No News (is Good News)

Thus far, the Mets, like the other 29 teams, have been rather quiet. This will probably change soon.

The Mets must decide whether they want to keep Oliver Perez. While he is admittedly remarkably inconsistent, you've got to realize that there aren't a lot of quality starters out there to choose from. Pedro Martinez will almost certainly not return, and if Oliver Perez doesn't either, the Mets' rotation will be two men short. The proven pitchers, such as Derek Lowe, will be quite expensive, and the Mets are unlikely to acquire more than one high-priced starter. (Others include CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett.)

Oliver Perez is familiar with New York and has shown a propensity for pitching well under pressure. He may be the free agent that the Mets need.

If he returns, the Mets will have a solid, if not amazing, top 4 starting pitchers of Johan Santana, John Maine, Oliver Perez, and Mike Pelfrey. And one other good starter, and the rotation is really good.

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But, realistically, the rotation is not the problem. Last year, the Mets had very good starting pitching and they still came up short.

What were the problems? Relief Pitching and Hitting (particularly of the clutch variety). With Ryan Church presumably recovered from his concussion, Fernando Tatis and Daniel Murphy splitting time in left-field and Carlos Delgado, once again, a feared slugger, the Mets should have a quite respectable offense.

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Good starting pitching. Good hitting. That takes us to the bottom of the ninth. With a lead. To whom? The answer to this question and the rest of the bullpen puzzle may well decide the fate of the 2009 New York Mets. The only two longstanding members of the Mets bullpen are Aaron Heilman and Pedro Feliciano. Heilman is campaigning for a starting slot and both are coming off off-years. The bullpen is in shambles. Joe Smith should be returning. Scott Schoenweiss should also be, but who knows what he is worth. There is a closer (Billy Wagner) being paid, but there is none, as of yet, who will be putting on the orange and blue.

Omar Minaya: This is your place to shine. Build a good bullpen, and you know any talks about your recent extension will be squashed (unless they say, "They should have extended him for 10 years). The rotation and offense are important, but this ballclub will go nowhere without a quality bullpen.