Ernest Dove - A Strength-Based (Wraparound) view of the 2013 Mets

So I’ve spent the past decade of my life working with children and families in need. Wraparound was initially developed in the 1980s as a means for maintaining youth with the most serious emotional and behavioral problems in their home and community. And so I’ve spent my work-life traveling from home to home, meeting with families, meeting with counselors, schools, and numerous other services, and I “communicate/coordinate/facilitate”, and work towards finding “what works”. Well, I’ve decided to put those skills to the test in assessing, evaluating, and monitoring my favorite team and their strengths, needs, and goals at this time.

Strengths

 Starting Pitching: It’s not often your team can be anchored
by two pitchers under the age of 25.
 Team leader: The Mets currently have only their 4th
captain in their history.
 Stable home: The team has a new stadium

Needs

 Corner Outfielder: A Player who can hit for power, and play
average-above average defense.
 shortstop: A player with above average defense, and a
+.250 BA.
 Cleanup hitter: A player who can CONSISTENTLY hit for
power, and have a + .250 BA

Ok, Let’s stop there………….I know what you’re thinking…….the Mets have more needs……….Well, in this model of thinking, you have to start off small, in order to best create some ‘measurable’ goals that the team can meet and accomplish.

Solutions/intervention/goals:

• Sign a Free Agent (link to outside resource): The Mets, in their ‘long term vision’, can see that they will have at least an extra $50 mil to spend in their budget for next year. They can utilize some of that money to sign a Big Name free agent to play in the outfield.
• Believe in Ruben Tejada (positive reinforcement): Have your leader (a strength) work with the coaches and management to build back the confidence of our (still young) developing shortstop.
• Decide on future of Ike/Duda (intervention): They can’t both stay. They can’t both continue to not be consistent. It’s time the ‘team’ sits down with their young power hitters, and determine which one is going to be their cleanup hitter for the next 5-7 years.

The 2013 Mets, like the Model of Wraparound, is a marathon (process), not a sprint. We can argue all we want about how we wanted Matt Harvey up sooner last year, and Wheeler up sooner this year. And, I’m sure us fans will all want the same speed in promotions for Montero and Syndergaard next year. The bottom line is that the Mets were not going to the Playoffs either way. So let’s take solace in the fact that we have strengths to work with in the first place. We will have a new budget to work with. We may have found our future Gold Glove Center fielder (if he can consistently keep his BA/OBP at a decent clip), and hopefully a healthy and rejuvenated David Wright is going to be on this team for another 7 years.
A small accomplishment is a big accomplishment. For example, (forget the score last night), Travis d’Arnoud hit his first major league homer. And he was able to do it because he was healthy enough to finally play.