David Stearns addressed the media for the final time during the 2024 season, assessing the New York Mets' success and what's ahead in the offseason.
For David Stearns, there are no hard and fast rules about building a World Series contender.
Each of the four teams that reached the league championship series were built a little bit differently. The Dodgers, who ended up winning it all, leaned on a core of MVPs and a sturdy bullpen to fill in the gaps off an injury-riddled rotation.
The Mets, who reached the NLCS for the first time since 2015, had a deep, veteran-led pitching staff, balanced offense with a star shortstop, a few young upstarts and some key one-year contracts that paid dividends.
"Every year is going to be different, and the formula is different every single year, the mix is different every single year," said Stearns, the Mets' president of baseball operations after the season ended. "That's also an opportunity for us to continue to grow and get better.
"There are also some key core elements that we can carry forward: the passion with which we played, the fun with which we played, along with the seriousness with which we pursued winning and competed."
With Stearns and manager Carlos Merndoza having completed their first seasons at the helm, a strong foundation was put in place, with an 89-win season and deep, perhaps unexpected, postseason run.
But the offseason quest to build a team that can sustain that growth begins when free agency opens next week. The Mets have some big tasks ahead of them, namely Pete Alonso being on the open market for the first time along with more than half of the Mets starting rotation.
With that being said, here are our predictions for who will be staying and going from the Mets' 2024 roster heading into the new season.
Mets starting rotation
Who's staying: Sean Manaea, Kodai Senga, David Peterson, Tylor Megill, Paul Blackburn, Christian Scott
Who's leaving: Luis Severino, Jose Quintana, Joey Lucchesi
Outlook: The two anchors of the Mets' 2024 rotation in Sean Manaea and Luis Severino were both inked to one-year deals and exceeded expectations. Severino received $13 million and Manaea earned $14.5 million. The latter has a $13.5 million player option that he's likely to reject after going 12-6 with a 3.47 ERA and 184 strikeouts in 181⅔ innings.
The left-hander should be the priority as he grew in stronger after making some mechanical adjustments midway through the 2024 season. Severino, who is an interesting candidate for a qualifying offer, struggled to maintain his strong start in the second half.
Quintana was the Mets' most consistent starter over the final five weeks, but if the Mets are looking to strengthen the top-end of their staff, he could be an odd man out.
"We have to have multiple starters. We understand that," Stearns said. "We went into last offseason with the same need, and I think we'll be able to do it."
Mets bullpen
Who's staying: Edwin Diaz, Jose Butto, Reed Garrett, Dedniel Nuñez, Huascar Brazoban, Ryne Stanek, Danny Young
Who's leaving: Phil Maton, Adam Ottavino, Sean Reid-Foley, Drew Smith, Brooks Raley, Alex Young
Outlook: By the end of the Mets' postseason run, the team's bullpen, fortified by trade deadline acquisitions Stanek, Maton and Brazoban, had run out of steam.
"I think ideally, you'd have a little bit more continuity from start to finish in a 'pen," Stearns said. "I didn't really anticipate turning over 80 percent of the bullpen over the course of the year, but that's where we got to. I do think we have some some arms that emerged this year that can complement Edwin, that can be stabilizing forces in our bullpen next year and going forward."
Some of the big risers are under team control for 2025, with Garrett, Nuñez and Butto, who made a critical transition from starter to reliever, all in pre-arbitration.
Maton, Ottavino and Stanek are likely to be available in free agency. Maton has a hefty $7.75 million player option. Stanek was the most consistent of the bunch with his overpowering fastball and made just $4 million a season ago.
There were some big injuries in 2024, with Raley and Smith both suffering season-ending elbow injuries, putting their future in question. Reid-Foley is arbitration eligible but has been consistently hampered by injuries.
Mets infield
Who's staying: Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil, Francisco Alvarez, Luis Torrens, Mark Vientos, Pete Alonso, Luisangel Acuña, Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio
Who's leaving: Jose Iglesias
Outlook: The Mets' infield has the team's most long-term players, led by Lindor, who entered the NL MVP discussion in his third year of his 10-year deal. But the biggest development in 2024 was the excellence of Vientos, who stamped his name into next year's lineup with a 27-home run, 71-RBI season.
The biggest question is whether Alonso, who has spent all six years of his career in New York, will be back. With a pair of fans in Steve Cohen and Stearns leading those negotiations, they understand how much Alonso, who has 226 home runs in his career, means to the franchise. The balance is how much to offer the 30-year-old Alonso. I expect the Mets to make a strong offer to get him to stay.
While Iglesias was the spark-plug for the Mets' season with his anthem, "OMG," the number of young players waiting in the wings for the Mets makes his return less likely.
Outlook: Nimmo and Marte, both have annual salaries a little north of $20 million that will keep them in New York through 2025. Nimmo is the cornerstone of the Mets' outfield, with six years left on his eight-year, $162 million deal.
Taylor, who was a pleasant surprise after being acquired in a trade with the Brewers last offseason, is in his second season of arbitration eligibility.
Winker, who was acquired at the deadline from the Nationals, continued to voice his affinity for New York and would remain a left-handed outfield or designated-hitter option for New York.
While Bader provides elite defense, his price tag might not line up with his uneven offensive performance. Martinez signed a $12 million deal last offseason and might need to take a cut to land with a team.