6 Key Takeaways From David Stearns' Media Availability: Starting Rotation, Prioritizing First Base, and More

David Stearns met the media at Citi Field to discuss the end of the New York Mets' 2026 season. He had a lot to say about what needs to change for the Mets to get back to the postseason.

David Stearns addressed many of the New York Mets' issues at his end-of-season media availability on Monday. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The New York Mets' season is over, and there is a lot of blame for what went wrong in 2026. Chief among those issues was a poor offseason for David Stearns, whose controversial choices largely backfired, putting the team into a hole they couldn't dig out of.

Stearns met the media at Citi Field on Monday to share his final thoughts on the 2026 season and to set the stage for an important offseason for the club. Here are six key takeaways from Stearns' final media availability of this season.

The offseason set them up for failure

If Mets fans were hoping for some accountability from Stearns, they did get a mea culpa. Stearns admitted early on in the media session that a number of decisions the Mets made created the potential for what he termed an "uncapped downside scenario", which we saw play out during the course of the team's 12-game losing streak in April.

"We and I made a number of decisions that created the potential for an uncapped downside scenario"

David Stearns discusses the lessons he learned from the start to the 2026 season for the Mets pic.twitter.com/DUxoPG2KRM

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) September 28, 2026

Those issues came down to roster construction, which Stearns said left them little room to adjust on the fly when players either didn't perform or suffered injuries. Stearns also admitted that he is going to try to be more aware of certain risks when approaching external additions, including whether or not they can handle the New York market.

Another intriguing nugget came from Stearns' long-term view on free agency, which he ideally views as a tool to make targeted splurges to supplement a roster primarily put together through internal player development. That kind of approach has worked well for the Los Angeles Dodgers and appears to remain the Mets' blueprint for the future.

First base is an offseason priority

One of the first questions Stearns got was about first base and whether he regretted letting Pete Alonso walk without a significant attempt to keep him. Stearns essentially sidestepped the question, acknowledging that Alonso had a great year but noting that he doesn't get mulligans in the front office, and pointing out that the production the Mets got from the position left plenty to be desired.

David Stearns was asked if he would've handled the Pete Alonso situation differently:

"The truth is in this job, I don't get mulligans. I also recognize Pete had a tremendous year and the totality of our first base production wasn't good enough" pic.twitter.com/ByEQGI6Y9c

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) September 28, 2026

After deeming the position an offseason priority, Stearns noted he planned to attack it with a combination of internal and external additions. Jared Young and Brett Baty were two players Stearns specifically mentioned as internal options to fill the position, while he declined to commit to a role for Jorge Polanco until he sees how the veteran looks in spring training.

Marcus Semien will likely begin 2027 at second base

Another popular topic was second base, where Stearns also admitted they didn't get as much out of that position as they wanted. While it appears that Semien will get another chance at second base to begin 2027, Stearns did mention Baty, as well as talented young players in the minor leagues pushing for opportunities.

David Stearns says he "won't commit to what second base looks like" for the Mets in 2027 pic.twitter.com/tGvcRB0Ht3

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) September 28, 2026

That latter group includes Mitch Voit and Jefferson Rojas as options who could be in play fairly early next season. Given the number of promising options in-house, it seems unlikely the Mets will go hunting for a middle infielder over the winter.

The Baby Mets' future remains a mixed bag

The big winner from Stearns' media availability was Baty, who drew a ton of praise for his strong finish to the season at the plate and was mentioned as an option at several positions. While most of the Baby Mets appear to have flawed outlooks, Baty is in the safest position to be on the 2027 roster.

New York Mets third baseman Brett Baty will have a role on the team next year, thanks to his performance down the stretch. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Stearns also noted that Francisco Alvarez improved defensively in the second half, while Ronny Mauricio, who is out of options, showed flashes at the end of the season and could compete for a job in spring training. Mark Vientos never came up, which could be a sign the organization is prepared to move on.

The Mets may not be done adding to the front office

Stearns was clearly pleased about the addition of Derek Falvey to the front office, noting that he was already settled in and eager to get to work. When asked about the potential of adding more voices to the front office, Stearns remained open to that possibility, noting that a lot of executive movement happens in October and that they are always open to adding more people if they fit the team's needs.

The Mets will be adding to the starting rotation again

The other big target for the Mets in the winter will be the starting rotation, which Stearns has been trying to solve for years. Stearns declared that adding to the rotation was "necessary" but said the team is open to exploring multiple avenues to address that need, per SNY Mets.

While Stearns declined to comment when asked specifically about Tarik Skubal, he did indicate that adding to the top of the rotation is always a good idea. Another key talking point for Stearns was having the ability to internally develop starters who can work at the top of the rotation, something he feels they have made progress on throughout this season.

Stearns indicated that he feels a team needs 10-12 starting pitchers to get through a season and noted that this year's minor league season, as well as trade acquisitions, have given them more depth in that department. One player who could fit into the depth area is Tylor Megill, who Stearns mentioned will get an opportunity to compete for a job in spring training.

Another intriguing comment emerged about Kodai Senga, who showed flashes of success as a reliever in the second half but has maintained a desire to start. Stearns acknowledged that while the organization is well aware of Senga's passion to start, the team does need to see the kind of production to justify that role going forward.

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