Carlos Delgado, 2006. Carlos Beltran, 2005. Pedro Martinez, 2004. Johnny Damon, 2006. Randy Johnson, 2005. Alex Rodriguez, 2004. It seems like every offseason, both the Mets and Yankees acquire a superstar via trade or free agency. This season, for the first time in a while, neither team made that big of a splash. Regardless, the Mets and Yankees still made some major changes for what should be another promising year for both clubs.

Mets:

Here:

Moises Alou, Chan Ho Park, Ambiorix Burgos, Damion Easley, Scott Schoeneweis, Jorge Sosa

Gone:

Cliff Floyd, Steve Trachsel, Chad Bradford, Roberto Hernandez, Darren Oliver, Chris Woodward

All the Mets needed this offseason was a top-of-the-line starter, but Omar Minaya found 126 million reasons to pass on Barry Zito when the Giants gave him one of the richest deals in MLB history. Minaya couldn’t find anyone else to fill that void. With White Sox starters Freddy Garcia and Brandon McCarthy traded and a plethora of starters available, Minaya decided to hold on to Fred Wilpon’s money and see what prospects Mike Pelfrey and Philip Humber can bring to the table in spring training. With Pedro Martinez out until midseason, the Mets are willing to try anyone, from just-signed Chan Ho Park to journeyman Aaron Sele, to fill the starting rotation.

The Mets’ starting lineup saw one change, with Moises Alou taking the place of Cliff Floyd. Despite his age, the right-handed Alou should help with balance in a lineup featuring lefties Carlos Delgado and Shawn Green. The Mets are counting heavily on Rick Peterson to work with a revamped bullpen featuring flamethrower Burgos and soft-tossing lefty Schoeneweis. With the uncertainty of the starting rotation, the bullpen will play a huge factor this year for the Mets.

Yankees:

Here:

Andy Petitte, Kei Igawa, Doug Mientkiewicz, Luis Vizcaino

Gone:

Randy Johnson, Gary Sheffield, Bernie Williams, Jaret Wright, Octavio Dotel, Craig Wilson

With a farm system that is currently touted as one of the best in baseball thanks to trades of Gary Sheffield and Randy Johnson, the Yankees finally have enough talent to make a significant midseason trade, and could end up using some of their prospects at the major league level during the year. Starter Philip Hughes could make the rotation out of spring training, and may even convince the Yankees they won’t need to spend $20 million for a half season of Roger Clemens’ services.

Not likely though. These are still the Yankees we’re talking about, and while Hughes may succeed on the big league level, it’s still likely Clemens will be a target. With Johnson (who is not a favorite of Clemens’) off the team, and the number 22 now available (thanks to Robinson Cano making headlines this offseason by switching to number 24), Clemens looks primed to join the Yankees, even if it is as a midseason pickup.

Check out Pipe Dream Friday for an in-depth look at each team as they begin spring training.