I had the following question emailed to me yesterday, but there was no name attached, so we’ll call him Anonymous.

If Jordany Valdespin is part of the future then why was he sent back to Buffalo?

The Mets have no idea right now what the outfield of the future looks like. They’ve spent this season throwing darts, but have yet to hit one bulls eye. I’m not so sure ‘Spin is part of our outfield future or infield future. It didn’t take him too long to alienate some of his teammates and rub them the wrong way. The bad reputation that preceded him was very real and now everybody knows it. His clubhouse comments boasting “I’m the Man” after one of his late inning home runs, was a bit too much. He was demoted to send him a message – that’s my own opinion on why Spin went down.

Jonathan asks:

Will Josh Thole still be on this team next season?

Tough to say. It depends on how much money the Mets have to invest in the catching position and whether they will be able to give Kelly Shoppach an offer he can’t refuse. If Shoppach is re-signed, Thole could stay on as a backup catcher. If Shoppach ends up with one of the high rollers, the Mets may make another play for Ramon Hernandez whom they have always liked. What makes this so unpredictable is that Sandy Alderson has no clue what his budget is or will be. He makes blanket statements based on assumptions when in fact he is in the dark as much as we are.

Rafael sent in the following question:

In maybe 2 or 3 years the Mets could have a core of pitchers in Wheeler, Harvey and Niese, they can also use Pelfrey or Gee as a 5th starter, but I think they still will need a veteran ace. The bullpen can be fixed from within using Parnell, Edgin, Familia, Mejia and perhaps some other veteran arm. Murphy, Turner, Baxter and maybe Duda can be a solid bench. I’m fine with Davis, Valdespin, Tejada and Wright in the infield, but what do you do with the catchers and the outfield and their lack of production and power? Should the Mets consider trading Santana, Dickey and even Wright for some bats to help them in 2014 and beyond. Looks like the Nats and Braves are a force to stay in our division, so building a really strong team is the only way I see to get to the top of the NL East and become at last, serious contenders.

You packed a lot into that question so let me get started. Chris Young is as good as gone and so will Santana come 2014. But you never know how quickly Matt Harvey can become that veteran in the rotation you speak of, much like Tim Lincecum and Justin Verlander quickly became veterans on their team. I’m not so concerned about having a hardened veteran in the rotation as much as I am in having five pitchers who are performing day in and day out.

You seemed to have relegated Murphy to the bench and Valdespin as your second baseman. I don’t see that happening at all. Murphy will either be traded or playing everyday if he’s still here. I addressed the outfield in the first question above.

As for the Braves and Nationals being a force to be reckoned with, I agree. Both teams are solid and have a great mix of youth and experience and many of their players perform at a high level.

Trading Dickey or Wright to fix the outfield or catcher only serves to create another area of need. That said, I would say Dickey is the Mets most valuable individual trade chip right now, not Wright. Because of Dickey’s $5 million contract for next season, he is as good as gold. If the Mets are not prepared to offer him at least a 3 year deal worth around $50 million, they will lose him regardless after next season. It will take more than double that to keep Wright. I don’t see the Mets in a position to have about $35 million or more a year invested in two players for the next 3-5 years at least. Do you? That’s not how this front office rolls…

Original Mets Fan asks:

Who do you think will be our biggest bargaining chip this offseason?

Read above.