It is Day 2 at the GM Meetings out in Scottsdale, Ariz., and Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen once again discussed multiple topics regarding his team heading into the offseason.
Here's what you need to know about what Van Wagenen touched on...
Amed Rosario won't make the outfield shift
There was talk in the middle of last season that the Mets might consider Rosario transitioning into a center fielder. They've done it before with Juan Lagares, and with Rosario's defense struggling to that point, it made sense.
But a resurgent second half in the field has seemed to kill that notion, at least in Van Wagenen's eyes.
"No. I think the way Rosario finished up defensively the second half of the year, I fully expect him to be our shortstop," he said.
Personal catchers aren't in the mix
The 2019 postseason taught us that having a personal catcher for pitchers may be something that is adopted throughout the league. Pitchers find comfortability in certain catchers than others, and after the Noah Syndergaard-Wilson Ramos situation last year, maybe it was something Van Wagenen might have changed his mind on.
Well, that's not the case. Van Wagenen wants to make sure the emphasis goes toward building good pitcher-catcher relationships, and if the roster stays the way it is, it will be with Ramos.
"I don't think we'll ever find ourselves in a situation where we're gonna assign personal catchers to any of our pitchers," he said. "Our goal is to continue to build a pitcher-catcher relationship so that the two parties are on the same page and are working well together."
On how he sees the market moving...
The free agent market was very slow last season, with many top players without a new team at the start of spring training. It will be interesting to see how it plays out this year, but Van Wagenen won't put a guess on it. It very much depends on multiple factors.
"There's a lot of ebb and flow to it," he explained. "I know we're having a lot of conversations here, not only with agents about potentially free agents, but also with teams. So sometimes it's hard to predict what the pace will be."
On how he'll use the new 26th man on the roster...
Starting this season, clubs are allowed an extra player to their active Major League roster, which creates a multitude of options for GMs. Van Wagenen has already been thinking about the possibilities...
"Well, I think there's a lot of different scenarios that could come into it," he said. "I think we talked yesterday about the value of having optionable players at those 25th and 26th men on the roster. I think, at times, a third catcher could be on the roster more so teams have used that in the past. I think that having the extra relief pitcher and not feeling the need to have to rotate guys out, even when they pitch well, but because they exerted too many pitches in that particular outing."
Top prospect Franklyn Kilome should be ready for spring training
After undergoing Tommy John surgery last years, Kilome -- who the Mets acquired in the Asdrubal Cabrera trade to the Phillies -- is progressing well down in Port St. Lucie.
"He's rehabbing. Throwing the ball extremely well and all eyes are to him being healthy in 2020," he said.
Won't commit to Dom Smith not being a trade chip
One of the biggest offseason questions is whether or not Smith will be used as a main trade piece in a Mets potential deal with another club. Smith's 2019 season, despite his injury, proved that he can be very impactful for teams across the league. And with Pete Alonso manning first base, he doesn't have an everyday role that another team may want to use him in.
However, Van Wagenen knows his value and would obviously love to keep him. But maybe the trade market will say otherwise.
"Always hard to predict. I mean, we like Dom a lot," he said. "He's a homegrown player, he's arrived and he's demonstrated the ability to perform in a variety of roles and in a variety of positions. So he's extremely valuable."