Mets Offseason Recap: Week One

While about a quarter of the league is worried about their Game 3 playoff lineup, the other three quarters of the league began their offseason this week, the Mets included.

So what happened, and what comes next after a week full of action from the front office and the rumor mill?

So Long, Rojas (For Now)

Luis Rojas was let go as Mets manager on Monday when his option to coaching the team in 2022 wasn’t picked up by Sandy Alderson. The team president hinted at this move happening when he said he’d act quick once the season ended and not wait for a future president of baseball operations to make the decision.

“We live in a results oriented business, and am deeply disappointed for our staff and fans that we didn’t reach our goals this season,” Rojas said, completing his last official statement as the Mets’ manager. Rojas noted he valued all the relationships he’d built within the organization over the last two decades, which sounded a lot like a guy who enjoys being a Met. Sandy Alderson said the Mets offered Rojas an opportunity to stay within the organization, though that position would be discussed later.

Rojas spent the first decade-and-a-half in the Mets organization coaching all different levels of the minor leagues. Currently, the Mets are severely lacking a consistent voice and general organization from the minor-league development side of things, so Rojas, should he want, could slot into a position there where the Mets need it. There’s also the chance he decides he needs a fresh start and tries to find a coaching job at the major-league level, whether it’s on another team’s bench or leading their squad.

Along with the Rest of the Coaching Staff

And then came the rest of the coaching staff. MLB.com‘s Anthony DiComo reported that everyone below Rojas would be free to interview for other jobs, should that opportunity come.

The exception was Jeremy Hefner, the team’s pitching coaching for the last two seasons. He still may return as the pitching coach, as he’s still under contract, but he also may take on another role in the organization. As mentioned before, the team is lacking in organizational player development, so Hefner may get repositioned to a role that affects the organization’s pitching philosophy rather than deal solely with the day-to-day major-league pitching staff. In either sense, Hefner is someone the organization clearly values as someone they want to keep around.

The next important decision was to re-assign Hugh Quattlebaum and Kevin Howard back to min0r-league assignments, where they started at the beginning of the season before being called up to the major-league squad when Chili Davis was fired as hitting coach. Howard will be the director of player development, which he was originally hired as, and Quattlebaum’s role has yet to be determined, but he could return to his original role as the team’s hitting coordinator.

With regards to the rest of the staff, according to DiComo, bench coach Dave Jauss, bullpen coach Ricky Bones, first-base and base running coach Tonny Tarasco and third-base coach Gary DiSarcina, among others, can accept jobs with other organizations if they’re offered. There’s also a chance they’re back within the organization in some capacity.

The POBO Rumor Mill Starts

More importantly than the team’s coaching staff, the Mets’ front office needs to get sorted.

Monday saw reports of Theo Epstein and Steve Cohen coming to a mutual agreement that the team’s president of baseball operations gig wasn’t right for Epstein, crossing the biggest name off the organization’s offseason wishlist. Next came a report from MMO’s Mike Mayer that Billy Beane, another top name on the Mets’ POBO list, was “unlikely” to take a job out east with the Mets.

Mayer also reported, though, that the team was interested in Josh Byrnes and Brandon Gomes, both from the Dodgers front office, for jobs in the Mets’ front office, whether that’s in the POBO role or elsewhere. SNY’s Andy Martino also reported Gomes’ name.

Lastly, Mike Mayer reported, unrelated to the POBO search, that Michael Conforto is likely to reject a qualifying offer, should the Mets offer one (which they absolutely should). That, like the rest of the news this week, was generally expected. This also wouldn’t prevent the Mets from signing Conforto long-term, but it also sets the tone from Conforto that he’s looking for a multi-year deal this offseason.

What Comes Next?

The search for a president of baseball operations will continue this week, and perhaps the Mets get more clarity on Beane’s interest in the job.

The Dodgers are locked in a tight match with the Giants in the National League Division Series, but should the Dodgers get axed this week (as soon as Tuesday night), the Mets could request to interview one of the aforementioned front office executives. The same goes for David Stearns of the Brewers, but it isn’t likely the Mets get granted permission to interview Stearns whenever the Brewers are done with their postseason run.

The Mets also have a whole coaching staff to sort out now, too, but that can probably get put on the back burner until the front office is set in place. Will that be decided this week? Likely not, but the Mets should ought to make headway over the next seven days.