So the Mets come up short with Trevor Bauer. They failed to sign George Springer. Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco came from Cleveland and catcher James McCann was signed.

The Mets got better defensively with Lindor and McCann. And without Bauer, the starting rotation is solid with Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Carrasco, David Peterson and Joey Lucchesi, who could be a sleeper. 

And if Noah Syndergaard comes back to form, the rotation can do without Trevor Bauer, as much as Mets fans feel they are once again the losers when it comes to signing the top free agent pitcher on the market. 

But this has more to do with the Mets and not as much about Bauer. Steve Cohen and Sandy Alderson made their pitch and were close. This was not a Mets decision and rather a Bauer power play that led him to sign a three-year, $102 million contract with the Dodgers. 

Think, a year ago the Mets and Bauer would have not been in discussion. Neither were Springer or McCann, and any thought of acquiring Lindor in a trade was more fantasy than reality.

So don’t fault the new regime for failing to land the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner. And do not blame Steve Cohen and Sandy Alderson for not landing Bauer and assembling a devastating one-two punch with Jacob deGrom. With Bauer, perhaps the Mets would have the best starting rotation in baseball.

It’s time to move on and the Mets will, with or without adding to their equation of winning more than a division title. 

The blame is on Bauer for playing games with the Mets. He played with the mentality of Mets fans and had every intent of staying close to home and took an almost similar offer with the Dodgers that Cohen and Alderson thought was reasonable.

So with spring training two weeks away, you have to be content. The Mets are improved and a legitimate team to contend if and when baseball resumes on April 1. And by all means not signing Trevor Bauer does not indicate the Mets are finished in their goals to fill more gaps.

“He is good but not great,” an insider said of Bauer. “60-game season Cy Young winner who pitched in 11 games last year, 73 innings, 6-⅓ innings per game, two complete games.” 

Those complete games, remember, were seven innings each caused by doubleheaders in the shortened 2020 season.

In the end, Bauer was not worth all the baggage he could potentially bring to the clubhouse, and the Mets don’t need more of that bad baggage with a tenuous offseason of news revolving around Jared Porter and former manager Mickey Callaway.

“Guys like Max Scherzer are worth $65 million per year,” said the insider. “Dodgers never get criticized for out-spending the rest of baseball like the Yankees did for years.”

Oh, those Yankees. They never lose out on what they want, including the huge Gerrit Cole contract. But this was never about outdoing the Yankees and Steve Cohen said that in his initial press conference with the media. 

Regardless of the outcome of not getting Bauer, and with the complexity of contracts and revenue sharing, there can’t be comparisons drawn about this new regime and the Wilpons.

Revenue sharing and spending did not stop the Mets from pursuing Trevor Bauer, instead the newest pitcher of the Dodgers played his game. The Trevor Bauer game went back and forth with the Mets. He gained more viewers on his YouTube channel as Mets fans became a part of his charade. 

Instead, not paying Bauer gives the Mets more leverage with priorities to sign Michael Conforto and Lindor to long-term contracts and that has always been in their plan. It will be a priority to get Conforto and Lindor to sign long term.

And the financial flexibility today is better now to fill in those gaps for what the Mets needs in search of another outfielder or front line starter that does not have the name of Bauer.

I am not saying the Mets are definite in landing Jake Odorizzi or James Paxton for the starting rotation, or 41-year-old Rich Hill who is throwing well down in Florida. 

The Mets could land Jackie Bradley Jr. for the outfield, though nothing says the two sides are close to a contract.  

I will say, as much as you want more, as disappointed and annoyed you are about the Trevor Bauer outcome, the Mets have had a winning offseason. They are a better team today than they were when the season ended in September.

Trevor Bauer played the Mets. That is all you have to remember.