Jay Payton sure isn't Gary Sheffield but by next season Payton and Alex Escobar may be more valueable than Sheffield would be.

Gary Sheffield is an enigma. Would he be able to co-exsist with belligerent manager, Bobby Valentine? Would he be able to stay out of trouble in a clubhouse full of quiet veteran ball players? Those are questions that could only be answered with time, if Sheffield is, infact, dealt to the Mets. Recently Gary Sheffield has threatened to disrupt Dodger camp if he is not traded by this Tuesday. Everywhere Sheffield has ever played he has been a distrubance, what would make anyone think that Sheffield would change if he puts a Mets uniform on? One of the Mets stengths as a team last season was their strong team chemistry. Adding a big ego like Sheffield could very easily cause some shockwaves to run through the Mets clubhouse. Everyone saw how many problems Bobby Bonilla and Rickey Henderson caused as Mets, Sheffield would do the same.

The answer that many people have presented to the problem with Sheffield possibly ruining the team chemistry is that Sheffield would be putting up MVP caliber numbers, which is true. Don't get me wrong. If the Mets do acquire Sheffield I'll be happy. I drool over the thought of having Alfonzo, Sheffield and Piazza batting back-to-back-to-back.

But I also drool over the thought of having an homegrown outfield of Jay Payton, Benny Agbyani, Alex Escobar and Brian Cole by next season. Something a lot of fans do not realize is the fact that no one in the Mets starting rotation came from the Mets farm system. This bothers me a little bit and I'm not alone. We are supposed to be watching Paul Wilson, Jason Isrinhausen and Bill Pulsipher winning twenty games and leading the Mets to World Series victories with Alex Ochoa sparking the offense. But prospects don't always pan out. Jay Payton looks like he is going to fulfill his potential and Escobar will be even better than Payton. In order to acquire Sheffield the Mets will have to part with both Payton and Escobar as well as adding ten million dollars to their payroll.

The media has given all Mets fans the idea that the Mets are built to "win now" but if the Mets hang onto Escobar and Payton they will be built to win in the future as well. Both youngsters would not harm the clubhouse chemistry and both would not even be eligible for free agency for a few more years meaning that the Mets would nto have to worry about giving either player multimillion dollar contracts like they would with Sheffield.

I don't want to sound like I would protest a Sheffield trade because I wouldn't. If the Mets indeed trade for Sheffield I will support the deal and hope Sheffield can put up the MVP caliber numbers he posted during his stay in Los Angeles. It would be very hard to complain if Phillips goes out and gets one of the best hitters in baseball right now. No matter how you put it trading for one of the best hitters in baseball is always a good move.

But what I am trying to say is that if the Mets do not acquire Sheffield they may be just as well off.