What Will 2021 be for The Mets?

Author: Billy Taylor

Editor: Fran Attié

Pitchers and catchers have reported to Spring Training and the hopes of a new season grow for all thirty organizations in the MLB, particularly for the New York Mets (although many would disagree).

Yes, there have been many disappointments this offseason. The Mets didn’t get Springer and haven’t exactly upgraded at center field or third base, Trevor Bauer essentially trolled the entire fanbase, Ken Rosenthal jumped the gun on Brad Hand coming over (who instead ended up in a division rival), and, of course, the Jared Porter bombshell. So while there definitely are reasons to be upset with the first offseason under Steve Cohen’s ownership, there are also ample reasons to be very excited.

The Mets started their offseason by signing reliever Trevor May to a two-year deal. Trevor isn’t a guy who will blow you away, but he is much needed for a bullpen that has quite a few question marks. They then signed catcher James McCann to a four-year deal. And while he is no Piazza, he has a solid bat and is an A+ defender behind the plate. He should help out this pitching staff with his ability to throw out runners, which the Mets have struggled with for a while. And though the pitching staff still needs to do their job holding runners on, having a catcher with a rocket arm sure could help those woes.

The Mets then started the New Year with a blockbuster trade by acquiring shortstop Francisco Lindor from Cleveland. Lindor should be the best hitter on an already stout lineup, and he is also exceptional in the field. So not only did they acquire a superstar player, but they also got Carlos Carrasco, who will be a very nice anchor to have in the middle of the rotation.

Later, the Mets acquired left-handed starter, Joey Lucchesi, from the Padres in a three-team deal. Lucchesi has been shaky at times, but he has some really nice makeup, specifically with his “churve” pitch, which is a combination of a changeup and a curveball. And though he may be out of the rotation when Noah Syndergaard comes back from rehabbing his elbow, he is a nice placeholder for the time-being and great insurance in the event there is an injury in the rotation. Taijuan Walker also recently signed a two-year deal, which gives the Mets more depth, which is never a bad thing.

Speaking of which, while negotiating with top free agents, the Mets also added solid depth with signings like Jose Martinez, Jonathon Villar, Albert Almora, Kevin Pillar, Mike Montgomery, and Tommy Hunter. These aren’t amazing signings by any stretch of the imagination, but injuries happen across the course of a season, and having these low-risk-high-reward players to pair with the bigger moves they made this offseason is really nice. If we were still under previous ownership, these signings would be the “big moves” and we would have to hold our nose and hope for the best. Some people don’t seem to realize that, but I digress.

This Mets team still has some holes, particularly with pitching, and there are questions as to how big of a detriment J.D. Davis and Brandon Nimmo’s defense will be to the team as a whole.

Despite some of the issues, however, the 2021 New York Mets are a much-improved team from the previous year. Winning the National League East with the Braves ultimately having the same team will be tough, but it’s definitely not out of the realm of possibility. And while the Phillies and Nationals have their problems, I wouldn’t count them out completely. Still, the Mets lineup is in the conversation for best in the MLB, even if the bench still leaves something to be desired, especially being in the National League. But barring something catastrophic; Villar, Pillar/Almora, Martinez, Guillorme and Nido can fill in nicely.

Overall, I think the biggest concern for the Mets is their bullpen. Dellin Betances, Jeurys Familia, and Edwin Diaz pose a lot of questions, and Seth Lugo will miss the first two months, at minimum, to a bone spur, though considering he has a partially torn UCL, it could have been so much worse. When he comes back though, the bullpen will get a nice boost and there’s always the possibility of moves being made during the season.

There are also valuable free agents still available like Roberto Osuna, Jeremy Jeffress, and Shane Greene. Personally, I think it is a necessity to add another arm to the pen through free agency before opening day, but Andy Martino of SNY reported that the offseason for the Mets is essentially done.

With an entire schedule of Spring Training games to play, there’s potential for eye-opening play as well as bigger names going down to injury, so things may change quickly and drastically. For now, let’s hope for the former. LFGM!

METS ARE OUR UNIVERSE

What is next for the Mets After Trevor Bauer?

Author: Frank Caggino

Editor: Brian Symons

It looked like the New York Mets had signed Trevor Bauer and would be paying him 40 million in 2021. Obviously, the Mets did not get Bauer, and since then have made two signings. equating to almost 5 million dollars. Theoretically, the Mets have 35 million to spend but, but more realistically, they would like to stay under the luxury tax and have 30 million to spend. Since Bauer went to the reigning champion Dodgers, the Mets still have more work to do to catch up to them.

With the Mets trading Steven Matz earlier in the offseason, Joey Lucchesi is the number five pitcher in the Mets rotation. While Lucchesi has some nice pitches, it is not ideal to rely on him every five days. There is a drop off from Trevor Bauer and the rest of the starting pitchers in the free-agent market. The most recent starting pitcher that the Mets have reported interest in, is Jake Arrieta.

Arrieta’s ERA has gone up every year since 2015 and he is going to turn 35 in March. It would make more sense for the Mets to go for a younger pitcher with more upside, like Taijuan Walker. No reporter has connected the Mets and Walker, which makes this pairing unlikely. Whoever the Mets sign for the rotation, it will allow them to put Lucchesi in the minor league as extra depth. The Mets have been making several depth moves recently, and will probably make more. The area that really should be addressed by the Mets, is the bullpen.

The Mets missed out on Brad Hand and signed Aaron Loup instead. As of right now, the Mets are counting on Diaz to be the pitcher he was in 2020 and not 2019. They will also be relying on players such as Jeryus Familia, Delin Betances, Brad Brach, and Miguel Castro to make significant contributions. These pitchers are not trustworthy, and a reliever like Trevor Rosenthal stands out as someone who can help the team after having a great year in 2020. The last reliever the Mets have been linked to is Jeremy Jeffress, but that was weeks ago. Another position the Mets would like to upgrade is third base.

Justin Turner’s name has popped up this week as someone the Mets are interested in, but the two sides are apart on the contract details. Turner is 36 years old and is looking for a multi-year deal. The one position the Mets do not have a top 10 offensive player according to MLB Network, is third base. Turner would certainly provide an offensive upgrade, but for how long? There are good third basemen potentially available for trade, such as Eugenio Suarez and Kris Bryant which the Mets could consider, although the asking price looks to be very high.

The Mets’ main priority should be to sign Francisco Lindor to a long-term contract and do it before Spring Training. Lindor has said he does not want to discuss an extension during the season. Depending on how much the Mets spend the rest of the offseason, they could also extend Michael Conforto. Overall, the Mets have plenty of money to spend and there are multiple ways they can do it. This team is not ready to win a World Series but is vastly improved, contrary to what others may say. The last thing the Mets can do is to wait for the trade deadline to see how this team plays with all of the new acquisitions. The Mets may have a need at the deadline that did not look like a need during the offseason, because you never know what you are going to see during a New York Mets season.

SPORTS ARE OUR UNIVERSE

Battle of the Sluggers in the Big Apple

Author: Steven Chase

Editor: Mark Awadallah

Playing baseball in New York, the largest sports market in the world, warrants a great deal of criticism as well as comparisons to your cross-town counterparts. This is extremely relevant amongst the two first basemen in NYC, Pete Alonso and Luke Voit, where people ask, who is the best in New York? After the 2019 season, the answer to this was obvious: Pete Alonso. But after a huge power surge by Voit in 2020, notching 22 home runs in 56 games, and a somewhat down year for Alonso, the answer was not as clear.

Defensively, Alonso has the upper hand. Over his two-year career he has posted a 0 UZR and -7 DRS, while Voit has posted a measly -3.8 UZR and -23 DRS over the past three years. Evidently, neither are known for their defense, and since they both play first base this should not be taken too far into consideration. Voit has been in the league since 2017, but his first two years saw little action, therefore it is only a small sample size. Because of this, to compare the two we will use their stats from 2019-2020.

2019 was a historic year for Pete Alonso. After a stellar performance in Spring Training Brodie Van Wagenen, the Mets General Manager at the time, gave Alonso the call to come play first base for the Mets. Alonso blossomed in the new role. He posted a slash line of .260/.358/.583, a .941 OPS, 147 OPS+, 120 RBIs, and most notably 53 home runs. He also took home some hardware, winning the T-Mobile Home Run Derby and Rookie of the Year, as well as setting the Mets franchise and all-time rookie record for home runs in a single season. While Voit had a solid season, he was nowhere close to Alonso in the 2019 season. Voit posted a .263/.378/.464, a .842 OPS, a 123 OPS+, and 21 home runs. When evaluating the players, 2019 is the most important season to look at since it is the most recent full season. But we also cannot ignore 2020.

This was a down year for Alonso, posting a .231/.326/.490, .817 OPS, and a 123 OPS+. Even in a down year Alonso still posted very solid numbers, just not as good of numbers we hoped for. Voit on the other hand broke out in 2020, putting up .237/.338/.610, .948 OPS, and a 156 OPS+. If you combine the two years, one may presume that this is a very close call, which it is, but there are a few confounding variables that one must point out. Firstly, age is a key factor. Alonso is 26, meaning that these numbers he posted were from his developmental period and he has not yet entered his prime. As a result, it’s likely Alonso will only get better. Voit is turning 30 on February 16th, meaning that he has most likely peaked. Therefore, he will most likely not be getting any better. The second confounding variable is the 60-game season.

In Voit’s best season, he did not endure the stress on his body that most would throughout a full 162 game season. Alonso played 161 out of the 162 games in 2019, and still maintained very comparable numbers to what Voit did in 2020.

Finally, the sophomore season for MLB players is often the worst year. Alonso was a subject of this, as he did not achieve the success that he did the year before. This conveys that 2020 could have been somewhat of a fluke for Voit. This is not to say that Voit is not good, but that he cannot be compared to Alonso just because of an elite 60 game stretch. If Voit continues the success that he had in 2020 throughout 2021, then he could possibly be as good, if not better than Alonso. Unfortunately for Yankees fans however, this is not likely. All in all, Alonso is the best first basemen in New York right now, and it is likely that he will keep this up for years to come.

SPORTS ARE OUR UNIVERSE!