NY Mets: Five biggest challenges facing the Mets this offseason

1) Who will be the Mets General Manager this winter?

Beginning this offseason, this team is going to possess more spending money than they have had in the previous offseason, which will now have the team shopping in the high-end luxury aisles rather than the bargain bins we have been accustomed to over the past several seasons. It’s no longer a question if the money is going to be spent, but now the question becomes who is ultimately going to be the one spending the money for the Mets.

There is a very good chance that current General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen is relieved of his duties when Steve Cohen is officially voted in by MLB owners after the World Series, and Cohen allows Sandy Alderson to handpick the team’s next General Manager. With news surrounding the Mets revamping their analytical department this offseason, the orange and blue may be inclined to bring in a more baseball analytical mind to run the General Manager position to line up with the undergoing culture change.

There are multiple possibilities on the table for the Mets this offseason when addressing their biggest challenge. There have been rumblings that Sandy Alderson may take over General Manager duties this offseason if both Alderson and Cohen aren’t satisfied with the GM candidates available.

There also has been a strong connection between the team and current Oakland Athletics Assistant General Manager and Director of Player Personnel Billy Owens due to his relationship with Alderson over the past two years.

The least likely, as well as the most unpopular possibility among fans, could simply be Van Wagenen returning to the General Manager position for one more season while not having as much authority that he has had in previous seasons under the new regime. Nonetheless, it seems like a battle of power that would end ugly and it would make more sense for Alderson to seek an alternate option unless he truly believes Van Wagenen is transformable.