Fixing The New York Mets: A Guideline On How to Rebuild The Franchise
The Mets are, and have been, in a bad way ever since the 2006 NLCS. Call it karma, call it coincidence, call it whatever you will but the Mets, and their fans, have suffered through some pretty bad seasons over the past few years.
It's time the Mets realize the team needs to be rebuilt. It's time to stop with the 'quick fixes' and actually take the time to rebuild the organization from top to bottom.
I believe the Mets have started to do this by bringing in a new GM, Sandy Alderson, and a new manger, Terry Collins. I also believe that Alderson has realized this needs to be the approach and has started this process already....and for that every Mets fan will be grateful in three to five years.
Note: It should be understood that because of health, contract length, contract salary, etc. some of these players I propose the Mets trade will not return the value Mets fan would like to see for them; but the important thing to remember is that removing their salary from the payroll is the most important thing.
By doing this it not only allows for younger players to showcase their talent at the professional level, but it allows the Mets to reinvest in their scouting and development programs to find the next generation of great players.
Building a contender starts with scouting...way before the players even get to the majors. Once the players have been scouted and signed it's onto developing them properly. If a team is unwilling to invest in these two programs then that team should learn to be content with being mediocre at best.
Note 2: It would not surprise me to see the Mets perform decently this year if they do not trade any of their players. With so many players on contract years the Mets are bound to get a boost of production from many players and, with that, their winning percentage will go up. Don't let this fool you; it's a fluke and the Mets should not resign ANY of the players coming off the books this season...No Matter What.
Johan Santana
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Trade him.
He's a great player, a great person, and a great clubhouse presence but the Mets need to take the money they would have paid him over the next few seasons and reinvest it into the scouting and development departments.
Santana is signed through the 2013 season with a club option for the 2014 season so a team can move some of their prospects because they know he will be with the club for at least a few more seasons.
I understand he is hurt, and has been getting hurt more frequently, and that's why the Mets won't ask for as much in return as they normally would have. Santana is still a great pitcher and can help a real contender win; the problem is that, by the time the Mets are a real contender, his contract will be done/he won't be the ace he used to be.
The list of teams that can take Santana is a short one given his contract size, but all of those teams that can afford to have him (i.e. the Yankees, Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, etc.) will be interested. Santana won't return until the middle of the 2010 season but you know the Yankees would love to get him in pinstripes for the second half of the season (especially since they lost out on Cliff Lee this winter and if their pitching is as weak as everyone makes it out to be they could really use Santana in the rotation).
I have no doubts that trading Santana would be tough on Mets fan but it is the right thing to do. The fact is his talents would be wasted on a team that will be going nowhere over the next few season; and, although it's nice to have a guy like Santana to teach the young players, the resources the Mets could bring in with Santana's contract off the books are too great to keep him.
Trade him.
Carlos Beltran
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Who wants a centerfielder with knee braces? Anyone....anyone?
Alright so trading Beltran isn't the easiest thing to do but it is still possible. Yes he has health issues. Yes his knees aren't allowing him to run like he used to, but no, his value isn't all gone.
The hard part to trading Beltran now will be the fact that he is a free agent after this season. That means a team who trades for him may only be keeping him for a few months. Nonetheless, I bet the Mets can still find a suitor.
First off, to find a suitor for Beltran, the Mets should cross off every National League team. No playoff-competitive team that can take on his salary will want him patrolling centerfield.
However, Beltran can still hit and if he isn't playing the field all the time he is much more likely to stay healthy and even regain a little more juice in his legs. Calling all American League teams.
A swtich-hitting DH who will hit .270 while posting, conservatively, 20 HRs, and 90 RBI (probably more given it's his free agent season). Oh and did I mention he will be able to run the bases better than 90% of the DHs out there? And, of course, he could still play the field from time to time. His defense is still usable, but the amount of time he can spend out in the field has definitely decreased. DH is the new position for Carlos Beltran.
The fact is Beltran still has some value and the Mets should trade him. If they don't trade him it's not the end of the world since he will be off the payroll at the end of this season but it'd be best to get a prospect or two for him in addition to clearing up the money.
And again, don't get greedy on the return for Beltran; the Mets will still get a decent prospect or two for him, they don't need to try and take the bank on this one.
Jose Reyes
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Jose Reyes is a really fun player to watch. I love the energy and passion he brings to the team but this needs to be his last season in a Mets uniform. There's no need to talk contract extension here.
Much like Beltran, Reyes is entering the final year of his contract so the return on him may be low if the team he is traded to cannot work out an extension.
So, not trading him wouldn't kill the Mets but they definitely should not re-sign him.
Why is that? His health. Reyes has shown no ability to stay healthy and, even if he does for the 2011 season, one season does not make up for three or four...especially since he is only getting older.
Furthermore, Reyes' injuries are commonly to his legs. Without speed Reyes' value plummets. End of story.
Reyes is an awesome player but it's time for the Mets and Reyes to go their separate ways.
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Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez
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Moving either Castillo or Perez would be a magic trick in and of itself. Two players, on the last season of their contact, with almost no value to a baseball team and a very high salary. That's the perfect storm for creating a disastrous situation.
Maybe one of them will play well during the season and an opportunity to trade them may arise, but, most likely, the Mets will just have to eat their contracts and wait till they are gone next winter.
Nothing more you can do.
Other Players The Mets Should Shop Around
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Mike Pelfrey:
He's a good pitcher; young with a lot of potential, but he's a Boras client. That means that when it comes time for him to test the free agent market he will want the most money possible. Don't give it to him.
Unless he really becomes a Cy Young pitcher Pelfrey can be replaced and the Mets should not overpay for him like Boras will want them to. If you can get something for him via a trade, the Mets should consider it.
Jason Bay:
Another player whose value is lowered from injuries and poor performance. He's another guy the Mets need to try and move. It may not be easy, but remember the Mets need to focus on freeing up payroll and not maximizing return.
That doesn't mean trade him for a bag of balls, but there is a middle ground somewhere in there the Mets need to find.
Francisco Rodriguez:
Without an injury occurring, it can be hard to find a team that needs a closer mid-season. I'd like to see the Mets trade Frankie but given his recent legal issues and his salary it probably won't happen.
So, much like Castillo and Perez, the Mets should part ways with him after the season is done. However, if there is a player option for the 2012 season then the Mets need to make every effort to trade him now.
Furthermore, I'd like to see the Mets give some younger players a chance to close a few games this year. Closing a game is a great experience and a great way to see what a pitcher is mentally made of.
David Wright
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Unlike the rest of the players I mentioned, the Mets should try to keep David Wright. He's the face of the franchise and a great clubhouse presence. Also, by the time the Mets complete this rebuilding process Wright will only be in his early 30s (which means he will still be a fine third baseman and will still be producing solid offensive numbers).
Some may speculate that Wright won't want to stay if the Mets take a few years to rebuild but I disagree with that. Wright loves the Mets, he grew up watching the team, and if the Mets explain to him what they are doing and where they expect the team will be going in a few years I think he will be more than happy to wait it out.
What's better: a few terrible seasons and then a series of really good seasons in which they are competing in the playoffs or a career of mediocre seasons?
By the time the window has closed on the “new” competitive team, Wright can possibly retire with a World Series ring or two on his hand and become, along with Seaver, the face of the entire organization—both past and future.
The Mets Have Had Their Fire-Sale...Now What?
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So now the Mets have traded away all these players and have re-signed David Wright to a long term deal (the only long term deal I would be willing to open the checkbook for). What now?
The farm system needs to be restocked with great talent. Instead of skimping on signing bonuses, and thus missing out on some great Latin American players, like the Mets normally do, the Mets need to aggressively go after these guys. Do whatever it takes to sign them and then develop them appropriately. Give them all the means they need to succeed.
But who will be playing on the big league team?
The Mets need to invest in players who, over the course of a contract, will cost no more than 40 million. If the player fits perfectly, I can see going to 60 million, however whether it is 40 or 60 million these players should only be a very, very few. These deals would also be long term, and for young players only. The Mets cannot afford to sign older, declining players for the long term!
No player should get more then around 12 million a year, and again this should be very, very few players (David Wright can be the exception here).
A deal with an Orlando Hudson type, who has that intensity and attitude the Mets need, for 2 years 5 million a year with an option/incentives based on plate appearances to protect against injury would be a great fit for the Mets.
The Mets should sign the gritty players and platoon them with younger players like a Wilson Valdez. Now Valdez may not be the answer, but he will suffice as Robinson Tejada continues to develop.
This should be the general plan for the Mets: platoon older, gritty players with current mediocre prospects/cheaper free agency signings until the top prospects become ready to play in the majors. And when they are ready, slowly ease them into the role.
The Mets have the luxury, unlike most teams, to develop players and then hold onto them. Most teams have to watch their top prospects eventually leave for teams like the Mets (and other big-market teams) and thus they never get a chance to compete. With the Mets big-market value this won't be an issue.
Starting Pitching
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The starting rotation will be a terrible one, and should be in the bottom of the league in most categories. But, in a rebuilding team, especially the first year of the process, that is okay.
Pitching wins championships. It's a proven fact. The Mets need to make sure they get this one right; there is no room to skimp when it comes to the starting rotation. Scout, Scout, Scout.
Bullpen
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The bullpen is an excellent place to let young starters get a feel for the majors and to let young relievers show their stuff. Use the bullpen to get a feel for some young pitchers, and also to ease pitchers into the majors.
Give these guys a chance and I think the Mets will find they can be very usable. Don't overfill the bullpen with older pitchers, this is where the young pitchers can dip their feet into the majors.
Getting Fans Into The Stadium During a Rebuilding Time
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There is no doubt a fire sale like this will cause a decrease in season ticket holders and fan attendance, but it must be done. That said, how will the Mets get people to the stadium to watch a rebuilding team?
I would first lower ticket prices and slowly raise them up as the team performs better and is becoming closer to competing (and once the team is rebuilt you can charge a lot more because the product will be sensational and worth while to the fans).
Yes this is easier said than done and a team still needs to make money to stay afloat, but no one is going to spend a minor fortune to watch a rebuilding team. But, at the same time, no one is going to spend a lot of money to watch a bunch of high-priced talent lose.
With the Yankees right down the road, the Mets can become the team where an 'average' fan can go to watch a game. Hail back to the days when a father and his child could go to a game and not have to save up for 2 months for it. Wouldn't that be something?
Maybe the Mets can have a family night to entice families with young children to come out. I am not a marketing expert by any means but there are promotions and incentives to get fans to the ballpark, especially a brand new and beautiful one like Citi Field.
This is also where the marketing team gets creative. The Mets need to be inventive and come up with promotions. The Mets will have to entice fans and maybe they can mimic the Padres and do a 5 for $5 deal: hotdog, drink, popcorn, crackerjacks, and candy for 5 dollars.
Or follow the Dodgers and have a section in the stadium which is cheap and has a special food deal (like the Dodgers had with Manny’s section). Perhaps an all you can eat section?
Promotions like these will help bring in fans as the team rebuilds.
Final Thoughts
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Another thing I should add about this plan is that by the time the Mets are actually competitive again, the Phillies window of opportunity would be closed (or just about). They would have an old Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard should be a DH by then. Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, and Roy Oswalt are past their times and possibly gone.
Because the Phillies have young talent, they will not be completely in shambles but their team will not be as near powerful as it is now. Buying talent, especially older talent, is a sure way to find your team in serious trouble down in a few years while probably not seeing as much success as the GM would have hoped for in the present.
This does not mean the Braves, Marlins, or Nationals may not be better by then too and thus provide some competition, but it does mean it is one less team to have to worry about.
All in all, this plan is tough because the Mets will lose a lot of interest in the team by doing this; but it is necessary!
If the Mets continue to try to patch up the holes and install quick fixes, it will take even longer to fix the team; it will just be delaying this process which must take place.
Remember, teams like the Phillies and Rays did not have the biggest followings until they started winning the last few years; and once they did their number of fans sky-rocketed.
So whatever fans the Mets lose during this interim they will gain back, and then some, when the team is competitive. Just like after 2006, all it takes is a winning season/to go deep into the playoffs and all the fans will come rushing back.
Personally, I think the Mets GM Sandy Alderson realizes this has to be done and his offseason actions show he is starting down the path. It may take a few years but Mets fans should be excited that their GM is finally setting them up on the right track.
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