Sandy Alderson On WFAN With Joe & Evan

Mets GM Sandy Alderson was on WFAN with Joe & Evan this afternoon to talk about stuff. Hot dogs and beer, probably. The audio player is embedded below.

Some notes:

• The market for Francisco Rodriguez was basically restricted to teams which already had a closer (as most competitive teams do).
• Thinks the Mets are still in contention. They're not leading anything,
• He can't (read won't) say if Carlos Beltran will be traded by the 31 July trade deadline. He has been a treat to watch and would probably bring back some good players in return.
• It's conceivable that the Mets would consider bringing Beltran back for another year or two, though he's not sure if the payroll flexibility will be there.
• He has to broker the tension between long- and short-term interests. That's his job. Terry focuses more on short-term; player development focuses on long-term. Alderson needs to marry those two views.
• If the Mets trade Beltran it probably means that they're looking ahead to 2012.
• The number-one priority is the current season, but the number-one priority personnel-wise is resolving the Jose Reyes situation in "a favorable way."
• Most fans do like to see roster turnover, but there are a few players on each team — the core (or Coeur) if you will — who fans become attached to and are loyal to above all others. Reyes is one of those players, but it isn't about the signs or the chants at the ballpark; it's about recognizing how fans respond to those players that tells you who they care most about.
• If the Mets are within spitting distance of a playoff spot at the end of July (or August, for the waiver trade deadline), Alderson would definitely be in a position to add payroll in order to improve the team.
• Won't really handicap the Bobby Parnell-Pedro Beato competition for closer; defers to Collins and Dan Warthen. It'll depend a lot on their (Parnell's and Beato's) control and their psyche, though he's glad to have Jason Isringhausen around for his experience as a relief pitcher in general and a closer in particular.
• David Wright is scheduled to begin rehab games with St. Lucie on Friday and could return to the Mets somewhere around 22 July.
• Reyes's recovery is harder to peg and the Mets are going to be conservative in planning his return.
• Haven't really decided who they'll take back from the Brewers. They might decide on one player sooner and another one later. He seemed to tease a possible "sooner" addition as a player who has been with the Brewers this year, has big league experience, but is obviously in the minors now.