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JJ: “David Stearns Legacy Offseason… Loading…”

BQE Admin on December 19, 2025

New York New York

By John Jastremski

What a crazy few weeks to start the offseason for the New York Mets.
Of course after the way the 2025 season ended up, you had to imagine the status quo was not going to be accepted by ownership and GM David Stearns.
The Mets were going to have a much different team going into 2026, sure.
However, who could have possibly imagined that before Christmas, the Mets have said goodbye to three of the most popular players the team has had over the past seven or so years.
It started with Brandon Nimmo and then last week the Mets saw Edwin Diaz sign with the World Champion Los Angeles Dodgers and franchise home run leader Pete Alonso take his talents to the Baltimore Orioles.
Unlike the Diaz sweepstakes, the Mets had no interest in bringing Alonso back to Queens.
The Mets will point to the amount of years the Orioles gave Pete Alonso and suggest it was a length of contract they did not feel comfortable with.
There is some truth in that, but it digs even deeper.
David Stearns did not want Pete Alonso back. He didn’t want to resign him last year and simply has a different vision for building and reshaping the ballclub.
Look, if I was in David Stearns shoes. I would want Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz back on my baseball team.
Diaz is one of the best closers in baseball and Pete Alonso is one of the best slugging right handed hitters in the sport.
However, I’m not running the Mets.
David Stearns has put his reputation on the line this offseason.
Remember, Stearns grew up a Mets fan on the Upper East side as a kid.
He probably wants nothing more than returning his boyhood team to glory with a trip down the Canyon of Heroes.
Stearns clearly has a plan for what he envisions this Mets roster to be in 2026 and beyond.
At the moment, he’s not exactly the most popular person in town.
The Mets said goodbye to three players the fan base absolutely adored.
Mets fans are not exactly going to show a ton of patience with the team’s GM if the team doesn’t win and win in a big way next season.
He knows that.
David Stearns acted with serious backbone and conviction in charting the current course for the team.
He has a plan, the pieces are not officially all in place quite yet.
Will Stearns offseason be a story of vindication or of massive regret.
The plot thickens indeed…
You can listen to my podcast New York, New York on The Ringer Podcast Network on Spotify/Apple Podcasts every Sunday & Thursday. You can watch me nightly on Honda Sports Nite at 11 PM on SNY. 

Was the Mets’ Apple Rotten at the Core?

BQE Admin on December 19, 2025

Noah Zimmerman

noah@queensledger.com

Not many saw this trajectory coming for the Mets’ offseason, but nevertheless the core of the team has been torn apart. In the span of just weeks, New York traded their longest-tenured player in Brandon Nimmo, saw star closer Edwin Diaz sign with the back-to-back champion Dodgers, and didn’t even present a contract offer to franchise HR leader Pete Alonso, who signed in Baltimore.

It’s a complete restructuring of the team in the wake of a brutal failure last season, where they missed the postseason despite boasting MLBís second-highest payroll.

Now it’s evident that Steve Cohen and David Stearns won’t be paying more than they’re comfortable for key players, and that includes long contract terms and deferred money that ultimately led to Diaz and Alonso signing elsewhere.

“In the years that I’ve been with the Mets, I have not seen this much moving in a new direction,” said all-time great Met Kieth Hernandez.

Former manager Terry Collins shared insight on the shakeup, saying “this core has not won. Maybe it’s time to go with a different core.”

Ultimately, the bulk of the Mets’ failure last season came down to their pitching staff, one that’s only gotten weaker in recent weeks. While the offense certainly came up short more than a few times, starting pitchers consistently failed to last and the bullpen was ineffective far too often.

Now those problems are exacerbated by the loss of Diaz, Gregory Soto, and Tyler Rodgers. Additionally New York missed out on Padres reliever Robert Suarez (now with Atlanta), and still have holes to fill in their rotation.

The core certainly did not get it done, but it’s hard to see the Mets bouncing back and making the playoffs with this much upheaval in the offseason.

JJ: “For the Mets. The Core Is a Changin'”

BQE Admin on November 26, 2025

New York, New York

By John Jastremski

Sunday was the first of many big moves by David Stearns and the Mets braintrust this winter.

Make no mistake, Sunday was a trade that was a bit of a shock to the system. Brandon Nimmo, the popular outfielder and longest tenured Met was traded for Rangers Infielder Marcus Semien.

My initial reaction was of surprise, but not shock. If you follow the team closely and listen to the chatter and smoke that was being reported over the past week, it became obvious that Nimmo despite his no trade clause was being shopped.

If you also took a listen to what David Stearns had to say throughout this offseason, the theme of athleticism and run prevention was going to be a major point of emphasis in improving the club.

At this stage of Nimmo’s career, his defense and athleticism is most certainly in decline. On the flip side, despite his age, Semien’s defense profiled incredibly well at 2nd base.

Look, if we are comparing the back of the baseball card in 2025, I won’t pretend to say the Mets instantly improved their baseball team just based upon this trade. 

They didn’t, but they did accomplish a major goal.

Yes, not only did the Mets get better defensively, they now have a lot more flexibility to swing big in the outfield this offseason. Does that mean Free Agent Outfielders Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger? Does it mean a trade for athletic players such as Byron Buxton and Ketel Marte?

The opportunities and flexibility within the roster now must be taken advantage of by David Stearns and the Met brass.

Look, it’s never fun trading a life long Met or the longest tenured player on your team. However, after the way the 2025 season finished up, you couldn’t simply run it back.

You can’t play as poorly as the Mets played, miss the postseason and make zero significant moves when it comes to changing the core of your team.

Brandon Nimmo’s departure was the first signal that nobody from last year’s group should feel safe.

Now, let’s see what the rest of the winter brings.

You can listen to my podcast New York, New York on The Ringer podcast network on Spotify/Apple Podcasts every Sunday & Thursday. You can watch me nightly on Honda Sports Nite at 11 PM on SNY.

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