Teixeira will join Curtis Granderson and Alex Rodriguez with longterm DL stints once the season starts. The Captain, Derek Jeter is also rehabbing a busted ankle, so who knows what the Yankees will get from him this season.

The living legend Mariano Rivera is returning from knee surgery, and announced his retirement on Saturday.

Adding insult to injury is that the Yankees really don’t have a “brand name” catcher, and the outfield is filled with question marks. Hmm… sounds like another team we may know…

Right now… I’ll take the Mets projected starting infield of Ike Davis, Daniel Murphy, Ruben Tejada and David Wright, and take them over the Yankees any day. Heck I’ll stack them up against any other infield in baseball. And for the record, I Wright is one of the best all-around third basemen in the game and certainly in New York.

John Buck is a solid veteran with pop behind the plate, and it won’t be long until top catching prospect Travis d`Arnaud makes his way to the big club. I see a bright future for the Mets infield.

As far as the outfield goes, once upon a time, Mookie Wilson and Lenny Dykstra were complete unknowns. So were Jay Payton, Benny Agbayani, Timo Perez, Endy Chavez and Kevin Mitchell. Yet, all these unknown players made it to the post season with the Mets.

Who’s to say Mike Baxter isn’t the next Endy Chavez (get the great catch angle?), or that Lucas Duda won’t be the next Kevin Mitchell. Who knows? The point is nobody knows and that’s the beauty of baseball.

I have no doubt the Yankees will make some lop-sided trades this season and spend some big money for some quick damage control. But who knows how that will turn out either?

I know one thing… This season and moving forward, the Mets have hope for a brighter future built around a solid young core of players and farm system bursting with talent. I’m not so certain you can say the same thing for that other team from the Bronx.

How awesome was this scene in the clubhouse?

Man, 2006 feels like so long ago now. That season was the most exciting one I have witnessed since the World Series run in 2000. The Mets were a juggernaut. We had swagger, power, pitching, speed. We had a attitude and everyone hated us, especially when Reyes, Delgado, and others would dance on the field.

Remember the slogan?

“The Team. The Time. The Mets.”

Remember how much we loved Willie Randolph? We thought he was our savior, and everything he touched was gold.

The 2005 off-season was Omar Minaya’s second season at the helm. He spared no expense, and left no stone unturned as he built a powerhouse of a team.

Notable moves from the 2005 off-season that helped lead us to the 2006 NL East Crown.

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  The lasting image of the young Wright celebrating

  November 18, 2005: Xavier Nady was traded by the San Diego Padres to the New York Mets for Mike Cameron.

• November 24, 2005: Carlos Delgado was traded by the Florida Marlins with cash to the New York Mets for Mike Jacobs, Yusmeiro Petit, and Grant Psomas (minors).
• November 29, 2005: Billy Wagner was signed as a Free Agent by the New York Mets.
• December 5, 2005: Paul Lo Duca was traded by the Florida Marlins to the New York Mets for Dante Brinkley (minors) and Gaby Hernandez (minors).
• December 12, 2005: Julio Franco was signed as a Free Agent by the New York Mets.
• January 22, 2006: Kris Benson was traded by the New York Mets to the Baltimore Orioles for Jorge Julio and John Maine.

The pitching staff was headed by long time nemesis Tom Glavine, Pedro Martinez, Steve Trachsel, Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, while Oliver Perez and John Maine filled in when injuries hit.

The starting lineup boasted supreme talent across the board from the youngsters Reyes and Wright, to the veteran sluggers Delgado and Beltran.

This team had a great bullpen led by all-star closer Billy Wagner, Pedro Feliciano, Duaner Sanchez and Chad Bradford.

Despite the season ending in an utter letdown, 2006 was a wild ride. We had some of the greatest moments in our history during that season.

Boy, don’t you miss Lo Duca’s fire?

Remember the double play at home versus the Dodgers in the NLDS?

With nobody out and runners on first and second base, Russell Martin drilled a single toward right field. When it hit off the wall, it seemed definite that Jeff Kent and J.D. Drew would score. As Lo Duca looked up to see home-plate umpire John Hirschbeck call Kent out, he almost didn’t see Drew sliding headfirst toward the plate. But with one quick motion, the veteran catcher turned his head back toward the field and applied the tag that completed an improbable double play.

Remember Endy Chavez’s catch versus the Cardinals in the NLCS?

Endy made arguably one of the best defensive plays in Mets history, and it will be forever remembered as “The Catch”. 

It’s too bad this catch did not

I’ll let Gary Cohen refresh your memory in case you forgot exactly how it happened.

“Edmonds at first and one out, and Perez deals. Fastball hit in the air to left field, that’s deep, back goes Chavez  back near the wall…leaping, and…. he made the catch! He took a home run away from Rolen! Trying to get back to first, Edmonds… he’s doubled off! And the inning is over! Endy Chavez saved the day! He reached high over the left field wall, right in front of the visitors bullpen, and pulled back a two run homer! He went to the apex of his leap, and caught it in the webbing of his glove, with his elbow up above the fence. A miraculous play by Endy Chavez  and then Edmonds is doubled off first, and Oliver Perez escapes the 6th inning. The play of the year, the play maybe of the franchise history, for Endy Chavez  and the inning is over”

The Mets had so many memorable moments from that season, but now it just feels so long ago.

How does a big market team like us always find a way to fail?

We have so many resources, but fail to build a complete team. The 2006 team was the strongest we have had in a very long time.

It’s just really sad that we have to think back seven years to remember what it was like to really enjoy watching our favorite team. The Mets have had their moments over the past few seasons, but they always end in disappointment  When will it end? When Harvey and Wheeler get here? I know they will help, but as my dad said the other day, “how awful would it be to have Harvey and Wheeler here and no team around them?”.

That would be awful, but it would also be typical of the Mets. I just really hope I get to stop saying that one day…

I wouldn’t mind seeing the Texas Rangers win their first ever World Series, but I would more so like to see the former Mets play well.

Texas has five players/personnel with Mets ties.

ALCS MVP Nelson Cruz was actually a Met farmhand. Our old buddy Steve Phillips traded Cruz to the Oakland A’s in 2000 for back up shortstop Jorge Velandia.

As I’m sure most of you remember, Rey Ordonez went down with an injury that season, so the Mets traded for Orioles shortstop Mike Bordick. However, Phillips thought it best to bring in another shortstop in exchange for Cruz.

Granted with prospects, it’s always difficult to determine if they will pan out. But just imagine if the Mets had NELSON CRUZ batting in the middle of their order. The guy has raw power that he will hopefully keep displaying this week.

The Rangers have another outfielder with Met ties. Maybe you remember him: Endy Chavez.

Chavez was an unsung hero for the Mets during the 2006 season. How could we ever forget the incredible catch he made in Game 6 against the Cardinals that propelled the Mets into the World Series…or at least it should have.

Chavez has the difficult task of backing up Josh Hamilton in Texas, but he can be a valuable defensive replacement or pinch runner.

It’s been great to see Endy back on the field after a few injury plagued seasons.

Another key Met from the 2006 team, Darren Oliver, is firmly entrenched in the Rangers bullpen. Oliver was thought to be washed up when the Mets brought him in for 2006, but he had one of his best seasons. He was ‘Mr. Consistent’ all year.

Oliver signed with the Angels in 2007, but found himself in Texas for the past two seasons. Despite his age, he posted a 2.29 ERA this year.

While the Rangers are known for their potent offense, it’s been their bullpen, including Oliver, which has been their strength. He’s been buried being Mike Adams, Alexi Ogando and Neftali Feliz, but he may be called on in a big spot, especially to get a lefty out.

Technically, Rangers catcher Yorvit Torrealba was connected with Mets for a time. However, the Mets called off the deal in 2007 after getting the results of his physical. He’s Mike Napoli’s backup, so don’t expect to see much of Torrealba in the World Series, since Napoli is on fire right now.

There’s one other person involved with the Rangers who has Met ties, and that’s Nolan Ryan, the team’s owner.

I won’t spend too much time on this one, because I know it’s an issue that still pains Mets fans. The hard-throwing Ryan couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn while in a Met uniform, but his career took off after the Mets traded him.

At least Jim Fregosi worked out for the Mets…NOT!

While Texas has a few people connected to the Mets, the St. Louis Cardinals only have one.

Back in 1999, a young righty named Octavio Dotel burst onto the scene for the Mets. He was a bit inconsistent but had a ton of potential as a starting pitcher.

He even made the postseason roster and played a role in the two-game comeback against the Braves in the NLCS.

However, Dotel was included in the Mike Hampton trade. Hampton was a nice find for one year, and he helped pitch the Mets to the World Series in 2000. But he immediately signed with the Colorado Rockies the year after. I hope his kids have top-notch educations, since Hampton cited the school system in Denver as one of the reasons for the switch.

As for Dotel, he went on to pitch for 11 different teams. He was dealt from the Blue Jays to the Cardinals at this summer’s trade deadline and has pitched lights out. He is in search of his first career World Series title.

The Cardinals bullpen has rivaled that of the Rangers, so we’re in for a tight battle.

Does good pitching truly beat good hitting? We’ll find out soon.

In March he will hold a showcase for interested teams, and apparently many are interested.

Chavez is trying to return from a June 19th outfield collision with Yuniesky Betancourt while playing for the Mariners. Hew was expected to miss 9-12 months after surgery the following month.

Chavez appeared in 54 games last season with the Mariners and batted .273 with two home runs and nine stolen bases in 161 at-bats.

As much as I love Endy, I don’t see how he would fit in with the Mets as presently constructed.

The outfield is completely set with starters Jason Bay, Carlos Beltran and Jeff Francoeur. Our fourth outfield is Angel Pagan who is a better hitter than Chavez and deserves any additional playing time they could eke out for him.

While reading some comments over at our friends Amazin Avenue, one of their readers are suggesting that we get rid of Jeff Francoeur and replace him with Chavez.

Firejerrynow writes, even with his somewhat underwhelming bat, his career UZR/150 of 15.7 (19.8 in RF) is enough to make me bite. I’d rather have him for $400,000 than Francoeur.

He even had several who agreed with him… Now I know when you mention the word Francoeur over there, it just sends everyone into a tizzy, but come on… it sounds to me like a few of them are a few cans short of a six-pack, and of course I’m just teasing. I think what is at play is just how much Endy Chavez is loved by Mets fans who will always remember him for “The Catch”.

We already committed $2 million dollars to Alex Cora coming off two thumb surgeries for our bench. We already added 38 year old Henry Blanco to our bench. We traded closer Billy Wagner in return for long time minor leaguer Chris Carter who is supposed to get the fifth outfielder spot. And we have one more bench spot left that is being reserved for either a corner utility infielder, or Daniel Murphy should the Mets sign Carlos Delgado.

So where exactly does Endy Chavez fit?

Are we simply going to ignore the fact that we sacrificed a first round pick and first round supplemental pick when we traded Wagner for Carter? Are we not going to at least see what we got? Do we just make the decision to stunt Carter’s progress just because our heart longs for someone who once gave us a cherished Mets memory?

We should never make player personnel moves based on emotion rather than intellect.

Endy isn’t even ready to run for another two months, so let’s keep our feelings for Endy Chavez in check, at least until we figure out what the rest of this roster is going to look like.

If all he wants is a minor league deal, and he is willing to stay there, then fine. However, I’m not interested in bumping Angel Pagan or Chris Carter off the pecking order just because we are drunk with sentimentality.

Despite enjoying two of the best years in his career in Chicago, Wise declined an assignment to the club’s Triple-A affiliate recently and elected to become a free agent.

As a veteran journeyman, Wise has spent time in Toronto, Atlanta and Cincinnati prior to joining the White Sox in 2008. While his career numbers at the plate are rather unimpressive ( a lifetime .216 hitter), Wise is able to make himself a useful player due to his strong defense.

In 371.1 innings this season, the 31 year-old, Wise compiled a fielding percentage of .990. This is directly in line with his career number of .989.

Along with this comes a stellar attitude, which was something his former minor league coach, Rick Sweet, emphasized in an interview with the Courier Journal. In it, Sweet describes Wise as a “hard worker who always took pride in his defense”.

Sweet later adds that “he [Wise] always made great catches for us”. After a year in which fundamentals cost the Mets almost as much as injuries the team could use a breath of fresh air when it comes to players that can field their position.

To me, Wise is an ideal fifth outfielder, in the sense that he can be relied on to provide solid defense in the latter innings of tight ball games.

This is more than the Mets can say about the man, who currently fills the position, Jeremy Reed, who really didn’t seem to do much of anything during his time in Queens.

As Amazin’ Avenue’s James Kannengieser points out Reed is a likely non-tender candidate, which would open up a spot on the roster for Wise and possibly others to compete for out of spring training next year.

Wise reminds me of ex-Met Endy Chavez, a bit, in the sense that both men have a knack for making highlight reel catches while providing consistently good defense throughout the season. Both players also bring with them a positive attitude.

To be fair, however, Endy, has a bit more pop in his bat than Wise does.

Still though, Wise would be a valuable asset to the ball club, especially if they pursue either Jason Bay or Matt Holliday, who are both noted for having less-than-stellar defense.

Also, Wise could spell Carlos Beltran in center-field from time to time in an effort to prevent Beltran’s knees from giving out on him midway through the season.

The question still remains, could the Mets afford to fill a spot on the 25-man roster with a guy, who brings practically nothing offensively to the team?

The answer is probably not, especially when you consider that in all likelihood the team will bring back Alex Cora, who is another defensively-orientated bench player that does not pose much of a threat at the plate.

However, if the team adds a bat or two, then the team could certainly allocate two bench positions to defensive specialists.

Regardless of what the team does this off-season, it couldn’t hurt to at least offer Wise an invitation to Spring Training, perhaps the team could catch lightening in a bottle.