"Here's the thing about relievers. Well, two things. First, most are fungible. They end up in the bullpen because they are (usually) unable to survive as a starter, either due to health troubles, arsenal issues or sequencing struggles. You get the point, though.

The second thing: Relievers usually get overpaid on the open market. Lots of baseball players get overpaid in free agency, but relievers often make bank when they aren't worth said bank.

Which left Mets general manager Sandy Alderson in a bind this offseason. Last winter, Alderson attempted to fashion a bullpen without spending much cash. A one-year deal for lefty specialist Tim Byrdak worked well. A two-year deal for D.J. Carrasco proved disastrous.

During the season, the bullpen was an obvious detriment. Bobby Parnell struggled to replace Francisco Rodriguez as closer. Jason Isringhausen provided a nice enough story, but mediocre pitching. The potential impact relievers on the farm – like Jenrry Mejia or Jeurys Familia – weren't available for use in 2012.

So Alderson had to spend this time around. He did that much, spending $9.5 million total on Frank Francisco (who figures to close, and who has a two-year deal) and Jon Rauch. Ramon Ramirez arrived in the Pagan-for-Torres deal with the San Francisco Giants. "