Four Storylines To Follow This Mets Home Stand

The Mets returned home on Monday, putting behind a successful, yet eventful west coast road trip. The team finished with a 7-3 record against the Athletics, Dodgers, and Giants, and could have potentially gone 8-2 if they capitalized on their offensive opportunities on Sunday night. Max Scherzer was in the spotlight for the later part of the trip, and was ejected on April 19 against the Dodgers before the start of the fourth inning for what Phil Cuzzi claimed was “the stickiest it has been since I’ve been inspecting hands, which goes back three seasons.”

After a crazy 10-game stretch in California, the Mets begin their seven-game stretch at home against the Nationals on Tuesday night, with the Braves following on April 28. Before the Mets begin their second home stand of 2023, here are some storylines to look out for.

First Look At Atlanta

After the Mets face the Washington Nationals, who have been predictably bad this season so far, the Atlanta Braves come to Queens for a four-game set. The division has played out as most predicted in the early goings of 2023, and the Braves are currently one game up on the Mets for first place in the National League East.

Atlanta looks better than last year, and superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. is having quite the bounce-back season. The 2018 rookie of the year is slashing .358/.440/.537/.977 in 23 games, with a 163 OPS+ and 1.4 bWAR. Acuna has also recorded 34 hits and 12 stolen bases — which both lead Major League Baseball.

Overall, the Braves are the same offensive powerhouse from last year. They are second in the National League in home runs (35) and total bases (353), and have recorded the third most runs (117) as well. To make matters worse for the Mets, Atlanta is projected to have Max Fried, Spencer Strider, Charlie Morton, and Kyle Wright pitch in this series.

Sticky Situation

As mentioned above, Scherzer was ejected from his start against the Dodgers on April 19 for using a foreign substance, and was given a 10-game suspension. The future hall of famer stated he was going to appeal the suspension, claiming that he was only using sweat and rosin, but shockingly accepted it after learning that MLB would appoint an arbitrator to hear the case.

The Mets ended up winning the game against the Dodgers 5-3, but went the rest of the road trip without their ace. New York survived, but their depth starters have been exposed in 2023. David Peterson has a horrific 7.36 ERA, Tylor Megill gave up four earned runs in four innings against the Giants on Sunday, and Joey Lucchesi started in a game before the May — albeit giving the Mets the best start on their trip.

Luckily for the Mets, Scherzer is eligible to pitch against the Braves on May 1. Every game against Atlanta is urgent due to the new schedule only accounting for 52 games for divisional play (13 against the Braves), and the Mets need Scherzer to step up and dominate. The right-hander has been average this season, holding a 3.72 ERA and 112 ERA+ in 19 1/3 innings. Justin Verlander is coming to help out the rotation soon, but is projected to miss this entire home stand and make his Mets debut against the Tigers in Detroit.

Francisco Álvarez’s Development

Francisco Álvarez took steps in the right direction in his final three games in San Francisco. While he failed to bring in a run twice with the bases loaded, the former top prospect clubbed his first home run of the year on Sunday in a pivotal spot.

There have been growing pains with the MLB’s former number-one prospect, but the Mets need to be patient. Álvarez had a .273/.384/.529/.913 slash line in the minors, and those numbers will translate to MLB as long as Buck Showalter starts him. The Mets begin their home stand against the Nationals, which could be a great opportunity for Álvarez to straighten out at the plate.

The Mets desperately need production from their catcher position moving forward, and starting Tomás Nido isn’t the solution. The 29-year-old hasn’t recorded an extra-base hit in 41 at-bats, and also holds a -20 OPS+ and -0.4 bWAR. Defense isn’t an excuse either, as Álvarez is in the 75th percentile for framing, proving he is more than capable behind the plate.

Pending Moves

Tim Locastro hit the injured list on April 17, and a roster move will have to be made on April 27 when he returns. This leaves the Mets with a plethora of options, none of which are easy. Brett Baty and Luis Guillorme are the prime candidates being moved since both have minor-league options and are left-handed infielders. Sending Baty down is an easier sell since Guillorme is the only backup shortstop on the roster, but he dominated in Syracuse and has the potential to be a power threat in the Mets lineup—a bat that the team lacks.

The Mets could designate Eduardo Escobar or Tommy Pham for assignment, but that would be unlikely. The two of them are on guaranteed contracts, and cutting them would amount to a lot of dead money. Steve Cohen proved last season that money wasn’t an issue when he cut Robinson Canó, but Escobar and Pham are both currently the only right-handed DH options on the team.

Another possible outcome would be to reinstate Locastro and then DFA him, which is the most sensible outcome. Locastro’s only value to the team is speed, which is an asset that isn’t worth retaining if it results in Baty or Guillorme losing their roster spot.

All of this could be pushed off until the team has their 26th roster spot back with Locastro needing an elongated rehab, too.

To assuage the volatility of their starting pitching this home stand, the team recalled José Butto on Tuesday to start. He may also start Sunday. The team still needs to find a way to keeps its bullpen fresh while down a roster spot (Scherzer’s suspension) and down multiple starters.