Ironic, isn’t it, that on the night the Yankees were officially eliminated from the playoffs, Johan Santana keeps the Mets from losing their minds.

Here is the secret to becoming a winning GM. It’s not that hard, and it’s a fun gig. You get all the baseball you want for free. And you make an incredible living just by being a little smarter than your counterparts.

It’s this simple for the Yankees and Mets.

If the Yankees had traded for Santana, they’d be in the playoffs. Brian Cashman fell in love with his young players, that happens sometimes. He was too close to the situation. That’s life.

If the Mets had not traded for Santana, they’d be out of the playoffs and Omar Minaya would not be getting a four-year extension.

Being a general manager is the easiest job in baseball if you just follow your baseball instincts. Sign the best players you can afford – on the free agent and amateur market. And make sure those players care more about winning than they do about anything else — except their families.

There you have it, the secret to putting together a winning team in New York or anywhere. It’s really not that hard. Everyone from owners to GMs to club officials to Media FOGMs (Friends of General Managers) will try to tell you it is so difficult.

But it’s not.

I’ll give the owners a pass on this one because they are getting their information directly from GMs — who are trying to make it look like they have the toughest job in the world. They don’t.

Follow my simple plan and you too become a winning GM.