Here we are again its mid-March the snow is starting to melt in New York and the Mets are gearing up for another season, which recently took a more gloomy turn. However folks the show must go on and if there is one thing that can be said about every good Mets team in the past it is how resilient they have been, just like the fan base.
If there is one positive that can be taken away from the Zack Wheeler injury is that the Mets have enough depth to replace him thanks to Sandy Alderson and his staff. Unlike when Matt Harvey had to get Tommy John, the injury to Wheeler’s bum elbow does not seem to be such a back-breaker. The Mets were always going to have to find a way to get Noah Syndergaard and/or Steven Matz into the rotation sometime this summer, that task seemingly just got easier.
Now onward and upward to the rest of the players that will take the field for our beloved Mets, no more time for sulking in the corner over injuries.
For anyone who has been paying attention, and yes it is only Spring Training, the Mets offense has been lighting it up so far down in Port St. Lucie. The whole offseason all anyone could talk about when referring to the Mets was Harvey, their pitching and the farm system. Most reporters and fans failed to realize the fact that the Mets have built quite the offensive team. This team is very balanced offensively and the Mets will finally be capable of batting players where they should be (see Curtis Granderson last year).
With the addition to Michael Cuddyer, albeit hopefully a healthy one, the pressure David Wright and Lucas Duda have to drive in runs is reduced significantly. One more person who is in line to benefit greatly due to Cuddyers presence is Granderson. Last year he was pin-balled between batting leadoff, 2nd and as far down as 6th in the order. Now he is in line to bat 2nd, depending on if Terry Collins wants to make a good managerial decision. Granderson has achieved a .252 batting average and .350 on-base percentage during his career batting 2nd in the lineup.
Thus, leading to another person who will benefit greatly due to the Mets’ new batting order and that is Daniel Murphy. Most Mets fans can agree Murphy is and never will be a 2 hitter, where he has been hitting predominantly his entire career. Moving down in the order to 6th will give Murphy the ability to drive in runs and give the middle of the order even more protection.
Towards the end of the 2014 season Juan Lagares showed us he is much more then a world class outfielder who makes ridiculous plays night in and night out. Lagares was 7 out of 8 in stolen base attempts in September while posting a .364 on-base percentage. If those numbers are any indication of what he will do this upcoming season then we could see a potential star being born right in front of our eyes.
Rounding up the lineup batting 7th and 8th respectively will most likely be Travis d’Arnaud and Wilmer Flores, two players who have shown they are more then capable of handling their own at the plate. Of course everyone will focus on Flores range, or lack thereof, and d’Arnaud’s struggles to throw people out on the base paths. However, in the second half of 2014 Flores hit 5 home runs while batting .257 and driving in 22 runs in only 191 plate appearances due to Terry’s forever love affair with Ruben Tejada.
After an abysmal start to the 2014 season and getting sent back down to triple A d’Arnaud was a man on a mission in the 2nd half hitting 7 home runs, driving in 22 runs and batting .265 in just 211 plate appearances. Both of these guys are only going to improve and have seemingly been on the upswing. If they can continue to mature and grow as major leaguers they could be a deadly 1-2 punch at the bottom of the order.
This is the most balanced lineup the Mets have been able to field since the 2006 season, with 3 players who bat lefty expected to be regulars. The bullpen and pitching staff are still going to be solid even with the injuries to Wheeler and Josh Edgin because the young pitching talent the Mets have is plentiful. Defensively is where the Mets will most likely struggle throughout the year but hopefully the offense and pitching will be enough to overcome their mistakes.
So take a deep breathe Mets fans, the sky is not falling, this team is still good if they play up to their potential. When there are tough days this season, because there without a doubt will be more then a few, just remember that old saying “Ya Gotta Believe”.
