Wow what a day! Bay’s salary off this year’s book makes $75 million quite possible. Sandy is acting like a turn around specialist. He bought some more time for the Wilpons. I still look for more salary dump. I’m thinking Wright and Dickey.

I consider them two different issues because we didn’t have to necessarily give up our future to remain competitive. I definately agree with R.A. Dickey when he said a team can both be competititve and build for the future at the same time.

As it is, our future is less bright now than it was two years ago simply beause the kids that are proving themselves i.e., Davis, Parnell, Gee, Murphy and potentially Harvey and could still give us hope i.e, Duda and Kirk are not supplemented by more established players of merit. It is very difficult to make a run mostly on kids like Oakland did and Tampa Bay a few years back.

I didn’t include Zach Wheeler for if the Beltran trade was not made he would not be a part of our future. Is our future better off with Zach? Of course, nobody can say for sure until he proves himself, however, even if he does wind up to be a good starting pitcher, he does not fill any of the series of holes created by this organization since we do have already good starting pitching. And those of us old enough to remember the clubs of the early seventies, even with our hall of famer Tom Seaver that for six years after the 1969 miracle we were nothing more than a few games over .500 in any one season and twice finished below .500. We had a temporary bounce in 1976 when we were 86-76 but that was it.

The Mets over the last 2 seasons combined have spent $25.8M in pro free agent contract signings. When they spent only $8.1M in year 1 it was at least to me expected since the payroll was already topping out around $140M but when in year 2 they spent $17.7M and payroll ended up around $100M the seriousness of the Mets ability or rather inability to spend became more transparent that the pre-Madoff days of Wilpon spending were for at least the foreseeable future no more.

When you then add the thought of Jason Bay having been paid $34M over the last 2 years and for this he has given the team .221/BA .302/OBP .351/SLG 20/HR 77/RBI 80/R over 193 games. Having a large mostly unproductive contract taking up payroll hurts even more.

“Pitching wins” it’s a phrase that never gets old cause it continues to prove to be true and right now as I look ahead I am looking at names like Niese, Harvey & Wheeler as a possible solution to the Mets winning down the road and with health some luck and a key pickup here or there I still remain hopeful albeit alone for the time being.

/nerd

The Yankees: Jeter, Petite, Rivera, Posada
The Phillies: Rollins, Howard, Utley, Victarino
The Braves: Jones, Jones, Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz, McCann

Who is the Mets core? Wright? Dickey? Until there is a base of perhaps Tejada, Ike, Harvey, Wheeler, etc..the team is basically in rebuilding. These guys all have questions that need answering. Get them (or most of them) with a solid outfielder as the core, then the team can make moves to fill in the holes. Until that time, there is little that can be done in my opinion.

Trying to buy your way out of a mess like this rarely works. The successful runs in Met history came after the development of talent reached the major league level and then assets were brought in to compliment them; not the other way around.

I am willing to give Alderson a pass this off season since 2014 is the time when a change should be evident. In the present, just keep the process going and see what you are turn into future assets (maybe getting something for Johan in 2013 before the trade deadline as an example).

Lets go Mets!

I think that shows Watchman’s point. Of course if the team is rebuilding the MLB team is going to be worse than when they started.

I take it this means your no longer concerned about press credentials?