Just Mets

In his column for the Star Ledger, Mike Vorkunov spoke with David Wright about Jimmy Rollins‘ recent comments about the Mets being his number two preference for a trade this past winter.

Wright thinks the Mets are becoming more appealing for external players, but doesn’t feel the Mets are yet a preferred destination spot yet.

“Obviously Jimmy has been around for a long time,” Wright told Vorkunov. “Michael [Cuddyer] has been around for a long time. I think that they can kind of see what type of guys that are right on that verge of becoming really, really good players. They notice that. But to be a spot where guys want to go, I think you have to establish yourself a little bit more.”

Sandy Alderson also believes the perception about the Mets is changing, but warns winning will ultimately be the determining factor.

“I think the perception – apparently the perception among players is changing,” Sandy Alderson told Vorkunov. “That’s a good thing. If it’s changing among players then perhaps it’s changing within the industry and changing among our fan-base. But once again, perception is only reality as long as you back it up with wins.”

They’re right and I agree the talk and the tone has changed about the organization, especially in the last year. But with that change have come a lot of new expectations for this organization, and those expectations go beyond winning on the field.

As fans, we tend to think expectations translate in only one way. For us, that’s fair, since we are the paying customer. But to Wright’s point, there’s also the credibility factor within the industry, and showing the business they’ve taken the next stage of their evolution. Part of that is winning, but also seeing their graduated players continue to grow up in the big leagues, continuing to solidify and round out the farm system, and showing a continued and increased ability to make investments into the big league roster (including retaining internal talent and acquiring external talent) when necessary.

If they can continue to build their reputation internally within the game, all of this combined would make the Mets an attractive brand to be a part of for all kinds of talent.

Read more at the Star Ledger.