The New York Mets are once again in the National League Playoff race. They are right about in the same position as they were this time a season ago, a season in which they made it all the way to the World Series. Last year, at the trade deadline, they added offense in Yoenis Cespedes, Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe. This season, they need to do the same.
Some will argue, “no, the Mets need to add pitching” because of the season ending injury to Matt Harvey and the uncertainty of bone spurs in the elbows of Steven Matz and Noah Syndergaard. While Logan Verrett getting a start every fifth day does not instill confidence, the Mets still need bats.
Many who are saying “get a pitcher” will argue that the Mets have bats coming back with Michael Conforto rejoining the team and Lucas Duda coming off the disabled list soon. While this is true, the same might be said for the Mets pitching staff if they can get Zack Wheeler back before it’s too late as well.
The thing is, you can’t always trust that players coming back from injury can be difference makers. Conforto is adjusting again, and Duda just resumed baseball activities after not swinging a bat for months. Don’t forget Duda has always been a very streaky guy when he’s healthy and may have a tough time getting it going when he returns.
The truth is the Mets have enough pitching to compete. Even Verrett can get you some wins if the offense scores him some runs. In his last start at Philadelphia, he pitched fairly well, getting into the fifth allowing only two runs. That would give a lot of teams the win – especially teams who can average four or more runs per game.
The Mets though are not one of those teams. They stink on offense. Despite having more homers than any team but one in the National League, they are 28th in baseball in runs scored. They have hit 81 solo home runs already in about 90 games. Just think where they’d be if they could get some people on. But they haven’t shown a capacity for doing that consistently. They also rank 29th in in team batting average.
Jose Reyes was recently brought in to help with this, and so far he’s done a decent job. But the Mets need to add another bat that can drive in a run with men on base. Against the Cubs on Monday Night, they had several chances early in the game but Asdrubal Cabrera hit into a double play to kill a rally, followed by another inning where a clutch hit could not be found.
Before you knew it, they were down 3-0 after Anthony Rizzo hit a three-run bomb, essentially ending the game in the fourth inning. Trying to overcome a three run deficit often seems insurmountable for the Mets. They wound up losing 5-1, as usual, their lone run was a solo shot off the bat of Wilmer Flores. On Tuesday, they beat the Cubs 2-1, getting a solid effort from Noah Syndergaard and the bullpen.
Steven Matz hasn’t won in his last nine starts, but like Verrett and Bartolo Colon, with some run support he would be winning more games. The Mets need a difference maker on offense. They should be looking to add an Evan Longoria, Paul Goldschmidt, or Carlos Gonzalez – if in fact either of them are truly available. Get a bat like this to add to Cespedes, Granderson and Neil Walker, and not only is the offense back in business, but with our rotation and bullpen the path to the postseason is virtually assured.
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By the way, here is a part of an interview the New York Post conducted with Steve Phillips, who was asked about the Mets and the Trade Deadline.
Q: Where should the Mets be looking for help at the deadline?
A: Third base seems to be a position where they can do something, but that’s going to take a major admission from the organization that David Wright is effectively done being an everyday player. They need to stop looking at the Capitals schedule and go out and get Evan Longoria. I don’t think it’s a move they make, but it’s the type of move that I think they need to consider because it would bring in that big bat, give them a presence in the lineup, a more solid defender at third base and fit the need of the team that helps long-term and short-term.
Q: Do the Mets have to make a move?
A: Absolutely. I have some real concerns about the offense, and the bullpen is going to get challenged more down the stretch because of the need to protect the rotation. That’s where the challenge is for the Mets because they need to improve their team with a multi-pronged approach.
