After signing RF Michael Cuddyer to a two-year, $21M deal on Monday, the Mets now have $62.5M "committed to the payroll next year, and with nine players set for arbitration the payroll is somewhere over $90 million at this point, depending on how large the raises are," according to Mike Vorkunov of the Newark STAR-LEDGER. However, that "doesn't mean the Mets will start the season at that number." Mets GM Sandy Alderson said, "It can go up. We can pull the plug, it goes down. It is where it is today. I don't know that it'll be there at the end of the offseason. But there are probably some things we need to do anyway" (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 11/13). SNY’s Sal Licata said the Mets are “finally showing some signs of aggressiveness” and the money given to Cuddyer is a “big deal." Licata: "For this team to spend two years, $20 million is something that hasn’t really happened over the course of the last six years,” But SNY’s Adam Schein said he wanted the Mets to “think bigger and dream bigger” than Cuddyer (“Loud Mouths,” SNY, 11/11). Meanwhile, ESPN N.Y.'s Adam Rubin noted MLB agent Scott Boras yesterday at the annual GM meetings "zinged the Mets over their spending habits, although this year's version did have less bite than usual." Boras said, "I think it was 2009 the Mets had a $149 million payroll. I've always said: It's still the big rocket ship. But they had a lot more astronauts when it was a $149 million payroll." Boras: "You have to add it up, but I think there were $40 million to $50 million more in general-fund revenues to teams since then. So not only has the value of their franchise gone up ... they're receiving tens of millions of dollars more from the general fund. As I've always said, this is a franchise that has a monstrous foundation. They just need to put a few more astronauts in there to have it blast off" (ESPN.com, 11/12).
BACK TO THE FUTURE: Alderson yesterday said that Citi Field’s new dimensions in right field and right-center "will roughly mimic Shea Stadium’s." In N.Y., Mike Puma notes the Mets are shortening the fence in right-center "in an effort to make games more entertaining" (N.Y. POST, 11/13). Alderson said of the renovation, "I actually have a preference for a little more offense in games. We do want to entertain people. At some point, 2-1 loses its cache, panache." He added, "We're in the entertainment business. ...Those are great and I love those games but I like 10-8, too" (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 11/13).
