2026 Mets Preview

Boy, David Stearns had himself a very busy offseason, didn't he? The Mets President and GM ostensibly turned over almost half of the roster from last year. Gone are Brandon Nimmo, Edwin Diaz, Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Starling Marte, Ryan Stank, Ryan Helsey, Tyler Rogers, Cedric Mullins and Frankie Montas. Replacing them are Devin Williams, Marcus Semien, Jorge Polanco, Bo Bichette, Luis Robert Jr, Luke Weaver, Freddy Peralta, Richard Lovelady, Tobias Myers and Carson Benge. 

If you were vacationing the last four and a half months in a place that didn't have internet access - the moon, for instance - you're in for one helluva shock when you get your yearbook.

That 2025 was a huge disappointment would be putting it mildly. After signing Juan Soto to a record-breaking 15 year, $765 million contract, the Amazins were expected to not only make the postseason, but go all the way to the World Series. Instead, they endured a historic four-month implosion that began in mid-June. Clearly, some changes had to be made. The only question is will those changes be enough to wash the taste of last year out of the organization's mouth.

Frankly, I have my doubts. Don't get me wrong, the additions of Bichette, Polanco, Semien and Robert Jr will bring balance to a batting order that was top heavy last season. And for the first time in four years, the Mets finally have an ace in their starting rotation in Peralta. I'm also very high on Nolan McLean and think he has the potential to be an elite pitcher in the majors. 

But when I look objectively at this roster, there are some red flags. For one, defense. Robert Jr will be fine in center, as will Semien at second. But Bichette is a natural shortstop who's never played third, and if you thought Alonso was an adventure at first, Polanco has played exactly one inning - actually one pitch - at the position his entire professional career. For a GM who stressed run prevention at the conclusion of last season, you'd have to admit, that's a pretty odd way of addressing it.

Then there's the bullpen, which was the primary culprit in last season's implosion. Losing Diaz - the best closer the franchise has had since Billy Wagner - to the Dodgers for what amounted to $3 million over three years is THE definition of malpractice. Hoping Williams regains the form he had with the Brewers is the biggest gamble since Custer said, "One more for the road, boys."

The starting rotation is also problematic. After Peralta and Clay Holmes, the drop-off is immense. As I said above, I think McLean is legit, but what if he isn't? What if he needs another year at Syracuse? And then there's Kodai Senga. Can he rebound from a disastrous 2025, or is this it for him? As for David Peterson and Sean Manaea, who knows what to expect from them. You'd have to be an incurable optimist to think this rotation can carry a team all the way to a World Series. 

And then there's the manager. While Carlos Mendoza wasn't the architect of last season's train wreck, he has to shoulder some of the blame, most notably how he handled the pitching staff. Should this team get off to a poor start, like it did in 2024, it's hard to see him surviving to the All-Star Break. Fair or not, the expectations for this franchise are still high. A second consecutive season missing the playoffs will not be tolerated by Steve Cohen. 

Now for my predictions. Last year, the Mets finished 83-79; the year before that, they went 89-73. Mike Puma of The New York Post has them going 95-67 this season and winning the National League East. I'm a bit less bullish. I have them going 88-74. While that won't be enough to win the NL East, it should be enough to clinch a Wild Card spot. And if Senga and Williams regain their previous form, they could challenge the Phillies for the division. However, that's a big if.

Here's how I see each division breaking down:

NL East:

Phillies

Braves

Mets

Marlins

Nationals

NL Central:

Brewers

Cubs

Cardinals

Reds

Pirates

NL West:

Dodgers

Padres

Giants

Diamondbacks

Rockies

AL East:

Blue Jays

Yankees

Red Sox

Orioles

Rays

AL Central:

Tigers

Guardians

Twins

Royals

White Sox

AL West:

Mariners

Rangers

Astros

Angels

A's

NL Wild Cards: Braves, Mets, Cubs

AL Wild Cards: Yankees, Red Sox, Guardians

World Series: Blue Jays over Phillies 4-2

As with all my predictions, take them with a grain of salt. 

A very large grain of salt. 

Welcome to the New York Brewers

It's hard to believe that a year ago this month, the Mets, fresh off an NLCS appearance against the Dodgers, signed the top free agent of the offseason, and arguably the best player in baseball, Juan Soto, to a 15 year, $765 million contract. Steve Cohen could've run for mayor and he would've won in a landslide. The Flushing Faithful had visions of a parade down the Canyon of Heroes dancing in their heads.

What a difference a year makes. After jumping out to a huge lead in the National League East in mid-June, the Amazins slowly imploded over the last three and half months of the season. Not only did they not win the World Series, they didn't even qualify for the playoffs. A Mets team with a $342 million payroll lost out to a Cincinnati Reds team with a $119 million payroll.

David Stearns, the man hired by Cohen to run the organization, quickly went to work. On November 23, he traded outfielder Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers for second baseman Marcus Semien. So far, so good. While Nimmo was a fan favorite, as I wrote at the time, he was hardly Ted Williams. Semien may have had an off year in '25, but he is generally viewed as an outstanding fielder who will solidify the Mets infield. Stearns apparently meant it when he said he would focus on "run prevention."

Next, Stearns signed Devin Williams - another ex-Yankee - to a three-year, $51 million contract. While Williams struggled in the Bronx, he had three very good years in Milwaukee. As a set-up man to Edwin Diaz, the Mets would finally have what they'd been looking for since the days of Orosco and McDowell: a devastating one-two punch at the back of the bullpen.

The off-season was shaping up very nicely. Mets fans eagerly anticipated the Winter meetings where the expectation was that Stearns - with the aid of Cohen's checkbook - would trade for Tarik Skubal and sign either Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger. No one, and I mean no one, was prepared for what happened next.

It began on December 9, when the Dodgers signed Diaz to a three-year, $69 million contract. Losing Diaz to the team that had beaten them in '24 was bad enough, but losing him over what amounted to $3 million over three years left a very bad taste in the mouths of every fan. As I wrote at the time, this was an epic failure for the organization.

But what followed the very next day shook the Flushing Faithful to their core. Pete Alonso, the franchise home-run king, who, like Diaz, had opted out of his contract, was signed by the Baltimore Orioles to a five-year, $155 million deal. Adding insult to injury was the revelation that the Mets didn't even bother to make the Polar Bear an offer. All we know for certain is that Stearns wasn't willing to go more than three years.

For the last couple of days I've been trying to wrap my head around what happened. I've gone from shock to anger to frustration and finally to profound sadness. The team that was two wins away from going to the World Series in '24 is now being broken up and there's not a damn thing I, or any other Mets fan, can do about it. Yes, they severely underachieved last year, but typically rosters that underachieve are bolstered, not split apart.

Let's get something straight: this was not an accident; it was deliberate. Nor was it about run prevention. If it were, would the Mets have allowed their best run preventer to walk for a measly $1m per year? No, what this was about was transforming a franchise that in 2025 paid almost $80 million in luxury tax for a team that won 83 games. If you want to know what Stearns' vision for the Mets is, go to Spotrac and take a gander at the Milwaukee Brewers 2025 payroll. Now add $61.8 million - the exact amount Soto will make next season - $19 million in retained salaries for Frankie Montas and Nimmo, plus another $20 million and you have next year's payroll for the Mets. That's right folks: $238 million, $6 million below the tax threshold for 2026.

That means no Skubal, no Tucker, no Bellinger and no Robert Suarez, who signed with the Atlanta Braves for three years, $45 million. For the foreseeable future Dollar Store Dave will continue to shop for bargains and team-friendly contracts. Don't be surprised if Paul Goldschmidt ends up replacing Alonso at first base next season. As for the starting rotation: Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat will be given every chance to make it. 

Why? That's the sixty-four thousand dollar question. Why would an organization owned by a multi-billionaire suddenly get so tight with its money? Circle this date on your calendar: December 1, 2026. That's when the current CBA between the owners and the players expires.

Over the last 53 years there have been eight labor disputes: four players strikes and four owners lockouts. The most damaging of these disputes occurred in 1994 when the players went on strike over a proposed salary cap by the owners. That resulted in the cancellation of the World Series for the first time since 1904. It would take major league baseball several years to recover from the damage to its reputation. 

I believe we are headed towards another work stoppage, only this time I think the owners are serious about implementing some kind of cap. Maybe not as severe and exacting as the one the NHL adopted after its successful lockout in 2005; but perhaps something along the lines of the apron system currently employed by the NBA.

Unlike '94, however, most of these owners have the financial wherewithal to withstand a long work stoppage, meaning we could be looking at a year or more of no baseball. In fact, I wouldn't be at all surprised if the players went on strike sometime in the late summer if they think the owners are going to lock them out in December.

If the owners are successful in implementing their cap, any team above that cap when play resumes will either have to shed salary or face severe penalties; and by penalties I don't mean paying a luxury tax. Now you know why Cohen went from Daddy Warbucks to Scrooge in just a few days. You don't have to shed what you don't have. Which makes you wonder why he went after Soto in the first place. Imagine what the Mets could've done with that money.

Bottom line: Stearns hasn't gone rogue; he's doing this at the behest of his employer. 

Welcome to the New York Brewers, people. Get used to it. 

Dollar Store Dave Strikes Again

I won't mince words here. Losing Edwin Diaz to the Dodgers was an epic failure for David Stearns and the Mets organization. And the way it went down will sting for a very long time. 

To sum up, here's what happened. After the season ended, Diaz opted out of his contract that still had two years remaining with an AAV of $20.4 million. Stearns offered him a three-year deal with an AAV of $22 million. So, basically, the Mets offered inarguably their best pitcher, and arguably their third best player, a pay increase of $1.6 million. They then told his agent to "circle back" to them in the event another team came to the table with a higher offer.

For those not familiar with the art of negotiating, Stearns broke every rule in the book. First, he knew Diaz was not happy with his contract, hence the opting out; second, his offer of a $1.6 million raise was an insult to his closer; and third, he added insult to that injury by actually having the nerve to tell his agent to "circle back" to him if he received a higher offer. In other words, Stearns could've offered more and he chose not to. 

Don't blame Diaz for this. He went with the higher offer. Free agents do that all the time. And don't blame the Dodgers. What were they supposed to do, not sign him? The blame here lies squarely with Stearns. 

I spent 25 years in sales, 13 of them in retail. It is an axiom among people in my profession that you never allow the customer to walk without making your best offer. And above all else you never say "if you find a better price bring it back to me." You might as well kiss that customer goodbye. My managers would always chide me whenever I got pissed that I lost a sale. "Don't blame the customer," they would say. "It's your fault for not closing them."

They were right.

If Stearns could've offered more, he should've done so before the Dodgers got into the act. Going cheap the way he did made it that much easier for them to swoop in and sign him. And as far as "circling back," let's get something straight: there is no obligation on the part of a player agent to give the home team the last shot. Juan Soto was a special case. Scott Boras knew he had a bidding war between three teams; two of which were the Yankees and Mets. It was in his client's best interest to drag the process out as long as possible. Most teams know, or at least are told, that they need to make their best offer up front. The irony in this fiasco is that after the season Stearns said his primary focus would be "run prevention." Well he just let his number one run preventer leave.

My fear is that this isn't a one-off. I'm not a betting man, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if Pete Alonso is wearing a Red Sox uniform next year. The Mets were lucky last offseason. Alonso had an off year in 2024. That gave them the leverage they needed to re-sign him to a team-friendly deal. However he rebounded very nicely in '25 to have one of his best seasons as a Met. You can bet the ranch Boras will find a team that will be willing to meet his demands; whether that's Boston or Baltimore - the other team rumored to be interested in signing Pete.

And if Alonso leaves, you can flush next season down the drain. I'm serious. Who do you think provided Soto all that protection in the lineup? How many more times would he have been intentionally walked without the Polar Bear batting behind him? Even with Alonso, the Mets were a top heavy team. Without him, they'd be the fucking S.S. Poseidon on New Year's Eve. [If you don't know the reference there, you're too young.]

Why would a team owned by Steve Cohen, a billionaire 23 times over, be so penny wise and dollar foolish? I think the below chart might offer an explanation. 

Several things stand out. 1. Only the Dodgers had a larger payroll going into 2025 than the Mets; 2. the Mets made $444 million in revenue in '24, $308 million less than the Dodgers; and 3. they spent 90 percent of that revenue on salaries plus luxury tax, by far the largest percentage of any team in the majors. And that includes the $61 million Soto is getting.

I have no way of proving it, but I think Cohen didn't expect to win the Soto sweepstakes. The prevailing sentiment was that if the offers were close, he would return to the Bronx. Indeed, the Mets bid was only $5 million more than the Yanks. As elated as the fanbase was at the time, in retrospect, Stearns could've used that money to beef up a pitching staff, which as we know all too well, was terrible last season. While the Yankees used the savings to sign Max Fried, who went 19-5 with an ERA of 2.86, the Mets went with a rotation of Moe, Larry, Curly and Shemp.

It's entirely possible that Stearns has been told by Cohen to trim payroll wherever possible and seek out more team-friendly contracts. That was his specialty when he was with the Milwaukee Brewers. While the Dodgers are putting together a package to land Tarik Skubal, the Flushing Faithful may have to be satisfied with getting Devin Williams.

I hope I'm wrong; I hope Pete re-signs with the Mets and they get a big-name starter. I'm just not getting my hopes up. 39 years of frustration can make a cynic out of even the Pope.

And he's a White Sox fan. 

Nimmo the First Domino to Fall for Stearns

After the season ended, GM David Stearns said his primary offseason focus would be "run prevention." Well on Sunday, Stearns made the first of what is likely to be several moves meant to address that need. The Mets traded fan favorite Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers for gold glover second baseman Marcus Semien. The Mets also sent $5 million to the Rangers. In order for the deal to be completed, Nimmo was required to waive his no-trade clause.

Semien batted a career-low year .230 in 2025 with 15 home runs and 62 RBIs in 127 games. Two years ago, he batted .276 with 29 HRs and 100 RBIs in 162 games, and had 10 postseason RBIs to help the Rangers win the World Series. Obviously, the Mets are hoping he regains his '23 form. Nimmo batted .262 with 25 HRs and 92 RBIs in 155 games last season.

At first glance it appears as if Stearns is trading offense for defense, but it's far more complicated than that. It's no secret that the Mets had a problem at second base last season. Jeff McNeil, Brett Baty and Luisangel Acuna all took turns playing there; none stood out. Semien not only solves the problem at second, he allows Stearns to include McNeil in a package for a starting pitcher. Wouldn't Tarik Skubal look good in orange and blue? The lone concern I have about Semien is his age. At 35, his best years may be behind him. 

As for Nimmo, yes he was a good hitter, and an even better teammate, but he was hardly irreplaceable. To hear some fans, you'd think Stearns had traded Ted Williams away. There are several notable free agents out there the Mets could target that would be considerably better than Nimmo, both at the plate and in the field.

Kyle Tucker is undoubtedly the biggest fish. A career .273 hitter who averages 31 home runs and 103  runs batted in, he hit .266 with 22 HRs and 73 RBIs for the Cubs last season. Reportedly he's looking for a ten-year contract around $400 million. That might too rich even for Steve Cohen's blood.

If that's the case, Cody Bellinger would make an ideal Plan B. He hit .272 with 29 HRs and 98 RBIs for the Yankees last season, playing primarily in left field. If the Mets sign him, it would be the third free agent they've pilfered from their cross-town rivals in the last two years. Juan Soto and Clay Holmes were the other two.

But while the Mets are looking at prospective free agents this offseason, they have two of their own that will be highly sought after: Edwin Diaz and Pete Alonso. Ideally, Stearns would like to keep both, but that might not be possible. Between the two, Diaz has to be the priority. As bad as the starting rotation was last season, the bullpen was even worse. Diaz was the lone exception. He was 6-3 with 28 saves and a 1.63 ERA. Losing him would deal a devastating blow to whatever hopes Stearns has of putting a pennant-contending team on the field next season.

Regarding Alonso, the issue with him is not so much salary as it is term. The Polar Bear is looking for a seven-year contract and the Mets would prefer not to go beyond three years. Like Nimmo, he can be replaced if the two sides can't agree.

Bottom line, Stearns is making good on his promise to revamp a roster that severely underperformed in 2025. Nimmo was the first domino to fall.

He won't be the last. 

Fait Accompli

In 2007, 2008 and 2025, the New York Mets went into the last game of the regular season needing a win to qualify for the playoffs; they lost all three times. And the team that eliminated them each year was the Florida Marlins. The baseball gods have a wicked sense of humor, don't they? 

But unlike those '07 and '08 teams, who collapsed late in the season, this year's collapse began much earlier; June 13 to be precise. Two prolonged slumps (3-14 and 2-14) did the lion's share of the damage. Despite a 45-24 start, the Mets were never able to completely regain their footing. In a year where 84 wins would've been enough to snag the third Wild Card spot in the National League, the Mets won 83. I guess $340 million doesn't go as far as it used to.

To say this team fell far short of expectations would be putting it mildly. A roster that was assembled to win the World Series didn't even make it to the first round of the postseason. This will be a very long offseason in Flushing.

But before we get to the postmortems, in the spirit of Dave Letterman, I thought I'd compile a Top Ten list of games the Mets lost this season, any one of which, had they won, would've been enough to get them into the playoffs.

June 13: 7-5 vs. Tampa Bay Rays. New York had just completed a three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals at CitiField. They were 45-24, five and a half games ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East, and had a 5-1 lead over the Rays through five when Carlos Mendoza decided to pull Clay Holmes after throwing only 79 pitches. The Rays scored six runs in the top of the 6th against Paul Blackburn and Max Kranick.

June 29: 12-1 at Pittsburgh Pirates. After gaining a spilt in their four-game series against the Atlanta Braves at home, the Amazins hit the road and got swept by the Pirates. Not one of the three games was competitive. Frankie Montas allowed six runs over four innings in this one.

July 10: 3-1 at Baltimore Orioles. David Peterson was pitching a gem at Camden Yards. Leading 1-0 in the bottom of the 8th, the Orioles got a lead-off hit. It was only the fifth hit allowed by Peterson in the game, but Mendoza pulled him anyway. The next batter, Gunnar Henderson, hit a pinch-hit two-run homer off Ryne Stanek to give the O's the lead for good.

July 28: 7-6 at San Diego Padres. After enduring their worst slump of the season, the Mets appeared to have righted the ship. They won eight in a row and had just completed a three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants when they began a three-game series against the Padres. Up 5-1 in the bottom of the 5th, San Diego scored five runs against Frankie Montas and Huascar Brazoban to take the lead. The Mets would lose the game in the bottom of the 9th.

August 28: 7-4 vs. Miami Marlins. The Mets had just completed a three-game sweep of the Phillies at home to pull to within four games of first place. Once more, it looked like they had righted the ship. But three errors by New York led to five unearned runs for the Fish.

September 7: 3-2 at Cincinnati Reds. The Mets had taken two of three against the Detroit Tigers and were looking to take the rubber game against the Reds. This was a critical loss because it gave Cincy the tie-breaker against New York.

September 8: 1-0 at Philadelphia Phillies. After getting swept in New York, the Phillies looked to exact revenge on their division rivals. The Mets stranded the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position with one out in the top of the 9th. They would finish the season 0-70 when trailing after 8.

September 11: 6-4 at Phillies. The Phillies complete a four-game sweep against the Mets who blew a four-run, first-inning lead. The loss was New York's sixth in a row.

September 26: 6-2 at Marlins. After taking two of three against the Cubs in Chicago, the Mets had a one-game lead against the Reds when they went to Miami for a season-ending, three-game series. They were in control of their own destiny. All they had to do was win out and they were in the playoffs. Instead they laid an egg.

September 28: 4-0 at Marlins. Once more, New York was presented with a chance to salvage their season; once more, they looked a gift horse in the mouth. While the Milwaukee Brewers were beating the Reds 4-2, the Mets went out with a whimper.

So what happened? How did the best team money could buy implode before our very eyes? Well for starters, despite all the hoopla that preceded the season, the fact is this was a very flawed roster. There are three components to baseball: pitching, hitting and fielding. Turns out, the Mets weren't good enough in any of them.

Pitching: Even before their first slump in June, alarm bells were going off. The starters were having a hard time going more than five innings. For the season, the Mets had 38 quality starts; the Phillies, by comparison, had 84. This failure to go deep in games put an unnecessary strain on a bullpen that wasn't exactly deep go begin with. Something had to give, and give it did. From April 13 on, the team ERA was 4.95, fourth worst in the majors. That they went 38-55 during that stretch should surprised no one.

Hitting: The addition of Juan Soto was supposed to transform the Mets into an offensive juggernaut. Instead, they scored two less runs this season than they did last season. But even with all that, this was a very top-heavy lineup that was inconsistent much of the year, and until August struggled to drive in runners in scoring position. One game, they'd score 12 runs, the next, they'd be lucky to score one. Case in point, game 162. With their season on the line, they were shutout after scoring five runs the previous game.

Fielding: Let's cut to the chase: this was a sloppy team in the field. Ground balls booted; line drives misplayed; cutoff men missed; throws off target. There were times this season when it looked like the Mets had nine Marv Throneberrys out there. Truth be told, with the exception of Francisco Lindor and Tyrone Taylor, there isn't one player in this lineup I would trust to make a defensive play with the game on the line. And that is a huge problem for a team with championship aspirations. 

So why was this roster so flawed? It comes down to money. Even an owner as wealthy as Steve Cohen has a budget. With the bulk of the payroll going to Soto, Lindor and Pete Alonso, David Stearns simply didn't have the resources to go after a top tier starter like Max Fried, who signed an eight-year, $218 million contract with the Yankees last offseason. Fried went 19-5 with a 2.86 ERA for the Bronx Bombers. So Stearns went shopping at the bargain basement store and settled for the likes of Montas ($17m x 2) and Sean Manaea ($25m x 3). Both pitchers were bitter disappointments and will still be on the books next year. 

Pitching wasn't the only position to bow to economic reality. Around the time the Mets were negotiating whether to bring back Alonso, Alex Bregman's name was floated as a possible replacement. The third baseman won a gold glove playing for the Houston Astros in 2024 and would've been a considerable improvement over Mark Vientos at the corner. But Stearns only had enough money to sign one, not both players. Once Pete re-up'd, that was it for Bregman.

Instead of acquiring a legit centerfielder, Stearns opted for a tandem of Tyrone Taylor and Jose Siri. Taylor was a vacuum cleaner in center, but barely hit his weight at the plate; while Siri was injured and missed most of the season. Things were so bad, Mendoza was forced to use Jeff McNeil, a second baseman, in place of a struggling Taylor. When your manager is playing his players out of position, that's usually a sign the front office didn't do a good enough job. 

And speaking of which, it needs to be reiterated that Stearns had a bad trade deadline. He needed to add starter; he didn't get one. He needed a centerfielder; he got Cedric Mullins. As a result, the starting rotation continued to struggle, while Mullins was no better than Taylor at the plate and worse in the field.

And last, but not least, we come to the manager. I've been pretty clear that I don't think Mendoza was the main culprit in this tragedy, but he was hardly blameless. Throughout his two-year tenure in the dugout, he has been guilty of over-managing this pitching staff, pulling starters too early, even when they weren't in trouble. Like he did when he pulled Manaea in the second inning of the season finale, even though he hadn't allowed a run.

Mendoza also failed to hold his players accountable when they screwed up. While a manager isn't responsible for strikeouts and bad pitches, he is responsible for setting the tone for his club. There was never any sense of urgency with this team; no willingness to look in the mirror and admit they were blowing it. Just the opposite, in fact. They seemed oblivious to the peril they were in. Losses that should've been wins were shrugged off with a chorus of "we'll get 'em tomorrow" excuses. Well on September 28, they ran out of tomorrows.

Obviously, changes will have to be made. Mendoza may be coming back, but some of his coaches won't Jeremy Hefner should be the first to be shown the door. It is inconceivable that this rotation could sail through the batting order twice, only to fall apart the third time around. That cannot be a coincidence. This malady even impacted the new pitchers who were brought up in September. Enough is enough. 

The next to go should be both hitting coaches; yes, you heard right, the Mets have two hitting coaches. Clearly Jeremy Barnes and Eric Chavez aren't getting through, because there's simply no excuse for a team with this much offensive talent to be this anemic with runners in scoring position.

Stearns has a lot on his plate this offseason. He needs to improve both the starting rotation and the bullpen. Both Edwin Diaz and Alonso can opt out of their contracts; Pete has already said he's doing so. Will the Mets re-sign both? If so, how much will it cost? Will they trade McNeil and / or Vientos? Will they bring back Starling Marte? If not, who will take his place? Is Brett Baty ready to take the reins at third base full time? Who will play centerfield? If Alonso returns, will it be as a DH or first baseman? If Pete doesn't want to be the DH, who will?

You wouldn't think an organization with a payroll of $340 million would have that many questions, but that's where we are. The Mets seem to have as many holes as they have talented ballplayers. 

One thing is certain: the roster that crashed and burned in 2025 will have changes to it come 2026.

Memo To Steve Cohen: Pay the Polar Bear!

Much has been written about the great start the New York Mets have gotten off to. At 39-23, they have the best record in the National League, and the second best record in the Majors. Their team ERA of 2.83 is the best in baseball; followed by the San Francisco Giants at 3.06 and the Texas Rangers at 3.17. The LA Dodgers, last year's World Series champs, are currently 20th with a 4.12 team ERA.

Much of the credit for the pitching goes to David Sterns, who without one of his best starters from last year in Sean Manaea, has assembled one of the best and deepest staffs in baseball. Seriously, if you had the Mets with the number one team ERA after 62 games, I want to see the receipts, and then I've got a cup for you to pee in. Nobody saw this coming.

But as great as the pitching has been, the Mets wouldn't be where they are in the standings without the exploits of one Pete Alonso, AKA the Polar Bear. Last night he smacked two home runs against the Dodgers; the latter a three-run shot that traveled 447 feet into the left-field pavilion. Overall, Alonso was responsible for five of the six runs the Mets scored in the game.

This is not the first time he has carried his team across the threshold. Apart from a slump in May where he went 65 at bats without hitting a home run, the Polar Bear has been the Mets most consistent offensive threat pretty much the entire season.

Just look at his slash line so far this season: 

Avg: .290, HRs: 14, RBIs: 53, OBP: .386, SLG: .563, OPS: .949.

Alonso is on track to finish the season with 37 homers and 138 runs batted in. What's been most impressive about Pete is that he's hitting to all fields and avoiding swinging at bad pitches; something he did quite frequently the last two seasons. On a team that is hitting an anemic .219 with runners in scoring position - fourth worst in the Majors - Alonso's RISP average is .349. 

And to think, the Polar Bear almost didn't re-sign with the Mets. Alonso's agent Scott Boras was looking for a long-term deal in excess of $200 million. But Steve Cohen and Stearns played hardball and wouldn't budge. Finally, both sides agreed on a two-year deal for $54 million with an opt out after this season. Based on what Alonso has done so far this season, I'd say the odds of Pete opting out are somewhere between 100 percent and Are you fucking kidding me?

Which brings me to the title of my piece. Last offseason, Cohen had all the leverage. Alonso was coming off inarguably the worst season of his career: 34 HRs, 88 RBIs, and an OPS of just .788. Boras badly overplayed his hand. He thought there would be significant demand for Alonso's services. Turns out there wasn't and Cohen knew it.

That won't be the case this offseason, not with the year Alonso is having. Boras's cell phone will be ringing off the hook come November. You can just imagine what the offers will look like. Think seven years, $300 million. And that's just for starters. In case you misplaced your calculator, that comes out to $42.8 million per year. 

If you think that's crazy, consider that the Mets are paying Juan Soto $51 million per year and he's batting .232 with 11 HRs and 31 RBIs. Which is crazier, Alonso at $42.8m or Soto at $51m?

If Cohen is smart - and by all indications he is - he will get his checkbook out now rather than wait for the fall. The longer this goes on, the more it'll cost him. Boras is not one to forgive and forget. He knows once Pete hits the free agent market he will be in the driver's seat. Maybe he can get a home-team discount; say $20 million. Alonso may prefer to stay in Flushing, but let's face it: with an agent like Boras, if someone makes him an offer he can't refuse, it'll be adios for the Polar Bear.

And that's why Cohen cannot let that happen. As of this writing, Alonso is only two home runs shy of David Wright for second place on the Mets all-time home run list, twelve behind Darryl Strawberry for first. Barring injury, he should pass Strawberry sometime in late July or early August. You don't let guys like that walk, especially when they're literally the only ones producing in the clutch for you. 

Don't get me wrong: Francisco Lindor is having a great year, and sooner or later, Soto will get untracked. But this team would barely be above .500 if Alonso weren't in the lineup. His teammates know it, he knows it, and most of all, his agent knows it.

Like that Fram Oil commercial from the '70s used to say, "You can pay me now or you can pay me later."

Pay him now, Steve!

Mets Off To a Roaring Start

Four weeks into the 2025 baseball season, the New York Mets are 18-7, five games ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East and currently sitting atop the major league standings. After going 7-0 on this home stand, they are now 12-1 at home, their best start in franchise history, and that includes 1986.

And here's the thing: they are doing all this with Juan Soto still stuck in second gear. With a few rare exceptions, he's been a non-factor this season. Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor have done most of the heavy lifting. And speaking of Alonso, the Polar Bear is off to his best start as a Met. Here is his slash line so far and where it ranks: AVG .341 (5th), HRs 6 (5th), RBIs 26 (T 1st), OBP .440 (4th), SLG .681 (3rd), OPS 1.122 (2nd).

As for Lindor, after going hitless in March, the Captain is batting .349 with 5 HRs, 14 RBIs and a .972 OPS in April, including a walk-off homer against the St. Louis Cardinals and two dingers against the Phillies. How unusual is this? Last season he couldn't hit his way out of a paper bag in April and May.

And while The Three Amigos - Lindor, Soto and Alonso - rightly garner most of the attention, the rest of the lineup is starting to pick it up. Mark Vientos hit a pair of home runs on this home stand, Brett Baty crushed a two run homer into the upper deck and Starling Marte got the game-winning hit to complete the sweep against the Phillies. Isn't it fun when everyone contributes?

The pitching continues to dominate. In 2024, the Mets team ERA was 4.03. This year, it's 2.34, first in the majors. The San Diego Padres are next at 2.92, followed by the Detroit Tigers at 2.94. The starters have not allowed a home run in their last 12 starts, and the bullpen, apart from Edwin Diaz, has been almost spotless. In eleven relief appearances this season, Reed Garrett has yet to give up an earned run. Overall, the staff has the 8th lowest WHIP in baseball at 1.18.

What a difference a year makes. Last season, the Mets got off to a so-so start in April, then did a swan dive in May. It wasn't until after Memorial Day that they began to put it together. From June 3 through the end of the regular season, the Mets were the best team in baseball with a record of 65-38, and a .631 winning percentage. 

This season, the Mets winning percentage is .720. Over a 162 game schedule that translates to a record of 117-45. While no one seriously believes they'll win 117 games, if they simply duplicate last year's .631 win percentage from June thru September, that would come out to 102 regular season wins. I'm pretty sure Steve Cohen would be very happy with that, especially if it's followed up with 11 postseason wins. 

If you think I'm getting ahead of myself, consider this: we know that Soto is going to eventually start producing; he almost had his first CitiField home run the other day but it went foul by about two feet. Jeff McNeil and Francisco Alvarez are set to return Friday, while Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea are due back in mid May. With the Phillies bullpen in disarray and the Atlanta Braves off to a poor start, the Mets should be the clear favorites to win the NL East. The only question is whether they will have the home-field advantage in October?

To reiterate what I wrote in my last piece on the Mets: The excitement is palpable; the expectations couldn't be higher.

Mets Pitching is Keeping Them Afloat

Through ten games this season, the New York Mets record stands at 7-3. They are in second place in the Eastern Division, a half game back of the Philadelphia Phillies.

What's remarkable about that isn't so much the record - they were after all two wins away from going to the World Series last year. It's that they've done it while averaging 3.5 runs per game: 7th lowest in the majors. If I told you a team with Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto and Pete Alonso would be this anemic offensively this early in the season and still be in second place in their division, you'd think I was pulling your leg.

So why are they doing so well? In a word, pitching. The Mets team ERA through ten games is a league best 1.72. How significant is that? The Los Angeles Dodgers are second with a team ERA of 2.63, and they were supposed to have the best pitching staff in all of baseball.

The starting rotation, which was supposed to be a sore spot for this team, has so far been outstanding. Just take a look at the numbers below. Not one starter has an ERA at or above 3.00.

But as good as the starters have been, the relievers have been even better. With the exception of A.J. Minter - who was brought in from the Atlanta Braves to be the set-up man for Edwin Diaz - and Danny Young, they have been virtually untouchable. Through ten games, Diaz, Huascar Brazobán, Jose Butto, Max Kranick, Reed Garrett and Ryne Stanek have allowed just one earned run. Somewhere up in Heaven, Rube Walker and Tug McGraw are looking down and smiling. 

Can you imagine where the Mets would be right now without their pitching? I can assure you they wouldn't be 7-3; more likely 3-7. And that is very good news because there's no way this team with all its offensive talent is not going to break out sooner or later. Already, Lindor is starting to get untracked. After going hitless in his first three games, he's 8 for his last 22 for a .363 batting average; Soto has reached base safely in all ten games and is batting .286; and Alonso is leading the team with 3 home runs and 11 RBIs. His 1.086 OPS is 12th best in the majors. 

If there is a concern it's at third and second base. Mark Vientos, Luisangel Acuña and Brett Baty are a combined 8 for 73 for a .110 batting average and one run batted in. That would be unacceptable even on the '73 Mets, and that team had the likes of Don Hahn, Ed Kranepool, Ron Hodges and Jim Fregosi on the roster.

Once Jeff McNeil comes back, that should take care of second base. McNeil is a proven hitter with some pop in his bat. But Vientos at third remains a problem. He has got to produce. Last year, he batted .266 with 27 HRs and 71 RBIs, and the Mets are counting on him to put up similar numbers this season. If there's one thing you can point to that's encouraging it's that last night he walked three times; a sign that he at least isn't swinging at bad pitches. Sometimes you have to walk before you can run, no pun intended. 

Think about it: last year, the Mets got off to an 0-5 start, CitiField was a ghost town, and the fans had little to root for. This year, they're off to a 7-3 start with two more games against the Miami Marlins before they hit the road to play the A's and Twins. A 5-1 trip is not out of the question. 

The excitement is palpable; the expectations couldn't be higher. 

Mets 2025 Season Preview

Let's face it: the moment the New York Mets signed Juan Soto to that $765 million contract, expectations for the 2025 season began to soar. With the re-signing of Pete Alonso, those expectations have now passed the stratosphere. Next stop, thermosphere. 

With Francisco Lindor leading off, the Amazins' have arguably the best batting order in franchise history. I say arguably because the 2006-08 Mets had Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado and David Wright batting 3-5. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself. Regardless of which order you prefer, there's no denying that this team is better and deeper than the one that was two wins away from its first World Series appearance since 2015. 

Don't take my word for it. Just check it out for yourselves:

1. Francisco Lindor - SS
2. Juan Soto - RF
3. Pete Alonso - 1B
4. Mark Vientos - 3B
5. Brandon Nimmo - RF
6. Starling Marte - DH
7. Jeff McNeil - 2B
8. Franciso Alvares - C
9. Jose Siri - CF

Objectively speaking, only the Los Angeles Dodgers boast a better 1-9.

If there's one concern about this Mets team, it's the starting rotation. Both Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea will start the season on the disabled list and are not expected back until mid-May. That means that the bulk of the load will fall onto the shoulders of converted reliever Clay Holmes, Tylor Megill, David Peterson and Kodai Senga. Holmes had an outstanding spring training, boasting a 0.93 ERA, but Megill and Peterson are ostensibly .500 pitchers, while Senga is coming back from an injury that kept him out most of last season. In other words, Carlos Mendoza will have his work cut out for him managing this staff. 

The bullpen should be just fine with closer Edwin Diaz leading the way. And Brett Baty, Luisangel Acuna, Jesse Winker, Tyrone Taylor and Luis Torrens provide plenty of depth in the lineup. No one can say that Steve Cohen and David Stearns haven't done a great job here.

But while this may be the most talented Mets team in almost twenty years, they are hardly a lock to win their division. That's because while the Dodgers may own the NL West, the NL East is the deepest division in Major League Baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves are perfectly capable of emerging on top come October. That's why it's essential that this team get off to a good start. They can't afford a repeat of 2024 when they began the season 24-35.

That's why I have the Mets as the prohibitive favorites to win the NL East. Assuming that Soto and Lindor stay healthy and Diaz is lights out, I don't think there's a team east of the Rockies that can touch them.

And now for my predictions for each division, plus which teams will make the league championship and World Series.

National League East:

Mets
Phillies (WC)
Braves (WC)
Marlins
Nationals

National League Central:

Brewers
Cardinals
Cubs
Pirates
Reds

National League West:

Dodgers
Padres (WC)
Diamondbacks
Giants
Rockies

American League East:

Red Sox
Yankees (WC)
Blue Jays (WC)
Rays
Orioles

American League Central:

Guardians
Tigers
Royals
Twins
White Sox

American League West:

Mariners
Rangers (WC)
Astros
Angels
A's

WC = Wild Card

NLCS:

Mets over Dodgers 4-3

ALCS:

Red Sox over Mariners 4-2

World Series:

Mets over Red Sox 4-2

As with all my predictions, you should take them with a rather large grain of salt.

Time Was Always on the Mets Side

Well, it's finally done. The Polar Bear is coming back to Queens. After several months of intense negotiations, in which Steve Cohen verbally expressed his frustrations, Pete Alonso and his agent Scott Boras cried uncle.

To be clear, time was always on the Mets side. Boras thought he had a winning hand. He thought if he could just hold out a little longer, he would get Cohen to give in. As it turns out, though, Cohen and his GM David Stearns knew the market better than he did. So they gave Alonso two choices: a three-year deal for $71 million with no opt outs or a two-year deal for $54 million with an opt out after 2025. Alonso chose the latter. Which means we'll probably be back here again a year from now. But that's next year. 

Forget all that nonsense about those "offers" from the Los Angeles Angels and the Toronto Blue Jays. The Angels are where ball players go to die. Think about it: they had Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani in 2023 and still managed to win only 73 games. Can you imagine Pete playing for them? Honestly, that was an easy bluff for Cohen to call. 

As for the Blue Jays, Toronto has been, and always will be, a hockey town. They live and die with their Maple Leafs. Seriously, Alonso could win the Triple Crown and all anyone would care about was whether Auston Matthews was going to lead the NHL in goals. Why do you think Vladimir Guerrero Jr gave the Jays a deadline of February 17 to present an acceptable long-term contract offer? He wants to be there as much as a nun wants to be at a frat party. 

Indeed, the silver lining in all this is that by giving Pete $30 million up front, it gives the Mets an excuse to pivot to Guerrero Jr should he decide to play hardball with them after the season. Ya gotta love the way Cohen operates.

So now that the Mets finally have their lineup in place for this coming season, the only question is who bats behind Francisco Lindor: Alonso or Juan Soto? Either way, this will be the most potent offense the Amazins have had since that 2006-08 team, which had Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado and David Wright. To paraphrase Mr. T., "I pity the fool who has to pitch to that lineup."

After the Soto signing, I thought the Mets were good, but not quite good enough to beat out the Philadelphia Phillies or Atlanta Braves for the NL East. With Alonso back, and with the improvements Stearns has made to the bullpen, this might be the second best team in all of baseball.

The Flushing Faithful have waited a long time for this moment. It's finally here.

Cohen and Stearns Are Taking a Huge Risk

"The hard part about playing chicken is knowing when to flinch." 

- The Hunt for Red October

If the reports we're hearing are to be believed, the New York Mets have decided they're not going to flinch at all. Their "final" offer of three years, $70 million to Pete Alonso was rejected by his agent, Scott Boras. They have now pivoted to Plan B. Part One of Plan B was the re-signing of Jesse Winker yesterday to a one year, $7.5 million contract. Winker hit .253 with 14 home runs and 58 RBIs last season. He will platoon for the DH spot with Starling Marte. The second part of Plan B is addressing the bullpen. With the signing of A. J. Minter to a two-year, $22 million contract, pending a physical, they appear to have done that. Minter was 5-4 with one save and a 2.62 ERA. He should make an ideal set up man for Edwin Diaz. 

Look, do I think Boras overplayed his hand here? Without question. He gambled that the demand for Alonso would be so great that the Mets would have no choice but to acquiesce to his demands. Obviously that didn't happen. And now with pitchers and catchers only a few weeks away, Alonso appears to be on a desert island with few, if any suitors.

That's not the Mets fault. It's not their responsibility to manage the financial affairs of one of their own free agents, even if he is an overall good guy who's popular with his fellow teammates. And it's not the obligation of Steve Cohen to overpay for an asset that the market has already determined isn't as valuable as the player's agent thinks it is. How do you think Cohen got to be so rich in the first place?

But that doesn't mean that Cohen and his GM David Stearns aren't taking a huge risk here. Let's face it, while Juan Soto is a much better hitter than Alonso, without the Polar Bear in this lineup, the Mets are ostensibly repeating the same mistake the Yankees made last season when Soto and Aaron Judge were the primary run producers on the team. That worked out so well that Soto couldn't wait to get the hell out of the Bronx.

Mark Vientos had an outstanding 2024 season. In his first full year in the majors, he batted .266 with 27 HRs and 71 RBIs playing third base for the Mets. There's no guarantee he'll be as productive in his second full year; there's also no guarantee he'll be able to make the transition to first base. Alonso may have had his shortcomings but he was a good first baseman who could be counted on to hit 40 plus home runs per season. Even in a down year, he still managed to hit 35 dingers. His production will be missed.

Maybe all this is just a ploy to get Alonso to reconsider. Get him to realize that the ship is leaving port with or without him, and maybe he'll come to his senses. With Boras as his agent that isn't likely to happen. The only thing old Scott thinks about is his wallet. If he could get $500 million for Alonso to play on the moon he'd do it in a heart beat. That's the problem with choosing agents like Boras. They never consider the interests of their clients; only their own bottom line.

Then there's the rumor - and let's be polite and call it a rumor - that Stearns is pursuing a trade for Vladimir Guerrero, Jr from the Toronto Blue Jays. The 26 year old first baseman batted .323 with 30 home runs and 103 RBIs. He signed a one-year, $28.5 million deal to avoid arbitration. Forget for a moment that any team looking to land him would pay a king's ransom in prospects, he's a pending free agent after this season. And while he probably won't command the same money Soto did, he's not going to be cheap. Think $500 million over 12 years. And keep in mind, before Soto hit the market, I thought his contract would come in around $600 million. I was off by $165 million. To paraphrase Bill Murray in Ghost Busters, "No salary is too high" when it comes to baseball.

For now, this is the Mets projected lineup for the 2025 season:

Francisco Lindor - SS
Soto - RF
Vientos - 1B
Brandon Nimmo - LF
Winker / Marte - DH
Jeff McNeil / Luisangel Acuna - 2B
Francisco Alvarez - C
Tyrone Taylor / Jose Siri - CF
Brett Baty - 3B

Not bad, but hardly the 1927 Yankees. And if the starting rotation doesn't pan out, or if Soto struggles in his first season with the team just like Lindor did in his first season, the Mets will have a tough time competing for a Wild Card spot, much less the division.

Far be it for me to tell Steve Cohen how to spend his money, but I think he should reconsider his offer to Alonso. Maybe Pete isn't worth what he's asking for, but let's be honest, was Soto really worth $765 million? You and I both know the answer to that. If Boras rejected $70 million over three years, try upping the ante to, say, $90 million over three, with an opt out after the first year. We're talking about a home grown player who's third in team history with 226 home runs. That has to count for something, even in these cut throat times.

Bottom line, the Mets lineup is stronger with Alonso hitting behind Soto than Vientos. Cohen knows it, Stearns knows it, Boras knows it, Carlos Mendoza knows it, and Pete knows it.

Re-sign the Polar Bear. It's the right thing to do.

Cohen Bags Soto

That vibration you felt last night was George Steinbrenner not only turning over in his grave but punching the sides of the casket with both fists. In what can only be described as the greatest coup in the 63 year history of the franchise, the New York Mets not only landed the biggest prize in free agency, they literally stole him from their cross-town rival Yankees.

Juan Soto is a Met. The 26 year-old right fielder signed for an unprecedented $765 million over 15 years. The contract includes a $75 million signing bonus and an opt out after five years should Soto decide to leave Flushing. To put this in perspective, Tom Brady and LeBron James combined earned $761 million over their collective careers which spanned 45 years.

But the most amazing thing - no pun intended - about this was that the Mets offer was only $5 million more than the Yankees. The Yankees offered $760 million over 16 years; the Mets offered $765 million over 15 years. Late Sunday, it was widely believed that if the two teams were close, Soto would remain in the Bronx. Yours truly tweeted that for the Mets to land Soto they would have to be $30-$50 million above the Yankees offer.

So much for the mystique of playing for the Yankees. 

Yankees fans can cry in their beer and accuse Soto of being a mercenary all they want - and let's be honest, if not for Cohen's immense financial resources, this is just a pipe dream for the Mets - the fact is Soto is a clutch player who in seven seasons in the big leagues has hit 201 home runs and boasts a career .953 OPS. In the 2019 postseason, he hit .277 with 5 home runs and 14 runs batted in with an OPS of .927 for the Washington Nationals. Last postseason, he hit .327 with 4 HRs and 9 RBIs with an OPS of .1101 for the Yankees. The man is a winner, and if Brian Cashman had done a better job at the trade deadline last season, the Bronx Bombers might well have won their 28th World Series title instead of losing to the LA Dodgers in five. 

Face it, the Mets have a more balanced team with enough hitters to protect Soto in the lineup, especially if they re-sign Pete Alonso, which now seems likely given the season the Polar Bear had last year and the fact that he's gotten zero interest for his services from other teams. In fact, it would not surprise me at all to learn that Cohen reassured Soto that Alonso or someone comparable would be playing first base for the Mets in 2025.

If you're a Mets fan you have every right to crow today. Moments like this do not come along very often. The last time the Flushing Faithful were this giddy about a new player was 2005 when then GM Omar Minaya signed Carlos Beltran to a 7 year, $119 million contract. Though Beltran struggled his first year as a Met, he had three consecutive 100 plus RBI seasons after that.

But as wonderful as this moment may seem, there is still more work ahead for Cohen and David Stearns. With or without Alonso returning to the fold, the Mets will need to replace Luis Severino, who signed a three-year, $67 million deal with the Oakland A's. The right-hander had his best season since 2018, going 11-7 with a 3.91 ERA. Frankie Montas is a good addition, but hardly what you would call an ace. Clay Holmes led the Yankees in saves with 30 and would make a far better set-up man for Edwin Diaz than a starter, which is what the Mets envision him as. Like Severino, Sean Manaea opted out of his contract to become a free agent. Re-signing him should be a priority for Stearns. And let's not forget, Kodai Senga will be coming back from an injury that sidelined him most of last season. There is virtually no pathway to a World Series appearance for the Mets without a quality starting rotation. 

Re-signing Jesse Winker would give Carlos Mendoza another hitter who can platoon with Starling Marte in the DH spot. Jose Iglesias provided a spark last season and can play both 2nd and 3rd base. Hopefully he can be brought back at a reasonable price. And if Stearns can find a suitable suitor for Jeff McNeil, that would free up second base for Luisangel Acuña. The young phenom batted .308 and hit 3 homers in just 12 games last season.

Bottom line: After years of playing second fiddle and living in the shadow of the House That Ruth Built, the Mets, thanks to Steve Cohen, have staked their claim to the city. For the time being, the back pages of the daily newspapers are theirs. They have the mojo. What they do with it next is entirely up to them.

April can't come fast enough.

For the Mets, the Future Looks Very Bright

They started off 0-5; were eleven games under .500 going into June. And from that point on, the New York Mets had the best record in baseball. For a team that was supposed to be punting on the season, what this group of players did was nothing short of amazing. 

They made the playoffs literally on the last day of the season, then went on to beat the Milwaukee Brewers in the Wild Card round and the Philadelphia Phillies in the divisional round, before finally losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS. 

To come within two wins of going to their first World Series since 2015 sucks, I know, but the pain will go away. As Howie Rose said on the Mets radio broadcast, this team took its fans on an "incredible ride" this season, a ride that was improbable only a year ago. Not only is the glass half filled, the glass is literally under a running faucet. The Flushing faithful may finally be rewarded for their patience.

But before we get to 2025, let's first acknowledge the accomplishments of 2024.

Francisco Lindor: The team MVP delivered. Not only was he the most consistent player on the roster, his two-run homer in the top of the 9th inning in Atlanta was responsible for getting the Mets in the playoffs. His players-only meeting in late May likely saved the season.

Pete Alonso: The Polar Bear had a disappointing regular season, but came through with flying colors in the postseason. He hit two huge three-run homers: the first against the Brewers and the second against the Dodgers. Both times the Mets were facing elimination. No one knows whether Steve Cohen will re-sign him, but even if this was the last hurrah for Pete, at least he can say he went out with a bang.

The starting rotation: Even before Kodak Senga went down, this staff on paper more closely resembled Moe, Larry, Curly and Shemp than a legitimate rotation. And yet it wound up being the club's biggest strength. Sean Manaea and Luis Severino had career years and led the team in wins with 12 and 11 respectively. Jose Quintana and David Peterson - who had his best year as a Met - finished with 10 wins a piece. A healthy Senga could mean an extra 10-15 wins for the team next season. 

Mark Vientos: This burgeoning star, who began the season in Triple A, finished third on the team in home runs with 27, and had a team-leading .327 batting average and 14 RBIs in the playoffs. The Mets finally have their third baseman.

Luisangel Acuna: The center piece in the Max Scherzer trade last year, came up late in the season and took over at short stop when Lindor was out with a back injury. The 22 year-old contributed with 3 HRs and 6 RBIs with an OPS of .966. Just imagine him at 2nd base next year.

Carlos Mendoza: The rookie skipper probably won't win manager of the year, but there's no denying the impact he had in the dugout. His belief in his players when the season was on the brink kept the wheels from falling off. And while his handling of the bullpen at times was puzzling, he has the makings of a great manager. The Mets appear to have found their next Davey Johnson.

And now for 2025:

Center Field: Let's face it, while both Harrison Bader and Tyrone Taylor are excellent fielders, neither are terribly gifted offensively. David Stearns needs to find someone who can both hit and field for this position.

Juan Soto: File this under "Who do I have to kill?" Two years ago, I wrote the Mets needed to move heaven and earth to acquire the young star. Turns out, they didn't have the prospects to land him. Now that he's a free agent after the season, the only thing standing between him patrolling right field in Flushing or in the Bronx will be money. Fortunately for the Mets, Cohen has a boat load of it. If he elects not to re-sign Alonso, he can put the savings towards signing Sota. There's also the possibility that Cohen may want both players. Can you imagine what a lineup of Lindor, Vientos, Soto, Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Alvarez would look like?

The bullpen: Stearns addressed this weak spot for the Mets at the trade deadline, but he will need to do more during the offseason. The Dodgers pretty much had their way with them in the NLCS. Hopefully, Adam Ottavino has played his last game as a Met.

Francisco Alvarez: There's no denying the kid's talent, but he needs to improve his defense as a catcher and become more disciplined at the plate. Perhaps playing Winter ball will help him in both areas. He has the power to hit 25-30 home runs per season. 

JD Martinez and Jesse Winker: They proved to be an effective DH tandem for the Mets, but Martinez struggled over the last couple of months. Both are free agents and could be re-signed for a reasonable price, which will be necessary if Cohen goes after Sota.

To sum up, 2024 was a great year for the Mets. They thrilled their fans and stunned their detractors. 2025 promises to be even better. Gary Cohen drew comparisons to the 1984 team that won 90 games. Personally, I prefer 1985, myself. 

Either way, the future looks very bright for the men in orange and blue.

It's Time for Alonso to Put Up or Shut Up

After getting off to a 4-3 start on this road trip, that would've been 6-1 had the bullpen not blown two saves, the New York Mets find themselves three games behind the Atlanta Braves for the third and final wild card spot in the National League. They're in Chicago to play three games against the White Sox before returning home to CitiField to play three against the Boston Red Sox and three against the Cincinnati Reds. Having dropped two out of three to the Oakland A's in their last home stand, the Amazins cannot afford to take the Chi-Sox lightly. Anything other than a sweep would be unconscionable. Suffice to say, the season is hanging in the balance.

Also hanging in the balance is Pete Alonso's career with the Mets. The slugging first baseman is a free agent after the season and his agent, Scott Boras, is said to be looking to ink him to a multi-year contract in the neighborhood of $300 million. But whether Steve Cohen believes Alonso is worth that much, especially with Juan Soto expected to hit free agency, remains to be seen.

To be sure, Alonso is the best home run hitter the franchise has produced since David Wright - whose career was cut short by spinal stenosis. Letting him walk would be a tough decision. But overpaying him would be a mistake. The fact is that since his rookie season in 2019, in which he led the majors with 53 homers, he has failed to live up to his enormous potential. While he is still a potent home run threat every time he steps up to the plate, he is still vulnerable to the high fast ball and curve ball low and away. In 2023, he batted a career low .217. Yesterday, he hit just his 29th home run of the season, which would put him on pace for 35 for the year. For a man with that much power, that is a woefully low number. By comparison, Soto already has 37 and is hitting 40 points higher with a 1.012 OPS. Who would you rather have in your lineup, Alonso or Soto?

Granted, Soto will command considerably more money. But he's four years younger than Alonso and is a better all-around player. He's also represented by Boras, so figure the bidding will start at $500 million over 10 years and could go as high as $600 million over 10. Given that Cohen was all in on Shohei Ohtani before he signed with the LA Dodgers, I can't imagine he'd pass up a shot at landing arguably the second best outfielder in baseball. The first just happens to be Aaron Judge, who compared to what Soto will command this offseason, is the steal of the century at $360 million over 9 years.

But all that could change if Alonso were to have a great September. He is certainly capable of going on a hot streak. If he were to hit 11 more home runs, he'd finish with his third consecutive 40 plus HR season. That would increase his markability, but it would also give Cohen an excuse to pass on Soto and re-signing Alonso, especially if Boras overplays his hand, like he did with Jordan Montgomery.

It's all on Alonso. He is in control of his own destiny. I'm sure Cohen, if given a choice, would prefer to re-sign one of his own over a much more expensive import. And for his part, Alonso has expressed a desire to retire as a Met. But Cohen is, first and foremost, a businessman; a very successful businessman. If he feels the better investment over the long haul is Soto, Pete's days in Queens are numbered.

There are 28 games left in the regular season for the Mets. Time for the Polar Bear to put up or shut up.

Just How Good Are the Mets?

It was, shall we say, an interesting off season for the New York Mets. Coming off a disappointing 2023 campaign in which they went 75-87, new President and GM David Stearns had the unenviable task of trying to put together a team that could at the very least be competitive in the National League East, while also being cognizant of the fact that millions of loyal fans have been patiently waiting for a championship since 1986.

Regarding the latter, before we go any further, it should be noted that in 2024 the Mets will be paying Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander collectively $55 million for the privilege of not playing for them. So while the angst of the fanbase is understandable, accusing Steve Cohen of being cheap isn't. Seriously, can you imagine the Wilpons footing that kind of bill?

It turns out not signing Ohtani or Yamamoto may prove to be a Godsend. Yamamoto got lit up like a Christmas tree in his first start as a Dodger, and the more we find out about Ohtani's connection to his interpreter, the more I think a shit storm may be brewing in Los Angeles. Call me a cynic, but I think Cohen and the Mets will look back on last summer and thank their lucky stars they didn't sign either of these two players. Frankly, it would serve the Dodgers right if the whole thing blew up in their face.

But while saving a billion dollars over the next ten years is all well and good, to paraphrase a well-known, rhetorical question, What does that have to do with the price of tea in Flushing? If you're a Mets fan all you care about is your team, and right now this team has more holes than a golf course. Beginning with hole number one:

The Starting Rotation. Kodai Senga, the ace, is out until May. Even with him healthy, this staff is thin. Luis Severino, the opening day pitcher, was 4-8 with a 6.65 ERA for the Yankees last season. Tylor Megill went 9-8 with a serviceable 4.70 ERA for the Amazins' last season. Jose Quintana was 3-6 with a 3.57 ERA. Then things get interesting. Apparently the plan is for the starters to get to the 6th inning where the bullpen can take over. Good luck with that. Which brings us to hole number two:

The Bullpen: The return of Edwin Diaz will be a welcomed relief, no pun intended. His loss last season likely cost the Mets a minimum of 10 wins. However, it'll be the middle of this bullpen that determines how many save opportunities Diaz actually gets. Stearns is banking on Adam Ottavino to be the set up man, while Drew Smith and newcomer Jake Diekman will do most of the heavy lifting in the 6th and 7th innings. At best, this is a work in progress.

The Batting Order: The signing of J.D. Martinez to hit DH was huge. His 33 home runs and 103 runs batted in will add depth to the Mets lineup, as well as give Pete Alonso - 46 HRs and 118 RBIs - some badly-needed protection. The slugger batted a career-low .217. With Martinez batting behind him, the Polar Bear might be a little more selective at the plate. Francisco Lindor remains the team's best overall hitter and infielder, while Brandon Nimmo is its best and most dependable outfielder. After that, questions remain. Can Starling Marte come back? Can Harrison Bader stay healthy? Is Francisco Alvarez for real or just a flash in last season's pan? Can Jeff McNeill rebound from a disappointing '23? Is Brett Baty the next David Wright or the next Wayne Garrett?

The Bench: Let's not push it, OK?

The Manager: Perhaps the best thing Carlos Mendoza has going for him is that the expectations for this team are fairly low. Unlike his predecessor Buck Showlater, who was brought in to win a title, if the Mets are competitive, that should suffice.

Prediction: The return of Diaz and the addition of Martinez will keep the Mets above .500. Who knows, they could even challenge for one of the Wild Cards. But if I were a betting man, I'd say they fall short of a postseason berth. Record: 83-79, 4th place in the NL East.

Yamamota Goes with the Dodgers

I'll be honest. I was really looking forward to seeing Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a New York Mets uniform for the next ten years. Just based on the scouting reports, the 25 year old has a chance to become one of baseball's most dominant pitchers. And I'm pissed that Steve Cohen, with all his billions, couldn't close the deal. 

But the more we learn about what was going on behind the scenes, the more it becomes apparent that Yamamoto simply didn't want to play for an east-coast team. The Yankees offered him $300 million over ten years; Cohen went a step further and upped the anti to $325 million. That still wasn't enough.

The Los Angeles Dodgers, who only a few days earlier had signed Shohei Ohtani to an unprecedented ten year $700 million contract, matched Cohen's offer and inked Yamamoto. Think about it: $1 billion tied up in just two contracts. Somewhere, Charlie Finley is having a stroke.

To those who think Cohen should've just shot the moon, as it were, and gone up to $400 million, there are two inherent problems with that: 1. Regardless of what Cohen offered, the Dodgers would've matched it; 2. Once Ohtani signed with the Dodgers, they pretty much had the inside track on Yamamoto. All Cohen would've succeeded in doing was driving up the asking price for a free agent he was never going to sign. If you think Cohen is despised by the owners now, that stunt would've been the icing on the cake. Take it from a former salesman, trying to out dick the other guy is never a successful strategy.

But let's play devil's advocate for a moment. Let's say Cohen inked him at $400 million. That would've been great, right? A starting rotation consisting of Yamamoto and Kodai Senga would be formidable. With the return of Edwin Diaz, and the addition of a couple middle relievers, the Mets would be a much better team going into 2024 than they were at the close of 2023.

But then there's the matter of what to do with Pete Alonso. The all-star first baseman is set to become a free agent after next year. The price tag for him will not be cheap. His agent is Scott Boras. If you think Boras is going to let one of the game's most prolific home run hitters sign for anything less than what he thinks he's entitled to, this must be your first day on the planet. Trust me, there will be no home-town discount for Cohen. If Yamamoto was worth (fill in the blank), then Pete will be worth at least that much.

You can bet the ranch that if Cohen had signed Yamamota, Boras would've started the bidding for Alonso at that precise number. In other words, by trying to screw the Dodgers, Cohen would've ostensibly screwed himself. I think Cohen realized this, which is why he didn't shoot the moon. And the money he saved by not landing Yamamoto he can now use to address other areas of this roster that need fortifying.

It's important to remember that even without Ohtani and Yamamoto, the Dodgers still had one of the highest payrolls in major league baseball the last two seasons. Yet despite impressive campaigns which saw them win 100 and 111 games respectively, they were upset in the first round by teams that finished considerably behind them in the standings.

The Arizona Diamondbacks, with a record of 84-78, won the National League pennant last season. If I'm Cohen, I'm probably thinking why should I spend all that money on just one player, when I can spend half that amount and get several players? Even in a sport that long ago forgot the meaning of the word frugal, two plus two still equals four. The fact is had Diaz not gotten injured last season, the Mets most assuredly would've finished better than 75-87.

Translation: they're not that far away from a possible wild card berth. Cohen and his new president David Stearns know this. That's why they didn't panic; and Mets fans shouldn't either. Let the Dodgers play the role of pariah. When they crash and burn again in October, something tells me a lot of people in Queens will be grinning from ear to ear.