Blogging for New York Magazine, Will Leitch wonders why the Mets haven't done more to bolster their pitching rotation …
The Mets need you to know that the reason they haven't made a significant signing in a matter of months is not because the Wilpons were fleeced by Bernie Madoff. "Categorically unrelated," a spokesperson told CNBC. But for a team that has a new stadium opening, two awful "collapses" in two years, and a crosstown rival spending like Brewster's Millions, it's a strange time to suddenly become stingy.
The Mets blitzed out of the gate, picking up two of baseball's top relievers in Francisco Rodriguez and J.J. Putz. (Actually at bargain rates, relatively speaking.) But the team still had plenty of needs, particularly in the starting rotation. The obvious target seemed to be Derek Lowe, a big-game, big-city pitcher whose deadening ground-ball presence might be especially needed at the new Citi Field, which Mets players who have tried out the stadium say is a "launching pad." (Perhaps the most underreported story of the Mets off-season: That Citi is expected to be a homer-happy park.) But when it came down to it, the Mets weren't willing to pony up as much as the rival Braves, and now not only do they not have Lowe, they're going to have to face him four times a year for the next four years.
Tim Redding, inked to a $2.25 million, one-year deal earlier this week, is a placeholder if there ever were one, a No. 4 or 5 starter at best. The Mets added him to Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, and John Maine for a foursome that's not particularly imposing. Lowe would have slotted in as the perfect No. 2. With Pedro Martinez seemingly out the door -- his pleas to return have been mostly ignored; the baseball business moves fast -- the next-best option is probably lefthander Oliver Perez, who hasn't been as sought-after by other teams as some suspected he might be. Perez is a solid pitcher, but inconsistent. More to the point, he's hardly the big name Mets fans were hoping for and, considering the influx of cash the new stadium was supposed to bring in, expecting.
The Yankees are opening a new stadium and, as a result, changing the economic infrastructure of baseball with their spending. The Mets are opening a new stadium and are being outbid for their target free agents. Bernie Madoff might not to be blame. But something must be.
First, it's not at all clear that Citi Field will be "homer-happy" -- in fact, it might be
precisely the opposite. But either way, the Mets are short a starting pitcher. Or two, if you don't count Redding, whose numbers over the past five seasons include 18 wins, 30 losses and a 5.30 ERA. A contending team simply has no business relying on a pitcher like Redding for more than spot duty, but right now, he's the Mets' No. 4 starter.
The Mets also have a question mark at No. 2. Pelfrey's ERA was 3.72 in 2008, but he struck out only 110 hitters in 201 innings, for a ratio that's almost low enough to cause a big red warning light. He does throw a lot of ground balls -- and gave up fewer home runs last season than Lowe, in roughly the same number of innings -- but right now, he's not the sure thing a good team should have in that slot.
Everything could work out, particularly if the Mets do find another 3/4-type starter. After all, 90 wins might be enough to take the National League East this season. But the underlying question is still worth asking: Are the Mets trying hard enough? Because in the American League, the best and richest teams have six or seven viable starters. And right now, the Mets have three.
Rob Neyer
