While Santana sparkles, Gomez impresses for Twins

Carlos Gomez went 2 for 3 with two stolen bases in his first game for the Twins. AP

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MIAMI -- In adjoining lounges adjacent to the visitors clubhouse in the afterglow of Johan Santana's efficient, heartening Mets debut, Mets executives Omar Minaya and Tony Bernazard weren't talking up Santana but rather watching TV and cheering for exciting new Twin Carlos Gomez, the kid they most hated to surrender in the trade that brought them their new ace.

After Gomez steals second with a head-first flourish, easily beating a high throw, Bernazard yells, "All right, Carlos Gomez.''

"It's a pitchout, and the catcher doesn't know what to do,'' Bernazard says. "He's going to drive everyone crazy.''

We might not know for years who wins the Santana trade -- maybe 10 years or more since power pitcher Deolis Guerra only turns 19 in a couple weeks -- but Mets people aren't going to let the comparisons drive them crazy.

Turns out the Mets' top execs still have their emotions invested in the kids they gave up. That's especially true about Gomez, who wound up going 2 or with two steals and two runs and upstaging his predecessor Torii Hunter in Hunter's Minnesota homecoming. That's at least a baby step toward Gomez showing folks that the Twins weren't really crazy for passing up Phil Hughes first, then Jon Lester or Jacoby Ellsbury later, to take Gomez and the other Mets prospects.

"They're all good kids. That's why I told people the Twins made a very good trade. I felt our players were as good or better than anyone else's,'' Minaya says.

"I love Carlos Gomez. He's my guy,'' Minaya adds, confirming what everyone long suspected.

Most folks, though, were surprised that Gomez became the Twins' guy. Some scouts wonder whether Gomez will ever hit for a high average, and one unflatteringly told me that he thought Gomez might be the next Ruben Rivera, a player with great tools who never rises above backup status.

Mets people, who think that kind of criticism is far off base, were still about the only ones not surprised that the Twins took them seriously, and eventually took their offer. They loved their own kids and were annoyed or even perturbed (yes, Bernazard was perturbed) that the media originally portrayed the Yankees and Red Sox as having the best prospects to offer for Santana. Bernazard was no less than defiant at the winter meetings, insisting that the Mets' bid was better and that they had to be right in the middle of the mix when everyone was saying that the Yankees or Red Sox were the only real contenders for Santana. Turns out the Twins agreed with the Mets.

"We gave up a lot of talent,'' Bernazard says.

Not that the Mets had a choice. Coming off the debacle that was 2007, they had to be bold. Minaya's only two rules for the Twins: 1) No Jose Reyes, and 2) not both Gomez and Fernando Martinez, the young outfielder who impressed scouts with his sweet swing this spring.

The Twins probably could have had top pitching prospect Mike Pelfrey if they wanted him instead of either of the other two pitchers they did take -- Kevin Mulvey or Phil Humber -- but interestingly enough they never asked for Pelfrey (who really struggled this spring but still got the No. 5 starter job in the hope that he can live up to his billing).

What the Twins did get stung the Mets more than folks seem to know. Gomez and Guerra (who wasn't officially added into the trade until the last minute) hurt the most.

But, as Minaya says, "When you have a chance to get Johan Santana, you have to go for it.''

My own theory why Santana will thrive

Santana's debut might have overwhelmed the outmanned Marlins, but Mets people didn't act overwhelmed. Still, Santana did strike out eight in 100 neat pitches, was perfect through three and came within one flat changeup to Josh Willingham, who turned it into a two-run homer, of being sensational. Santana touched 92 on the gun a couple times, which was up from his spring readings.

I suspect Mets people are guarding against adding to the hype and expectations. Instead of boasting about what Santana did do, Mets execs were saying they think he'll do even better. "[Twins executive] Terry Ryan told me it takes him a while to find his groove,'' Minaya said. "He really gets going after April.'' (Santana is 20-16 in April and May, and 74-28 after May.)

The Mets, as Minaya put it, "looked into everything'' regarding Santana, especially his late 2007 swoon. And they determined that there were no serious worries. "There was no dropoff in velocity,'' Minaya said. Mets people believe a fingernail issue is what caused his September slide. He was also hurt by the home run in 2007, allowing a league-high 33 of them.

But his biggest downfall was that he got killed by Cleveland. He was 0-5 against the Indians, skewing his overall 15-13 record..

Familiarity may actually be Santana's toughest foe. He has faced the Indians 30 times, 20 as a starting pitcher, and they finally caught on. But my guess is that the National League teams that haven't seen his changeup are unlikely to repeat Cleveland's success.

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