Diversity of thought delivers the best decisions. Your comment emphasizing the combining of analytics and the human element is well said. Analytics are only as good as the data that feeds it. It has no data on introvert vs extrovert, big city kid vs rural upbringing. All of these and many more factors matter. Until Stearns opens his management style to human data he clearly, through his interaction with the media and fans, does not understand, us Mets fans are doomed to repetitive failure. The game of baseball is played by humans and not computers. The human element counts.
Alonso was a fool6ish non-signing for the Mets when you consider what else they are paying to replace him. I mean they are paying Sean Manea nearly that much per year. Should have gotten creative and found a way to make both sides happy. Four year deal with two option years, mutual option year 5. Club year 6. Buyout of 1 million in year 5, 5 million year 6. But both sides were doing what they wanted. Alonso is not at fault for not coming back. Think his ego was ruffled a bit by Stearns and Cohen, especially during the chase for Soto.
"It was just a total misread by Stearns and the front office on the personality fit for the team and the city on a roster that was already poorly constructed before they procured him." Balderdash. What's this stuff about a "fit"? Nothing the matter with his personality and nothing to do with playing in New York. Stop trying to be profound. He performed badly and if he or the coaching staff knew why, they would change it but he doesn't and they don't either. It was seemingly a great acquisition that all of us welcomed big-time and there was no misreading. There was no predicting his bad performance. No fault of Stearns. If you want to talk about blundering moves, there were plenty: letting Alonso go, signing Polanco, Semien, Robert.
Say it again, Mr. Bunsis. The armchair psychology stuff kills me. How do people pretend to know what's going on inside the head of an athlete that they've never even spoken to? They get bits of gossip and run with it. It's a sportswriter tic.
2 of Stearns best signings were minor league deals - OMG and Jared Young. Other than Soto, the big money signings really haven’t worked. He was better in Milwaukee without a budget. Getting a true ace pitcher will dramatically change things imo
Oh? What did Mr. Baron say when they signed Peralta? I'm not going to research the matter but I strongly doubt he said Peralta was a bad fit or would get spooked by NY because he was used to playing in little old Milwaukee or that he'll never come close to duplicating his 2025 performance.
I don’t understand how the Mets failed Peralta. Exactly how? There’s no reference to the pressure of pitching this season on an expiring contract with the potential loss of generational wealth given Peralta’s performance tailspin. Pitching “tight” isn’t a recipe for success and that’s on Peralta, not the Mets or the NY environment.
Enough with the speculative emotional stuff. Let's see: there's the monster pressure of performing on an expiring contract; then there's the gargantuan pressure of performing after signing a huge contract because you feel the need to show you're worth it; then there's the massive pressure of performing when you're rookie; the incomparable pressure of performing when you're replacing a fan favorite...get the point? Enough of this stuff.
Whatever it is about playing in NY, the Yankees have figured it out and the Mets haven’t. Is it the existing players making new players comfortable? The right team leaders? The right manager? The right player selections? Mets still don’t have a good culture and letting OMG go was the last time they had a good vibe. He had something that brought players together. More scouts. More focus on culture. More Yankees management types to learn from. Go Mets!
How are things to change with the same scletotic mindset. Does anyone think Stearns is going to magically turn himself into the NL's most successful GM. Bad judgement (as I have) is a congenital condition and isn't easily overcome. It's just the way it is.
Oh you said the Mets got rid OF ALL their scouts?? In favor of basically AI. wow....thats a problem right there that Americans reject. The NBA Wizards back 35 years ago had a poor scouting staff & none in Europe as many teams were recruiting there....and as a result the record wallowed around 24-58 every year.
I will continue to think that it was acceptable to move on from some veterans. The question is what you received and the next steps. 1B is a prime example of how the latter part was screwed up.
What "has to change" is that Stearns has to go. If not, someone has to have significant independence in overseeing baseball decisions. Over and over again, we hear how many mistakes he made. Not just for one season. It is not flightly or something let him go after three damn years.
Now it is emphasized he lacks a basic baseball instinct necessary for a winning team. GTFA. I'm sorry. I'm sick of this at this point. This is focused at the team, not the writer, to be clear.
(The second option seems somewhat like shoving a round peg through a square hole, which is why I'm for #1. He's Mr. Boy Genius. Taking significant power away would not be something he would like. I'm suspicious it truly would be done even if someone else is hired.)
As to turning points, Peralata gutted out, including with Ohtani at the plate, a key bases-loaded situation. He got out of the inning with the game still in reach & not down 6-1 or something. It was a vet having a bad day, but still acting like a vet sort of move.
I agree with some of the things mentioned, but let's talk about the Polar Bear in the room.
To date, Alonso has 22 HR/67 RBI in 106 games. Do the math. He's on a pace to hit 33 HR and maybe reach 102 RBI, playing half of his games in Camden Yards, which has long been a Home Run haven for sluggers like Pete. Respectable numbers, but not close to his career average. Certainly better than what the Mets first base collective have produced, but they were never going to replace Alonso's production with one player anyway.
Alonso's decline in production is imminent. Look at the spray chart. The majority of his HRs have been hit to Right and Right Center fields. That's an indication that he's not getting around on the fastball, but he's been able to hit them out through sheer force. That's why the "experts" believe his production will drop by age 33-34, and wouldn't offer him anything more than 3 years.
Stearns made a calculated risk in not offering Pete Alonso more than a 3 year contract, one that was shared by 28 other MLB General Managers. Were they all wrong? Maybe, but it's much too early to say. In any event, I'm afraid David Stearns won't be around long enough to say "I told you so". And that's a shame.
Some wanted Murakami to play 1B; I wanted Okamoto. What was wrong with signing one of them? High reward/low risk. Polanco did have a 133 OPS+ last year, but he's been up and down in his career. What's his OPS+ so far this year? (21 in 101 PA!!)
I think there is an unbridgeable disagreement among fans about whether the Mets should or shouldn't have re-signed Alonso. For my part, I think what is overlooked is the emotional ties that fans develop. When you lose/trade/let go Alonso *and* Nimmo *and* McNeil *and* Diaz *and* Peterson (and so on), and bring in new players on short deals, and they perform poorly, you disproportionately damage fans' affection for the team. I have been watching the Mets on and off for 40+ years, and closely for 20, and I have never been more indifferent. I don't know these players and they have given me no reason to care about them. It's a huge downside risk of what Stearns did and it's come to pass.
If you look at just this year, I think the Mets would be a far better team if they kept him. Can that be denied? I haven't research it but haven't a lot of Alonso's homers been to right and right center throughout his career?
Diversity of thought delivers the best decisions. Your comment emphasizing the combining of analytics and the human element is well said. Analytics are only as good as the data that feeds it. It has no data on introvert vs extrovert, big city kid vs rural upbringing. All of these and many more factors matter. Until Stearns opens his management style to human data he clearly, through his interaction with the media and fans, does not understand, us Mets fans are doomed to repetitive failure. The game of baseball is played by humans and not computers. The human element counts.
Alonso was a fool6ish non-signing for the Mets when you consider what else they are paying to replace him. I mean they are paying Sean Manea nearly that much per year. Should have gotten creative and found a way to make both sides happy. Four year deal with two option years, mutual option year 5. Club year 6. Buyout of 1 million in year 5, 5 million year 6. But both sides were doing what they wanted. Alonso is not at fault for not coming back. Think his ego was ruffled a bit by Stearns and Cohen, especially during the chase for Soto.
"It was just a total misread by Stearns and the front office on the personality fit for the team and the city on a roster that was already poorly constructed before they procured him." Balderdash. What's this stuff about a "fit"? Nothing the matter with his personality and nothing to do with playing in New York. Stop trying to be profound. He performed badly and if he or the coaching staff knew why, they would change it but he doesn't and they don't either. It was seemingly a great acquisition that all of us welcomed big-time and there was no misreading. There was no predicting his bad performance. No fault of Stearns. If you want to talk about blundering moves, there were plenty: letting Alonso go, signing Polanco, Semien, Robert.
Your conclusion: "It was just a total misread by Stearns and the front office on the personality fit for the team and the city"
is total and complete nonsense
personality fit? what does that possibly mean? are you a psychiatrist?
Peralta did not work out because he performed poorly on the mound, plus some bad luck:
his "fit" has nothing to do with this. It is because:
* his k-rate went from 10.4 per 9 in 2025 to 8.9 in 2026
* his walk rate went from 3.4 in 2025 to 3.8 in 2026
* his HR rate went from 1.07 per 9 in 2025 to 1.35 per 9 in 2026
* his WHIP went from 1.075 to 1.478
* in 2025, his FIP was 3.64 vs an actual ERA of 2.70, suggesting good luck
in 2026, his FIP was 4.47 vs an actual ERA of 4.99, suggesting bad luck
these are the items to analyze, not his personality.
Say it again, Mr. Bunsis. The armchair psychology stuff kills me. How do people pretend to know what's going on inside the head of an athlete that they've never even spoken to? They get bits of gossip and run with it. It's a sportswriter tic.
thanks!
2 of Stearns best signings were minor league deals - OMG and Jared Young. Other than Soto, the big money signings really haven’t worked. He was better in Milwaukee without a budget. Getting a true ace pitcher will dramatically change things imo
Excellent recap, Michael. And you were saying all these things in the off season so no one can say you are second-guessing.
Oh? What did Mr. Baron say when they signed Peralta? I'm not going to research the matter but I strongly doubt he said Peralta was a bad fit or would get spooked by NY because he was used to playing in little old Milwaukee or that he'll never come close to duplicating his 2025 performance.
I don’t understand how the Mets failed Peralta. Exactly how? There’s no reference to the pressure of pitching this season on an expiring contract with the potential loss of generational wealth given Peralta’s performance tailspin. Pitching “tight” isn’t a recipe for success and that’s on Peralta, not the Mets or the NY environment.
Enough with the speculative emotional stuff. Let's see: there's the monster pressure of performing on an expiring contract; then there's the gargantuan pressure of performing after signing a huge contract because you feel the need to show you're worth it; then there's the massive pressure of performing when you're rookie; the incomparable pressure of performing when you're replacing a fan favorite...get the point? Enough of this stuff.
Whatever it is about playing in NY, the Yankees have figured it out and the Mets haven’t. Is it the existing players making new players comfortable? The right team leaders? The right manager? The right player selections? Mets still don’t have a good culture and letting OMG go was the last time they had a good vibe. He had something that brought players together. More scouts. More focus on culture. More Yankees management types to learn from. Go Mets!
How are things to change with the same scletotic mindset. Does anyone think Stearns is going to magically turn himself into the NL's most successful GM. Bad judgement (as I have) is a congenital condition and isn't easily overcome. It's just the way it is.
Oh you said the Mets got rid OF ALL their scouts?? In favor of basically AI. wow....thats a problem right there that Americans reject. The NBA Wizards back 35 years ago had a poor scouting staff & none in Europe as many teams were recruiting there....and as a result the record wallowed around 24-58 every year.
I will continue to think that it was acceptable to move on from some veterans. The question is what you received and the next steps. 1B is a prime example of how the latter part was screwed up.
What "has to change" is that Stearns has to go. If not, someone has to have significant independence in overseeing baseball decisions. Over and over again, we hear how many mistakes he made. Not just for one season. It is not flightly or something let him go after three damn years.
Now it is emphasized he lacks a basic baseball instinct necessary for a winning team. GTFA. I'm sorry. I'm sick of this at this point. This is focused at the team, not the writer, to be clear.
(The second option seems somewhat like shoving a round peg through a square hole, which is why I'm for #1. He's Mr. Boy Genius. Taking significant power away would not be something he would like. I'm suspicious it truly would be done even if someone else is hired.)
As to turning points, Peralata gutted out, including with Ohtani at the plate, a key bases-loaded situation. He got out of the inning with the game still in reach & not down 6-1 or something. It was a vet having a bad day, but still acting like a vet sort of move.
I agree with some of the things mentioned, but let's talk about the Polar Bear in the room.
To date, Alonso has 22 HR/67 RBI in 106 games. Do the math. He's on a pace to hit 33 HR and maybe reach 102 RBI, playing half of his games in Camden Yards, which has long been a Home Run haven for sluggers like Pete. Respectable numbers, but not close to his career average. Certainly better than what the Mets first base collective have produced, but they were never going to replace Alonso's production with one player anyway.
Alonso's decline in production is imminent. Look at the spray chart. The majority of his HRs have been hit to Right and Right Center fields. That's an indication that he's not getting around on the fastball, but he's been able to hit them out through sheer force. That's why the "experts" believe his production will drop by age 33-34, and wouldn't offer him anything more than 3 years.
Stearns made a calculated risk in not offering Pete Alonso more than a 3 year contract, one that was shared by 28 other MLB General Managers. Were they all wrong? Maybe, but it's much too early to say. In any event, I'm afraid David Stearns won't be around long enough to say "I told you so". And that's a shame.
Some wanted Murakami to play 1B; I wanted Okamoto. What was wrong with signing one of them? High reward/low risk. Polanco did have a 133 OPS+ last year, but he's been up and down in his career. What's his OPS+ so far this year? (21 in 101 PA!!)
I think there is an unbridgeable disagreement among fans about whether the Mets should or shouldn't have re-signed Alonso. For my part, I think what is overlooked is the emotional ties that fans develop. When you lose/trade/let go Alonso *and* Nimmo *and* McNeil *and* Diaz *and* Peterson (and so on), and bring in new players on short deals, and they perform poorly, you disproportionately damage fans' affection for the team. I have been watching the Mets on and off for 40+ years, and closely for 20, and I have never been more indifferent. I don't know these players and they have given me no reason to care about them. It's a huge downside risk of what Stearns did and it's come to pass.
If you look at just this year, I think the Mets would be a far better team if they kept him. Can that be denied? I haven't research it but haven't a lot of Alonso's homers been to right and right center throughout his career?