David Stearns might have already tipped Mets’ Pete Alonso hand in MLB offseason full of huge questions

5 offseason questions on my thoughts:

1. How dedicated is David Stearns to “run prevention”? The Mets president of baseball operations used that time period no fewer than a half-dozen instances within the first 12 minutes of his end-of-season press convention. The time period “Chekhov’s gun” refers to the concept when you present a rifle mounted on the wall within the first act of a present, that gun higher be fired by the ultimate act.

Is “run prevention” Stearns’ Chekhov gun, since he so publicly provided it inside 24 hours of the common season ending? In different phrases, did Stearns inform us that Pete Alonso is just not coming again with out ever saying these phrases? As a result of we’re now not within the first act, with free company having begun and Alonso accessible to all.

As a result of it’s tough to see the way you get to “run prevention” if Alonso returns to first and Juan Soto is in proper, although both might (with out liking it) be requested to DH frequently. After which what of shortstop Francisco Lindor, who turns 32 on Friday and has six years at $192 million left, and left fielder Brandon Nimmo, who turns 33 in March and has 5 years at $101.25 million left. Each have been down a grade defensively final yr and have extra probably deteriorating years left on their contracts. Additionally they each have full no-trade rights.