Dueling offseason mistakes the NY Mets should be prepared to make

Offseason New York Mets mistakes were the hottest topic this week with Pete Alonso coming back to Queens. David Stearns is bound to make more. There’s one he made last winter that he should get the leeway to make simply because nobody can nail it 100%.

Among the errors made by Stearns in the offseason, one to include is keeping a few players too long. It has been a common mistake by the POBO. He didn’t sell high on Mark Vientos after 2024. He held onto Ronny Mauricio to the point where he’s more of a non-tender candidate than even a trade piece. Errors because he doesn’t own an accurate crystal ball, it’s the kind of mistake we need to accept he makes again.

MLB insider Pat Ragazzo recently wrote for Rising Apple about why Jonah Tong could be an intriguing trade chip for the Mets this winter. A high-valued prospect in the summer of 2025, his stock fell but didn’t crater this year. Players like him or any other younger player in the same spot is someone the Mets may be better off holding onto rather than making the other mistake of selling them for another Freddy Peralta.

Where the Mets should be cautious with their young players

Yes, the Mets should look to move on from some prospects or young players if the price is right. That’s up to each of us to personally judge, Stearns to execute. The Mets are in a weird place with their starting rotation. Nolan McLean and Christian Scott are the locks. Zac Thornton has shown a lot of promise, but could always end up as an odd man out, especially with Sean Manaea being difficult to move. We’d have to expect the Mets would add at least one veteran in free agency or via trade as well.

Along with Tong, the Mets have Jonathan Santucci and Jack Wenninger as potential options, too. Gary Gill Hill from the Peralta trade is one other who could climb up to the majors and make a couple of starts. Rule 5 eligible this offseason, he’s one of multiple prospects who could get added to the 40-man roster.

Holding onto the youth for too long is often a cited mistake of the Mets. They didn’t trade any of the Baby Mets and years later, Brett Baty as a utility man and Francisco Alvarez as an oft-streaky hitter with a negative defensive reputation is the best of what we’ve gotten. The Mets will undoubtedly end up holding onto yet another prospect for too long. The alternative is far worse. Selling another Pete Crow-Armstrong prematurely is bound to happen at some point.

Where the Mets shouldn’t be so afraid to take a risk

To that same end, the Mets shouldn’t be fearful about acquiring superstar players via trade. Those kinds of dream trade scenarios seem fewer in the offseason. Renting a top player at the trade deadline is usually when those guys move for the mere purpose of their previous employer not wanting to lose them for nothing.

In October 2022, trade buzz around Shohei Ohtani gave SNY a chance to put together a Mets mock trade. It aged hilariously with a deal headlined by Baty and giving the Los Angeles Angels a choice between Kevin Parada or Alex Ramirez. Two more unnamed prospects are offered as well with a preference for anyone outside the team’s top 15.

A look at the top Mets prospects from 2022, Christian Scott is light years better than anyone else and only ranked 25th. For even just a year of Ohtani, which this trade would have been, it seems like an extreme underpay based on how these players developed.

The tug-of-war between what to do with prospects is one that’ll be a key this winter with the Mets needing to make changes, but also having so much talent in abundance at the minor league level. Daring to make an all-time blockbuster trade vs. holding onto players a little too tightly is what generally can create a front office executive’s reputation most.

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