Some Guys are Happy!

Happy, Serious, and Blue (collar) with their friends No-Slidey, Too Oldy, Wiffy, and Murphy

Occasionally I ask rhetorically if Omar Minaya is planning to do or say anything during a regular season. When the games start, he just disappears, much like the collapse-addled teams he puts together during rotiss--uh, winter. Of course, that he doesn't go all Steve Phillips on our asses is a good thing, but I've been waiting to see whether he'd light a fire, make a trade move, fire a third base coach. Just cause, well, as embarrassed as we all are of this team, he has to be feeling it a little bit more.

Apparently the wait is over, and its worse than that Jim, he's dead. Omar's recent comments addressing Omar's recent comments are apparently Omar's way of motivating, or something, and its so backasswards that its hard to tell what he's trying to do, other than talk himself out of a jam. But trusting your tongue in a tight spot when you're Omar Minaya is like going to the bench for Joe McEwing: they'll be some entertaining flailing, but in the end, it won't work.

Whenever you see the words "Omar" and "clarify" in the title of an article, you should know to reach for your pistol. Here are my fave parts of Doh'mar's comments:

"Some people see edge as leadership. Sometimes, you need a little meanness to your game. Some people perceive leadership as meanness. I couldn't tell you that we have that type of guy. We have leaders. But everyone's perception of leadership is different. ... We have good guys, solid professionals. There is a smile on David Wright's face, a smile on Jose Reyes' face. But there is not an edge to them."

I know who's got an edge. These folks are edgy. And wouldn't you rather have some inveterate smilers on your team than some roided out, tax cheating, STD spreader (seriously, if Jeter cheats on his taxes why wouldn't he cheat in baseball?)? Of course, this is the sort of debate that made the internet the finest expression of human excellence .

Asked about those comments Friday night, the general manager seemed to contradict himself, saying: "Let's be clear: We have an edge. Our edge is different from, maybe, other teams. There's different definitions of edge or leadership. We play the game different from other guys. Some guys are serious. Some guys are happy. Some guys are blue collar.

Some guys get paid too much. Some guys are signed too long. Some guys aren't Derek Lowe. Some guys aren't Manny at a bargain rate for short years, he could have said.

"It's all subjective. I'm in the trenches. I've seen our guys, and our guys play with a lot of passion, a lot of energy. Just watch us play."

Ok, buddie. I was with you until those last words. Thinking that maybe mean old grumpy pants Marty Pants Noble should just leave you be. After all, you don't know what you're talking about half the time. But then you said it. Just Watch Us Play. Why not say "the proof is in the pudding"? Has Omar watched this team play? The only thing that any time spent watching what Omar did can do is convince you that someone doesn't know how to put a team together. You have a best player who won't slide unless he's doing it for Puerto Rico. Honestly, I think "We look great on paper" has much more of a ring of truth.

Now, there's a great divide between the weekender WFAN caller "sign Eckstein" crowd and the fanboy "Show me the formula for tru grit all of baseball is chance" gang, and who am I to take sides? But two things are sure: this team has thus far been a disappointment for 2 years, and its the same as it ever was--same guys as last year and the year before. And if the GM has to come out and publicly assert that his players have passion, well...

He noted Friday the acquisitions of Gary Sheffield and Alex Cora were intended to address the team's grit.

"We brought in different guys who have been involved in some winning, and there's a presence about Sheffield," Minaya said. "He has a presence about him."

Presense alright. He's fucking crazy and perpetually malcontented. Only unlike Manny Ramirez, his career is about done. The Gritty Alex Cora has been involved in some winning, I grant you that.

Of course immediately afterwards, the Mets went out and beat the gritful, hearty (according to Noble) Phillies, so maybe they are motivated by this kind of stuff. Or maybe they just faced Chan Ho Parking Lot.