Mets: Dollar amount, expectations continue to fall in free agency

The Mets came into the off-season with supposed plans to fill a few holes, but the expected spending money available has continued to drop

The Stingy Express strikes again (terrible name, I know). According to Joel Sherman, the Mets may wind up spending another $10-15 million this off-season and are looking for prices to drop once the calendar flips to January.

Each day, the offseason “plan” has been proven to be nothing but a mirage. The Anthony Swarzak move was made right after Sandy Alderson said fans “shouldn’t worry about payroll.” Okay, Swarzak in his own right does add more stability to the pen. With such a paltry figure left (if true), what else can the Mets really accomplish this winter?

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The answer: absolutely nothing. The Wilpons are akin to if somebody scanned the gift card rack at Christmas time to find the cheapest possible value. This is a terrible look for a team that fell apart last year and lost 92 games after back-to-back playoff appearances and a National League title.

Mickey Callaway was a smart hire, but he’ll have the deck stacked against him. The Mets came into this off-season knowing what they needed, but that message has pivoted several times. Starter who can eat up innings? Nope. First base/outfielder? Nope. The Mets are quickly exhausting their own options without any real effort and it’s despicable.

If this is true, I’d rather the Mets take whatever money they feel they have left to spend and sink it into one player whether through picking up a contract in a trade or free agency. Sure that still takes the Mets out of the top level remaining free agents, but there are at least a few more options that can open back up.

There are already so many question marks mainly injury related that surround the 2018 squad. Now it looks increasingly like the Mets will fall well short of what their goals were. After the team cleared so much money through trades and expired contracts, the payroll may now be reduced even further than previously thought.

Next: Jay Bruce likely not returning to the Mets

And that’s a sad reflection on a franchise in a major market. I know it’s been said so I’m just another voice expressing this, but building a winning product isn’t a high priority on ownership’s list.