SantanAAAHHHH!

Rumors continue to circulate that the Mets are serious contenders in the Johan Santana sweepstakes.  Earlier reports had stated that the Mets would need to include Jose Reyes in any deal for Santana, but multiple sources confirm that the Twins and Mets are continuing to talk with the understanding that Reyes is unavailable. The current offer is a four man package centering around Carlos Gomez.

I would speculate that the other four in that deal might be Mike Pelfrey, Kevin Mulvey and Aaron Heilman. Philip Humber and Fernando Martinez could also be involved, but Humber is apparently not highly valued by other clubs, and I don’t believe that the Mets would include both of their young centerfielders in one deal.

I believe that the Twins are reluctant to send away a former cy young for a collection of prospects and my gut feeling is that this deal does not get done. That said, if Omar was able to pull off this trade without losing either of our young established starters (Maine and Perez) or our top prospect (Fernando Martinez), I would be extremely pleased. The main stream media has made it clear that Santana would agree to a contract extension before any trade is completed, an important fact which allows teams to pursue him without fear that he will opt for free agency after only one season with his new team.

The Mets desperately need Santana. The rotation lacks a true ace and Omar’s offseason following last year’s debacle has been less than overwhelming. The Mets are raising ticket prices and moving into Citi Field in 2009. Teaming Santana with Maine and Perez would give the Mets a potent Top 3 that would make them instant contenders in the weak National League. I believe that Omar has to be extremely aggressive in pursuing Santana. Including 5 or 6 prospects should not be out of the question. Omar’s ability to complete this deal will define the Mets offseason and possibly the next several years.