Second tier starters...

For those who expected the Mets to be in on the big name starters such as C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Derek Lowe, once I saw the asking prices I never expected them to be involved. I even see Ben Sheets as much as a injury risk as he is will get a multi-year deal.

The Mets got their ace last year in Johan Santana and a solid #2 in Mike Pelfrey. If John Maine can recover then he's a solid middle of the rotation starter, if not pushing Pelfrey for that #2 spot.

So the Mets really only need a #4 starter, their first choice is Oliver Perez who is much better then a #4 when he's on. Omar said he had a 50/50 chance of re-signing the enigmatic lefty. I'm not as optimistic, I think Ollie and Boras will price himself out of our market...

If the Mets can't sign Ollie then they be looking at the likes of Randy Wolf and Jon Garland. The Mets could go into the season with Jon Niese which I believe would be a mistake. All teams need six starters and if the Mets found a fifth starter which would allow Niese developmental time in AAA and be a back-up plan in case of injury or ineffectiveness.

I would feel pretty confident with a rotation of:

Santana / Pelfrey / Maine / Garland ( Wolf)

Then a risky fifth;

Colon/Jennings/Garcia (if healthy) Pedro/Fogg / Penny

Free agents Jon Garland and Randy Wolf, or possibly even Pedro Martinez, seem well suited for that role. Minaya also has not dismissed the possibility of left-hander Oliver Perez returning to the Mets. He and Mets manager Jerry Manuel both raved at length earlier this week about the strides Perez made with the Mets over the past two and a half seasons, and Perez would almost certainly be a cheaper alternative to either Burnett or Lowe. source MLB.com