On the Mets beat

Got to be asked. It's now pretty obvious that the Mets blew it by not trading for Manny Ramirez by the July 31 deadline, considering that the Dodgers grabbed him in a three-team deal for virtually nothing. The Red Sox even paid the $8 million left on his contract. Didn't seem to hurt Boston much -- if at all -- but it was everything to the Dodgers.

So now what? Do the Mets, who badly need some righthanded power help, give Man-Ram the four-year, $85-million contract he's reportedly looking for? Or is it more important to spend the money on K-Rod or CC Sabathia? You can't have 'em all.

I'd be wary of Man-Ran. He went into Operation Shutdown in Boston just to prevent the Sox from picking up the one-year, $20-million team option for 2009. Incredibly, he got his wish by getting that option wiped out as part of the trade. Will Ramirez be as motivated after getting his next contract, which is essentially his retirement fund? That's a big if.

Not a bad lineup, though, with Ramirez in the middle of it. Probably won't have to worry about scoring a total of five runs on the final weekend.

I'm really on the fence about Ramirez. The Mets really need a closer, and if they have to pay someone like K-Rod or Brian Fuentes, that doesn't leave a lot of money for Ramirez. But if I was going to sign Manny, it might be a good idea to bring Pedro back with some kind of incentive-laden contract. Pedro is tight with Manny and that would help keep him in check.

Anyway, my colleague Wally Matthews says "No way" on Manny and you can read his take here. Feel free to sound off in the comments section below. I'm enjoying the debate on K-Rod.

I was totally on board with the Mets cutting K-Rod a check, regardless of the price, but I'm starting to rethink my position after watching him during these past two games.

Sure, he gave up that game-winning home run to J.D. Drew on Friday. Whatever. That happens. I'm not going to kill him for that.

What I didn't like was what I saw Sunday night.

-- Didn't throw that hard (33 pitches, 96 mph once, 95 four times).

-- Too much off-speed stuff.

-- Way too much whining about the strike zone. If you're getting squeezed or not, a closer can't lose his composure.

-- And what's with yelling at your team after coming off the mound? There was K-Rod, screaming at the dugout, "Let's go!" as if imploring the Angels to score some runs. If I was Mark Teixeira, I'd be like, "Easy pal. We're trying over here. Maybe if you didn't tee up that changeup on Friday, we wouldn't have our backs against the wall."

-- Mariano Rivera doesn't do that. Heck, Billy Wagner doesn't even do that.

Five years and $75 million? In this economy? I'm not so sure.

The Mets got their man Friday when Jerry Manuel agreed to a two-year extension worth roughly $2 million with a team option for 2011. Manuel did a good job and deserved to come back, but the risk on the Mets' part is pretty small. Two years is not much security for a manager -- even Willie Randolph, with no experience, got three in his first contract -- but Manuel really had no choice, especially when he heard footsteps from Bobby Valentine.

If he turned down the opportunity to manage what is likely to be a $150-million team next year, and again a playoff favorite, it would have been a big mistake, as my colleague Ken Davidoff points out.

As for K-Rod, that was one costly pitch he threw to J.D. Drew last night, and I'm not even talking about what it meant for the Angels, who are looking at 2-0 death knell with the series returning to Fenway. When you're days away from free agency, it helps to have a huge October -- see Beltran, Carlos -- and K-Rod serving up that home run was not great for his resume.

Fred and Jeff, write that one down on the yellow legal pad and circle it for those negotiating sessions come November and December.

Drove back from Philly last night after watching CC Sabathia look human at Citizens Bank Park. It was his fourth consecutive start on three-days' rest, and is it possible that Sabathia is getting a little worn out from carrying the Brewers on his shoulders for a month?

I talked to John Smoltz about that before Game 1 of the NLDS, but you can read more on the subject later in the weekend when I should have a Sabathia story ready for your reading enjoyment.

As for the Mets, wrapping up a three-year extension for Omar Minaya was a breeze compared to the bumpy ride they're having with Jerry Manuel at the moment. I know there's a bunch of you out there who can't understand why Minaya got three years -- with two club options -- especially coming off a pair of September collapses.

But the Wilpons like Minaya, they like the stability they have in place now with him as GM, and staying the course is preferable to scrambling the front office as they head into Citi Field next season. The Mets haven't made the playoffs since 2006, but they are making money. Lots of it. And will make even more as soon as the door to the new building swings open next April.

With Manuel, there is a much different mindset. The Mets want to bring him back. They really do. But it's a question of his value. As they see it, Manuel was a coach for the past four years, then got lucky to be in the right place at the right time when Willie Randolph was fired.

There's no question that Manuel deserves credit for helping to salvage the season. Also, he was brilliant at handling the media and we all loved him for it. Personally I think it would be great if Jerry came back. From a reporter's standpoint,you couldn't ask for a better manager, and it helps to have a sense of humor in this environment.

But the Mets want him at a price they feel is reasonable, and that's how all negotiations start. Just because there is a disagreement at the moment doesn't mean a new deal won't get done. I'd still wager on Manuel returning, but those odds could get longer with each passing day. And if Bobby Valentine officially throws his hat in the ring -- from Japan -- all bets are off.

Just in case things get messy, I threw together this short list of possible candidates for today's paper. Thought I'd save you the extra step and just post it.

Filling Jerry's cleats?

Other candidates for Mets manager:

BOBBY VALENTINE, manager, Chiba Lotte Marines. Brilliant field manager with New York experience. Has good relationship with GM Omar Minaya and seems to have patched things up with the Wilpons after his firing in 2002.

RUDY JARAMILLO, hitting coach, Rangers. Was interviewed for Mets' vacancy before Willie Randolph got the job in 2005. Considered one of the best hitting coaches in the game. That couldn't hurt, given the Mets' offensive woes down the stretch.

LARRY BOWA, third-base coach, Dodgers. Fiery attitude might be wake-up call the Mets need if this core stays together. Worked alongside Joe Torre in the Bronx and now in L.A., but may want to come back east.

DAVEY JOHNSON, manager, Team USA. Estranged former Mets manager wore a Mets hat during this past July's Futures Game, but he has kept his distance from organization. Seems reluctant to return to majors.

MANNY ACTA, manager, Nationals. With the D.C. franchise in total disarray, maybe the Nats would let him out of his contract. His coaching staff already was fired on the final day of the regular season. Close ties with Minaya and assistant GM Tony Bernazard.

Is that a good thing?

The Mets have scheduled a conference call at 11 a.m. to announce a three-year extension for general manager Omar Minaya, which locks him up through the 2012 season. The presumption is that the Mets will have exorcised their September demons by then.

Whether or not Jerry Manuel will be the manager to get them over that hurdle remains to be seen. Removing the interim label from Manuel was supposed to be a slam dunk this week and the Mets had expected to hold a news conference by Wednesday or Thursday. Ideally, that might have helped them move past this season's fold a little quicker.

Last year, Minaya made a public decision on Willie Randolph's future after letting him dangle for 48 hours, but Randolph was in the first year of his own three-year, $5.65-million extension. This time, the Mets already have offered Manuel a two-year contract, but he has yet to accept it. Why?

Manuel probably thinks he can do better than a two-year deal. After all, Randolph got a three-year extension, and Manuel can argue that he deserves the same, at the very least. Manuel has six years of experience as manager of the White Sox on his resume and he helped salvage the Mets season after taking over for the fired Randolph on June 17. Plus, Manuel is immensely popular in the clubhouse.

If this drags on, however, Manuel has to be careful not to overplay his hand. Bobby Valentine may enjoy managing in Japan, but an offer from the Mets could bring him back to the States.

Two bizarre stories from the Mets yesterday -- but very different. Johan Santana was the best pitcher on the planet in September, despite pitching on a bad knee. I don't know what else to say about Ambiorix Burgos. It was humorous in a stupid way when he had $270,000 worth of jewelry stolen out of a shaving kit in his hotel room during spring training. But then he was arrested for allegedly beating up his girlfriend and now it appears he was involved in a hit-and-run accident that killed two women. Sad. Very sad.

This makes what Johan Santana did on Saturday even more impressive. He pitched a three-hit shutout on a bad knee. The Mets revealed minutes ago that Santana underwent successful surgery today to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. Here's the official release:

FLUSHING, N.Y., October 1, 2008 – Mets Medical Director Dr. David Altchek and Team Physician Dr. Struan Coleman from the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan today successfully performed arthroscopic surgery on Mets pitcher Johan Santana's left knee to treat a torn meniscus.

Santana had torn his meniscus prior to his final start of the season, but was able to work through the injury.

He is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for Spring Training.

UPDATE: As is turns out, Santana pitched the whole month of September with the knee problem and still went 4-0 with a 1.83 ERA. Here's the full story.