Also Roberto Alomar, Mike Stanton and Tom Glavine.
Well:
Alomar was a trade, and not a terrible one at that. I can't blame Steve Phillips for making the trade, because I thought it was awesome when it was done.
Stanton - agreed.
Glavine - eh.....the QuesTec system has really thrown him off this season. I didn't appreciate his constant bitching about the system, but I can accept his excuse for his off-base pitches not being counted as strikes throwing him off. But if he continues to whine this year, and still be lackluster on the mound, then yeah - we have another bust.
Joining the Mets being a good career move: Piazza (though his stats have declined a little), Leiter, Olerud, Hampton, Ventura..........for now, that's about it off the top of my head. They do seem to have bad luck when it comes to bringing players in, but they aren't always unsuccessful. I mean, hell, they DID make it to the World Series three years ago. It's not like nothing ever works out for them. But yeah, they do have an ugly streak when it comes to picking up players and making trades.
Also Traschel has been better with the Mets than the other teams he was with. Especially after that stint in the minors in 2001. He still pitches as slow as molasses, though ("throw the ball" is one of the best chants in the majors recently).