The Mets, if they are ever going to climb out of the hole they’ve dug for themselves, are going to need to make some gutsy moves during the offseason. The first of which should be dealing their best starting pitcher while the gettin’ is good.
The Mets, and in particular, General Manager, Sandy Alderson, have their work cut out for them during the upcoming offseason. Alderson, when juxtaposed against his cross-town rival, Brian Cashman, has a long history of being over-cautious when making decisions that affect the 25 players in the clubhouse who are charged with making the franchise a winning one.
If he follows the same course this winter, Mets fans should be in an uproar.
The Mets need help everywhere, but you have to start somewhere. And the best place to start is to begin dismantling the starting pitching staff which was once the pride of baseball. Alderson can’t get a bag of peanuts now for someone like Steven Matz, who has been riddled with injuries and inconsistency since he appeared on the Mets scene.
Matt Harvey is in the final year of Met’s control and will be a free agent at the end of the 2018 season. Normally, this would make him a prime target for a trade with the understanding neither the team nor Harvey would consider a multi-year contract with the Mets.
Unfortunately, Harvey continues to decelerate his “desirability,” due to ineffectiveness since his return from multiple stints on the DL. Which has reduced his value when other teams look at his sub-.500 career record, together with numerous escapades and distractions over the years that leave him in limbo when other teams look at how he might “fit in” to their clubhouse.
Noah Syndergaard was lost to the Mets back on May 1 under cloudy circumstances when the organization succumbed to his refusal of an MRI that subsequently caused an injury and the ultimate demise of the team as a contender in the NL East.
Syndergaard is young and will bounce back, and because the Mets cannot afford to completely decimate their starting staff, he should be “deal-proof” over the winter.
Mets lone trade chip
The same, however, should not be said of Jacob deGrom, who went 15-10 with an ERA of 3.53 ERA and more importantly logged 201 innings during a season when Terry Collins was desperate for someone, anyone, to show up to provide a lift to the team and a beleaguered bullpen.
deGrom, unlike the other Mets starters, has value. He can bring the Mets whatever Alderson decides they need (first).
Alderson gets paid to do this work for the Wilpon brothers; I don’t. But let’s start with bringing in a real major catcher to replace Travis D’arnaud, who has had more lives than a cat with the Mets.
And then, how about looking for a third baseman to replace David Wright, who as much as he is beloved by Mets fans have reached the end and no longer can be figured in the Mets plans ever again.
And the list of needs goes on and one, but the one fact remains the Mets need an overhaul of the team, and they need it before the season begins. Build the team around Michael Conforto and Amed Rosario and go from there.
Spend some money where you have to. Lance Lynn, starting pitcher of the Cardinals, will replace the 200 quality innings thrown by deGrom just as a for instance. Corner outfielders will be available, but not cheap, and this includes Mets salary castoff, Jay Bruce.
And then we have this.
Look, in case you haven’t guessed, I am not a fan of the Mets organization. And until the Wilpon brothers show a determination to enter the 21st Century, even if it means joining another ill-fated deal with Bernie Madoff (just kidding), this team will remain irrelevant in a city that deserves winning baseball.
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
