| The Mets are priced as a .500 team by the oddsmakers in Las Vegas, which seems about right.
But who knows?
Last year, those same oddsmakers in the desert listed the Mets as a 93-95 win team, with only the Dodgers, Braves and Astros having higher over/unders.
Vegas was right about the Dodgers and Braves and less so about the Astros, who finished with 90 wins.
It's difficult to see how the Mets could turn into this year's Orioles, who weren't even expected to be a .500 team and went on to win 101 games and the AL East.
That's especially true considering what's happened — or hasn't — over the past few months.
 David Stearns didn't promise anything at the beginning of the Mets offseason beyond seeing "where that takes us."
Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Asked about free agency back in November at Carlos Mendoza's introductory press conference, new Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said, "Obviously, the offseason is up and running, so we'll see where that takes us."
Not very far, as it turns out.
The latest example of that came this past week, with two free-agent signings that didn't exactly make anyone's spine tingle.
Adam Ottavino returned at a discounted rate of $4.5 million after turning down a $6.75 million player option.
The Mets also brought in Jose Rondon, a former Cardinals utility player who hasn't been in the majors since 2021 after being suspended for 80 games early in 2022 for PED usage, on a minor league deal.
They were the latest reminders that this offseason has been unlike any other under the ownership of Steve Cohen.
 Jose Rondon, who signed a minor league deal with the Mets this week, hits the ball during the Venezuelan Baseball League game between Leones del Caracas and Tiburones de la Guaira.
Getty Images
Just a year ago, expectations were sky-high in Queens after another winter of exorbitant spending from the multi-billionaire owner.
Brandon Nimmo and Edwin Diaz — both free agents — were brought back on expensive deals, Nimmo for eight years and $162 million and Diaz for five years and $102 million.
The pitching staff received a trio of high-priced newcomers: Kodai Senga was signed from Japan for five years and $75 million, Jose Quintana for two years and $26 million and Justin Verlander, coming off a Cy Young season in Houston, got two years and $86.6 million to join Max Scherzer — on a three-year, $130 million deal signed the previous winter — at the top of the rotation.
Then there were the smaller moves, such as Ottavino (two years, $14.5 million, including that player option for 2024) and David Robertson (one year at $10 million), as well as catcher Omar Narvaez for two years and $15 million — even with Francisco Alvarez knocking on the door in the minors.
In all, Cohen committed around half a billion dollars in one offseason.
Plus, there was the $315 million pursuit of Carlos Correa, which ended when the Mets were scared off by the shortstop's troublesome ankle.
Despite all the fanfare, the roster was blown up just a few months later.
 Luis Severino's one-year, $13 million contract represents one of the biggest splashes, if you could call it that, of the Mets' offseason.
Robert Sabo for the NY Post
Now, Mets fans, perhaps initially excited by Stearns' arrival, have watched the Dodgers continue to spend at a dizzying rate, landing both of the offseason's top free agents, Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Coveted managerial candidate Craig Counsell ended up with the Cubs, and with Scherzer having been proven right in his assessment of how the Mets would approach '24, it appears there's no urgency to pursue any of the remaining big-name free agents such as Blake Snell or Cody Bellinger, though The Post's Jon Heyman called Wednesday for the Mets to pursue a bat to support Pete Alonso in the lineup.
So perhaps the Mets and the fans in Queens are in for a rough spring, summer and fall to follow what's been an ugly winter — their largest expenditures the two-year, $28 million deal for Sean Manaea and the one-year, $13 million contract given to Luis Severino, coming off another poor season with the Yankees.
As Mendoza said in November: "We're here to win. We want to build something here that allows us to compete for championships. That's the biggest goal."
We'll find out soon if that happens. We're not sure we'd bet on it.
Today's back page  New York Post
No Randle, no problem The Knicks won their first two games without the injured Julius Randle, and though they can't get to where they ultimately want to go without both of their top two stars available and healthy, there's reason to believe they can survive a relatively short absence as Randle recovers from a dislocated shoulder.
In late March last season, minus Randle — who was sidelined at the time due to a sprained ankle — they beat Cleveland behind 48 points and nine assists from Jalen Brunson. Afterwards, Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell pointed out why Brunson & Co. were still dangerous without Randle.
 Knicks star Julius Randle is helped by a trainer after he injured his right shoulder in the Jan. 27 game against the Heat.
Robert Sabo for the NY Post
"I'm not making an excuse here," Mitchell said in explaining the defeat to the shorthanded Knicks. "[The Knicks] not having Julius Randle changes the pace of their group. Obviously, Jalen does what he does. He pushes the pace, but you have kind of a mismatch with those two [because] Julius kind of [slows them down]."
At the time, Mitchell noted that having Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley on the floor allowed the Knicks to play in transition more often.
"You have to prioritize and shift your priorities at that point,'' Mitchell said. "You've got to give them credit. They're running. They're flying."
Toppin and Quickley are both gone, but Brunson — and head coach Tom Thibodeau — are not.
In Tuesday's win over Utah at Madison Square Garden, it was Donte DiVincenzo who helped make up for the loss of Randle, scoring 33 points, the most he's had in a win this season, while Precious Achiuwa matched his season high with 18.
 The Cavaliers' Donovan Mitchell was impressed how the Knicks adapted last season when they were without Julius Randle.
Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Despite players coming in and out of the lineup, the Knicks have won 14 of their past 16 and are on pace for their best record since 2012-13.
Their recent play has propelled the Knicks into third place in the Eastern Conference, just 1 ½ games behind No. 2 Milwaukee and their new head coach, Doc Rivers.
Give me Liberty Last winter, the New York Liberty assembled a superteam that ultimately came up two wins shy of the franchise's first WNBA title.
This winter, the front office's task was to retain the core of that roster and try to upgrade it in hopes of dethroning the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces.
WNBA free agency quietly has been ticking along for a couple of weeks, but Thursday is the first day that teams can officially sign players to contracts.
 The Liberty's Sabrina Ionescu celebrates a shot against the Aces in Game 3 of the 2023 WNBA Finals at Barclays Center.
Michelle Farsi for the NY Post
With that hot stove marker in mind, here is a look at the state of the Liberty's roster:
• They have five players under contract, starting with sharpshooter Sabrina Ionescu, point guard Courtney Vandersloot and do-it-all wing Betnijah Laney. Kayla Thornton and Nyara Sabally are penciled in for the bench.
• In early January, the Liberty put the core designation — the equivalent of the NFL's franchise tag — on reigning MVP Breanna Stewart, ensuring the all-world forward would stay under club control as she hit free agency. Stewart is entitled to a one-year, supermax salary because she was cored, but she also can negotiate a multi-year deal and/or a discounted salary to help the team maneuver (as she did last offseason).
• Free-agent center Jonquel Jones has agreed to sign a two-year contract to stay with the Liberty, according to The Next. (You will see a lot of WNBA contracts expiring after the 2025 season — Ionescu's and Laney's do, too — because the salary cap is expected to rise that offseason on a fresh CBA with the projected windfall from the league's new media rights deals.)
• The Liberty had a meeting Wednesday with free-agent big Nneka Ogwumike, according to ESPN, after the Sparks pillar and former MVP decided to seek a new team in free agency.
 Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, and Nneka Ogwumike attend the New York premiere of "Shattered Glass: A WNBPA Story."
Getty Images
• The Next also reported the Liberty plan to have 24-year-old German wing Leonie Fiebich, a 2020 WNBA draft pick whose rights the team acquired last offseason, on the roster in 2024 on a rookie-scale contract. Marine Johannès, their exciting French guard, will be away from the Liberty while fulfilling national-team commitments in an Olympics year.
• The Liberty have $703,803 in cap room, per Her Hoop Stats, to divide among Stewart, Jones, Fiebich and likely three more players to round out the roster. Ogwumike certainly would be a squeeze.
• The Liberty own the No. 11 overall pick in April's WNBA draft, which potentially puts them in range to select a polished college guard such as UCLA's Charisma Osborne or Ohio State's Jacy Sheldon.
— Jonathan Lehman
A new day in Baltimore and the AL East The days of the Yankees owning the Orioles ended last year, when Baltimore won the division for the first time since 2014.
Now the Orioles reportedly are close to having a new owner, which should make them an even tougher opponent going forward.
In each of the previous five seasons, the Orioles ranked 27th or lower in overall payroll — including last year, when they were ahead of only the pitiful A's.
 David Rubenstein is set to be the next Orioles owner after what has been a rough run with the Angelos family.
Getty Images
After decades under the unsteady hand of the Angelos family, the Orioles are set to be purchased for $1.725 billion by private equity billionaire David Rubenstein, a Baltimore native.
Even before news of the sale became known, the Orioles seemed to be poised for a run of at least a few years of success, thanks to a deep reserve of young, affordable talent.
But there was some expectation the Angelos family — now led by Peter Angelos' famously stingy son, John — would derail their future by refusing to pay that young talent into the future.
That seems less likely to happen under Rubenstein, though he isn't expected to take over the franchise until the elder Angelos (age 94) dies.
Last year, for the first time since 2016, the Yankees lost the season series to Baltimore, 7-6.
The fight might become more fair in years ahead.
What we're reading 👀 🏀 In his return to Barclays Center, Kevin Durant showed the Nets what they are missing, eliciting early cheers that turned to boos as he took over in a 136-120 Suns win. "Even though I love these people here, I love to shut them up," Durant said.
🏈 Do you have Chiefs Fatigue? You don't have to call a doctor if symptoms persist, just read this column by The Post's Mike Vaccaro.
🏒 The Post's Andrew Crane tells the story of Connor Mackey's path to the Rangers and what the defenseman with "natural crust" can offer.
⛳ The PGA Tour secured a $3 billion equity investment from a consortium of billionaire sports team owners (including Steve Cohen). The deal is separate from the tour's flirtation with merging with Saudi-backed LIV Golf. The Post's Mark Cannizzaro bemoans there's nothing in this announcement for golf fans, who just want to see the world's best players face each other.
🏀 St. John's suffered a disappointing 88-77 loss at Xavier that exposed their defense and dented their résumé heading into a weekend showdown with No. 1 UConn.
🏀 Iowa sensation Caitlin Clark moved into second place on the all-time women's college basketball scoring list — with the top spot squarely in her sights.
🏈 How Giants quarterbacks coach Shea Tierney is continuing his apprenticeship.
🏈 A shakeup in the Jets front office.
🏎 A Formula 1 stunner!
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment