Mets Reportedly Sign Chris Young

Well, Sandy Alderson has done it; he has reportedly completed his off-season shopping with the jewel he has been pursuing all winter — the great Chris Young. According to multiple sources, the Mets have agreed to terms with Young pending the results of a physical. If everything goes well, the deal will be formalized later this week.

Young perfectly fits the bill of pitchers for which Alderson has been salivating — injured and mediocre. He missed all of last season (except for four starts) with what was described as a strained right shoulder. He made 14 starts in 2009, pitching to a sparkling 5.21 ERA. He could only manage 18 starts the year before.

On the plus side, he was an All Star in his last healthy year of 2007. He’s went to Princeton, so he’s presumably smart. And, uh, he’s tall. He’s 6’10.” But then again, so was Eric Hillman. Remember him? He sucked.

I just can’t get excited about this acquisition. Young is a perfectly adequate back of the rotation guy, but the problem is the Mets have plenty of those guys. It’s front-end starters that they need, which Alderson either would not or could not pursue.

With a questionable rotation and an even more spotty bullpen, the Mets are going to have to score a whole lot of runs if they hope to contend this season. If Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes are healthy, if Jason Bay can rebound,  and if Angel Pagan and Ike Davis can build upon their 2010 successes, the Mets might be all right.  That’s a  lot of “ifs.” But pitching wins championships, and the Mets just don’t have enough.