Michael Scannell - What a mess....Where to start....

A few of the things I was going to address this week were covered in Sandy's media chat on WFAN on Monday.  Because of that, I'll try and cover them in light of what he said.

- I don't think that the 'revelation' that Lucas Duda is not part of the Mets 'core' going forward should have been much of a surprise to anyone.  He's not an OFer and 1B will be manned by Ike Davis or someone better.  I'm shocked that Sandy would actually go out and devalue one of his assets like that.  I'm assuming he's already let a few AL GM's know that they can have a 30HR LH DH at some point over the next 9 months.

- One of the positive things coming out of Sandy's media address was the assertion that the team is looking to make trades for players under contract who can be with the Mets for the long-term.  This is in keeping with the 'plan' as well as with the leaks of the Mets having interest in some of the outfielders who might be on the trade market.  I've said it before and I'll repeat it - the boost in payroll is not going to come from signing 3-5 free agents this summer.  The talent isn't out there and this front office has already shown that they won't sign a free agent just because he's available.  They'll move whatever minor league talent they have and can live without to bring in real MLB players.  This FO understands that this team is going nowhere and anything not nailed down (all but Wright, Harvey, Niese. d'Arnaud, and Wheeler) will be shopped.  It will give the Mets the chance to expand the pool of talent to make deals from.

- I think Daniel Murphy will almost certainly be gone by the time August roles around.  He offers a lot to a playoff team and I think Alderson could pull some real talent coming back to the Mets.  Murphy has been 'in demand' before and I think now that he has a solid body of work behind him he can command real talent in return.  For a team that's rebuilding, has some young talent to deal (but not enough to make multiple deals), and has many needs they will have to trade Murphy.  I have always seen Murphy as a complimentary type of player who would be most valuable with stars around him.  Unfortunately, the Mets are short on stars AND trade bait, so holding on to Murphy for the day he can be that complimentary player on the Mets seems unrealistic.  As far as internal options, I don't see Wilmer Flores as the answer as I think he'll be dealt in a package for an established major leaguer.  Given that, the Mets will have to find someone else to fill 2B:

          -  I hope the Mets are monitoring the 2B situation in Seattle.  I've written before about Nick                                       Franklin - http://tinyurl.com/aslz45l.   Since the year started, incumbent Dustin Ackley was...well awful, and was demoted to AAA.  Franklin was promoted to take his place and has performed well since.  Ackley, for his part, has been scorching hot at AAA since being sent down.  With his pedigree (#2 overall pick), former minors track record, and youth, he could be experiencing what Roy Halladay did early in his career.  He could be a 'change of scenary' second chance reclamation project.  With Brad Miller likely the SS of the future in Seattle, only one of Franklin and Ackley will be playing 2B there.  I think in the end both will be quality MLB players and I'd like to see the Mets consider one of them as the long-term solution.

          -   Jed Lowrie might be someone to take a look at (although he might also be gone to a contender at the deadline).  He plays for Oakland and they're not known for paying big contracts.  He'll be eligible for free agency after 2014 and the A's could be looking to deal him, especially given his success lately. He's someone I wanted the Mets to acquire to play 2B back when he was a BoSox prospect and I'd welcome him on the team now too.

          -    Kolten Wong has been playing well in AAA for the Cardinals.  As they're currently in a division race with the Reds and Pirates, they could be looking to upgrade their team.  Wong is the logical piece to ask for in trade as Tavares and their pitching talent is likely off-limits.

-   I know how this is going to seem counter to what Alderson said about Davis, but I think he's a goner after the season.  I think Sandy went into the season the same way I did, thinking that Ike was an integral part of the core going forward.  However, Ike has proven things to be different.  Ike was sent down to AAA to get his swing in order.  I'm betting that the hope is that he does, comes back quickly, and gets his season on track...so the Mets can get value for him.  Sandy calling him part of the core was for his psyche and not to damage him further as he tries to get his head right.  He'll be dealt off to one of the teams who have coveted him in the past (Pitt, BoSox, etc.) and they'll try and fix him themselves.  Hopefully he'll net the Mets some decent talent in return.  The team can sign Justin Morneau to a short-term (3-4 years) incentive-laden contract to hold down the fort until Dom Smith or someone else can take over.

-  The season sucks and we all know it.  But, the team is not that much worse off than it was two months ago when we were still talking long-term and assuming this year was going to be painful.  What's made it seem so bad are the delayed starts to Wheeler and d'Arnaud's careers, Upton's hot start, and Ike's absence from the lineup.  Overall, I still see this team in great shape going forward, just not the next few months.  By all accounts the Mets have 4 of 5 rotation spots within the organization right now, they still have a potential franchise catcher, and David Wright.  The Mets need two major trades and a major free agent signing with smaller moves made to fill gaps.  It seems like a lot, but three major moves in 9 months isn't.  We almost had 3 major moves in last offseason with the Dickey trade, and then the abortive Bourn free agency and Upton trade.  I think it's in the best interests of the team to try and acquire a major hitter during the season.  It may not be in the FO's plans, but I think it will go a long way towards convincing free agents like Choo that NYM is a good place to sign.  I start a trade package with Montero, Plawecki, and Flores and go from there.

Until then, we have had some good things happen and other good things to look forward to - Harvey's emergence, the emergence of prospects we weren't looking for (Puello, Plawecki, Boyd, etc.), and a few unexpected bright spots like John Buck.  We have Wheeler coming up, hopefully d'Arnaud soon, and some positive movement as we near the trade deadline.