The New York Mets chose to trade longtime second baseman Jeff McNeil to the Athletics on Monday, and insiders already feel as though they have a grasp on what president of baseball operations David Stearns is hoping to achieve this offseason.
According to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic, the Mets are making a conscious effort to construct a healthier clubhouse environment.
“With their trade of Jeff McNeil to the Athletics on Monday, this offseason the New York Mets have parted with three homegrown fixtures — Pete Alonso in free agency and McNeil and Brandon Nimmo in trades,” Rosenthal and Sammon wrote.
“What they’ve done tells you how big a s— show their clubhouse was,” said one rival executive who was granted anonymity for his candor. “The guessing is over. It was a disaster.”
McNeil had been with the Mets since he was drafted by the organization in 2013. Regardless, it appears as though Stearns and the rest of the front office would like to completely break away from the club’s previous identity.
“Whether or not the issues were as bad as that executive suggests, one longtime National League scout said it’s obvious that president of baseball operations David Stearns is making a concerted effort to shift the clubhouse culture,” Rosenthal and Sammon wrote.
“As one Mets person put it, “We definitely tidied things up in our house. Now it is time to do more rebuilding.””
The Mets roster will look much different in 2026. It remains to be seen if any major additions are on the way this winter.
