The Mets did so much to improve this off-season. Is it terribly greedy to wish they had done just a little more?
We're just over two weeks away from the New York Mets' season opener in Washington on April 7. With only 3 exhibition games under their belts, the Mets really don't have much time to prepare for games that count. The offense hasn't looked very good in the early going, beyond a flurry of home runs in the first game.
I watched the Cardinals game on Sunday, and the Mets hitters just looked overmatched against the likes of Miles Mikolas, Drew VerHagen, and Nick Wittgren. I kept telling myself, "relax, it's early, and the pitchers are always ahead of the hitter," but it still made me uneasy to watch Mets hitters dominated by a bunch of palookas. I know that's a bit silly, but the offense was so bad last season that it felt like the worst sort of déjà-vu. Then the next day, the B-team manages two whole hits against the Marlins. Welcome to the Mets, Max Scherzer.
So yeah, I know I'm overreacting, but I have to admit that I'm not wholly sold on the 2022 Mets offense. I like the additions of Starling Marte, Mark Canha, and Eduardo Escobar, but the lineup still feels a bit short to me. It looks like the Mets are counting on good seasons from Jeff McNeil, Dominic Smith, J.D. Davis, and Robinson Cano — at least most of them. If it works, the Mets have a pretty deep, versatile lineup. If it doesn't, we could see a replay of last year.
Now I really don't see it going that badly, but I worry about the outfield depth for the reasons I stated in my post "A Very Early Look at Mets Position Players." I love Brandon Nimmo, but he's missed a ton of games due to injury in his MLB career. Going by their track records, Starling Marte and Mark Canha will likely play in about 120 games each this season. Dom Smith, J.D. Davis, and Jeff McNeil can all fill in, but only McNeil can offer decent defense. And really, they're all backups for left field. None of those guys is really a fit for the challenging right field at Citi Field.
There will inevitably be some injuries. I worry that we will see a guy like Travis Jankowski get too much playing time in the outfield. Jankowski is a great athlete. He can flash the leather and steal bases, but with a bat in his hand, he's a 90-pound weakling. His lifetime slash line is .239/.322/.318 over 7 MLB seasons, good for an OPS+ of 77. Weak-hitting Albert Almora has a higher lifetime OPS+ (81).
The Mets honestly don't need to re-sign Michael Conforto. Neither side seems interested in a reunion. But I still would like them to find a fourth outfielder who can hit and play RF. I could see a solid player get 200-300 ABs as a backup, maybe more.
What seems more likely as things currently stand is that Dom Smith and even J. D. Davis see some time in the outfield in 2022. Maybe you can justify that if they both produce offensively. If they don't, it doesn't make any sense. I'm rooting for both players. I like them personally. But if they don't produce above-average offense, they don't belong on a team trying to win in a tough division.
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9 comments:
Mike,
I share your concerns, and it's more than just those guys that need to have good seasons. The addition of Canha and Escobar helps to fortify some positions, but Canha is a lifetime .244 hitter, and Escobar is a lifetime .256 hitter. Neither has reached .280 in their best season, so don't expect an offensive juggernaut.
My greatest hope is that the addition of Eric Chavez as hitting coach. The 2021 version of the Mets looked very confused at the plate. He can fix this and get the hitters back into that quiet, confident mode that will help everyone have better at-bats. When the hits start coming, it is contagious. Hope that starts soon!
Beloved and departed slugger Mike Conforto is a .255 career hitter and expects north of $20 million per year. Just say no!
Canhais an OBP guy like Nimmo, so I'm not too worried about him. Escobar's value is from powe. It remainsto be seen how Citi Field suppresses that.
I didn't have my heart set on Conforto returning, but I really thought they would add one more good OF. If Dom Smith comes back offensively that could work out being able to give him some LF ABs
No doubt a fourth outfielder needs to be added to the mix to start the season.
I still can't believe we didn't sign Loup as his contract is chump change and we're 2 weeks from the start of the season and have no solid lefty for the pen...just crazy. When we played the Cards and they had like 25 GG's on the field it was embarrassing by comparison and they played like it but supposedly their pitching is weak but just another example of how far we need to go to really compete AND pray Jake and Max make it to the finish line. Hey is Jerry Blevins soft tossing yet?
You know, I actually wondered about Blevins last week :-)
Pretty sure Jesse Orosco has something left in the tank Or Billy Wagner or John Franco. Those lefty arms never get tired.
Seriously, Tony Watson seems to be the only guy left worth looking at.
Also our new CFer is hurt and I wonder what odds are on seeing him before the All-Star break?
Starling "Jed" Marte? We've seen this movie before...
Come on guys.. it's only a little oblique soreness with a clean MRI...what could possibly be so bad about that?
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