If I Were GM...

So, if I were GM I would make a lot of moves that would make sense. This club has more potential than a .500 team and everyone knows it. Making key acquisitions can change this all around and this is how I would do it. And this is in no particular order or importance:

1. Demote Elmer Dessens, promote Bobby Parnell.

Why is Elmer Dessens not in AAA? I don't think anyone can answer that. The only logical reason I can think of is that when they tried to promote someone, it got lost in translation and Elmer accidently came up and Omar was too chicken to say anything. I mean, why else?

Parnell can gas it up to the high 90s. That is a plus fastball that was able to throw past MLB batters last year pretty effectively but he was sent to the minors to work on his secondary pitches. But wait, isn't Jenrry Mejia IN the majors to work on his secondary pitches? Something doesn't add up.

2. Demote Gary Matthews Jr, promote ANYONE

Gary Matthews Jr. is batting .193 and has 1 RBI. That is not a player worthy of the major leagues. Why can't we promote something like Mike Hessman or Jesus Feliciano? Some say they're quadruple-A players and will not carry over their numbers to the bigs... So?? Will they hit better than .193? Would they not be so much better than 11/57 at bats?

The main argument I guess is that they can't play the outfield. If that is what is keeping GMJr on this squad then that is outrageous. Stick Tatis in the outfield, or even Chris Carter. This choice is obvious and is being handled very poorly.

3. Demote Jenrry Mejia after the All-Star break

I have recently accepted the idea of Mejia on the big league roster. If they see Jenrry as a top of the rotation starter, why not prep him by giving him big league batters to adapt against? He's done a great job and now that he's gotten his feet wet, my move would be to send him down. People were outraged when he was granted the bullpen role, but in all honesty, he is 20 years old. How can we say that this will mess him up when he probably won't be in a big league rotation until 2011, with 2010 being a stretch?

In my opinion, getting his feet wet with big league batters is a decent move to get him some of the action he'll be expecting when he is finally ready to fulfill the hype. We all know he's meant to be a starter and a 1-2-3 of Johan, Mike, and Jenrry will be nothing short of incredible.

4. Activate Beltran, Francoeur to the bench

Sorry, Frenchy, but when Beltran is eventually activated from the DL its bench warming or water boy duties for you. Frenchy won't even be a good bat off the bench due to his serious and almost concerning first pitch swing addiction. It almost looks like he just wants to swing at the first pitch and doesn't necessarily believe he got a good read on it.

Pagan has been real solid all season and I can't see him going back to the bench. I can see a RF platoon with Pagan/Frenchy with Jeff only hanging on due to his arm. I love Francoeur, he's a great guy and I love his passion, but I can't watch him struggle at the plate any longer. Hell, I can't even spell his last name.

5. Send Castillo to the DL, promote Reese Havens

I don't know if I'm breaking a certain Mets code, but I like Castillo. I'm not saying I love him, but he's been pretty solid this year and continuing his success from last season. He'll get on base, he'll steal a base, he'll give you average defense, he'll never strikeout. Watching him last night limping with that foot injury, yet also stealing a base, hustling down the line and making a couple of great plays really shows something to the fans. Nobody likes Castillo, but hey, he's not as bad as people say.

I want Castillo out, but he is a pretty solid second baseman for us. I say send him to the DL so he can get his foot a rest and promote Reese Havens. Havens can hit and field, so I think giving him playing time for the 15 or so days that Castillo will be on the DL will get his feet wet and prep him for a serious look he'll most certainly be getting next spring training. Worst comes to worst is he's not ready, and you promote Ruben Tejada or just give Cora the nod.

These are the moves that I would make right now if it were up to me. They don't seem outlandish and they don't seem like a stretch. I didn't add a Cliff Lee trade or a trade for another pitcher because that would be something that would take a while to accomplish, and these moves are meant to be active immediately.

Tell me what you think.. I think it's pretty reasonable.

Hudson > Castillo

There has been a lot of talks this offseason about the Mets' second baseman. There have been a lot of ideas thrown around and a lot of suggestions on what to do with that position. The idea that I most agree with that I don't think ownership will agree with is to sign Orlando Hudson and bench Luis Castillo.

This is a great idea. If we get Hudson, we would have a superb defense and offense. Now I don't know how they would like the fact of eating Castillo's contract on the bench, but I think it should be done. From what I've heard, Castillo is a downer in the clubhouse and Hudson is very positive. Plus, Hudson can produce offense along with his great defense.

Castillo has been an eye sore to the Mets for some time, and there needs to be a change. How would you not sell more tickets if ownership listens to you, the fan, and upgrade second base? This would be a smart idea for both on and off the field. The signing would bring new blood and a new face to the infield where he will be loved by us Mets fans instead of hated like Castillo.

Reyes-Hudson-Wright-Beltran-Bay-Francoeur-Murphy-Molina is a crazy lineup that gives us great depth. If I were Omar, I would definitely sign Hudson and bench Castillo. Castillo would be pissed and ask to be traded and Omar will tell me that he tried the entire offseason to trade him, so good luck.

I think I can speak for every Mets fan out there, Castillo needs to leave New York.

Interesting Reads: Castillo-Lowell, Delgado, 2010

Greg Pomes of Mets Merized says Omar got/is getting off to a great 2010 start, now what's next?

Eli Greenspan of the Daily Dish explains the Mets are still very interesting in Carlos Delgado.

In case you missed it, Ben Nicholson-Smith of MLB Trade Rumors discusses the possible Castillo for Lowell trade.

Stan McNeal of Sporting News gives ten things he wishes would happen in baseball.

Steve Popper of North Jersey gives his input to the Mets' offseason direction.

Also, Toby Hyde of Mets Minor League Blog will update and reevaluate his Top 41 prospects very soon.

Castillo-Lowell trade rumor

DO IT.

Quick. Before Theo gets clean of whatever drug he's clearly abusing.

Luis Castillo will not be traded this offseason

I feel bad saying this, but he's staying in New York.

The reason: who wants an aging second baseman who is being paid 6.25 mil? There are not many teams who need a second baseman anyway. I would say that the only teams that really need are the Nationals, Dodgers, and Cubs (kind of).

The only trades that really jumped out at me were:
-Castillo and 2 mil cash to the Nats for Josh Willingham
OR
-Castillo and cash to the Dodgers or Cubs, for a low-to-mid-level prospect

The Willingham trade is most plausible because the Nationals have a plethora outfielders, and have Willie Harris as their second baseman currently (do you want Willie Harris as your second baseman? I sure don't...) If these trades don't go down (which they won't), you still have Orlando Hudson, Felipe Lopez, Ronnie Belliard, and Adam Kennedy still on the market. I doubt that any team would rather give up something for a guy who is breaking down than sign a younger guy, who can hit the ball out of the infield.

What should the Mets do? Cut Castillo and sign Hudson.

My Prediction:
-Castillo stays with the Mets FOR NOW
-Hudson to the Cubs
-Belliard to the Dodgers
-Lopez to the Nationals

One last prediction:
Castillo will not be traded this offseason, but he will be traded during the season to a team in contention. There is bound to be a second baseman who gets injured mid-season and will need a solid second baseman again. They will trade for Castillo.

The future of the infield

CATCHER

After hearing of the Henry Blanco signing, it got me thinking about the catcher situation. Say we sign Bengie Molina to a one year deal, our catchers for the 2010 season would be Molina and Blanco. This would give Josh Thole a chance to further develop in Triple A. Pending defensive improvement, he'll be rewarded with a September call up to get his feet wet again in preparation for a spot on the 2011 team.

FIRST BASE

I would do the same thing at first base. I'd keep Murphy at first for the time being and give Ike Davis a September call-up, all in preparation for the starting first base spot for 2011.

SECOND BASE

Hopefully, the Mets can rid themselves of Luis Castillo and receive a solid second baseman. They have their eyes on Orlando Hudson which is awesome. He would be a major upgrade from Castillo and fit real nicely in the line-up.

SHORT STOP

A healthy Jose Reyes is needed. A fantastic contributor to the line-up, if Reyes learns to mature a little more and really focus, it can impact the team greatly.

THIRD BASE

David Wright had a down of a season in 2009, but I'm not worried. A four-time consecutive All-Star, Wright is the face of the organization and needs to continue to lead and inspire his teammates.

Since we have strong prospects at catcher and first base, it should make this off season and next off season very specific in what Omar should focus on to get us back to a contending team, specifically left field and the starting rotation. Hopefully all goes well and the Mets will become a threat to the competition in the near future.

Let's hope!