CINCINNATI — Just win, baby.
After the Mets continued a recent surge on Wednesday — beating the Reds 1-0 at Great American Ball Park for a fifth victory in six games — general manager Sandy Alderson said he isn’t concerned about potentially losing a protected draft pick for next year.
The 10 worst major league teams, based on record at the conclusion of a season, receive a protected pick for the following year’s draft. The Mets entered Wednesday with the 10th worst record, but were tied with the Giants, Phillies and Blue Jays in the loss column. So the Mets will have at least some suspense remaining in the season as they begin their final series of 2013 on Thursday against the Brewers.
“I don’t view the draft-pick situation as relevant to what we’re doing here,” Alderson told The Post after watching the Mets follow their three-game sweep in Philadelphia with two wins in three games against the Reds. “We’re trying to win every game we play. We’re trying to build the credibility of the franchise and that goes beyond where we’re picking in the draft.”
If teams finish with the same record, draft position is awarded based on who had the worse record the previous year.
The protected pick would come into play if the Mets intend to sign a high-impact free agent this offseason. Players receiving qualifying offers from their club — formerly known as Type-A free agents — can’t be lost to another team without draft-choice compensation. If the acquiring team’s top pick is protected, it can’t be lost.
Last winter, the Mets — who owned the No. 11 overall selection in the draft — had interest in signing free-agent outfielder Michael Bourn, but not at the expense of their top draft pick.
The Mets actually had the 10th worst record in 2012, but were bumped to 11th in the draft, and unprotected, after the Pirates were awarded the No. 10 spot for their failure to sign first-round draft pick Mark Appel. It left the Mets fuming and preparing to take their case to an arbitrator, before Bourn opted to sign with the Indians for four years and $48 million, with a fifth-year option.
With the Mets expected to make a play for Shin-Soo Choo, the protected draft pick becomes relevant because the Reds outfielder is likely to receive a qualifying from his club. Last year, qualifying offers for a 2013 contract were $13.3 million, but that number will increase this offseason.
The Mets (73-85) need two victories in four games to surpass their total from last season. And with Wednesday’s victory, the team finished with a winning record (41-40) on the road this year.
“We want to win as many games as we can and see if we can finish strong and end up winning more games than we did last year or have a winning record on the road, which we have at this point,” Alderson said. “This win ensures that we end up with a winning record on the road, so those things are important as well.”