When David Stearns took over in 2024, the core was: 29-year-old Pete Alonso 30-year-old Francisco Lindor 30-year-old Edwin Díaz 31-year-old Brandon Nimmo 32-year-old Jeff McNeil The Mets had a terrible farm and an organization that couldn’t develop anyone. There wasn’t even a single starting pitcher in that core. In 2026, less than three full seasons later, that core is now: 21-year-old A.J. Ewing 23-year-old Carson Benge 24-year-old Nolan McLean 27-year-old Christian Scott 27-year-old Juan Soto 28-year-old Bo Bichette 32-year-old Francisco Lindor Other than Lindor, the oldest guy in that group is 28. The youngest is 21. When Stearns took over the youngest in that group was 29 years old! Now the organization can actually develop players and has one of the better farm systems in baseball. Stearns reset a core that made the playoffs twice in six years — ONCE UNDER HIM! Alonso, Nimmo, and McNeil were not even why the Mets made the playoffs in 2024. Instead they were a big reason that team was fighting until the very last day of the season to clinch. Lindor along with the players Stearns put around them carried that team into the playoffs while those other guys all had down years. Yet fans will still tell you Stearns has done an awful job. Almost every other team in baseball would take him tomorrow. Claiming he has run the Mets into the ground and that he’s a total disaster is dishonest and irrational. Thinking he hasn’t built this roster to be a future consistent contender just means you’re not watching or you’re out of touch. It’s egregious. Missing the playoffs one year into a core reset is not some unprecedented disaster. Especially when most of the team’s core was either hurt or in the minors during this season other than Bichette, McLean, and Benge. Missing the playoffs happens to a lot of teams when they move on and stop running it back with a stale, aging group and actually start focusing on their future building the next core. The other option was keeping a group that was only getting older and punting the future. That tradeoff makes no sense. This is the most realistic way to build a World Series contender. Especially one that can compete year after year. #LGM

Hypothetical 2027 New York Mets roster: Lineup- 1. Francisco Lindor (SS) 2. Juan Soto (LF) 3. Bo Bichette (3B) 4. Carson Benge (RF) 5. Isaac Paredes (1B) 6. A.J. Ewing (CF) 7. Jorge Polanco (DH) 8. Francisco Alvarez / Luis Torrens (C) 9. Jefferson Rojas / Brett Baty (2B) Rotation- SP1- Tarik Skubal SP2- Nolan McLean SP3- Christian Scott SP4- Clay Holmes SP5- Zac Thornton SP6- Sean Manaea SP7- Tylor Megill SP8- Jack Wenninger SP9- Justin Hagenman / Tobias Myers SP10- Jonathan Santucci #LGM

Adrian Morejon stands out as a clear reliever-to-starter conversion candidate heading into next season. Morejon has elite stuff. He possesses the velocity to dial back for a starter’s workload, has good command, and offers multiple effective weapons against right-handed hitters as a top tier left-handed pitcher. With the proper developmental plan, Morejon has the potential to become a high-end starter. The Mets could sign him as a cost-efficient rotation option with great upside. The Mets already saw this approach pay off with Clay Holmes. Why not try it again with a pitcher who has even greater upside? #LGM

I'm confused — was Stearns brought in for an aggressive free agent approach, or for his track record of building and producing talent through a farm system? He spent years turning the Brewers into a consistent contender on a small-market budget through development, not by outspending teams. That was the skill set Cohen targeted to pair with his deep pockets. How am I making anything up? #LGM