Reese Kaplan -- How Should the Mets Fill Vacancies?

Somehow with the national news events on Saturday there was perhaps not as much attention paid as should have been for the local news affecting only the New York Mets and their fans.  Obviously everyone here has heard about the house sweeping done by Steve Cohen and Sandy Alderson on Friday when the club officially changed hands.  No one expected the magnitude and swiftness of these decisions to be made, but few folks are shedding tears over the departures.  

It's clear that the personnel who were put into place to assist now former GM Brodie Van Wagenen did not get the job done as the team was a mere 2 games over .500 for the two years of the previous regime in charge.  The only change that was a little surprising was the inclusion of Omar Minaya who was always regarded as someone who could spot talent and helped engineer some good trades when he was in charge.  Maybe the new forces in charge didn't want any competition from others who were not exactly pennant-obtaining magicians.

 

I did catch a few articles going over the usual suspects for the front office and administrative positions they need to fill.  Rather than reiterate the roster of possibilities, instead let's take a look at the needs they must address.  What direction they take has more to do with the short and long term plans than any particular names on a list.

 

One approach to take is to pry away the people in very senior capacities who have a baseball business resume to back up their success.  No one can argue with this approach and it may indeed be the one that appeals to Steve Cohen.  After all, he brought back a very respected and senior executive in Sandy Alderson.  He did not hand the reins over to a sharp, up and coming talent but went for a person with a solid track record.

 

Down this path you can try to cull GMs, baseball operations people, analysts and other top flight folks by evaluating who has had the inarguable ability to reach the post season regularly.  The Mets had gone off in a very different direction when they brought in BVW and his minions.  In the long term it might have worked but the short term suggested they were not destined for being competitive.    

 

The next approach which could be shrewd or miserly would be to see who indeed are the up and comers on other teams who have been assistants but not yet handed the full power of a senior position.  These folks would cost considerably less and likely would relish coming to New York where the new owner doesn't seem reluctant to spend money to try to build a winning team.  The good businessman would like to give the opportunity to someone thus far denied the chance to take charge.  The miser would like to bring in the folks who don't cost as much as the senior team members who have a greater individual track record of success.  

 

The third approach might be a hybrid of these two extremes.  You bring in someone very senior and successful in the GM role, but then extend the other positions to the hot, younger and cheaper assistant level folks who need to move up in the world.  That way you gain the leadership you want at the top but are grooming the next generation of folks to ascend up the ladder as opportunities arise. 

 

For now, there is a certain amount of pressure to move very quickly to make these changes.  The winter meetings are upcoming in the next 4-6 weeks.  There are other important deadlines, like the one with Marcus Stroman and his arbitration offer.  There are also a huge number of free agents to evaluate as well as on-the-trading-block folks on other clubs who must be considered.  It's likely too much work for Sandy Alderson to handle on his own but I do have faith he would do a good job at it should hiring prove lengthier than needed.

 

A great many folks are just giddy with the changes already made and haven't put much thought into how the future will unfold.  The good news is that both Steve Cohen and Sandy Alderson have indeed considered changes that need to be made and moved swiftly to execute them.  Suddenly it seems to be a good time to be a Mets fan.