NEW YORK -- After grinding for months to get back into the playoffs, the New York Mets didnt last long.Nine scoreless innings, to be exact. Never pushed a runner past second base.A postseason matchup against Madison Bumgarner spelled their demise, just as it did for other talented teams in recent years. And with a 3-0 loss at home to San Francisco in the wild-card game Wednesday night, New Yorks drive to repeat as NL champion ended quietly.Noah Syndergaard fired zeros for seven pressure-packed innings, but the Mets mustered only four hits. Three of them, by Rene Rivera, T.J. Rivera and Ty Kelly, came from players who werent even on the 40-man roster when the season began.So it went this year for the banged-up Mets, beset by one significant injury after another as a string of unheralded backups filled in admirably. Even after getting eliminated, New York (87-75) felt good about reaching the playoffs in consecutive seasons for only the second time in franchise history (1999-2000).Theres only a few teams that could have come back under the circumstances we came back on, and Im really proud of them, manager Terry Collins said. We overcame a lot of things. So to get here, it took a lot of character. Boy, I tell you. And were disappointed -- but well be able to get healthy and well be back.Every established regular besides outfielder Curtis Granderson spent time on the disabled list, in addition to helpful part-timers Wilmer Flores and Juan Lagares.Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey and Steven Matz went down with season-ending injuries and required surgery, decimating one of baseballs best rotations. Zack Wheeler hasnt made it back from Tommy John surgery in March 2015.In their places, 43-year-old Bartolo Colon and surprising rookies Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman came to the rescue.This organization did a really good job of preparing the younger guys that were going to come in and impact, starting in spring training, so they could feel comfortable with the guys up here that opened, and we could feel comfortable with them, Granderson said.Better luck next year? Sure, you could put it that way.Better health next year, thats what the Mets are counting on as they chase their first World Series championship since 1986. Spring training will feel like the waiting room in a crowded doctors office, everyone at least a little nervous about each scheduled checkup.For now, though, attention turns to an important offseason with a familiar priority: Yoenis Cespedes.Here are some major issues coming up for the Mets:THE BIG BATCespedes has until the third day after the World Series to opt out of his $75 million, three-year contract after one season and become a free agent. The star slugger hit the open market last year but re-signed with New York, the deal structured so he could soon choose to shop his services again. With fewer power hitters available this winter and coming off another productive season (31 HRs, 86 RBI, .884 OPS), Cespedes would figure to attract larger offers this time -- certainly for more money than the $47.5 million remaining on his current contract.Cespedes seems comfortable in New York but has plenty of leverage because the Mets record with and without him the past two seasons shows how crucial he is to their lineup. So what will it take to keep Cespedes, and would the Mets pay a hefty price? General manager Sandy Alderson acquired outfielder Jay Bruce from Cincinnati on Aug. 1 partly as insurance for 2017, but New York needs Cespedes right-handed pop -- especially in an offense so reliant on home runs. The team set a club record with 218 this season.SECOND THOUGHTSSwitch-hitting second baseman Neil Walker (23 homers) had season-ending back surgery and can become a free agent. New York traded second-base prospect Dilson Herrera for Bruce, so its unclear who will start there next year. But the Mets think theyre pretty well covered with Flores and hometown rookie T.J. Rivera, plus a couple of middle-infield prospects on the way. Jose Reyes or Asdrubal Cabrera could probably shift over from the left side if needed.CATCH 22The Mets thought they had an emerging young catcher with pop in Travis dArnaud, albeit one who was injury-prone. But he was unproductive at the plate this season and shaky behind it, losing playing time to veteran Rene Rivera. What do the Mets do about dArnaud?WILL ARMS BE READY?Harvey is a huge question mark following surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome, while deGrom and Matz are supposed to be healthy next spring after elbow operations. The team hopes Wheeler can overcome his setbacks. So will the Mets re-sign the ageless Colon (15-8, 3.43 ERA, team-high 191 2/3 innings) as insurance again? Or will they view Lugo and Gsellman as sufficient (and cheaper) options. With right-handed reliever Fernando Salas and lefty specialist Jerry Blevins both potential free agents, New York might need to address a hole in the seventh inning, too.MY CAPTAINLongtime third baseman David Wright had season-ending surgery in June to repair a herniated disk in his neck, one year after he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis and missed most of 2015. Wright looked awfully thin during pregame introductions Wednesday. He says he plans to come back, but can the captain still play at age 34 next season? Reyes and Flores could provide coverage at third base. Tremon Smith Stitched Jersey . Inter president Erick Thohir says in a club statement on Wednesday that Vidic is "one of the worlds best defenders and his qualities, international pedigree, and charisma will be an asset. Womens Chiefs Jerseys . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. http://www.officialchiefsnflauthenticshop.com/ . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. Derrick Nnadi Stitched Jersey . After Martin Skrtel put the Reds in front from close range at Stamford Bridge after only four minutes, Hazard hit back in the 17th with a superb strike. Etoo gave Jose Mourinhos team a decisive lead from Oscars back pass in the 34th. Camo Chiefs Jerseys .J. -- Marshawn Lynch said Thursday it will be good to get back to football after the Seattle quiet talking running back wrapped up his final mandatory media session of Super Bowl week.Gary Christian looks back at last week’s Northern Trust Open, picks out his West Coast swing highlights and predicts a big few weeks ahead for Rory McIlroy. It has been a spectacular West Coast swing, certainly living up to the billing with some great comeback stories and impressive rounds on some outstanding courses.Riviera is one of the top five courses on the PGA Tour and is one where you really need to have played it a handful of times to really get a good handle on it. Its just a very, very good golf course and you cant really spray it all over the place. Bubba Watson moved back to world No 4 with victory Bubba Watson had one of those weeks at the Northern Trust Open where his driving was straight, so that 320-yard average is a very dangerous weapon when youre hitting it like that.Its a pretty long course for a normal length hitter with a lot of 460-yard holes and a lot of difficult shots indeed, so to be going in with a nine-iron when the rest of the field is going in with the six gives you a big advantage.With as much golf as he has played at the quality he has performed, Jordan Spieth was always going to have tournament where he was just off. From his driver to his putter, everything just wasnt right and around a course with the quality of Riviera, theres always the potential of shooting something unexpected. McIlroy finished nine strokes adrift of Bubba Watson at Riviera We can say the same for Rory McIlroy in the final round, particularly with the putting which is obviously quite a concern. If theres a weakness in his game then its the consistency in his putting and its a little frustrating for him to get in a position and not close out the deal.As one of the worlds top three players you would have expected him to, but I think a lot it was just down to rustiness. Hes now starting to get ready for Augusta and starting to have a more regular playing schedule, so Im sure well see him do a lot better the next time hes in that position and probably win the tournament.When you start back in a different continent on a different tour it takes a little while to get everything fine-tuned for that last round, so I think thats all part of Rorys poor finish and I think hes going to be just fine. Hes familiar with all of those courses hes playing (on the Florida Swing) and I expect to see something special from McIlroy. Gary Christian Special performanceI sure weve already seen the round of the year in Brandt Snedeker at the Farmers Insurance Open. I cant see anything approaching that. For him to score that low in those conditions on that course was incredible.It was basically an unplayable golf course. When the best players in the world were in action and the average score was almost 80, it just goes to show there was something a little bit special about that 69.On possibly the hardest course on the PGA Tour where the rough was a thick as it was and the green as quick as they were, just keeping it anywhere near 76 or 77 would have been an achievement. Brandt Snedeker was the only player to shoot under par during the final round We know how brutally hard it can be playing links courses in Britain with the wind coming up, so I think Greg Owen described conditions in California quite nicely before the final round as having the potential for carnage.Snedekers achievements were amazing, but it was impressive to watch KJ Choi and Jimmy Walker try to chase him down. It was good to see they still had difficult conditions on the Monday and at least had a chance down the last few holes.Fowlers frustrationYou can frame the Phoenix Open as a tournament Rickie Fowler threw away, but you can also frame it as one where he holed countless putts to stay in contention. It just happens that Hideki Matsuyama was equal to him and hit more good shots, as Rickie hit one poor one to miss out. Fowler is a four-time winner over the past 12 months Fowler was clearly crushed in the press conference afterwards, as hes now in that position in golf where if he gets into a play-offf then he expects to win.ddddddddddddHe expects to be a better player than the guy hes going to be playing against, but it wasnt a shock that Matsuyama was able to hold him off.Weve got to realise that Matsuyama is one of those players that has the total game, so we shouldnt be surprised to see him bouncing around the worlds top five or six in two or three years time.He may have kept hitting the shots he wanted to and almost always pulled them off, but Fowler will certainly be kicking himself for finding the lake at 17. Saying that, hell also look back at the quality of drives at the 18th and feel his game is going from strength to strength. Butch Harmon takes Tim Barter through the changes hes made to Rickie Fowlers game, which Harmon believes will make him a great. It seems like his focus, driving and long game all get better when the pressure is on. Rickie used to have the tendency to spray a little bit with his driver under pressure, but thats now gone. His driving is now an incredible weapon.Maybe his next thing to work on is how he can hold and extend a lead, much like he did in Abu Dhabi. We saw his ability to chase down leads last year and come from behind, but we need to see him control things from the start a few more times. Some people make it look easy like Spieth and McIlroy, but there are very few who can do that on a consistent basis.Blast from the pastFor me, the West Coast Swing highlight was Vaughn Taylors victory at Pebble Beach. The feel-good factor of the whole story was just tremendous. Vaughn Taylor secured his first victory since 2005 Taylor had such a solid career, playing in the Ryder Cup and being a multiple PGA Tour winner, but saw his career go off the rails and was barely getting in to Web.com Tour events. Thats the great thing though when youre a PGA Tour player; even if you havent made a cut for years youre still good enough for it to be your week.He pulled it all together brilliantly and more than anything handled the emotions and the chance to win a tournament. As someone who would certainly be considered a journeyman, the feeling of watching a player like him take on the big boys and prevail was very much a heart-warming story.Exciting times aheadMcIlroy now has a busy schedule, but hes full of energy and more importantly needs to get a win under his belt. Regaining the that he has the ability to close out a win is important to him, so obviously the more tournaments hes in the better the chance of him doing that. McIlroy is looking for his first win of 2016 At least there isnt a huge amount of travel with it all being based in Florida, so there are no worries about jet-lag and he can just turn up on the Tuesday night and play in the following days Pro-Am. Hes familiar with all of the courses he will be playing and I expect to see something special from McIlroy.I think people, especially in the second half of last year, were talking about Jason Day, while the first part of 2015 was all about Jordan Spieth. With McIlroys injury and him not winning as much as he would like, I think theres a little part of him that will want to prove theres a stubborn fella from Northern Ireland who is still quite good as well.When Rory gets the bit between his teeth and is a man on a mission, well see some very impressive stuff from him. We cant wait for the Florida swing now!Watch all four Florida Swing tournaments live on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf Also See: Honda Classic: Ways to watch Harrington ready for defence PGA National betting preview Golf live on Sky Sports 4 NFL Jerseys Outlet Cheap Jerseys Store NFL Jerseys China Wholesale NFL White Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Discount Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys ' ' '