Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

After Sandy Alderson stepped aside as Mets GM in June, we heard that the team expected to begin interviewing potential replacements in September. Well, it's September, and people connected with the process say interviews are still possible by the end of the month.

The Mets are still in brainstorming mode, and have not yet determined their top candidates. Many of the names who have appeared in media reports are speculative or self-promotional. Still, the team thinks it's still realistic to expect a hire by the end of October, which matches original expectations.

"There's still a lot of time," one source said.

One other bit of new information: Unlike in past hiring cycles, the Mets are now open to various titles and front office structures. In the past, the team has preferred to stick with the traditional general manager/assistant setup, rather than the approach employed by teams such as the Cubs, who employ Theo Epstein as president of baseball ops and Jed Hoyer as GM.

This time, the Mets know that they might need to offer a title bump in order to get permission to interview candidates who are already GMs. Teams often only grant permission to speak to other clubs about promotions, rather than lateral moves.

I'm told that this strategy isn't designed with a particular top candidate in mind. The Mets aren't there yet, but expect to develop more clarity over the next few weeks.

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