A few weeks ago over at the facebook group I asked the question; what should the Mets do if we don't acquire another starting pitcher this off season? My solution to this potential problem was to resurrect an old idea; one which would allow the Mets to solidify the rotation with a young veteran pitcher and strengthen the bullpen with two proven relievers, all without having to sacrifice the farm... IMPOSSIBLE you say?

START HEILMAN!!!!!
(you read correctly)

Heilman can be the 5th starter behind Pedro, El Duque, Maine and Perez, and Mike Pelfrey can fill in for ElDuque if and when he finds himself on the DL.

Now here's the key to this plan...

Then, we turn around and trade prospects for established relievers, who can be had for much less than established starters.

My suggestion was the trade Phillip Humber, Mike Carp and Kevin Mulvey to the Nationals for Chad Cordero and Jon Rauch. However some other trade or combination of trades should be able to accomplish a similar goal, which in this case is to acquire two proven relievers for a few prospects not named Carlos Gomez, Fernando Martinez or Mike Pelfrey.

BUT WAIT... Heilman is too valuable to the bullpen... I've always hated that statement, probably because it tries to argue that relief pitching is more important that starting pitching, which, is a ridiculous argument to begin with, if that were true, how do you explain Carlos Silva making more than Billy Wagner in 2008? Although that one boggles my mind as well.

Heilman's importance to the bullpen is certainly outweighed by his potential importance to the rotation. Moving Heilman to the rotation not only strengthens the rotation, but it also allows the Mets to strengthen the bullpen as well. If the rotation is completed with Heilman, the Mets' prospects can be traded towards strengthening the bullpen, not to mention it will allow them to put Pelfrey in the bullpen as well.

WELL... putting Heilman in the rotation doesn't solve the rotation's problems... Well I agree partially, having Heilman in there isn't equal to having Johan Santana in there, but with the Twins asking for Jose Reyes... I say having Ruben Gotay at short isn't exactly equal to having Reyes either. Let's assume for the moment that we are unable to land an ace by spring training, why should we have Mike Pelfrey and Phillip Humber competing for the 5th spot, and have Heilman trapped in the bullpen when instead we could have an improved bullpen (by trading Humber, Mulvey and Carp), and have Mike Pelfrey and Aaron Heilman compete for the 5th spot? Heilman is certainly a better option than Humber, who has a grand total of 9 career innings pitched in the major leagues. Heilman is a much better pitcher now than he was when he first came up 5 years ago, and up until he was first moved to the bullpen in 2005 he had been a starting pitcher his entire career. His fastball and change up are above average, and he has one of the best change ups in the game, so, someone tell me why don't we do this?
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Well Mets fans, after 5 months of watching our boys day in and day out, the season abruptly came to an end last Sunday. There is no need to explain what happened since we all wont forget what happened anytime soon. But in my opinion, perhaps this is a blessing in disguise, and here is why.

The Mets had a ton of problems down the stretch. The starting pitching decided to take a hiatus, minus those few great starts from Oliver Perez John Maine and Pedro Martinez, the starting pitching made the bullpen tire out. It would get to the 5th inning, and we all would collectively hold our breaths due to Guillermo Mota or Aaron Sele due to come in. In addition, Jose Reyes hit just .205 in September. That is a bad sign because when Reyes does well, usually the Mets follow.

With this being said there are a few big issues that Omar Minaya and company have to take care of over the postseason. First, the bullpen needs to be addressed. Do whatever it takes to find a long man that isn’t Aaron Sele. Jorge Sosa attempted to be that role for a while, but eventually faltered towards the end of the season. Also, middle relief please. Mota and Schowenweis just don’t do what the Mets need in the 6th and 7th inning. Get us a guy who we can count on.

We also need some type of starting pitcher to supplement Pedro Ollie and John Maine assuming that Tom Glavine doesn’t come back. Many Met fans have been asking to trade the farm system for Johan Santana. While I certainly would love to have him in the rotation, I do not want to give up the farm for someone in a walk year (even if it was a sign and trade). I still feel like Milledge, Gomez, and company have a lot to prove. Pelfrey and Humber can compete for a position in the rotation, but I still don’t feel confident without another experienced arm. I would also expect Kevin Mulvey to compete for a rotation spot as well. Pelfrey showed a lot of maturity towards the end of the season and Humber was thrown into a tough situation and held his own having to start in the last week of the season in a pennant race.

As far as the offense goes, do not expect Shawn Green or Jose Valentin to be back in any way shape or form. I expect that Lastings Milledge and Carlos Gomez will be competing for the Right Field job next year especially considering Mosies Alou will be playing at least one more year out in left field.

This can be a learning experience for everyone though. Being that the Mets showed overconfidence and they hit the brick wall hard, now is the time to improve and make a run at next season. The organization and fans are extremely disappointed. I would look for the Mets to do anything in their power to improve next year.

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