2026 Mets - Stearns says “finish him!”

[OrangeFoo]

I don’t see a thread for discussing all things Stearns ripping the heart out of the Mets related.

FWIW the old heart of the Mets wasn’t going to win anything… they were way too inconsistent and accepting of cruddy play. It was like watching a line up of 9 JJ’s for 162 games over 5 years. When the team caught occasional hot steaks they were unstoppable, but more often than not the pitching made or broke the team. Last year the pitching started out hot and then immolated itself. The Mets record followed… but the lineup rarely if ever picked up the pitching.

I’m also not sad to see Diaz and his wildness go either. Let the dodgers count on him in the playoffs and see where it gets them. But he is a luxury piece for these Mets.

The real issue isn’t who Stearns let walk, it’s who he is replacing them with and who is going to soak up innings. Right now Stearns looks as clueless as Fran after his QB1 went down. Starting a lacrosse player at the most important position isn’t acceptable for a team with the limited resources of Syracuse football… it’s definitely not acceptable for a team with Cohen’s resources. Right now it looks like a Stearns is setting up for a rebuild, but then he does things like signing Polanco and Williams. The biggest concern for this Mets plan is it looks like Stearns is still sticking to his small market strategy - hoarding prospects, avoiding bad contracts and finding free agent bargain bin gems. While that plan worked in 2024… it blew up all over Stearns in 2025. Even in ‘24 the plan wasn’t ever going to get them past the Dodgers.

I’m still in wait and see mode for what’s left of the off season, but right now with this lineup and pitching the Mets are competing with the Nats and Marlins third place in the NL East…forget the Dodgers and Phillies. I am hoping for a trade for an ace or front line starter… a free agent signing of a good pitcher… signing Bellinger, trade for an impact outfielder. But it’s getting late fast.

What are the other Mets fans thinking about the offseason so far and the great gutting?

 

[sutomcat]

I don’t see a thread for discussing all things Stearns ripping the heart out of the Mets related.

FWIW the old heart of the Mets wasn’t going to win anything… they were way too inconsistent and accepting of cruddy play. It was like watching a line up of 9 JJ’s for 162 games over 5 years. When the team caught occasional hot steaks they were unstoppable, but more often than not the pitching made or broke the team. Last year the pitching started out hot and then immolated itself. The Mets record followed… but the lineup rarely if ever picked up the pitching.

I’m also not sad to see Diaz and his wildness go either. Let the dodgers count on him in the playoffs and see where it gets them. But he is a luxury piece for these Mets.

The real issue isn’t who Stearns let walk, it’s who he is replacing them with and who is going to soak up innings. Right now Stearns looks as clueless as Fran after his QB1 went down. Starting a lacrosse player at the most important position isn’t acceptable for a team with the limited resources of Syracuse football… it’s definitely not acceptable for a team with Cohen’s resources. Right now it looks like a Stearns is setting up for a rebuild, but then he does things like signing Polanco and Williams. The biggest concern for this Mets plan is it looks like Stearns is still sticking to his small market strategy - hoarding prospects, avoiding bad contracts and finding free agent bargain bin gems. While that plan worked in 2024… it blew up all over Stearns in 2025. Even in ‘24 the plan wasn’t ever going to get them past the Dodgers.

I’m still in wait and see mode for what’s left of the off season, but right now with this lineup and pitching the Mets are competing with the Nats and Marlins third place in the NL East…forget the Dodgers and Phillies. I am hoping for a trade for an ace or front line starter… a free agent signing of a good pitcher… signing Bellinger, trade for an impact outfielder. But it’s getting late fast.

What are the other Mets fans thinking about the offseason so far and the great gutting?

Disappointed but still hopeful. If we had signed Diaz I would be happier.

I do not expect Bellinger to be signed. Or Tucker.

We really need to add an established reliever or two and a good defensive CF who can hit. A solid starting pitcher is needed too, especially if Senga or Peterson are traded.

Thinking the CF will probably be Bader on a one year deal, provided that is all that is needed to get him. Not sure that is the case.

Might well finish in fourth unless the kids really come through.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Just seeing that Imai signed a pretty reasonable deal with the Astros… the AAV is good, and it’s a 3 year deal with annual opt outs. He was on paper one of the Mets better matches. I would love to hear why the Mets didn’t go harder.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Disappointed but still hopeful. If we had signed Diaz I would be happier.

I do not expect Bellinger to be signed. Or Tucker.

We really need to add an established reliever or two and a good defensive CF who can hit. A solid starting pitcher is needed too, especially if Senga or Peterson are traded.

Thinking the CF will probably be Bader on a one year deal, provided that is all that is needed to get him.

Might well finish in fourth unless the kids really come through.

But what is the plan…if they are going to tank then why sign polanco and Williams?

 

[sutomcat]

But what is the plan…if they are going to tank then why sign polanco and Williams?

I think Stearns to going to add a few more pieces but retain most or all the top prospects. 2027 might be the true ultimate year for contention, at least in his head.

Let’s see what he does the rest of the off season.

 

[jncuse]

Just seeing that Imai signed a pretty reasonable deal with the Astros… the AAV is good, and it’s a 3 year deal with annual opt outs. He was on paper one of the Mets better matches. I would love to hear why the Mets didn’t go harder.

Its "reasonable"/"OK" but its not a great deal that is being characterized by some media.

Because of the opt outs the Astros only have 1 year of upside here, and you have 3 years of downside. Yes the risk is reduced at only 3 years, but the reward on this deal is also limited because of the opt outs.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Its "reasonable"/"OK" but its not a great deal that is being characterized by some media.

Because of the opt outs the Astros only have 1 year of upside here, and you have 3 years of downside. Yes the risk is reduced at only 3 years, but the reward on this deal is also limited because of the opt outs.

Yep and he seems like a Sengai clone… I would prefer to just bet on Kodai. Seems like the offseason will come down to signing Valdez or Suarez for pitching, Bellinger or Turner for the lineup, trade for Robert or sign some 0.0 war player for CF. Then filling in the pen with more reclamation projects.

I wonder if Stearns/Cohen are the playing it tight this year knowing there will be a lockout and new CBA in 2027. It would be nice to have a clean cap after the next season or two. I’m happy they aren’t giving out these monster 8 to 10 year contracts to 30+ players. Now they need to get rid of Lindor and finish the tear down.

 

[Orangezoo]

To me this is the year we find out what we have in the many prospects we have and who needs to be moved vs who is going to help win this team a title. That is going to make for a wide spread of what the win total is this year but at some point we have to roll with utilizing the strategy of building a contender through prospects. Fingers crossed.

 

[OrangeFoo]

To me this is the year we find out what we have in the many prospects we have and who needs to be moved vs who is going to help win this team a title. That is going to make for a wide spread of what the win total is this year but at some point we have to roll with utilizing the strategy of building a contender through prospects. Fingers crossed.

So basically a rebuilding year? Again that’s fine… but if that’s the case then why sign Williams? I do agree with the trade for Polanco as Nimmo’s contract sucked and they were able to get out of it.

I think Stearns owes it to the fans to explain what the plan is. If this is a tank year then cool come out and say it… but stop with the smug attitude about how Cohen’s money gives them a big advantage in signing free agents. Which ones as it seems they are passing on all the high end free agents.

Right now it seems like there is no plan.

 

[Orangezoo]

So basically a rebuilding year? Again that’s fine… but if that’s the case then why sign Williams? I do agree with the trade for Polanco as Nimmo’s contract sucked and they were able to get out of it.

I think Stearns owes it to the fans to explain what the plan is. If this is a tank year then cool come out and say it… but stop with the smug attitude about how Cohen’s money gives them a big advantage in signing free agents. Which ones as it seems they are passing on all the high end free agents.

Right now it seems like there is no plan.

I’d say we are stuck in between so maybe the plan is to run with the youngsters in the rotation as well as if Alvarez, Mauricio, Vientos, Acuna and Baty are ready/likely to workout or not. Also see if any young standouts pop during the spring.

We definitely could be staring at a rebuilding year if the young guys flatline across the board. Don’t disagree it makes the Williams signing a bit odd.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

3 years, $126 mil

 

[Orangezoo]

3 years, $126 mil

Had a good bounce back after the injury but this does feel like a buy some talent and figure out where he fits type of get which I thought was what we weren’t doing.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Had a good bounce back after the injury but this does feel like a buy some talent and figure out where he fits type of get which I thought was what we weren’t doing.

The emperor hath no clothes... It's seeming like the Mets do not have a cohesive plan anymore besides don't give out contracts greater than 3 years. The whole run prevention thing was a a pile of gooblydook unless there are more moves coming. They could have had Pete for less than they just forked out to Bichette and have a similarly bad hit on run prevention, but Pete wanted more than 3 years so that automatically made him a no go. The biggest issue on run prevention is the pitching staff and it still either stinks or is unproven talent... We might as well sign up Tong and McLean for their Tommy John's right now. The bullpen is also very meah. So what run prevention?

If the next moves are Valdez (or some other starting caliber pitcher) and Bellinger we are all good... but If they are done then I really really question what Stearns is doing. I just don't understand the plan with the offer for Tucker and this signing. It seems like the wilponzis signing one big name to keep the fans happy.

My real theory remains that Cohen/Stearns believe there won't be a 2027 season and when baseball is back there will be a salary cap of some sort.

 

[GreekFreak]

The emperor hath no clothes... It's seeming like the Mets do not have a cohesive plan anymore besides don't give out contracts greater than 3 years. The whole run prevention thing was a a pile of gooblydook unless there are more moves coming. They could have had Pete for less than they just forked out to Bichette and have a similarly bad hit on run prevention, but Pete wanted more than 3 years so that automatically made him a no go. The biggest issue on run prevention is the pitching staff and it still either stinks or is unproven talent... We might as well sign up Tong and McLean for their Tommy John's right now. The bullpen is also very meah. So what run prevention?

If the next moves are Valdez (or some other starting caliber pitcher) and Bellinger we are all good... but If they are done then I really really question what Stearns is doing. I just don't understand the plan with the offer for Tucker and this signing. It seems like the wilponzis signing one big name to keep the fans happy.

My real theory remains that Cohen/Stearns believe there won't be a 2027 season and when baseball is back there will be a salary cap of some sort.

I’m pretty much convinced that “run prevention” was a code phrase for “I don’t want Pete back under any circumstances.” His off season moves by and large don’t line up with this with the exception of the McNeill trade.

 

[OrangeFoo]

I’m pretty much convinced that “run prevention” was a code phrase for “I don’t want Pete back under any circumstances.” His off season moves by and large don’t line up with this with the exception of the McNeill trade.

I don’t think Pete gets a ring unless he joins the Dodgers. He is too hot or cold to be at the heart of a lineup. Just like Nimmo and McNeil and Alvarez and Baty and Vientos and Lindor. One theme with the offseason pickups is that they are much more consistent and will not just give away at bars. I think that’s the culture change Stearns wants… true grinders who make the pitcher fight every pitch.

 

[GreekFreak]

I don’t think Pete gets a ring unless he joins the Dodgers. He is too hot or cold to be at the heart of a lineup. Just like Nimmo and McNeil and Alvarez and Baty and Vientos and Lindor. One theme with the offseason pickups is that they are much more consistent and will not just give away at bars. I think that’s the culture change Stearns wants… true grinders who make the pitcher fight every pitch.

This has NOTHING to do with “run prevention.” Just like Stearns moves.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Now that the Mets are basically done adding their major pieces for the year hope are we feeling? Diaz was the most regrettable loss of the off season. They need to hope that Devin Williams finds his form from Milwaukee.

I will miss and not miss Pete… when he is on he is one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball. But when he was not on (pretty often) he is a Mendoza line hitter.

But one thing McNeil, Pete and Nimmo proved is that they could do it in nyc. I am excited to see the new guys, but they need to prove they can do it in New York. My hope is more consistency, fewer cold spells and the new guys change the culture of the team into a winning one… not “oh shucks we tried” or “we are working hard and things should turn around any time now”.

I kinda think they should have moved off Lindor to complete the house cleaning. By the end of the year he will have the stats and the WAR to be a top 10 player. But that will up the stretches where he doesn’t show up with his bat or he a stretch of games where he makes 5 errors. Also was he one of the culture creators or was he fighting the passivity of the guys who left.

Pitching will make or break this team and I don’t know how it will go. Peralta has the resume but can he do it in NYC? Can McLean maintain his form and stay healthy? Can Senga and Manea find their health and form? Peterson is a solid 2/3 guy in the beginning of the year and a 5/unplayable in August… can he maintain a 3 level? Bullpen is big big question mark.

Let’s talk about Stearns… I give him a solid B. He recognized that the old core was never going to win a world series and he is doing a rebuild on the fly. I think the Mets have set themselves up to sustain success as long as the players perform to the back of their baseball cards. They need to figure out why their prospects fall apart in when they reach the bigs though.

 

[sutomcat]

Now that the Mets are basically done adding their major pieces for the year hope are we feeling? Diaz was the most regrettable loss of the off season. They need to hope that Devin Williams finds his form from Milwaukee.

I will miss and not miss Pete… when he is on he is one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball. But when he was not on (pretty often) he is a Mendoza line hitter.

But one thing McNeil, Pete and Nimmo proved is that they could do it in nyc. I am excited to see the new guys, but they need to prove they can do it in New York. My hope is more consistency, fewer cold spells and the new guys change the culture of the team into a winning one… not “oh shucks we tried” or “we are working hard and things should turn around any time now”.

I kinda think they should have moved off Lindor to complete the house cleaning. By the end of the year he will have the stats and the WAR to be a top 10 player. But that will up the stretches where he doesn’t show up with his bat or he a stretch of games where he makes 5 errors. Also was he one of the culture creators or was he fighting the passivity of the guys who left.

Pitching will make or break this team and I don’t know how it will go. Peralta has the resume but can he do it in NYC? Can McLean maintain his form and stay healthy? Can Senga and Manea find their health and form? Peterson is a solid 2/3 guy in the beginning of the year and a 5/unplayable in August… can he maintain a 3 level? Bullpen is big big question mark.

Let’s talk about Stearns… I give him a solid B. He recognized that the old core was never going to win a world series and he is doing a rebuild on the fly. I think the Mets have set themselves up to sustain success as long as the players perform to the back of their baseball cards. They need to figure out why their prospects fall apart in when they reach the bigs though.

I think it would have been a mistake to re-sign the older core guys. The only way to become a sustainable power is to stay relatively young and introduce young players every year.

I think teams with as much turnover as the Mets tend to underperform but I appreciate the effort to remake the team. Would not be surprised if this team gets 100 victories or 75.

If nothing else it will be an interesting season.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Now that the Mets are basically done adding their major pieces for the year hope are we feeling? Diaz was the most regrettable loss of the off season. They need to hope that Devin Williams finds his form from Milwaukee.

I will miss and not miss Pete… when he is on he is one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball. But when he was not on (pretty often) he is a Mendoza line hitter.

But one thing McNeil, Pete and Nimmo proved is that they could do it in nyc. I am excited to see the new guys, but they need to prove they can do it in New York. My hope is more consistency, fewer cold spells and the new guys change the culture of the team into a winning one… not “oh shucks we tried” or “we are working hard and things should turn around any time now”.

I kinda think they should have moved off Lindor to complete the house cleaning. By the end of the year he will have the stats and the WAR to be a top 10 player. But that will up the stretches where he doesn’t show up with his bat or he a stretch of games where he makes 5 errors. Also was he one of the culture creators or was he fighting the passivity of the guys who left.

Pitching will make or break this team and I don’t know how it will go. Peralta has the resume but can he do it in NYC? Can McLean maintain his form and stay healthy? Can Senga and Manea find their health and form? Peterson is a solid 2/3 guy in the beginning of the year and a 5/unplayable in August… can he maintain a 3 level? Bullpen is big big question mark.

Let’s talk about Stearns… I give him a solid B. He recognized that the old core was never going to win a world series and he is doing a rebuild on the fly. I think the Mets have set themselves up to sustain success as long as the players perform to the back of their baseball cards. They need to figure out why their prospects fall apart in when they reach the bigs though.

One thing I want to add about Stearns is his strategy to give only 3 year deals to pitchers and shop a lot in the bargain basement for relievers. I don’t know if that works for a team trying to compete for a title. It blew up in his face last year in a big way. But worked the year before… we shall see about this year.

 

[richmondcuse03]

I think it would have been a mistake to re-sign the older core guys. The only way to become a sustainable power is to stay relatively young and introduce young players every year.

I think teams with as much turnover as the Mets tend to underperform but I appreciate the effort to remake the team. Would not be surprised if this team gets 100 victories or 75.

If nothing else it will be an interesting season.

I really liked the peralta trade. I also liked the Bichette signing though I agree jr wasn’t a defensive move. It was a cohen reaction to losing to the dodgers but I’ll take it for a year. Lindor, Bichette Soto can be a killer middle of the lineup.

I’ll miss Pete but Nimmo is headed for a cliff with his advanced metrics.

I think we have enough starting pitching now. Bullpen will be key. Who knows.

 

[sutomcat]

Time for an update.

Mets are a like over.590 so far this spring. Just destroyed the Yanks again in a game with starters for the Mets and even fewer for the Yanks.

I think today wax Peralta’s first start as a Met. Gave up two runs in the first and then was lights out. He is angling for a 7 or 8 year contract extension Stearns will never give him. I think this is his only yeaa as with the Mets unless he is willing to sign a contract for 2 or 3 years. The Mets hate long contracts for pitchers his age and have lots of cheap talented arms in their system

McLean looked great before heading to team USA. It was a great compliment for him to make the rotation at his age. Maybe he is for real?

Clay Holmes appears ready for opening day and just pitched 3 dominant innings for team USA. Think he struck out 6 of 10 batters faced.

Senga finally started yesterday and threw hard. Gave up a couple taters but he looks 100%, which is great.

Manaea started yesterday I think and did not throw a pitch 90 mph. I believe he pitched with a bone chip in his elbow last season and elected to not have surgery. Not optimistic regarding his future but it is still pretty early and maybe he can turn things around.

Robert still hasn’t played in a real game. Benge has started about every day and has looked really good. I think Soto might have started one game for the Neys before leaving to play for the DR but I believe he is doing well there. Had a tater today.

Lindor had Jane surgery early in spring training and says he will be ready for the regular season. We will see.

Samien has started just about every good and has looked good. Bichette has just started playing 3B and has been okay so far.

Polanco just started playing 1B and has been okay so far.

Alvarez started playing catcher a couple games ago and has looked good. Lost some weight. Good development.

Baty keeps ripping the ball and looking excellent at bat and in the field. Vientos played a little before heading to the WBC, where he plays for Nicaragua. Struggling some for them. Hope he finds his way back.

Lots of depth guys like Taylor, Torrens and Young have been looking good. A second wave of depth provided by guys like Pache, Arroyo and Rojas has also looked promising.

The bullpen guys have been solid to date. I think there is more quality and depth than last year here.

We will see Robert soon and see more of Soto in LF. But so far, things have been good.

 

[SUFaninNJ]

Over/ under on how many games Robert plays this year? I’ll go with 99.

 

[sutomcat]

Over/ under on how many games Robert plays this year? I’ll go with 99.

The Mets think they found problems with the muscles in his legs and have been working with him to strengthen the muscles that are too weak. This is why he hasn’t played in any real games so far this spring. He did play in a B game today though.

It could well be that keeping Robert healthy is the biggest factor in getting the Mets to the playoffs.

I hope the Mets are right here.

 

[OrangeFoo]

Time for an update.

Mets are a like over.590 so far this spring. Just destroyed the Yanks again in a game with starters for the Mets and even fewer for the Yanks.

I think today wax Peralta’s first start as a Met. Gave up two runs in the first and then was lights out. He is angling for a 7 or 8 year contract extension Stearns will never give him. I think this is his only yeaa as with the Mets unless he is willing to sign a contract for 2 or 3 years. The Mets hate long contracts for pitchers his age and have lots of cheap talented arms in their system

McLean looked great before heading to team USA. It was a great compliment for him to make the rotation at his age. Maybe he is for real?

Clay Holmes appears ready for opening day and just pitched 3 dominant innings for team USA. Think he struck out 6 of 10 batters faced.

Senga finally started yesterday and threw hard. Gave up a couple taters but he looks 100%, which is great.

Manaea started yesterday I think and did not throw a pitch 90 mph. I believe he pitched with a bone chip in his elbow last season and elected to not have surgery. Not optimistic regarding his future but it is still pretty early and maybe he can turn things around.

Robert still hasn’t played in a real game. Benge has started about every day and has looked really good. I think Soto might have started one game for the Neys before leaving to play for the DR but I believe he is doing well there. Had a tater today.

Lindor had Jane surgery early in spring training and says he will be ready for the regular season. We will see.

Samien has started just about every good and has looked good. Bichette has just started playing 3B and has been okay so far.

Polanco just started playing 1B and has been okay so far.

Alvarez started playing catcher a couple games ago and has looked good. Lost some weight. Good development.

Baty keeps ripping the ball and looking excellent at bat and in the field. Vientos played a little before heading to the WBC, where he plays for Nicaragua. Struggling some for them. Hope he finds his way back.

Lots of depth guys like Taylor, Torrens and Young have been looking good. A second wave of depth provided by guys like Pache, Arroyo and Rojas has also looked promising.

The bullpen guys have been solid to date. I think there is more quality and depth than last year here.

We will see Robert soon and see more of Soto in LF. But so far, things have been good.

Great summary.

McLean was voted as the #100 player in all of baseball... I think based on his 8 game stint last year he's real. 2nd coming of Harvey in my opinion... let's just hope he can stay healthy.

Peralta/McLean as 1 and 2 with (a healthy)Senga/Holmes as 3/4 and then some combo of Peterson/Scott/Manea for 5/6 is a really strong lineup. Peterson was an all star last year and Scott flashed a TON of potential before he got hurt. Main concern is health and can they pitch regularly into the 6th/7th innings to give the bullpen some time.

I haven't kept up with the pen... but there are the usual "this guy is throwing 110 with a wicked slider and curve and will dominate" stories floating around about guys I've never heard of. Of the guys I have heard of... Devin Williams, I haven't heard much. Is he pitching? IMO this bullpen will make or break the season.. per usual I guess.

After the last 5 years of watching this team's supposed best bats go from scorching hot to ice cold in a matter of days I've given up on following how hitters are doing. I will say it's refreshing to not be reading about Nimmo's or McNeil's latest injury (which would have happened by now). Soto looks like he is crushing it in the WBC... let's hope he saves something for the regular season. Meanwhile Vientos is stinking it up in the WBC... I think Mets trade him to the Pirates for a bag of baseballs by end of camp or DFA him. Thanks for the 2024 playoff memories Mark! It's fun to follow new young players like Benge and seeing Baty grow into a solid major leaguer.

Robert and Alvarez are the X factors... if they play to their potential and can stay healthy the lineup suddenly is DEEP and only the Dodgers are better. I really hope Robert or Benge is leadoff... my hope for opening day: Robert (cf), Lindor (ss), Soto(lf), Bichette(3b), Semien(2b), Baty (1b), Alvy(c), Polanco (DH), Benge (rf). That is a very complete lineup if they play to their averages.

Lindor probably won't be ready til May is my guess tho. So maybe Bichtte moves to short and baty starts at 3rd and Polanco starts at 1b. Not sure who the DH is given that I've already given away Vientos... lol