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2/14/24

Reese Kaplan -- The Mets Outfield Quality Is Highly Questionable


For all of the whining and haranguing fans and media have given the Mets front office about their approach to starting pitching, relievers, DH, the Baby Mets and the bench, you don't really have to plunge too deeply o find a potential Achilles Heal when you start to examine the Mets outfield.

On paper right now it consists of Brandon Nimmo being shifted from center field to left field, Gold Glove (and lead bat) Harrison Bader moving to take over center field, and recovered but still needing to prove himself Starling Marte in right field.  Let's look a little more closely at this trio and the folks who back them up should the need arise.


Back in the day when a non-baseball performer in a high school was selected first by the Mets in their draft for future talent, many folks were taken quite a bit by surprise.  He didn't offer up a wealth of experience playing the game, but the indications provided by the scouts about a great batting eye, good speed, adequate defense and a little bit of pop seemed to add up to a reasonable choice if there was a bit more of a track record to study.  

Still, as he progressed through the Mets minor league system he seemed to be showing what those scouts initially saw was not a mirage.  Yes, his defense could use some work and his long ball hitting was a bit substandard.  That being said, the running speed and knowledge of the strike zone were very much for real.  Whether or not they were first round caliber talents was still the great unknown.

As he worked his way into the majors he showed he was an on-base machine and by laying off the out-of-the-strike-zone pitches he was enabling himself to feast only on the ones over the plate and hittable.  His batting average was steadily staying about .270 and with his on-base work he had converted himself into a true asset.  

What came as a something of a surprise last season was the never before seen 24 home run achievement and just as importantly, he managed to stay on the field for the full season which had always been an issue in the past.  He got a long term contract paying him over $20 million per season for the next seven years.  With less pressure on him to man the captaincy of the outfield defense in center field he's made himself into a true asset to the club though many would like to see him at least cross the 10 stolen base mark for the full season.


This well trod ground isn't going to reveal anything new.  He can steal bases.  He can take over the outfield defense, making it look easy.  His problem is his batting average and his ability to stay healthy.  Back in 2021 when Bader earned his Gold Glove he hit an all time plateau with 16 HRs and 50 RBIs while hitting for him a robust .267.  Given that he's a .241 career hitter, that's quite a jump.

Unfortunately for Bader, his inabilities and physical health let him demonstrate that the 2021 production was an exception and not the norm.  As a matter of stats since then, he's hit .241 in 611 ABs with 12 HRs and 70 RBIs while stealing 37 bases.  

The defense and speed are why he's earning over $10 million for 2024.  It is not power nor run production.  Remember, those 611 ABs constituted a total of two full seasons.  If the Mets intend somehow to platoon him and only have him face southpaws, then he's not going to get very many ABs again.  It also calls into question who takes over when he's not in the starting lineup?


Again, there's not a lot of new ground here as everyone is well aware of what kind of defensive player Marte can be when he's fully healthy.  By a report from none other than David Stearns it was revealed that he was fielding once again like Starling Marte.  Surprisingly in 2023 while battling injuries and migraines he only played in a tad over a half season's worth of games, but surprisingly his base running speed was actually better than it had been during his All Star season of 2022.

Going forward, no one could transform this team's offense more than a fully recovered Starling Marte.  He has home run power, blazing speed, can hit over .290 and provide star caliber defense.  Now expecting that all to happen at age 35 is placing a deep wager on someone who may or may not have a bit of either a health relapse or some age related decline.  Still, he is capable of being a solid asset to the Mets outfield.


Right off the bat everyone is fully aware of DJ Stewart and what he can deliver with the bat when on a hot streak.  Unfortunately he's never really worked his way into a full time starting role during his career.  His best ever effort was coincidentally also in 2021 when he gave the Orioles more than 300 ABs, delivering 12 HRs and 33 RBIs while hitting a scant .204.  That was his best effort.  

Last season with the Mets he had more than 100 fewer ABs but delivered a similar 11 HRs and drove in 26 while hitting for him a more solid .244.  Unfortunately he's not a center fielder on his best day, so his left handed bat is not really an answer to a platoon with Bader unless those days Nimmo shifts back alongside Starling Marte.

Tyrone Taylor is not very well known to Mets fans as he too was mostly a part time player during his career.  His most robust season happened in 2022 when he parlayed his strong defense and home run power into 373 ABs, ending the year with a paltry .233 average but accompanied it with 17 HRs and 51 RBIs which along with stellar defense suggests he would not be a bad substitute when called upon to be in the lineup.  Unfortunately for him he is a right handed hitter, so he's not a Bader platoon partner for that reason alone.

Jeff McNeil has shown the ability of playing corner outfield when asked to do so.  While he's no Roberto Clemente out there, he's certainly adequate to consider taking some reps in left field with Nimmo shifting to center if they want the equivalent of a platoon with Bader since he is a left handed hitter.    He doesn't provide a lot of power either, but can hit close to .300 in his sleep.  

Behind them in the minors you have some older veterans like Trayce Thompson and Ben Gamel available if needed.  Neither are going to set the scoreboard on fire, though Thompson has shown 20 HR power if he played full time if you can swallow a .212 batting average.  Gamel has less power falling below the 10 threshold for his annual output, but does so at a better batting average of .252 swinging from the left side.  Neither would be ideal solutions but perhaps their presence in Syracuse can help some of the younger players learn what it's like to be a veteran major leaguer.

  

15 comments:

  1. I think a little less offense but with stellar defense and above average speed will produce a reasonable amount of outfield WAR in 2024. And what is good about Taylor is that I believe he could put up better-than-Bader offensive numbers if he ended up with 500 at bats. Bat like Kevin Pillar when the Mets had Pillar, but better speed and D. I am more positive on the outfield than you. DJ Stewart is the bridge until Drew Gilbert arrives. If DJ falters, Ben Gamel can briefly fill in.

    Michael Conforto’s career WAR per 100 plate appearances is virtually identical to Tyrone Taylor, whose slugging % over the last 2 months of 2023 was .560, just as a point of reference. Tyrone will, in my view, be surprisingly decent.

    The Mets were 25th in Defensive Runs Saved last year. These new fine defense players (Taylor, Bader, Wendle) will make pitchers smile.

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  2. The upside of the outfield appears to be Marte, but if Nimmo hits his previous norms of .270 12 HR and gets hurt missing 45-50 games, then all bets are off there too. I wasn’t a fan of the eight year contract Nimmo got, but I hope he truly has transformed his offense and can be a good left fielder.

    Not knowing what to expect from Bader, and knowing Gilbert would need time to acclimate to MLB, makes me wish they had a better option in right field. Now, when Soto becomes available, if he a right fielder? Nimmo has a weak arm, so he isn’t. I wish they made Mauricio an outfielder years ago instead of being stubborn about his trade value. He always went back on pop ups so easily and had great range in doing so for a shortstop.

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  3. Gus, agree on Mauricio in the outfield. They probably left them in the infield as long as they did, because he would’ve been presumably the back up to Lindor. Now, with Acuna and Jett, he should’ve been out of the infield immediately. I wonder with Mauricio if he was so hell-bent on accumulating plate appearances to get better and better that he may have had leg discomfort and decided to try to play through it, and tore his MCL, but that’s just sheer speculation. I think it’s very important for teams to tell their young players to put up their hands when they’re hurting and not try to force an issue with their health.

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  4. I really had hoped for a quality sign this year for the outfield.

    Instead I got quantity.

    My one hope is when the outfield kids begin to arrive possibly in the late portion of this year's schedule

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  5. I believe in the old adage "Pitching and Defense win". How many teams can play 3 CFers every day?

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  6. Replies
    1. You can't have enough centerfielders

      Best outfield athletes

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  7. The best thing for the 2024 Mets is for their minor leagues to pop. It doesn’t matter if they make the playoffs or not. But if Acuna comes up in July and looks good for 2 months, the pitchers all repeat their 2023 successes, and Gilbert, Parada, Clifford, Ramirez, Houck, Reimer and Williams all step forward, this team will have buzz all winter long.

    And wouldn’t it be nice for Matt Allen to finally be healthy and along with Calvin Ziegler be in front of the pitching prospects, along with Sprout, where they belong?

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  8. “ Sproat throws four pitches including a four-seam fastball, change up, slider, and curveball. His fastball is a fireball in the mid-to-high 90's, getting as high as 101 mph.”

    Mack likes that 101, and so do I.

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  9. Love this site, most thoughtful Mets discussions on the web… I bet that Gilbert is platooning with Bader by AS game. Hopefully he comes up like Michael Harris!

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  10. Reese, good article.

    It's a shame that Mauricio went down injured. I think he would have played 2B with McNeil shifting back to left, Nimmo center, Marte right. So I was wondering here, if you think Vientos could handle play second base, with McNeil playing left field? Or is this not a consideration for this team.

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  11. Responding to Tom's "Wishful Thinking" today.

    I am just going to tell you my true concern here with this team. It's the 4 and 5 starters in the rotation. Tom mentioned some very key points with Severino. Here's a few of my own.

    The Mets always try to concrete their starting rotation before the off season even gets completed. It happened again this '24 season, and for the Nthteenth time in Mets' history. I do not understand why the NY Mets, as an organization, have to do this every single season. I could see saying Senga in the one, and Severino in the two slots, definitely. Maybe Manaea in the three slot, but that is precisely where it should end with the "forecasting" because the four and five slots should be more of a ST competition between many starters. That's what ST used to be way back. And should still be actually.

    The NY Mets four and five slot determinations are not a given this season really, and there "could be" a rookie starter who just shines exceedingly bright and well in ST. By having a set expectation for the five-man rotation (off season after trades and such) you are closing the door to these possible outstanding surprises from happening in ST, that would require a change in management's thinking. And this is a sort of veteran team right now, like average age 30.

    In the four or five.

    I definitely was impressed with Lefty Joey Lucchesi at the end of 2023. The Mets need another solid lefty in their rotation too. I'd seriously consider him for the four or five hole. He has been out hurt for sometime, but he pitched very well I thought in 2023 in limited play. 4-0 won/lost with a 2.89 ERA.

    So this would leave a slot open. I don't see anything guaranteed here with Tyler Megill's, Jose Quintana's, Adrian Houser's (although he did have an decent 2023 with an 8-5 won loss record, but has slightly more career losses than wins overall too, or Jose Butto's stats. I am sorry, I just do not get this. And if David Peterson gets back whole, I don't see anything there either stat wise to make me do cartwheels. He and Tyler Megill to me, are like 29 year old rookies trying to break into the Mets rotation [again]. They have ability, but have not put it into a consistent format starting yet.

    It's too wishful for me. I didn't like "Mary Poppins" the movie.

    I'm a realist.

    So if it were to happen with these above mentioned starters (Megill, Houser, Peterson, or Butto) in the 4 or 5, it would definitely be a "festivus for the rest of us", so to speak. But again a bit too wishful for me. I like the idea of giving Joey Lucchesi a serious look in ST. Just a hunch here with him on my part.

    Therefore, the NY Mets will need one more.

    My advice here, instead of paying $80 mill for an old tired out scotch-taped arm guy starter from Free Agency, would be bringing in your two top rookie kid starters from MiLB Mets, and open auditioning them for the final rotation spot. Someone ahead of the their game, solid skilled, and mature enough to handle this.

    Then if you want a six-starter in the rotation, to like give Severino additional time between early on season starts, then you look at Houser, Megill, Butto, and eventually Peterson for this.




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  12. Reasonable viewpoints on rotation. I think Megill will be a real upside surprise and Peterson, too, if he returns healthy. If the opening 5 starters stay healthy into the regular season, good times lie ahead. Severino is the biggest concern right now, given his injury history.

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