NY Mets prospects can provide the next GM with intriguing possibilities
It probably won’t be the 2022 season when the influx of top New York Mets prospects contribute regularly in the big leagues. In 2023, this could all change.
You’ve already heard plenty about Francisco Alvarez, Ronny Mauricio, Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, Matt Allan, J.T. Ginn, and anyone else you might classify as one of the most notable prospects in the Mets system. Did I miss anyone? These seem to be the six everyone has their hearts set on becoming huge difference makers very soon.
We don’t know for sure which of these men will be the big stars, which will fizzle out quickly, and which of them might be a footnote in Mets history. What we do know is that the team will be on the hunt for a new general manager this winter and these promising young players can provide that person with some intriguing possibilities.
Mets prospects can give the next general manager and other front office personnel room to work
The Steve Cohen regime has not been the free-spending maniacs some believed they would be. Instead, they’ve approached team-building with an eye for the future and a gear toward analytics.
One failed season won’t sway the team’s plan to focus heavily on these areas. Eventually, we may see them take a hard turn and attempt to buy a championship. For now, expect much of the same.
Why would a prospective general manager candidate and other front office personnel care about this? Well, the kids could give them some room to work. The Mets, regardless of how much money they have to spend, will have a budget. Everyone does. Jeff Bezos’ rocket he used to get into space didn’t have liquid glass soap in the onboard bathroom for a reason: it wasn’t in the budget.
Promising young players making baseball pennies allow for far more flexibility than even the cheapest veterans on a major league roster. Typically, you get more production for your dollar from a pre-arbitration player than anyone else on the team outside of your stars. For a general manager, this has to be an enticing element to have at your disposal.
This could be exactly what attracts a guy like Billy Beane to the Mets
Billy Beane is the name people are discussing most these days as a possible future member of the Mets front office. He won’t be the general manager, but he would be heavily involved in team decisions.
Beane’s reputation as a team builder with fewer dollars at his disposal may sound like a contradiction to the Cohen billions. I don’t think one has anything to do with the other. Beane has done the most of what he can with the budget the Oakland Athletics presented him. He would do the same with any organization. A team like the Mets might just give him more leeway.
Other candidates out there would have the same luxury. The key, though, is for the new general manager to not end unload those prospects the way Brodie Van Wagenen did so quickly and continually.
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Whoever it is the Mets bring in this winter, in whatever role and capacity, will come into a fruitful situation. The team, while not loaded with the best farm system, does have talent there. Add in a good major league squad, owner willing to spend, and the salary space to make it happen, the Mets can offer a little bit of everything. Let’s just hope the media doesn’t tear the person they hire apart before they wet their legs.