In a morning kickoff piece for The Athletic, Jayson Stark previews spring training with a handful of stories and survey results from a group of 30 “esteemed baseball managers, coaches, scouts and executives.”
Among noteworthy discussions around the league, Stark reveals that 24 of these 30 heads pegged the New York Mets among their list of the three most improved teams in baseball, with the Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds checking in not too far behind at 22 and 20, respectively. The Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals also received 10 votes apiece, and while 25 other teams received votes as the least improved squads, the Mets do not occupy any such spot in Stark’s study.
Of the six most improved teams, four belong to the NL East, perhaps understandably given the overhaul of the roster made by new GM Brodie Van Wagene. One anonymous National League executive described the winner of this division as “the toughest… to pick.” The Mets’ acquisitions of Robinson Canó, Edwin Díaz, Wilson Ramos, Jed Lowrie, Jeurys Familia, Keon Broxton, and Justin Wilson all point to what should be a far more competitive season than their 77-85 record last year may advertise.
Manager Mickey Callaway received a couple of votes as one of the most under-pressure managers coming into 2019, alongside Dave Martinez of the Nationals and Gabe Kapler of the Phillies – the latter of whom (along with his front office) was handed 9 votes. Of Derek Jeter and his floundering Miami Marlins, one executive explained that they were “not sure what the plan is – other than hiring former Yankees.”
Outfielder and former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow received the most votes among potential non-roster invitees who would turn heads this spring. Tebow, 31, enters his third season in the Mets’ organization, most likely to begin the year in Triple-A Syracuse following a much-improved 2018 campaign with Double-A Binghamton, where he hit .273/.336/.399 with six homers and 36 RBI while committing just one error in 468 innings in left field.
Additionally, breakout utilityman Jeff McNeil received the third-most votes among the league’s “most fascinating position-switch experiments.” Having played just nine games in the outfield as a professional (none in the major leagues), McNeil is expected to appear primarily in left field as the Mets attempt to get him regular at-bats. Given his 2.6 oWAR and 137 wRC+ in just 54 games last year, preserving his bat should be a clear priority for the organization heading into the season.
