BY : Mike Rifkin
On Wednesday, Mets GM and President of Baseball Ops David Stearns spoke to the media after the Mets were eliminated in the NLCS. Stearns echoed the thoughts of Manager Carlos Mendoza in hoping this season will be the start of continued success. But for that to happen Stearns is going to have to be very aggressive this winter, and with Steve Cohen’s checkbook anything is possible.
Stearns said the Mets have financial flexibility this winter, and went on to say “ It means that pretty much the entirety of of the player universe is potentially accessible to us. That’s an enormous opportunity. I envision us taking advantage of that opportunity, and being aggressive in certain spaces.” So, how should Stearns approach the winter? The Mets not only have financial flexibility, they also have some positions with an abundance of talent.
STARTING WITH THEIR OWN
The Mets themselves have 10 players set to hit free agency. Pete Alonso, Harrison Bader, Jose Iglesias, Sean Manea, JD Martinez, Adam Ottavino, Jose Quintana, Luis Severino, Ryne Stanek, and Jesse Winker are all going to hit the market, so which should Stearns bring back?
ALONSO : Pete had a down season for his standards, but in the playoffs came up clutch multiple times. Stearns said “Pete’s a great Met, I hope we have him back.” He also said he and Pete have not spoke face to face on his contract, but he was very invested. Most Met fans would like to see Alonso be a Met for life, and if he is he will break all the power records for the organization.
Manea, Quintana, Severino : The Mets rotation was a massive question mark entering the season, and Stearns took flyers on Manea and Severino and they exceeded the fans’ expectations for them. Severino threw his most innings in six years. Manea threw a career high 181.2 innings pitched. Quintana threw his most innings in five seasons, and all three ran out of gas against the Dodgers, but all three had fantastic seasons for the Mets.
BADER : One of the things David Stearns said when he was first hired, was to improve the defense. Enter Harrison Bader, who is a former Gold Glove winner. Bader, who in a platoon hit 12 homers and drove in 51 runs, and had some clutch hits for the Mets throughout the season. He also brings a speed element.
IGLESIAS : The guy who changed the vibes of the team with his “OMG” song. Iglesias plays really good defense, while having a slash line of .337/.381/.448. Iglesias also had some massive hits this season.
MARTINEZ : The Mets have had a hole at DH since MLB incorporated the universal DH. JD Martinez has been one of the best hitters in baseball the last few seasons, but he didn’t sign until March, so it took a while for him to get going. He ended the season with 16 homers, but he ended the regular season ice cold, and eventually wasn’t playing in the playoffs.
WINKER/STANEK : Two guys the Mets acquired at the trade deadline and both had some big moments in the playoffs. Winker in the playoffs had a homer and four RBI with a slash line of .318/.531/.636. He also is a tremendous value in the clubhouse. Stanek on the other hand really struggled in the regular season with an ERA over six, but in the playoffs he had a 3.38 ERA, and became the second most reliable reliever behind Diaz.
WHO WOULD I BRING BACK : ALONSO, MANEA, IGLESIAS, WINKER, STANEK.
SOTO FACTOR : The top free agent on the market will be 26 year old Juan Soto. Soto has shown the ability to play in New York, with what he has done for the Yankees this season. The Mets have gotten close looks at Soto during his days with the Nationals. Soto in 78 games against the Mets is hitting .289 with 19 homers, 46 RBIS and 46 runs scored. Now Soto is going to command an Ohtani like contract, and if it comes down to the highest bidder, Steve Cohen has the checkbook for that, although they will face stiff competition from the Yankees in order to get him.
PITCHING MATTERS : Stearns said about the rotation “This isn’t new to us, we had a similar task last offseason. Some of that could be from those guys returning. We’re going to have to add multiple starters.” As I mentioned above the trio of Manea, Quintana, and Severino I would only bring back Manea. As good as Severino was, there’s a large injury history there and I am not sure he can stay healthy for a second consecutive season. Quintana, as solid as he was had ups and downs, and he will be 36 years old at the start of next season.
Corbin Burnes, who pitched for David Stearns in Milwaukee is the top free agent starting pitcher on the market. Burnes, who won a CY Young under Stearns, will finish in the top five of CY Young voting again this season. Burnes along with Braves lefty Max Fried top the market. Blake Snell can opt out of his deal with the Giants, and Shane Bieber is coming off of Tommy John Surgery. The Mets are also going to have to bring in some more swing and miss out of the bullpen. Even if Stanek is back, they’ll need to address the pen.
TRADES : The Mets not only have financial flexibility, they have position flexibility as well. With the development of some of their farm talent, does that make players on the Major League roster available. Three names I’d keep an eye on if the Mets were to deal for some pitching are Jeff McNeil, Starling Marte and Brett Baty. Luis Angel Acuna’s development along with the impending return of Ronnie Mauricio could put McNeil’s spot in jeopardy.
We heard what Stearns said to the media. This winter we’ll have to see what he comes up with to help a team that was on the brink of the World Series and was the best team in Baseball since June first.
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