Sandy Alderson: Not Looking for Help

With the Mets offense struggling and wasting superb starts by their fine young starters, Sandy Alderson said he is not looking at making any trades.

“Right now we’re not looking outside, we’re looking inside to get some of our players back and see where we are at that point,” he said on Tuesday.

He is referring to the injured David Wright and Travis d’Arnaud. Both are expected back within the next couple of weeks.

But by then it could be too late. The Mets already lost sole possession of first place Tuesday night with their drubbing at the hands of the Cardinals. Two more weeks of this and the Mets could be too far back to catch the Nationals. There’s always the Wild Card, for which this team is likely built, anyway. Even Alderson probably does not think the Mets can best the Nationals over a 162-game season.

I don’t think Alderson will make any major moves during the season. This is the team he assembled, and this is the team he thinks can win. Making a big trade would be admitting he made mistakes this off-season, and admitting mistakes is something the stubborn Alderson is not anxious to do.

Besides, Alderson loves his young pitching (and why shouldn’t he?). He is reluctant to trade any of them, lest a future Cy Young Award winner comes back to bite him in the ass after being traded for a player who either breaks down physically or does not perform up to expectations.

So this is the Mets for 2015. Can the offense generate enough runs when it is finally back at full strength? Sandy Alderson certainly thinks so. Let’s hope he’s right.