Last week, Daniel Shoptaw of the St. Louis Cardinals blog, Cardinal 70, who is also the head of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, asked me five general questions regarding the Mets.
C70: What was your opinion of the New York Mets off-season?
AC: On the Mets off season, their front office did what they had to do. GM Sandy Alderson was made to cry payroll inflexibility throughout the winter. I did however think that he did a good job completing some bargain-basement deals to help with the Mets' "Santana-less" pitching staff.
C70: Will the Madoff situation impact the Mets in a major way?
AC: The impact of the Madoff situation on the Mets, financially it will hurt them. You won't notice any major impact until it comes time to re-sign either Jose Reyes or Carlos Beltran, more so Reyes.
C70: What are the expectations for Carlos Beltran?
AC: Regarding Carlos Beltran, it's all up to him now, nobody but he can make sure that his career hasn't ended from having very bad knees. The proposed move to right field may help him in the short term but, in all honesty, his iron man days just might be over. As for expectations this year, if he's able to find his stroke on a consistent basis at the plate, it won't matter to Mets fans how well he plays in the outfield.
C70: Is there a prospect that will make a significant impact this season?
AC: If RHP Dillon Gee makes the Mets starting rotation, he may draw some attention. As for other top prospects, CF Kirk Nieuwenhuis, has been considered a replacement for the aging Beltran, INF Jordany Valdespin was part of the team's 40-man roster at the start of Spring Training and of course, Jenrry Mejia, Ruben Tejada, Fernando Martinez are always on the periphery.
C70: What's your prediction for New York's record and divisional finish?
AC: If everything breaks right, I still think the Mets have a chance to be in the conversation for the NL Wild Card, as for the NL East, 3rd place...as for season record, maybe 86-76 that's "if" everything breaks right.
Check out other Mets bloggers comments and Daniel's blog here.
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