The New York Mets: Plenty of Question Marks Remain

Sure, Omar Minaya may have cleaned up the pigsty in the Mets' pen with the acquisitions of Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez and J.J. Putz, but that doesn't mean that this team is going to leapfrog the Phillies at the top of the National League East. There are still a number of rather deep holes to fill, and they need to be filled with quality players, not stopgaps.

In the starting rotation, Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, and now apparently Tim Redding are locked into spots. If Spring Training were currently underway, Jon Niese, Bobby Parnell, and Brandon Knight would be competing for that fifth and final opening. In my eyes, Maine, Redding, and mystery man No. 5 fail to represent the makings of a potential World Series caliber back of the rotation. There's undoubtedly room for improvement.

The talk around town is that Derek Lowe was upset (and probably a little appalled) by Minaya's initial lowball offers. In the mean time Pedro Martinez is itching to return to the Metropolitans, but then again, he'd take a job anywhere he can find one.

For starters, we need to stay away from Pedro -- the guy is finished. Fastball down in the mid-80s, tipping his curveball, and leaving his change-up at the top of the zone too often. Let's stop with the nostalgia, and simply let him walk away.

Better remaining options are the aforementioned Lowe, Oliver Perez, Jon Garland, and Randy Wolf. Go big or go home, so the Mets have to get either Lowe or Perez, preferably Lowe, to occupy the No. 2 spot in the rotation and push everyone else down accordingly. Though if they end up re-signing Perez, Jerry Manuel will probably elect to go lefty-righty-lefty with Santana, Pelfrey, and Perez in that order.

The Mets have issues elsewhere, but I have to get to sleep. More on this club in the coming days, weeks, and months...