It seems to be common opinion that the Mets chose not to spend extravagantly on pitching and instead go with youth from the organization and sign low cost free-agents.  Do we have a short memory?  The Mets offered 38 million just to talk to Daisuke Matsuzaka, an outrageous amount of money only eclipsed by a more ridiculous amount (51 million) from the Red Sox. They offered Barry Zito at least 75 million for four years, most likely they would have gone a 5th year and most certainly would have offered more money. Once again the Mets were trumped, this time by a ludicrous contract from the Giants.  No matter how much money they would have offered Jason Schmidt, he wasn’t going to pitch anywhere east of the Mississippi.  Had the Mets gave Schmidt absurd money and he accepted, he most likely would have hated New York and failed. So in a nut shell, the Mets didn’t “decide” to be cost conscious, it was decided for them. 

Frankly their alternative plan, at least for the long haul, is a better one. Once again the Mets will head into the season with the philosophy of a strong bullpen and good starting pitching that will hand the game to the pen in the 6th or 7th inning.  True they lost Chad Bradford and Darren Oliver to free agency. But they picked up Ambiorix Burgos from Kansas City and signed free agent Scott Schoeneweis. Guillermo Mota will be back after his 50 games suspension and they have several pitchers who can fill in for the loss of Darren Oliver, all of which are a lot younger. Duaner Sanchez’s rehab is coming along fine, in fact he appears to be ahead of schedule. Assuming he’s healthy, with Aaron Heilmann, and of course Billy Wagner, the Mets should have another strong bullpen, perhaps even better than last years.

The big question that every writer, blogger, plus their sister and brother in-law will point out is the starting pitching. They do not have an ace. Glavine and Hernandez are too old to be the ace and everyone else is too much of a questions. Phooey I say. The Mets starting pitching is going to be much better than all of these critics say. The Mets just simply have too many young quality arms for their not to be some success here. Of course Oliver Perez could be a bust but he also has the ability to be the ace of the staff. Many in baseball, including Ed Randall on his “Talking Baseball” show yesterday loved the Mets acquisition of Perez.  Some say if Perez is so good then why did the Pirates trade him? Ed Randall pointed out to a caller that the Pirates just traded Mike Gonzalez for Adam LaRoach, a trade that makes the Braves pitching better and makes one scratch their head as to what the Pirates are doing. In other words, they don’t know what they are doing.

Many will say Perez had a bad year last season. True, until he got to the Mets. He pitched pretty well, brilliantly in one game and showed a lot of guts in the post season. At the very least, he earned a spot in the rotation. With Rick Peterson tutoring him, Perez started to regain the confidence he had lost the last couple of seasons.  There is no question that Perez has got the stuff to be an ace. Some in the organization think Philip Humber is ahead of Mike Pelfey.  Humber has a good fastball, maybe not quite as good as Pelfrey’s, but he has much better command of his curve. Humber could be a factor this year. However it’s likely that both he and Pelfrey will be starting at New Orleans.

How’s that John Maine for Ann Benson trade looking now (sorry Kris, I just couldn’t resist. I tried though)? Maine showed he had lots of poise last year. True he got himself into trouble once in a while, as if he lost focus all of a sudden, but overall he was very effective. What I liked most about Maine was his desire to take the ball and so much cherish the opportunity to open the NLDS after El-Duque went down. That showed he has a lot of guts and does not back down from a challenge.

The Mets other new faces that will compete for the starting rotation are Jon Adkins, Adam Bostick, Jorge Sosa, Jason Vargas, and Steve Schmoll.  Don’t forget that Alay Soler is still in the organization. Most only remember the thrashing he took at the hands of the Yankees at the Stadium last season but he also shut out the Diamondbacks in Arizona. He has good stuff and another year of pro ball under his belt. Chan Ho Park was added to the mix last week with the hope that the end of last season was a sign that he may be getting his act back together. Dave Williams will be along a bit later in the season, most likely June due to surgery on a bulging disk in his neck. And it’s possible Pedro Martinez will be ready by the beginning of August but of course no one can count on it.  

Perhaps it was for the best that the Giants and Red Sox obtained the two prizes the Mets had targeted. Now the Mets will get a chance to see how these young pitchers perform and let’s face it, these auditions are not just about 2007. Some of these guys could be the foundation of the Mets rotation for years to come. Also, the Mets have plenty of money still available for that one player who could make a difference and is available by the trading deadline. The Mets are not going to trade top prospects for someone who is going to walk at the end of the season. The money would be necessary to get the player signed.

The story line all spring will focus attention on the Mets starting rotation. The media, always looking for something to go wrong, will continue to pound at the Mets lack of pitching. I think pitching will be the story of the Mets this spring. But I strongly feel it will be a story because it’s going to be much better than anyone expects.