Sandy Alderson was brought into the general manager position with the intentions of turning around the New York Mets and bringing them back to the playoffs. Everyone knew that this was not an overnight process and time needed to be giving so that the plan could be implemented. But now just months away from what has been talked about as the offseason that shoots the Mets back into contention, has Sandy Alderson kept our trust and does he deserve it?
The jury is still out. Sandy Alderson has made some great changes to this team. He has added Zack Wheeler, Travis d’Arnuad, Noah Syndergaard and others that help for the future. But on the other hand, there is still a lot of mystery as to what the future holds and where this team can go.
There is still quite of bit of uncertainty as to when the Mets can compete again and at some point fans will be fed up with Alderson and want results. Most fans I speak with have faith in Alderson and are willing to have patience with the process, but that won’t always be the case. At some point this fan base is going to want results, and Alderson needs to produce them.
With a franchise that is rebuilding, it is easy to blame the manager and general manager but the fan base has given Alderson the time to put his plan into effect.
Alderson hasn’t made trades at the deadline either of the last two years and some fans were upset that he hasn’t went out and acquired that big bat to help this lineup. But very soon, these fans will not give a pass to Alderson standing pat at the deadline.
Mets fans expect this team to compete in 2014 and so does the front office. Alderson has been given the reigns and the opportunity to rebuild this team. All the talk is about the Mets turning a corner, becoming a contender once again.
We have seen already this year what the future looks like, what this team can be. But, as fans, we have to trust Alderson to finish the plan. He has done enough already to be given a chance to see this plan through.
He also has made some questionable decisions that make us all want to rip our hair out. It’s all about trust. For a fan-base that hasn’t had a GM to trust for a while, it’s only fair to let Alderson see this through.
Trusting something we can’t see is hard, but it must be done. It’s the difference between turning this thing around and taking steps backwards.
He is not truthful. If you’d like examples, I can provide them. I do not mean that he is wrong, or he is not allowed to say certain things: I mean that his language reveals an attempt to deceive. It is an act of his will. It is not difficult to discern.
I just think he’s a lawyer: very intentionally vague.
A great poster on another site once said–if that picture were of Omar Minaya, it would have had Tony Bernazard walking behind with with no shirt.
Sandy is still playing Omar’s guys. It would be nice to see what his players can do aside from Wheeler. I hate his draft picks strategy of going for HS players. Either they are way smarter than all of us and other experts or they don’t have a clue.
His past #1 picks are not doing too well.
My big question from this article: Does he deserve the ability to see this through? I still think the answer is yes. He does give the lawyer answers, but that’s what he does. He doesn’t want to share his hand too soon (partially because I don’t think he knows what his hand is yet). I still think there is time left before I say I’ve lost trust in him.
What about this? If TC and his goon squad of Hudgens and Warthen are back, then we know there is no trust to be had, or wins for that matter.
Sandy will complete his third year in October. He inherited a mess and chose to rip it down. The last regimes poor contracts will be off the books. All-stars have been traded for minor league prospects. He has had three drafts. He will have had three years to formulate “his” team, which is a long time in baseball time. The fans have been patient. I don’t trust the Wilpon’s so why do I need to trust Sandy. In 2014 there should be significant money off the books to work with and by April of 2014 there should be significant results. There is never a guarantee of a playoff spot (see 2013 Nats) but strong franchises know how to build to compete consistently and that is what I will expect going forward after the misery of four fourth place finishes and 5 years of sub .500 baseball.
Bingo, nicely put Metsense. This constant critiquing of Sandy as if 3 years into a monstrous rebuilding job and we should see all the pieces in place is laughable. He took over an organization with no money and limited prospects and bloated contracts. A system with no plan or structure. So Sandy put the right people in place, started focusing on the draft and on pitching along with waiting for the bloated contracts to expire. We are not at the point where the team can start adding pieces from outside as some of the young players begin to show who they are. I get its been 27 years since the last world title but for Sandy its only been three years and he deserves the full amount of time it takes to clean up this mess. We forget when Frank Cashen took over in 1980 it took four years to start competing and six to win a title. He’s doing it the right way.
You got it. Frank Cashen told ownership it would take five years to get the Mets into shape. Cashen was an experienced and successful executive with the Baltimore Orioles and he knew what he was doing. After three seasons Phil Pepe, a Yankees fan masquerading as a sportswriter for the New York Daily News was calling for Cashen to be fired. I don’t care how impatient the fan base or the media get with the rebuilding of the Mets, Alderson is doing this the right way. As for the fans who want all of these fantasy trades made, just look at what happened to the Mets after they won the World Series in 1969. Panic and fantasy led to the exile of talents such as Ryan and Otis and Ken Singleton. What this has taught me is that sometimes the best move is to sit tight and trust your farm system and your front office, particularly a GM who has won three consecutive American League pennants and a World Series.
I trust that we’ll eventually turn it around, probably soon, but i haven’t liked the way he has done it at all and have disagreed with many of the moves or non-moves he chose to make.
Count me as one of those people who think they could have done a better job than Sandy over these last few years.
You haven’t liked the way he has done it? What did you want him to do with no money available? Trades? Who should he have acquired. I mean I get being upset with the organization but take a step back and look at what is going on.
There are a lot of philosophies that he has that I don’t agree with, the main one being his stubborn to stick to “his plan” and not be malleable.
Last year the Mets started out great before falling apart. Our glaring weakness that was evident from the beginning? Our bullpen. And he did nothing to acquire someone. And i’m sure we could have gotten someone half decent if we gave up one of our lower-level prospects, as relievers don’t cost much anyways.
On the roster side, he has poorly handled the Ike Davis situation, and he has catered to keeping Terry Collins as the manager (who himself is responsible for costing the team a few wins), and also caving in to his demands of 2 lefties no matter how bad they are. And his refusal to carry a competent backup SS on the roster and carrying 6 OF’s instead.
So, if you take a second to think about what he has done or lack of doing anything instead of giving him the lame “no money” excuse, you’ll find many things to be unhappy about.
Like I said, I think I could have done a better job than him.
All GM’s make good and bad decisions. SA has cleaned house and has not committed any major blunders. The Mets now have flexibility and continue to rebuild from within. The lack of trust I have is with ownership. With an 80 million dollar payroll this season the Mets are what we expected. A work in progress. I do trust SA to apply the salary money available to him in 2014(about 60 million)to sign 1 high caliber free agent outfielder. The starting rotation is under team control and the budget should be applied to upgrades at shortstop, first base and our achilles’ heel the bull pen. With a surplus of young starters coming through the minors a trade is not out of the realm of possibilities and all options should be viewed as viable.
Very well thought out analysis, peter.
I’ll agree with most of what’s already been said. He’s had three years, three drafts which have focused on HS talent that has not panned out. His drafts, to this point, have to be questioned. OTOH, he’s reconstructed talent by trading away pieces we couldn’t keep. Whether or not he can continue to do that is the question.
I don’t believe he will sign major talent in the free agent market and anyone who thinks he will outspend another GM is seriously deluding himself. Choo will NOT be a NY Met next year.
Is that “trusting” Sandy? I think so. I think he’s been absolutely consistent with his philosophy since he’s gotten here. Build from within with good young talent you can control for a long time; don’t overspend in the market; be sure to bring back more talent than you give up in a trade. The question will be: can he still make trades like he has in the past? It seems to me that the paradigm has changed.
We’ll see. He’s made fools of two prominent GMs. I don’t think there will be a rush to do a deal with Sandy by anyone else.
I agree – everyone acts like the Mets have all of this money to spend in free agency but I just don’t see it. We’ve been lied to consistently about how much payroll is going into the major league team that the only thing that makes sense is to believe it once it actually happens. The Wilpons can claim they don’t have any personal debt but the debt that they are carrying on the team/stadium/SNY is staggering.
I’d like to see Choo or Ellsbury on the Mets but I think it has no chance of happening.
I was curious as to how much do you think it would cost the Mets to sign Ellsbury? Can play Legares in left and give Byrd a 2 year deal. Solves your outfield problems and leadoff hitter. If you go Cot’s baseball you can see that the Mets really have room for signing one impact free agent. If you trade Murphy and put Flores at second you’ll save 3 million dollars+. Their payroll sits at 40 million(6 million for Bay). The starting rotation will be less than 10 million total. Parnell gets Arb2. So yes the money is there. There are no excuses not to sign an impact player.
I was curious as to how much do you think it would cost the Mets to sign Ellsbury? 15 million?Play Legares in left and give Byrd a 2 year deal. Solves your outfield problems and lead off hitter. If you go Cot’s baseball you can see that the Mets really have room for signing one impact free agent. If you trade Murphy and put Flores at second you’ll save 3 million dollars+. Their payroll sits at 40 million(6 million for Bay). The starting rotation will be less than 10 million total. Parnell gets Arb2. There are no excuses not to sign an impact player.
Here is the excuse:
Sandy Alderson, at the very core of his being, is a value guy. Value first, last, always. He simply is NOT going to be the guy that spends $7-8MM per WAR on a FA, just to get his man. He won’t make the trade, just to make the trade. If Jose Reyes is worth a Zack Wheeler, even for four months, and nobody is offering it, well you burn the player.
If you like having Zack Wheeler, TDA, Noah, Bulcierra (for that matter, players like Aardsma, Torres, Byrd, and failures like Ankiel) … raise your hand. That is most specifically the outcome of a GM like SA.
Who did we really try to sign? Mike Bourn. The only value free agent available. Sandy will sign value. He *can’t* overspend, but not because of ownership.
The Mets need a SS and a middle of the order bat. We can leave the outfield in place IF first base and second base hit. This year, Murphy is not really doing much and Davis has sucked. Even if he turns it on, do you trust him for next year?
I agree with you and the order in which you placed the needs. The team must upgrade at SS. Perhaps Flores might help with the “middle of the order bat.”
The problem will be finding a position for him after Wright comes back.
Sandy is all about spending the least payroll dollars per games won. Our current 25 man roster’s payroll is less than $25 million. Not a lot for a .500 team. I project a 2014 payroll of less than $70 million. I do not see him making a big signing this winter. I do foresee a major trade for a shortstop. I expect Sandy to lock-up several young players with long term contracts. Look for Sandy to trade a third baseman to the Dodgers. We are stocked there. As to Murphy, Niese, Davis, Duda, Parnell, Gee and Wright; they are all under team control, but are not inexpensive. I see all of them being shopped at this winter’s meetings. 2014 is about the Mets being competitive; not winning the World Series. Sandy was sent here by Bud Selig to clean up a mess. Baseball needs a solid National League team in New York. The farm is restocked. The finances are recovering. I trust Sandy to be what he is…a businessman.
Dodgers are looking for star players with name recognition. I think the Dodgers will sign Cano at second which fits their M.O. instead. The Mets are not yet in the clear financially until they are able to re-finance their two loans. One for the team and the other for SNY that are due in 2014. A staggering amount close to 600 million dollars. That’s one of the reasons the Wilpons need for the Mets to remain competitive and continue to draw at Citifield and maintain attendance levels to protect the value of the team. Forbes recent posting has the Mets value drop to about 800 million dollars. The Wilpons cannot afford to have Mets further decline in value and yet try to show their creditors to extend them credit as a good risk.