Mets Missing Out or Just Playing the Game?

Metsies may appear a bit stagnant, but I'd expect a show of life

There’s a lot to be said for doing something the right way. Do it right the first time, you won’t have to do it again, correct?

When billionaire hedge fund Steve Cohen purchased the New York Mets last year, every fan knew that organizational operations would be stark in contrast to the previous ownership regime’s confluence of settling and meddling.

And though despite Cohen’s well-publicized “three-to-five-year vision” for seeing the construction of a sustainable winner through to a World Series championship, the timeline hasn’t moved at a brisk enough pace for some fans.

The core in place, the additions made, the ones still to come; they all add up to what could be a whirlwind of a first season in Queens for the Cohen family.

Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Carlos Carrasco, Noah Syndergaard (soon), Francisco Lindor, Michael Conforto, Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Brandon Nimmo, Dominic Smith, Trevor May, Edwin Diaz.

I mean, come on. This is a squad. And no, the Mets didn’t come away with George Springer or Trevor Bauer. But really, at those prices, were they necessary?

Better question: were the additions feasible to the bigger picture Cohen, team president Sandy Alderson, and acting general manager Zack Scott collectively have in mind?

Left-handed reliever and expert purveyor of the slider Brad Hand would have been a solid pickup, likely reinforcing the Mets’ relief corps to full capacity. Didn’t work out. You’ve gotta move forward.

Publicly — aside from depth additions Jordan Yamamoto, Albert Almora, Jonathan Villar, Mike Montgomery, and Tommy Hunter — the Mets have been largely quiet in recent weeks.

Potential signings in James Paxton (returned to Seattle on a one-year, $10 million), Justin Wilson (reportedly heading to the Yankees, per Robert Murray of FanSided and Jon Heyman of MLB Network/WFAN), Rich Hill (Tampa Bay), Jake Arrieta (Cubs), Jed Lowrie (Athletics) — just kidding — choosing to sign elsewhere are being viewed as the Mets taking losses.

Maybe. But maybe this is all part of the plan.

Players circling back to the Mets — owned by the richest owner in the sport who didn’t take a loss in 2020, as nearly every other team did — getting an offer, then heading back to their other suitors with a number to beat is a strong (and seemingly very effective) strategy. Good agent work, plain and simple.

The Mets surely could have come back with a higher offer for any of those players but chose not to. You have to imagine that wasn’t without good reason.

Whether they have a trade brewing or still have irons in the fire or if Jake Odorizzi is indeed coming home to the Tri-State area or if Jackie Bradley is simply waiting out a designated hitter announcement to make his decision between Boston and New York — this thing ain’t over.

Maybe, juuuust maybe, the Mets just doing this the right way.

The last ownership group was famous for bringing their roster *thisclose* to actual contention then shutting it down. I have a strong suspicion that things will be different this time around.

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