The 2018 season was one of the weirder seasons the Mets have seen in a while. Overall, it wasn’t a terrible year. Multiple young stars emerged, the starting pitching stayed healthy and was mostly effective, and a few relievers showed their worth and ability to be effective in the major leagues.
The season was sunk by a 10-17 May and a 5-21 June, but the kids came alive down the stretch and made for a fun August and September. Jeff McNeil seemed to wrap up the starting second base gig, Michael Conforto had one of the best second halves in Mets’ history, Zack Wheeler became an ace, and Drew Smith and Daniel Zamora emerged as potential legit arms in the bullpen.
A season that seemed doomed, turned into a strong second half and a 77-85 record. But even with a 33-22 record in their final 55 games, the Mets still have plenty of holes to fill and questions to be answered.
How Will The Front Office Take Shape?
Ever since Sandy Alderson resigned in late June, the question has been: who will replace him as the next General Manager?
Jeff Wilpon named a trio of J.P. Riccardi, John Ricco and Omar Minaya as one collective acting general manager, as little as that makes sense.
There have been a plethora of names floated around, from Ron Darling to the man Jeff Wilpon himself. But whoever the Mets bring in next will have a lot on their plate: a fan base desiring a winning culture and a pitching staff built for championships.
The Mets already have a few stars on their roster, and many other solid, proven major league players. The have very few bad contracts, and none that can cripple a team.
They have payroll flexibility, a solid coaching staff, and play in one of the weaker divisions in baseball. The Mets executive position could be one of the more desired ones in baseball, also factoring in a farm system that hosts four of MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects.
Whoever steps into the job will have pieces in place to work with, but will meet high expectations from ownership, the fans, and the players already here.
The Mets have been reluctant to spend top dollar in free agency in the past handful of years, which Jeff Wilpon has blamed on “the previous regime.”
The new General Manager must be ready to spend, compete, and give his all to winning the team’s first championship in over 30 years.
How Do You Fix One Of Baseball’s Worst Bullpens?
The Mets entered the 2017-18 offseason with a need at set up man and brought in Anthony Swarzak who was coming off a career year.
Swarzak joined Jeryus Familia, Jerry Blevins, AJ Ramos and Paul Sewald at the back of a solid Mets bullpen. Almost all of those players have had dreadful years for the Mets, and Familia was dealt at the trading deadline.
Blevins and Ramos are impending free agents, and neither is expected to be back. Sewald spent most of the season bouncing between Las Vegas and New York, and Swarzak was often injured, and mostly ineffective when he wasn’t.
The Mets were 39-41 when their pitchers turned in a quality start, and much of the blame can be posted on the bullpen that posted an ERA over 5.00 over the course of the season.
So the question remains: how do the Mets fix the bullpen that suffered the most losses in baseball?
They have a few young arms, Drew Smith and Daniel Zamora and perhaps Tyler Bashlor, to pair with the duo of Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo. But that isn’t enough.
There are a handful of Top-Tier relievers available this offseason, the likes of Craig Kimbrel, Zach Britton, Cody Allen, etc., and the Mets are in dyer need of at least one, if not more.
Is It Time To Extend Two Of The Starting Pitchers?
There’s no other way to put it: the Mets’ starting pitching was pretty good this season.
Jacob deGrom is a Cy Young front runner and Zack Wheeler pitched to a 1.68 ERA after the All-Star Game.
Steven Matz pitched to a sub-4 ERA and set a career high in innings and Noah Syndergaard won 13 games, had an ERA a shy over 3.00, and threw two complete games.
Even Jason Vargas showed some strength, pitching to a 3.81 ERA after the All-Star Game. Zack Wheeler is entering the final year of his contract, and there’s no time better than now to extend the ace.
He stayed healthy over the course of the year, and showed no signs of letting up as his season came to a close. He will be 29 next season, but age doesn’t seem to matter for Wheeler. This was his second season back from Tommy John surgery, and his first was a blunder.
Wheeler had multiple DL stints, and pitched to a 5.21 ERA, and was mostly ineffective. Wheeler was atop the Mets rotation for most of 2018 along side Jacob deGrom, who was the best pitcher in baseball this year.
The DeLand, Florida product went 10-9 with a 1.70 ERA, easily the best year of his career. But with Wheeler’s contract set to expire and deGrom’s a year after, is it time to extend both aces?
It would make sense to ensure the future of your starting staff and keep them around the duration of your playoff window, which is still open for the Mets with multiple budding stars in their mid-to-low-twenties.
How Much Can You Rely On Yoenis Cespedes Being In The Lineup?
When the Mets signed Yoenis Cespedes to a four year $110 Million deal after the 2016 season, it seemed like the right move. Half way through the contract, Cespedes has come no where close to matching his production prior to the deal.
Cespedes has had DL stints that have taken most of the season the past two years, and has been largely ineffective.
So the question remains: how much can you rely on Yoenis Cespedes? When healthy, hes one of the most dynamic players in the game and has a profound impact.
He has been largely unreliable and given the Mets no reason to expect him to be in the lineup next season. Coming off double-heal surgery, he is already out until May at the earliest.
If the Mets have any real plans on contention, it would be smart to build with the assumption that Yoenis Cespedes will not contribute to any success next season.
They are rumored to be in the market for a right-handed bat and a center fielder. Filling both these problems in one player would be ideal, but also take the spot of Yoenis Cespedes.
Their interest in these needs shows how much they trust Cespedes will contribute next season, being virtually none.
So until Yoenis Cespedes can prove that he can stay on the field and be an every-day major-leaguer again, there’s no reason to expect him to contribute and be part of the Mets’ plan for success next year.
How Do The Mets Resolve The Log Jam At First Base?
The Mets have really five candidates to play first base next year: Jay Bruce, Dominic Smith, Wilmer Flores, Peter Alonso, and upon his return, Yoenis Cespedes.
So with this group, you have the $110-Million-Man, a top prospect, a former top prospect, a Mets-folk hero, and a veteran locked on for two more years at $26 million and is coming off an injury plagued season.
It would make sense to have a competition in camp come February, but it can’t be between five guys. Cespedes will not be ready for camp, so that narrows it down to four.
Between Peter Alonso and Dominic Smith, one will likely have to be moved. Alonso has done about all there is to do in Triple-A, and is more than deserving of a call-up. Smith has succeeded in the second half, with exemplary defense and slashing .264/.293/.514.
With both being under 24 and coming off seasons with strong endings. There is an idea within reporters that the Mets may try and trade Alonso this off-season, mainly because of his defensive inability, which is thought to be a reason the Mets did not promote him in September; the fear of his defense being exposed and his trade value plummeting.
Wilmer Flores is a non-tender candidate, with him being expected to see a favorable pay increase if the Mets go through the motions of the arbitration process with him. Flores struggles at first base, running the bases, with arm strength, and with his knees.
Flores was reported to have arthritis in both of his knees, which is not encouraging for a 27 year old who is already limited with mobility. So non-tendering this Met legend isn’t a terrible idea.
Jay Bruce dealt with plantar fasciitis most of the 2018 season, which deeply hurt his production.
Even upon his return, Bruce still struggled, slashing .243/.344/.467 in 32 games with six home runs. Bruce is signed onto a 3 year $39-Million contract last winter, and seems to still be a part of the Mets plans for 2019.
They’ve tried him at first base over the last few seasons, but the results defensively have been sub par and have raised questions on the Mets’ commitment to winning if he truly is in their first base plans.
