008 with an ERA of 6.43.  His only year in San Diego, he went 0-1 in with a 3.60 ERA in 15 appearances.  Heath Bell has become the Joba Chamberlin of the Padres.  In 2007, Bell went 6-4 with 2 saves and an ERA of 2.02 ERA in 81 appearances.  He allowed only 60 hits in 93 2/3 innings in 2007, truly an amazing figure.  His ERA in 2008 skyrocketed to a still miniscule 2.77 ERA in 23 appearances in 2008.  Now, let's take a look at the parts the Mets got back in that deal.  Ben Johnson hit a whopping .185 in 27 at bats for the Mets in 2007, and has not been in a game this year.  He never made the roster out of spring training in 2008.  Jon Adkins is now in the Cincinnati Reds organization.  With the mess the Mets bullpen is right now, Bell would be a welcome sight in that Mets bullpen. 

3.  Also after the 2006 season, the Mets sent Matt Lindstrom and Henry Owens to Florida for Jason Vargas and Adam Bostick.  Lindstrom in 2007 had a solid season with a 3-4 record with an ERA of 3.09 in 71 apperances.  He has also been solid in 2008 with an 0-1 record with an ERA of 3.18 in 20 appearances.  Owens has been injured for much of his tenure with the Marlins.  Jason Vargas (not to be confused with Claudio Vargas who is keeping Pedro Martinez's spot in the rotation warm until Pedro returns) is currently on the DL and appeared in all of two games for the Mets in 2007 with an ERA of 12.19.  Bostick is currently in the rotation of the Mets AAA affiliate in New Orleans. 

Minaya has made some good deals, maybe the best of the bunch being acquiring John Maine and Jorge Julio for Kris Benson (Julio turned into Orlando Hernandez in a separate deal with Arizona).  Also, trading for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider for Lastings Milledge has paid dividends this year as Church has been the most consistent performer in the Mets lineup this year, and Schneider is very solid behind the plate, and has been a surprise swinging the stick.  I do think the Santana trade is a good one.  Santana may not be as dominant as we Met fans would like, but he hasn't been horrible either.

I also look at the farm system the Mets have, and a move the Mets just made tells you all you need to know.  The Mets put Moises Alou on the DL, and logic dictates calling up an outfielder, but the Mets think so poorly of their outfield at AAA right now, they brought Raul Casanova back from New Orleans.  Casanova is a CATCHER.  The Mets now have 3 catchers on the roster.  Baseball America's top 100 prospects list released at the start of the season has one prospect on that list, Fernando Martinez (#20).  Their minor league affiliates aren't exactly lighting it up.  Here are the records of the Mets minor league affiliates so far this season...

New Orleans (AAA) 21-25

Binghamton (AA) 22-23

St. Lucie (High A) 9-38

Savannah (A) 19-28

The bottom line is that this organization has a lot of issues, and it's more than just Willie.  If Minaya isn't on the hot seat, he should be. 

Also, according to the radio broadcast of the Mets, Minaya is in Denver and will address the media sometime during the game.