An MMO Fan Shot by Austin Smith
Obviously, after the Yoenis Cespedes signing, it’s clear the Mets are all in for not only this year, but for years to come. Before Yoenis chose to come back to New York, we were still an above average team led by our Super-Rotation, with some question marks floating in the lineup.
Now, with Cespedes plugged into that number three spot, Terry’s “First Choice Lineup” looks incredibly formidable anyway you slice it. We not only have arguably the best starting rotation in baseball, but now it has a legitimate powerhouse lineup to complement it. We haven’t had that since 2006, and our pitching back then wasn’t even near the caliber it is now.
And it doesn’t stop there. We also now have a pretty solid bullpen to protect those late-game leads, something we often struggled with last year as we tried to find an effective bridge to one of the best closers in the game – La Familia. So it’s incredibly difficult not to get excited for a season that manager Terry Collins described as “World Series or Bust”.
Our young starting pitching core is only locked up for another 2-3 years though, at most. So even though we have yet to start the 2016 season, I looked into what we have beyond this 2-3 year window of having Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz and Zack Wheeler all pitching in the same rotation, and what we have to look forward to once we move past that.
What I have found is just as exciting a potential roster as we have now. Top prospect after top prospect, and even some very high ceiling prospects that aren’t as highly touted as Steven Matz, Dom Smith, and Amed Rosario, but potentially just as promising.
These lesser known but high-upside prospects will ensure that the Mets will continue to maintain a championship caliber team for years to come. And even though it’s impossible to lock up all five of our young starting pitchers, you have to believe that the Mets will lock up at least 2-3 of them, and it’s not like we don’t still have more pitching on the way in our pipeline.
Come, say, 2020, our Opening Day Roster could be just as scary good as it is today. I would expect Harvey to be the one to go, if he isn’t traded first. But deGrom I see as the main piece we’ll look to keep, followed by Syndergaard, and I could even see Matz and Wheeler possibly taking club friendly deals being a hometown kid and a guy that clearly wants to contribute to winning in NY.
2020 Opening Day Roster
1B – Dominic Smith
2B – Dilson Herrera
3B – Wilmer Flores
SS – Amed Rosario
C – Travis d’Arnaud
LF – Michael Conforto
CF – Desmond Lindsay
RF – Wuilmer Becerra
SP – Jacob deGrom
SP – Noah Syndergaard
SP – Zack Wheeler
SP – Steven Matz
SP – Seth Lugo
RP – Jeurys Familia
RP – Erik Goeddel
RP – Hansel Robles
RP – Josh Edgin
RP – Dario Alvarez
RP – Akeel Morris
RP – Marcos Molina
Now obviously, not all of these guys could pan out, nor will it be easy to keep all of them in the organization for the next four years. Things happen that we can’t foresee. But what I really wanted to point out is that we have a great and exciting pipeline of talent that is still on the way.
I’m really looking forward to winning a title or two beginning this season over the next three years. But after that, after Granderson, Cespedes, Wright, etc. move on, we still have a scary good team for the next 10+ years.
As long as we can keep some of our core pitching, this team is setup for longterm success. Assuming ownership continues to reinvest in the team as they have shown this season, this franchise could be on the verge of the dynasty run we’ve always dreamed of.
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This Fan Shot was contributed by Austin Smith (@NotDwright). Have something you want to say about the Mets? Share your opinions with over 30,000 Met fans who read this site daily. Send your Fan Shot to [email protected]. Or ask us about becoming a regular contributor.
