Ranking the 5 biggest things on Mets' Virtual Winter Meetings to-do list

The Winter Meetings this year will not take place in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but they will happen virtually in a different, less structured form.

The Rule 5 Draft, always scheduled for Thursday morning upon the close of the Winter Meetings, will take place on Thursday, Dec. 10. And front offices will be gathering virtually in the coming days and weeks to map out and firm up offseason plans.

For the Mets, who have crossed one item off their offseason to-do list by signing Trevor May, there are still lots of things on their agenda as the hot stove heats up. 

Let's rank them...

5. Hire a GM

This has almost become an afterthought as Steve Cohen and Sandy Alderson have gone full throttle, but the Mets still need to hire a GM.

While Alderson will step up and be more involved in baseball operations with the team abandoning its president of baseball operations search for now, it would be way too much to expect him to do everything.

The Mets are clearly comfortable going forward with their offseason plan before a GM is hired, but the sooner someone is brought in (interviews are ongoing), the better.

4. Add necessary depth

The sexy, flashy signings and trades are fun and grab the most headlines, but the Mets also have a good amount of work to do when it comes to filling things in around the margins.

They need to add players in Triple-A, could use a left-handed reliever, and need to address their big league outfield depth.

The recent rash of non-tenders around the league could help with the above.

3. Fix the starting rotation

As things currently stand, the Mets have three starting pitchers they can rely on heading into 2021: Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, and David Peterson.

Seth Lugo should be in the bullpen even after the addition of Trevor May, and Noah Syndergaard could return by May or June but cannot be counted on due to the unknowns that come with recovery from Tommy John surgery.

That means the Mets need to add at least one and perhaps two more starting pitchers.

Trevor Bauer is out there and would be a true difference-maker. But if the Mets don't land him, the second tier of the market features solid options like Jake Odorizzi and Masahiro Tanaka.

There's also the potential of a trade for Blake Snell, though Alderson is understandably reluctant to give up too many assets as the team places a greater emphasis on building up the farm system.

Odorizzi is arguably the best fit of the second tier free agent options, and SNY's Andy Martino reported Friday that the Mets would have no issue signing Odorizzi before the market develops.

2. Find a new catcher

The Mets need a catcher to replace Wilson Ramos, whose option was not picked up. And there are no legitimate options from within the organization.

That means New York needs to find a new backstop via free agency or trade, and there are two very obvious free agent options in the form of J.T. Realmuto and James McCann.

While McCann is a step down from Realmuto, he will likely cost a lot less in terms of both years and dollars. And he has been trending up the last two seasons.

Per Martino, the Mets are in pursuit of McCann and have him higher on their list than Realmuto.

In a world where the Mets land Springer or another big ticket player, adding the less expensive but still very valuable McCann would make a ton of sense.

1. Sign George Springer

Springer isn't the Mets' only center field option. They could always opt to spend big elsewhere and instead target a defense-first option like Jackie Bradley Jr. to play center. But there really isn't a better fit for the Mets on the free agent market than Springer.

And the Mets have him high on their list, per Martino.

Even without taking positional fit into account (the Mets absolutely need a new center fielder), it can be argued that the 31-year-old Springer is the safest bet of the three biggest free agents (Springer, J.T. Realmuto, and Trevor Bauer).

If the Mets can secure Springer for a deal that doesn't exceed five years, they should make this happen sooner rather than later while fending off other interested teams such as the Toronto Blue Jays.