The New York Schmets

We're only less than a month into the MLB off-season, and much drama has stirred off between teams, some players have been signed, some have been rumored to be going elsewhere, some are under status unkown.
But the New York Mets of all teams, have had a very productive off-season, and can still improve upon their team.
NEW YORK METS

The Metsies have made a splash in free agency, although traveling the road not taken. The Mets and co-owners Fred and Jeff Wilpon have replaced an entire managerial staff, headlining the staff are new General Manager Sandy Alderson and Manager Terry Collins.

Mets GM Sandy Alderson

Alderson, a former Harvard Law School graduate, had been the CEO of the San Diego Padres, as well as the president of baseball operations for the Oakland Athletics. Alderson's stint with the Padres extremely impressed the Mets, as Alderson was able to take a rag-tag team projected to finish last in the NL West, also a team with no ace to lead the pitching staff, to a 90-72 record, finishing 2 games behind the eventual World Series champions San Francisco Giants for first place in the NL West. Alderson's primary role is to take the Mets, who have been in shambles since their 2006 NLCS run, and turn THEM into a winning team. The Mets finished with a 79-83 record this season, a big improvement from their 70-92 2009 season. The Mets have been plagued by injury and inconsistency, as well as managerial stupidity. 

Mets SP Johan Santana

Omar Minaya, former GM, had been responisble for bringing in marquee names through trades and free agency such as P Pedro Martinez, 1B Carlos Delgado, P Johan Santana, and OF Carlos Beltran, as well as smaller names such as OF Xavier Nady and OF Endy Chavez. However, nothing worked out as the 4 major players they had acquired became old, frail, and could not play as often. The 2 of 4 players that remain are Santana and Beltran. Since their New York arrivals, Santana has lost 7-8 MPH on his fastball, and has lost much of his confidence and ability to strike out batters. Beltran has been constantly plagued by knee injuries, and has required multiple microfracture surgeries that required him to miss many games. Minaya was fired on October 4th, as well as manger Jerry Manuel, who had replaced former manager Willie Randolph. The firing of Randolph might've been Minaya's worst decision, as Randolph had led the Mets to multiple playoff appearances. Manuel, on the other hand, led the Mets to a whopping(sarcasm) 0 playoff appearances.

The Mets have been plagued by injury for most of their period of frailty. But the Met fans have placed the blame too much upon the injuries; maybe it was due to inconsistency and bad play. Jason Bay, the Mets' major acquisition for the 2010 season, missed the last 65 games of the season due to a concussion and whiplash. Bay, beside the injury, hit poorly, as he hit for 6 home runs, 47 RBIs, and a .259 batting average.

Mets SS Jose Reyes

Luis Castillo, acquired by trade from the Minnesota Twins, has been more than inconsistent, spending much time on the disabled list in his 4 year tenure with the Mets, as well as a feud with manager Jerry Manuel, resulting in being benched for a numerous amount of games. Superstar SS Jose Reyes has been lackluster in the past 2 seasons. After stealing more than 55 bases in a 4 year stretch, Reues missed all but 33 games with a STRAINED CALF MUSCLE!!!! YES, A STRAINED CALF MUSCLE. This season, Reyes hit well, but the main element of his game disappearedm stealing only 30 bases in 133 games. A huge disappointment, who's frailty defines the Mets has been P Oliver Perez. Perez, after a marvelous 2007 season and an above average 2008 season, signed a 40 yeard, 60 million dollar deal to resign with New York. Perez, who had  a TERRIBLE 2009 season with a near 7 ERA and 3 wins to go with a 1.92 WHIP, recreated that season, WITH AN EVEN WORSE SEASON! This year, Perez was demoted to long relief status in the bullpen after posting a 6.80 ERA, a 2.07 WHIP, and went 0-5. That's right, he didn't record a single win. 

Here's what I believe should be the Mets' gameplan for the rest of the offseason, even though they have committed to saving their money and not pursue a top-notch free agent:

OF Adam Dunn

1. Sign Adam Dunn: Yes, of all things, this I believe, should be a main concern. Carlos Beltran is done for, and should be dealt while he still has value. Angel Pagan has become the new CF, and has proved to be a very valuable player. Dunn, who is an underappreciated fielder, is one of the best home run hitters in the MLB. The main reason why the Mets should sign him though, is that he is... CONSISTENT. You don't get that a lot out of the Mets. GO GET ADAM DUNN! The Mets also need a clean-up hitter. Ike Davis will be a good player, but is not ready to assume the number 4 spot in the Mets' lineup. Put him at 5th.

2. Go experiment on a smaller deal starter such as Jon Garland, Brandon Webb, or Jake Westbrook. It's nice to take a risk on a less expensive guy once in a while, and the Mets definitely have time. Webb should be a steal, even though he didn't play last season. He is a perennial All-Star and won't nearly get a contract that one deserves.


3. Stitch up the bullpen, get an 8th inning man: The Mets need that JJ Putz that they needed. Bobby Parnell can be a suitable option, but is young enough to be expendable, cand can be moved around. Sign a nice pitcher such as Jon Rauch, Scott Downs, or even Brian Fuentes. The best option for the Mets would be Kerry Wood. Wood was the most important part of the Yankees' bullpen, who posted a 0.69 ERA with the Yanks in 24 games.

SP/RP Hisanori Takahashi

4. Re-sign Hisanori Takahashi: Takahashi was a steal for the Mets this past season. He was a valuable asset to the Mets' rotation. He went 10-6 with a 3.61 ERA, and collected 8 saves as a replacement to CP Francisco Rodrgiuez.


5. My final proposition for the Mets is to sign John Buck or Miguel Olivo. They Mets NEED a catcher, both can hit, and both are decnt game managers. Olivo hit 14 home runs, 6 triples, and 58 RBIs in 112 games, splitting time with Chris Iannetta in Colorado. Buck, who played for the Blue Jays this plast season,  hit 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 118 games, which on a 162 game pace would have translated to 27 home runs and 90 RBIs.


The Mets, if followimg my proposal, can finish well above .500 and can even contened with the Phillies for first place. The 3 main needs for them are catcher, starting pitcher, and relief pitcher. They must satisfy those needs to keep the fans and most importantly, the Wilpons happy.