Reese Kaplan -- Spring Training Is More Show and Less Glow

A week into the 2024 Spring Training in primarily Port St. Lucie and what have we learned thus far?

It appears that the starting pitching is highly suspect with Kodai Senga already on the IL with his shoulder issue, Sean Manaea getting hit in his first big league outing, Tylor Megill looking good once and looking bad once.  On the plus side Luis Severino had a very nice first outing and Jose Quintana may have to polish up his game a bit if he indeed is going to be the Opening Day starter with Senga on the shelf.  

Out of the bullpen some of the wannabes have looked better than expected but no one knows who is actually on the legitimate radar for roles on the big club.  Obviously Edwin Diaz, Adam Ottavino, Brooks Raley and Jake Diekman are locks to come north.  

Apparently Shintaro Fujinami is legally able to participate after whatever family issue kept him in Japan for an extended period of time.  His 100 mph pitching potential has Jeremy Hefner and others drooling over his closer potential, but the man needs to demonstrate health, availability and significantly improved control before many folks will take him seriously.

On the field it was good to see long balls from 2023 underperformers Mark Vientos and Brett Baty.  It does appear the Mets are serious about granting the starting 3rd base role to Baty while the DH duties for now belong to Vientos.  Many other hitters without great defensive skills like DJ Stewart and others might feel somewhat excluded, but considering how very little the Mets received from the DH position since it became part of the National League lineup, it won't take a whole lot for Vientos to exceed what was done by Mssrs. Vogelbach, Ruf and others who failed miserably at the role.  

Perhaps the most encouraging sign of the young preseason is the apparently health of former star player Starling Marte who has already shown both in the field and at the plate that he's ready to go for the start of the season.  His power, speed, bat control and defensive acumen can make him into a highly valuable contributor.  Look no further back than 2022 to see what he's capable of providing when completely healthy.  

Pete Alonso has gone yard already and despite the lack of progress on a contract extension he appears ready to be a key component in the middle of the batting order once again.  

Great things have been said about the defensive attitude and even the English aptitude of catcher Francisco Alvarez.  Many are clamoring for an early extended contract at a discount to keep him from escalating out of site once he obtains enough MLB playing time to hit free agency.  It's not the worst idea in the world, for sure.

Rumor has it that Jeff McNeil is suffering from a bicep issue that might keep him out of games for awhile, but with other infielders in camp it's not as if the club will suffer in his short term absence.  There is an ongoing question mark about Joey Wendle who has been doing a Claude Rains impression as the Invisible Man since camp began, but soon enough we'll hear about what's kept him out of games.  Without him Zack Short and others can pick up the innings.

Brandon Nimmo is scheduled to get his first start this week which is a welcome sight indeed.  He has decent defensive skills, great bat control and has demonstrated more power recently than in his past.  He's a key component to the Mets offense.

Thus far the questionable defensive whiz Harrison Bader has not demonstrated bat skills sufficient to get a starting role, but then the Mets do not have much else in the way of outfield options.  Tyrone Taylor has already show he is capable with the bat and glove, though it's minor league Trayce Thompson who has launched a couple of long balls (including a Grand Slam) to suggest that at age 32 he's not done yet.  

There are no major news flashes and no surprising failures early in viewing this flawed but interesting club.  Right now the team appears perhaps better than they were in 2023 but certainly not October bound.