At the GM Meetings in Scottsdale, Arizona tonight, New York Mets GM Sandy Alderson discussed a variety of topics with the media on how the team will proceed this offseason as they seek to revamp the roster for the 2017 season.
The Mets are still interested in bringing back Yoenis Cespedes and spoke with his representatives 7-10 days ago.
Alderson said the Mets don’t have any absolute parameters on what they are willing to offer, but added if he didn’t have the resources to sign him to a longterm deal he wouldn’t have engaged his agents.
Unlike last offseason when the Mets signed Cespedes on January 26, Alderson would prefer to get something agreed upon sooner rather than later, hopefully during the winter meetings. But he also understands that it is not entirely under his control.
* * * * * * * * *
— Sandy Alderson said he has not yet spoken with Neil Walker or his representatives despite offering him a one-year qualifying offer. He says he’ll be very comfortable should Walker accept the qualifying offer and that he would love to have him back.
— Not surprisingly, Sandy told reporters he was very disappointed and shocked when he heard the news that closer Jeurys Familia was arrested for suspicion of domestic violence. He admitted that the team was already looking to improve the bullpen this offseason even before before Familia was arrested. Read more here.
— Third baseman David Wright is confident that he will return next season after missing most of the 2016 season with a herniated disc in his neck in addition to dealing with his spinal stenosis condition.
— Don’t look for the Mets to upgrade at catcher this offseason. Alderson said the Mets will stay in-house and hope to get better production out of catchers Travis d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki next season.
We’ll go more in depth on some of this tomorrow morning.
