Davidoff: List of changes to start off Alderson

SAN FRANCISCO — So Sandy Alderson will be formally introduced as the Mets’ general manager on Friday and there won’t be much of a honeymoon. On Sunday, the contracts of most of the team’s scouts and coaches will expire.

He’ll have quick decisions to make — to be sure, he’ll come in with some ideas — and then some far-reaching ones, down the line. What should we expect in the beginning of Alderson’s reign?

1. Some housecleaning. Though the Mets are now paying well for two general managers _ Omar Minaya will get seven figures for each of the next two seasons _ ownership has given Alderson the green light to bring in some other front-office people.

Assistant GM John Ricco will stay, and given that Alderson turns 63 next month, Ricco now stands as the heir apparent to the job. But there will be room for others. Wayne Krivsky, the respected special assistant to the GM, and Rudy Terrasas, the scouting director, each have a year left on their contract. It will be Alderson’s call whether to retain them.

One intriguing candidate to add to the mix is Paul DePodesta, whom Alderson helped groom in Oakland and then brought over to San Diego. DePodesta is believed to be making about $800,000 to serve as the Padres’ executive vice president, and he has spoken of his happiness there. DePodesta declined to comment Wednesday.

2. Open to anything. In meeting with GM candidates, the Mets indicated a willingness to eat money on the likes of Carlos Beltran, Luis Castillo, Oliver Perez and Francisco Rodriguez if it meant moving the organization forward.

Do they mean it? I think they do. Obviously, Castillo and Perez would be pure money dumps, while Beltran and K-Rod should bring back something of value in return. So expect Alderson and Ricco to engage other teams with a wide spectrum of trade proposals.

3. No Wally Backman. Read David Lennon’s story for more information, but the Wilpons will not be pushing Backman as their manager. Alderson wouldn’t have accepted the job with such a requirement.

Free Willie

The Mets fired manager Willie Randolph on June 17, 2008, and besides a two-month upswing following his departure, there hasn’t been much happiness in Flushing since that time. With the benefit of time, it sure seems that Randolph wasn’t the Mets’ primary problem.

Yet as we stand here now, Randolph appears even further from getting another chance to manage than he did when Omar Minaya let him go in the famed “Midnight Massacre.”

When the Brewers fired manager Ken Macha upon the conclusion of their 2010 season, they didn’t even bring in Randolph — their bench coach of the prior two seasons — for an interview. If Randolph can’t even get an audience with Milwaukee GM Doug Melvin, his former minor league teammate in the early 1970s, then he seems to be cooked as a candidate.

What next for Randolph? If he can’t find another coaching job, and he won’t return to Milwaukee, don’t be surprised if the Yankees bring him back in a community relations role. He’d be a great fit.

Spoken For

Carl Willis would’ve been an interesting candidate to replace Dave Eiland as the Yankees’ pitching coach. He worked as the Cleveland pitching coach from 2003 through 2009, so he knows both Yankees ace CC Sabathia and Texas ace Cliff Lee very well. You might have heard that the Yankees want to sign Lee this winter.

Yet Willis became the Mariners’ pitching coach this past August, and he’s nearing completion on a deal to stay with Seattle, which has hired former Indians manager Eric Wedge as its skipper.

Overseas Opener?

Major League Baseball has spoken with the Giants and Diamondbacks about opening the 2011 regular season in Taiwan.