For lots of reasons, Mets and A-Rod make sense

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ORLANDO -- The Mets are rising from long-shot status in the Alex Rodriguez sweepstakes, and a lot of folks around baseball are saying they expect the team from Queens to make a significant run at the superstar free agent.

The buzz at the general manager meetings suggests that the Mets will probably be in the middle of the biggest free-agent derby ever, and while Mets people aren't committing to anything publicly, they are also far from denying it.

Mets general manager Omar Minaya admitted to gauging franchise player David Wright's feeling about moving from third base, an indication of how seriously the Mets are weighing this. (For the record, Minaya wouldn't say what Wright told him, and Wright has been instructed not to talk publicly about this -- though he said in the spring he'd move for A-Rod, possibly removing the one real drawback to a play for Rodriguez.)

Mets people say they will have a "walk-away number'' even for A-Rod and don't plan to enter a bidding war. But at least it appears they will have a number.

Officially, the Mets' baseball people haven't yet made a recommendation regarding Rodriguez to ownership. But all signs point to an affirmative answer coming from the baseball department.

"We've got to go for this guy," is the way one high-ranking Mets executive recently put it, according to a competing executive.

Minaya skirted the issue on Monday. "He's one of the free agents in the market," he said of Rodriguez. "We're looking at all the free agents to see how they fit with the club."

But here are a few reasons, hints, thoughts and suggestions as to why a marriage of the Mets and A-Rod may make perfect sense:

• The Mets have hit home run after home run from a financial standpoint and are one of four teams that now has a regional sports network, the others being the Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles. The Yankees have publicly said they are out now that A-Rod has opted out (though some people still expect them to get back into it). The Red Sox are interested but one person familiar with their thinking thinks they'd only pounce if the price drops (a long shot). And while the Orioles are the team of A-Rod's hero, Cal Ripken Jr., they are a perennial loser and border on irrelevant.

• The Mets are the team of A-Rod's youth; he grew up a great fan of Keith Hernandez, who also was represented by Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras. A-Rod had the Mets first on his list the last time he was a free agent in 2000, but they pulled out as then-GM Steve Phillips claimed that Rodriguez was a "24 and 1'' type player.

• The Mets have since forged a superb relationship with Boras, doing deals on players big (Carlos Beltran), pretty big (Oliver Perez) and medium (Scott Schoeneweis). Influential assistant GM Tony Bernazard, who was instrumental in the Beltran signing and is a former players union leader, appears especially close to Boras.

• The Mets could use some positive p.r. after their historic collapse; signing A-Rod would be the best way to distract everyone from their dreadful finish. If they go to camp with Rodriguez, the questions are all about him, not the disintegration of the team.

• The Mets already have done significant polling of fans to gauge their reaction to an A-Rod signing. They don't do that just for kicks.

• Everyone now is making a big deal about how Rodriguez said he wanted to stay with the Yankees, and how he wound up opting out. But if you go back and look at his quotes, they were mostly about wanting to be in New York, not staying with the Yankees. In April, he said, "I told you last year that I loved New York. ... It's the greatest place for me to play.'' In September he said, "I want to stay in New York, no matter what.''

• Rodriguez and wife, Cynthia, have been spotted house shopping both in Greenwich, Conn., and near Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

• One drawback seven years ago to A-Rod going to the Mets was Shea Stadium, but the Mets are now one year from exiting baseball's biggest dump of a ballpark. The new place, Citi Field, has to be more hitter-friendly, as well.

• While A-Rod would probably prefer to remain in the American League, he has to like the idea of staying a fairly manageable plane ride from his home in Miami. Among all the expected contenders, New York is closest to Miami, and one person close to him said that's something he will consider.

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