I know the idea of trading David Wright is sensitive for a lot of people (myself included) but the proposed trade makes a ton of sense and Peter Bourjos is being highly underrated by many. He’s 24 years old and already is one of the best CF in baseball defensively. In his first full season he put up 26 doubles, 11 triples and 12 homers with 22 steals. He’s stolen as many as 50 bases in a season in the minors and has plus speed so those 22 steals figure to rise. He is not a FA until 2016. I have to believe if we had a rookie come up and put together that offensive season with an ELITE defensive glove he would be 1000% untouchable to most Mets fans.

Tyler Chatwood is 21 years old and while he didn’t have a great rookie season by any stretch he is unusually young for a 2nd year starting pitcher in the majors and has been insanely rushed with 68 innings at AA at 20 and 21 at AAA at 21. He has a plus FB (93 mph this year on average in the bigs) that can touch 95 (legit, not fake college scouting reports) and a plus curve. He’s said to be a real competitive kid and his stuff even plays up due to this. He has a strong GB rate as well. I’ve seen him compared to Tim Hudson and came into the year the #76 best prospect in baseball. Jon Niese, Chatwood, Matt Harvey, Jeurys Familia, Jenrry Mejia and Zack Wheeler would give the Mets 6 young impressive arms. The Mets could opt to trade 1 or more and would likely have the “ammo” to land almost any major player in baseball should they become available (Felix Hernandez anyone?)

I’m not big on Garrett Richards. Throws hard but I don’t think we need another backend guy. I’d obviously TRY for Jean Segura though that’s likely totally unrealistic. Maybe they get ballsy and take back Bedrosian despite the TJ in June based on upside? Maybe there is another name they like. I just think all things considered this would be a fantastic trade for a rebuilding team. The other name Sherman mentioned (John Hellweg) is a 6’9 monster with a plus FB (95-98) with incredible sink (he’s allowed 5 homers in 185 career innings) and had a 2.12 era as a stater this year with an insane 5.0 GO/AO ratio aka he is a ground ball machine that also gets strikeouts (113 in 89 innings this year)- here is video of Hellweg pitching http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=hTYGdUA4ROQ

1. I think it’s more likely Murphy can play 3b at an average MLB level then he can play 2b.
2. Bourjos likely helps “hide” Duda so if Duda hits his defensive deficiencies will be less of an issue.
3. The Mets save about 15 million (which HOPEFULLY would be put towards keeping Reyes but more realistically could be put towards other areas… I’m going to pretend the Wilpon’s pocketing it isn’t an option)
4. The Mets would add a pretty intriguing starting pitcher to the rotation for 2012. It’s possible they would sent Chatwood to AAA to open the year but if not he’d certainly be intriguing to watch.
5. I think Bourjos is going to end up a lesser man’s Jose Reyes offensively Bourjos in his first full season age 24- 271/327/438-.765 vs. Jose Reyes age 24-280/354/421-775. Now clearly Reyes is the better player (he had 78 steals that year). But I suspect Bourjos would be come a similar fan favorite both in terms of amazing plays in CF but also his ability to hit it in the gap and run as well as show some pop.

Recently reports surfaced that the Mets may indeed shop David Wright this summer and keep Jose Reyes instead. I personally think they both will be Mets in 2012, but let’s ponder a option for minute. This option is Wilmer Flores.

It’s common knowledge that Wilmer Flores will outgrow his position (SS) by a large margin. The accepted idea as of late has been that he will eventually end up in a corner OF position. LF seems as if he best option. Think Carlos Lee…

However maybe the OF isn’t necessarily the best option. Why not 3B? I know I know the star who’s not very super plays there. I actually disagree with that statement. David Wright is a superstar. And that’s HOW we should be marketing him! Why? Because high value is always a good thing when teams have interest in a player.

What could we get for David Wright? A team’s #1 pitching prospect for sure. Probably one of there 2 best position prospects as well. It may not be the worst idea if Sandy and Co. believe Wilmer Flores can handle 3B.

****Just remember it will be ALOT harder to replace Jose Reyes then it will be David Wright. Especially if Flores can handle the position.****

I tend to believe Flores could handle 3B. He doesn’t play an awful SS. Yes he will grow…but maybe he will grow into a 3B. Hmmm very interesting idea no? He doesn’t light the world on fire with his arm strength. However his arm isn’t awful. Maybe we should be thinking Aramis Ramirez instead of Carlos Lee. Or that god awful Miguel Cabrera comparison he had bestowed on him at the age of 16. I believe if we turn him into a 3B he could become a Aramis Ramirez type player. It’s not that big of a stretch at his current ceiling is it? Regardless it’s an option.

As if I even need to introduce it, obviously everyone knows about the Fred Wilpon quotes that came out this morning. He says Jose Reyes isn’t going to get Carl Crawford money. He says David Wright is a very good player, not a superstar. He makes a joke about the Carlos Beltran contract and says he’s 65-70% of what he was. He then goes on to say the team is s_____.

Are any of these things that the fans don’t say? I know he’s the owner and he shouldn’t say these things publicly. But he did, and to be honest Mets fans need to stop crying about it. My Twitter feed is flooded with everyone crying about it. Isn’t it a shame that the Mets have an owner who genuinely cares and has a vested interest in how the team does?

The only reason fans should cry for the team to be sold is because of the Madoff stuff. When it comes to passion, and love of his product, few owners compare to Fred Wilpon. He wants the Mets to win and is upset when they don’t. When the Mets were losing to the Astros I was saying how they sucked too. What people need to realize is this is New York City. Toughen up! George Steinbrenner said this kind of stuff all the time and I have no issue with it.

A common trend on Twitter is fans say “How will the players react to this?” Are you kidding me? These are grown adults getting paid millions of dollars to play baseball in the best city in the world. If there is any reaction it simply should be: “Let me prove him wrong”. Guess what? Like it or not, everything he says is true. Fans need to be less sensitive, and the players need to take it as motivation to be better. What does that say about the players if they have some wimpy reaction to it? It says they are not made for this team or this city.

Another thing people don’t take into account is this is HIS team. He has every right to say whatever his heart desires about the New York Mets. Just like you can say whatever you want about whatever you own. Do I think he should have put it the way he did publicly? Probably not, but it’s as simple as the truth hurts sometimes. The Mets are not a winner in 2011, and frankly unlikely to be so in 2012 either, and it frustrates Wilpon who puts so much of his heart and money into this team. So I can’t blame him for his lashing.

It’s as simple as this, in New York it’s about winning. The Mets haven’t done a whole lot of that, and it’s not because of Fred Wilpon. It’s because of the people he’s writing checks to, starting in the front office. I think Sandy Alderson’s administration is on the way to turning this thing around, but Fred hired Omar Minaya to run the Mets, and the owner’s job is just to write the checks, not make moves. When the owners start making moves you have a Rafael Soriano to the Yankees situation. You hire a General Manager and you trust him to lead your baseball team to where it belongs.

Fans are being oversensitive, the players we don’t know yet, but they should take it as motivation. The Mets over the past few years have more than had enough talent to make it deep in the playoffs. In 2006 they were the best team in baseball period. The players are not doing what is on the back of their baseball card, the players are not doing what is required to become a champion. Until they do that it won’t matter who the owner is, who the GM is, or who the coaching staff is. End of the day it is about the players performing, and frankly they haven’t done it over the past few years.

I don’t know if that means tear the thing down and start over completely, but either way I think the quotes from Wilpon are very fair and honest. What more would you like from ownership than for them to be fair and honest? If the team isn’t playing well and they mask it the fans scream. Now Wilpon says what everyone feels and everyone has a problem with it?

One thing that Mets fans have been crying for the Mets to have is a vocal leader. People would complain the team has too many “lead by example” kind of guys. This may have been true, but I think that time is about to change. The person Mets fans have targeted is none other than David Wright. Wright has been a Met for 7 years, is considered the face of the franchise, and people think that he needs to be more of a vocal leader. I agreed with this sentiment, but figured it would never happen.

Is 2011 the time that changes? Wright spoke quite candidly to The New York Post’s Kevin Kernan about the state of the team. The headline says it all: “It’s time to put up or shut up”. The David Wright of 2009 and prior would never be making headlines like that.

A couple other quotes that stand out to me is him calling out the other players saying: “We have to be a team on a mission, no question about it. We have a lot of guys who have to go out there and try to prove themselves this year.” Players on this team have to come out and prove to people that they are deserving of their pay (see Jason Bay,Carlos Beltran) or deserving of a long term spot on the team (see Daniel Murphy/Brad Emaus,Ike Davis,Josh Thole).

Then to end Kernan’s great piece, Wright said: “If there’s anybody on this team that doesn’t think that we can play with the other teams in the National League East, then we should get rid of them.” It’s about time Wright comes out and says to everyone, “look guys, we have to be in this together and work extremely hard and stay motivated for 162 games and win this damn thing”. It’s not as if the Mets have stunk all year the last 4 years since 2006. In 2010 they were 10 over .500 at the All Star break, 2009 I don’t count because from the opening day lineup and rotation, the only players who didn’t go on the DL were Daniel Murphy, Luis Castillo (though he missed a few days with a sprained ankle after falling down dugout stairs) and Mike Pelfrey. That’s sad. 2008 and 2007 are pretty self explanatory with the end of season collapses.

To me the biggest thing is that Wright not only just say these things to guys like Kernan, but to be active in the clubhouse every single day throughout the season. He has to not only step up to be the guy for the media to go to, but he has to be able to hold team meetings, and give talks in front of the team to keep this team going. I am not entirely sure what it is about this team that they cave late, but maybe it’s the lack of a hard motivational figure. I have zero doubts that Terry Collins is going to do a great job keeping the team motivated, but sometimes they need one of their own to really keep them trucking. David Wright needs to be that guy.

Before I really jump full fledged back into prospect mode, I wanted to give one more piece on the big league team. My contributors will still give it coverage, but I am going to jump to where I feel most comfortable, and that is extensive coverage of the minors.

My personal opinion on Sandy Alderson’s first offseason as Mets GM is that considering the financial situation he was given, he did a heck of a job. Virtually every move he decided to do made sense in some fashion. He filled out the rotation with two arms so there can be depth at AAA. He got some bullpen competition, he got solid bench contributors and good competition at second base. Unlike his predecessor, Sandy Alderson built a complete team. Is it the best team ever? No. But it has atleast capable players at every position on the diamond.

I will do a lot of coverage of minor league and major league camp when I go to St Lucie for spring training March 5th – 12th. Here are my pre-spring training predictions as to what the 2011 Opening Day Mets will look like:

Lineup:
1. SS Jose Reyes
2. RF Angel Pagan
3. 3B David Wright
4. CF Carlos Beltran
5. LF Jason Bay
6. 1B Ike Davis
7. 2B Daniel Murphy (platoon with Brad Emaus. Should face Josh Johnson OD, so I’ll say Murphy gets the start.)
8. C Josh Thole
9. P Mike Pelfrey

If healthy this lineup should be easily a top 3 lineup in the NL. I don’t think there is a weakness in the lineup if everyone is healthy. I am really excited to see what it can do.

Bench:
C Mike Nickeas (Ronny Paulino is suspended first 8 games for PED use)
2B/3B Brad Emaus (a kind of platoon with Murphy)
MIF Chin-lung Hu (he’ll beat Justin Turner,Luis Hernandez for job)
OF/2B Scott Hairston (he’ll compete with Nick Evans and win)
OF Willie Harris (he’s your straight up 4th outfielder)

I actually really like this bench. Good defensive players all around, and some solid pop too. The bench I think could be a real strength for the 2011 Mets.

Rotation:
1. RHP Mike Pelfrey
2. LHP Jon Niese
3. RHP RA Dickey
4. LHP Chris Capuano
5. RHP Chris Young

This rotation has upside, but extreme downside. If all healthy, it could certainly be formidable. If not, then the Mets are going to tank .. fast.

Bullpen:
1. RHP Francisco Rodriguez
2. RHP Bobby Parnell
3. RHP Taylor Buchholz
4. RHP DJ Carrasco
5. LHP Tim Byrdak
6. RHP Pedro Beato
7. RHP Manny Acosta

You don’t have a pure long reliever in the pen, but DJ Carrasco and theoretically Pedro Beato(starter before 2010 in minors) should be able to give you multiple innings if you need it. You probably lose Pat Misch though to waivers.

By my estimations, this is the 25-man roster I could see the Mets going into 2011 with if the season started tomorrow -

Starting Lineup – Jose Reyes, Angel Pagan, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Ike Davis, Jason Bay, Josh Thole, Daniel Murphy.

Bench – Ronny Paulino, Brad Emaus, Luis Castillo, Luis Hernandez, Lucas Duda.

Starting Rotation – Mike Pelfrey, Jon Niese, R.A. Dickey, Chris Capuano, Dillon Gee.

Bullpen – Oliver Perez, Manny Acosta, Taylor Buchholz, Pat Misch, D.J. Carrasco, Bobby Parnell, Francisco Rodriguez.

Of those 25 players, the ones I see most likely being replaced by opening day are Luis Castillo, Luis Hernandez, Lucas Duda, Dillon Gee, Oliver Perez, and Pat Misch. Thats 6 spots that are subject to change depending on moves made from now until opening day as well as camp battles that will unfold.

Sandy Alderson will most likely sign one more starting pitcher. My bet is still on Chris Young. So stick Dillon Gee in AAA as insurance. Also expect Alderson to sign a lefty reliever eventually. Right now he’s in wait-mode to see which one of his choices price drops the lowest. Names like Tim Byrdak, Clay Rapada, Taylor Tankersley, Ron Mahay, Joe Beimel, Will Ohman, and Dennys Reyes are all possibilities. A 4th Outfielder is also a possibility for a bargain bin signing eventually. I have extreme doubts the Mets plan to use Lucas Duda in that role to start the season.

Camp Battles are also going to have an affect on the final 25-man roster. Daniel Murphy, Brad Emaus, Luis Hernandez, Luis Castillo, and Chin-Lung Hu will all compete for the 2B job in spring training. I see only 2-3 of those guys actually making the roster. I see Lucas Duda and Fernando Martinez competing for the 4th OF job if the Mets don’t sign anyone. Terry Collins has already gone on record saying he will give F-Mart a shot at winning the job in the Spring. I see no chance in hell that Oliver Perez makes the opening day roster. He’s pitched awful over the winter and shows no sign of improving anytime soon. Pat Misch will probably find him himself in AAA as insurance or waived. However if we sign just one more SP and a Lefty Reliever, then theres a chance Misch or Perez makes the team as the 25th man in a Long Reliever position since Gee will be sent to AAA. My money would be on Misch winning that battle.

Either way the 25-man roster is far from set. Over 20% of the roster is in question going into camp. Lot’s of fun battles are likely to unfold over Spring. It’s going to be a lot of fun to watch.