| The Mets, as Max Scherzer suggested after being dealt last summer, are punting.
It was evident through an underwhelming offseason and it has become clear by their inactivity so far in the wake of the Kodai Senga injury.
This season is not about winning. It is about new decision-maker David Stearns assessing the state of the franchise, its young players and prospects.
You can imagine the offense being solid, that Jeff McNeil and Starling Marte will bounce back after down years, that Francisco Alvarez will take a step forward and the trio of Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo will excel.
You can talk yourself into the bullpen being improved now that Edwin Diaz is healthy and Stearns added higher-upside pieces in Jake Diekman, Jorge Lopez and Shintaro Fujinami.
 The success of the Mets' rotation will depend largely on Sean Manaea, who has yet to throw for 180 innings during any season in his career.
Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
But the starting rotation? No, that's a bridge too far, particularly with the news that Senga might be out until May due to a right shoulder strain.
The rotation was a major question mark with the Japanese right-hander. Without him? It's hard to find many worse rotations.
Which brings us back to the idea of punting. There are two strong arms still out there in free agency in reigning Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and former Yankee Jordan Montgomery. Either one would drastically improve the Mets' rotation, which now is dependent on hope and luck. They are depending on big years out of Luis Severino and Sean Manaea, two guys who have never thrown 200 innings in a single season and are coming off shaky seasons.
All indications are the Mets don't plan on making any significant moves. That they are content to rely on their depth.
Translation: This is not our year. We're willing to be patient.
This isn't to suggest owner Steve Cohen has somehow morphed into Fred Wilpon overnight. The Mets' payroll is roughly $330 million. In October, he had to cut a check for $101 million to pay the team's luxury tax bill. All he had to show for it was a dismal fourth-place finish.
 Even with a payroll of $330 million to start the season, Steve Cohen reportedly would spend more if the Mets are in contention.
Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
In the old playoff system, this would be more understandable. Adding a Montgomery or Snell isn't going to turn them into a 95-win team.
But in the three-team wild-card system, when winning in the mid-80s is enough to reach the postseason, it feels misguided. The Diamondbacks reached the World Series after winning 84 games.
Now, as SNY has reported, the Mets have earmarked $10 million-to-$15 million to spend during the season if they're in contention. But the starting rotation as it stands now could be prohibitive. It could lead to an overworked bullpen and too many early deficits. Odds are the Mets will be sellers and not buyers in July.
That may be the plan all along, ahead of a much better free-agent class next winter. Their actions sure seem to indicate as much.
Today's back page  New York Post
The scoreboard Knicks 113, Pistons 111: The Knicks went ahead on Josh Hart's layup after a frenetic sequence in the final seconds involving a controversial no-call on Donte DiVincenzo for taking out Ausar Thompson to get the ball back. Here's what they said:
Pistons coach Monty Williams: "Where's the New York media now? The absolute worst call of the season. … That's an abomination. You cannot miss that in an NBA game."
DiVincenzo: "Do I think we dodged a bullet overall? Yes. ... You turn the ball over, the ball is in front of you, and you go after the ball."
Crew chief James Williams: "Upon postgame review, we determined that Thompson gets to the ball first, and then was deprived of the opportunity to gain possession of the ball. Therefore, a loose ball foul should have been whistled."
Was it karma for the phantom foul on Jalen Brunson that led to a loss to the Rockets two weeks ago? It's a win, and The Post's Mike Vaccaro says the Knicks should embrace that. Brunson led the way with 35 points and 12 assists. Hart had 23 points, and DiVincenzo added 21. Quentin Grimes scored 14 points in the fourth quarter for the Pistons to nearly grab the revenge-game win.
 Jalen Brunson celebrates with Josh Hart after Hart's go-ahead basket in the Knicks' dramatic win over the Pistons.
AP
Nets 111, Grizzlies 86: Kevin Ollie's first win, snapping a four-game skid for the Nets. Seven players hit double figures. Cam Thomas exited late due to a sprained right ankle.
Islanders 3, Stars 2 (OT): Bo Horvat scored in overtime after the Islanders, in a fight for their playoff lives, had coughed up leads of 1-0 and 2-1. "That's a big two points," Horvat said. "We gotta get another two points against Detroit [on Thursday]."
Mexico 2, USWNT 0: Dos a cero. The United States already had advanced to the quarterfinals of the Women's Gold Cup, but the team's second-ever loss to Mexico is a real setback in the buildup to this summer's Olympics. The score could have been worse.
Tourney dreams We're now less than three weeks away from Selection Sunday. Mid-major conference tournaments will begin next week. With that mind, let's take a look at the local men's basketball landscape for March Madness.
Seton Hall
With by far the best chance of anyone to dance, the Pirates sit in third place in the Big East. Though the metrics aren't fond of them because of a series of shaky performances in non-conference action — Seton Hall sits at No. 61 in the NET rankings, the metric the selection committee uses as a sorting tool — it has a very strong résumé.
Shaheen Holloway's team owns five Quad 1 wins, highlighted by victories at home over No. 3 Connecticut and No. 5 Marquette. As long as Seton Hall takes care of business at home vs. DePaul and Villanova, it will go dancing and likely avoid the First Four in Dayton.
St. John's
 Rick Pitino and St. John's might still have a path to the NCAA Tournament if they can score a quality win in the Big East Tournament.
AP
The Johnnies' odds of receiving an at-large bid remain long, but Sunday's victory over No. 12 Creighton at least kept them alive. St. John's is 44th in the NET, which has kept them in the conversation, although their 2-9 record in Quad 1 games is a problem.
They have to win their final three regular-season games — at Butler, at DePaul and home for Georgetown — then beat a quality team in the Big East Tournament. Not impossible, particularly if the Creighton win was some kind of a breakthrough.
Princeton
One of last year's March darlings, Princeton is very much in play to return to the NCAA Tournament, but it won't be easy. The Ivy League is loaded at the top, with Princeton, Cornell and Yale all tied at 9-2. The winner of the four-team tournament will be dangerous, and the losers will have to settle for the NIT.
The Tigers, led by dynamic point guard Xavian Lee (18.3 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 3.7 APG), are on pace to win more games than they did last year (23) in their Sweet 16 run, but that won't guarantee anything. Princeton is 1-2 against Yale and Cornell, and will host Cornell on Saturday in a game that could determine the regular-season champion and Ivy No. 1 seed.
Hofstra
It's been another strong season for the Pride, who are in position to finish as high as second in the CAA with a big final week of the regular season and even first if everything goes right. They face the two premier teams in the CAA, UNC-Wilmington and Charleston, to close out the schedule.
Tyler Thomas is a CAA Player of the Year candidate for coach Speedy Claxton. But Hofstra will have to win the CAA Tournament to reach the NCAA Tournament, and it is 1-2 the past two years in that tournament under Claxton.
 Tyler Thomas is averaging better then 22 points per game for a Hofstra team that has a chance to win the CAA regular-seasson crown.
AP
Other contenders
Saint Peter's has risen to third in the MAAC with four straight wins, and is only one game behind league leader Quinnipiac in the loss column. Saint Peter's hosts Quinnipiac to close out the regular season on March 9.
It would be foolish to count out Iona, even though the Gaels have lost four of their past five and are in seventh place in the MAAC. The departure of leading scorer and rebounder Greg Gordon for personal reasons has hurt.
Fairleigh Dickinson and Wagner are each in position to host a tournament game in the NEC, and Wagner has won at conference leader Merrimack. FDU is currently tied with Sacred Heart for third place, and Wagner is one game behind them.
Not too many men on the field The NFL Combine is running into the same problem the NBA has dealt with as it tries to elevate its pre-draft event into a must-see media event.
Namely, the premier prospects don't need the combine. Three of the NFL Draft's top prospects, USC quarterback Caleb Williams, LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels and Ohio State receiver Marvin Williams Jr., won't be doing anything on the field at this week's event in Indianapolis.
And, really, it's hard to blame them.
 Widely expected to be the top pick in the NFL Draft, Caleb Williams doesn't have a lot to gain from working out at this week's NFL Scouting Combine.
AP
There is no upside for any of them. They are basically guaranteed to be top-five picks. All they can do is hurt their stock.
That isn't good news for a league hoping to draw eyeballs to watch players doing 40-yard dashes and running out routes, but it's hard to argue with the logic of players hoping to maximize their place in the draft.
What we're reading 👀 🏈 The rebuild of the Jets offensive line just got even more complicated. The team is cutting guard Laken Tomlinson after two failed seasons, opening up roughly $8 million in cap space.
🏈 We previewed the Giants business awaiting at the NFL combine and some of the major storylines around the league this week.
🏒 Can Matt Rempe keep fighting every night? What's more: Will he stick with the Rangers beyond next week's trade deadline?
🏀 The Liberty re-signed Breanna Stewart to a team-friendly one-year contract in a possible hint about the rest of the offseason.
⚾ Anthony Rizzo says he has recovered from the concussion that ruined his 2023 season and is ready to hold down the Yankees' cleanup spot.
⚾ Luisangel Acuña is making an impression at Mets camp, and Francisco Lindor seems to have taken the young infielder under his wing.
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