Reese Kaplan -- Which Mets Are "Must See TV"?

When the televised games begin from Spring Training, who is it that you’re most anxious to see?  Let’s put aside the known quantities in a Mets uniform like reigning Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom.  There are others whose first appearance in the orange and blue have to have you chomping at the bit to see in action.

Edwin Diaz

Number one on my list has to be the young, former Mariner who manhandled the American league over the past couple of years.  As good as Jeurys Familia was as a closer, you’re looking at a quantum leap ahead in terms of domination.

J.D. Davis

BVW gave up a lot of capital to land the man and it appears he’s fighting uphill even to have a position on the 25-man squad (particularly since he has options left).  Granted it was the PCL, but a league-leading .342 AVG with 17 HRs AND the ability to pitch makes him someone I most definitely look forward to seeing.

Peter Alonso

The man with the gaudy power numbers from last year is going to be heavily scrutinized as much for his glove as for his bat.  No one expects him to be in New York until probably May 1^st, but it’s the first long look most folks will have and they will want to see if the power and RBI production are for real.

Keon Broxton

Speaking of human capital, the flashy Broxton can out-highlight-reel Juan Lagares but strikes out at a prodigious rate (which is a common malady for power hitters).  He is also potentially the fastest guy on the squad, so I’d like to see how his speed compares to, say, Amed Rosario, on the basepaths.

Jeff McNeil

Not only do we want to see one of the few feel-good stories from 2018 repeat and grow, but most of us want to see if he can look more like an average outfielder rather than the failed experiments of the past like Dominic Smith, Todd Hundley, Lucas Duda and Juan Samuel. 

T. J. Rivera

A lot of people forgot all about him having missed almost 18 months with TJS recovery and setbacks, but all the guy does is hit at every level.  He’s a .304 career hitter in the majors after tallying .323 in the minors.  If he’s healthy, he’s going to make it a lot more difficult for some others vying for roster spots. 

Travis d’Arnaud

Before the acquisition of Devin Mesoraco last week it seemed that TdA was the default backup catcher to newcomer Wilson Ramos.  After all, they peddled Kevin Plawecki to Cleveland.  However, no one knows if the surgically repaired arm which was never that good to begin with is actually ready for major league basestealers. 

Juan Lagares

Everyone holds their collective breath whenever Lagares flies with reckless abandon tracking a hard drive as he prepares to dive or collide with the wall and then we must see the aftermath of his selfless and reckless style of play.  He was off to a surprisingly good start with the bat in 2018 before hitting the shelf.  Can he repeat that enough to push himself into the lineup against lefties?

Kyle Dowdy

I read a piece recently in which Mickey Callaway was singing the praises of Dowdy and offering up eerily similar “fix him in 10 minutes” proclamation infamously made by former Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson about Victor Zambrano.  We all saw how well that worked out.  The man is coming off a season with a combined 9-12 with a 5.15 ERA across one AA and two AAA teams.  No wonder Cleveland left him unprotected!

Luis Avilan

Someone elsewhere suggested that Avilan could turn out to be the THE value pick of the entire hot stove season considering BVW locked him up on a minor league deal.  The thinking in Avilan’s camp at the time was that it was a fait accompli that he’d come north with the squad considering Jerry Blevins’ departure and the fact that Daniel Zamora had not yet logged significant time in AAA.  That, of course, was long before the acquisition of Justin Wilson.

Justin Wilson

He had a bit of a down period lately, so many are anxious to see whether or not he can rediscover what formerly gave him some success.  More importantly, can he find the plate without a GPS?

Then there are the veterans – Robinson Cano, Jed Lowrie and Wilson Ramos.  History suggests we know what we can expect here, but since they are new to the Mets there will be a little bit more attention than usual focused on them.   

Who is on your must-see list for Spring Training?