The season end is a little too fresh in my memory for me to make many definitive statements about the team as a whole. I can tell you this — I don’t want to trade Wright or Reyes. I know that has become the hot topic on sports talk all day. There is something missing, for sure. I have to think back to ‘06, when you had players like LoDuca & Valentin. I think those two guys added to the dynamic that produced a winning regular season and deep playoff baseball. You had LoDuca who, for all his issues, was a fiery spark plug. He wasn’t the best player on the field and was far from the best catcher the Mets have had, but he gave them a certain amount of swagger that’s required to win. Valentin was a veteran presence that knew how to play the game right. He helped keep Reyes’ head in the game, which was an issue — I don’t think it’s as much as an issue now, but he still could use a veteran presence right next to him at all times.

I do think Omar needs to rid this team of the following:
Scott Schoeneweis, Luis Castillo, Aaron Heilman and of course, we won’t be seeing Moises Alou, Fernando Tatis, Marlon Anderson, etc.

It would be nice to see Church have a full regular season — I think he earned it with his play before he was hurt. I think you have to give Angel Pagan a shot to make the team, in some capacity, in spring. Daniel Murphy has shown he can hit (and is a very inexperienced outfielder). He should be given a chance to learn 1st and, if the Mets pick up Delgado’s option and trade him (I think they will), possibly play there.

The pen needs an overhaul, for sure. Who should stay and who should go? I’m not sure, yet…I go back and forth on some of these guys. We can start with the obvious: Aaron Heilman. Good guy, decent pitcher, but he’s just lost something. I think a change of scenery will do him (and me) some good. I can’t watch him in the pen for another season. Let him go start somewhere — it’s what he wants to do anyway.

I need to mull it over a little more…

The question is, where do you go for replacements? Who do you plug in?