Alderson has run the Mets despite the Wilpons' awfulness for this long, so he's been rewarded with additional babysitting.
The Mets have been a mess under general manager Sandy Alderson, but not because of Sandy Alderson. He's been mostly silent about the Wilpons' poor management of the Mets, however, and has made the most of what little money he's been handed to work with over the years. Knowing that Alderson is capable of keeping his head down and staying quiet while the organization repairs itself in a post-Bernie Madoff world, the Wilpons are reportedly nearing a reward for him in the form of an extension, according to Ken Rosenthal.
The above might undersell what Alderson is capable of; despite his decades in the game he remains a sharp baseball mind who has helped reload the Mets' farm system through the draft and trades since coming aboard after the 2010 season. He's the right person to run the Mets both in the present -- when Madoff's Ponzi scheme and the millions lost to it remain open wounds for the Mets -- and in the future, when he can actually have some money to spend on the free agents and trades that could bring the other New York team back to relevance. As the extension is reportedly for three years according to Andy Martino, Alderson should be around on the distant day when that becomes a reality.
With the slew of young pitching on the roster -- and what should be a healthy Matt Harvey in 2015 -- the Mets might even compete sooner than later. Franchise player David Wright stuck around for what seemed like a below-market deal, and departing veterans Carlos Beltran and R.A. Dickey were turned into key prospects who will help the Mets the next time they matter. Given that's all due to Alderson's handling of a difficult situation, he deserves at least this much from his bungling superiors.
In addition to Alderson, Adam Rubin is reporting that the Mets plan no bringing Terry Collins back for 2015, and that space could open up on the coaching staff for minor-league manager Wally Backman with Tim Teufel moving off of the third base coaching job to become the new hitting coach. That is unlikely to quiet the talk radio cries for Backman to take over as the major-league manager.