In anticipation of a new baseball season, all we’ve been hearing about is how the bad the Mets are going to be and how much financial trouble the team is in.
Well, though I’m usually the optimistic around here, I can’t help but admit that 2012 might be a long season.
But if Sandy Alderson has taught us anything in his tenure as general manager, it’s that baseball is a marathon, not a sprint.
The Mets struggled through 2011 dealing with a few major injuries. Now, without Jose Reyes and uncertainty surrounding Johan Santana, 2012 looks even bleaker.
Anyway, here are some 2012 Mets predictions—both positive and negative.
- Santana won’t make his season debut until May. He’ll win maybe 10-15 games with a low ERA but poor run support.
- One of Jon Niese, Mike Pelfrey or Dillon Gee will spend a chunk of time on the disabled list. Come on, it’s the Mets. There have to be injuries.
- If so, Jenrry Mejia will get the first call-up from the minors. Zach Wheeler and Matt Harvey are on their way, but we probably won’t see them this year, unless the team is so far out of contention—this may be.
- The new bullpen will be serviceable, but nothing special.
- Andres Torres will not be the starting center fielder by July due to injury or underperformance.
- Ike Davis will put up big numbers if he remains healthy. Possibly 25-30 homers. Expect Ike to take a role as a “face of the franchise” type player.
- David Wright will be traded by the trade deadline. Based on some rumors we’ve heard here, that date may even be much sooner. The Mets will look to acquire a can’t-miss catching prospect as well as other pieces.
- R.A. Dickey will not only successfully climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, but he’ll also be the Mets lone representative at the 2012 All-Star Game.
- Daniel Murphy’s defense will be better than expected. Not exactly Gold Glove caliber, but also not a huge liability. The guy’s a hard worker and will do what he can to be the best he can be.
- Jason Bay will get traded to a team willing to assume the final year of his contract. (OK fine, this is a wish, not a prediction).
- No Met pitcher will throw a no-hitter in 2012. Still, that would be great if it occurred during the 50th anniversary season.
- The fans will show up for 50th anniversary events, especially Banner Day, but other than those, Citi Field will be a relative ghost town.
- The Mets will finish in fourth place in the NL East with a 73-89 record. I’m not sure who will finish fifth, but I’m not going to predict that my team will finish last. It can very well happen, especially with the Nationals and Marlins improving significantly. Hopefully, the Braves will tank this year.
- Finally, the team will have some exciting moments. They always do, and that’s why we keep coming back for more. We’re Mets fans! We understand hardship, but it will be that much sweeter when all the pieces someday fall into place as we raise our third World Series trophy. I hope I’m around for that day, since I’m only 23 now. My final prediction is that I will be.
Feel free to add any more predictions; both positive and negative are welcome.
