Reese Kaplan -- The Stopwatch Ticking Sound is Deafening

Today the countown officially begins.  It is July 21st and there are exactly 10 days left for David Stearns to acknowledge the roster is flawed and take corrective actions.  Nothing more than AAAA players and similar castoffs have been his roster formula since the injuries and slumps threatened to derail the team’s October baseball plans.  So now there are things that can happen, but will they?

The Needs Haven't Changed

This list has remained pretty much the same since the 2025 season began.  You could make a case that the starting pitching may not be nearly as dire as it once was.  With Sean Manaea, Kodai Senga and Frankie Montas all back to join David Peterson and Clay Holmes the Mets have the starting rotation they envisioned in the 2024/2025 off season.  Gone are Griffin Canning, Paul Blackburn, Tylor Megill, Max Kranick and a bevy of relievers who were forced to function as openers or starters when no one else was available. 

The problem here, of course, is depth and backup arms should injuries occur again.  Paul Blackburn is in rehab so he would count as one.  Tylor Megill is on the 60-day IL and theoretically he could count as another, but a sudden injury all of the sudden makes the seemingly solid starting rotation look mighty vulnerable.  It is entirely possible that the Mets may want to latch onto a sixth starter type who is currently healthy as a just-in-case option until Blackburn is ready to return.

The bullpen is pretty much Edwin Diaz and hold your breath.  This club most definitely needs fresh arms out there who are not on their 9th team in the past 3-4 years but instead who were solid parts of other ball clubs.  Whether by trade or free agency there are options out there and this area must definitely needs to be addressed.

Center field continues to be the same kind of black hole it’s been all year long.  Missing Jose Siri’s defensive acrobatics and rare, occasional power isn’t the issue.  Tyrone Taylor has very much proven his worth as a fourth outfielder with his glove and his legs, but not as a starter which also requires him to swing the bat.  Many folks feel that Jeff McNeil becoming a full time outfielder solves the problem at the expense of superlative defense and without much power.  It could but then it opens up the next issue.

Infielders Mark Vientos, Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuna have all under performed this year.  It’s entirely possible that one or more will rise up.  We’ve seen flashes from Baty, Vientos and Mauricio but not extended productivity.  The Mets need to decide if this quartet is indeed part of the present and future or if they are better spent as trade chips to fulfill other needs.

Then there is the DH role.  Starling Marte was starting to put together his hitting game when injury struck.  You can’t debate the pros or cons of Jesse Winker who is hurt yet again.  Neither of them are run producers nor serious power threats.  Both are gone at year’s end.  It would seem replacing the pair with a solid RBI machine should be just as big a priority as everything already cited.

Finally, there’s the question of catcher.  Both Luis Torrens and Hayden Senger are demonstrating good defense but virtually nothing with the bat.  Francisco Alvarez has most definitely found his power stroke in Syracuse but his batting average is still microscopic.  Still, those long balls would be mighty beneficial especially asking how poorly the offense has delivered.

So What Happens Now?

Most everyone agrees that David Stearns is a top notch baseball executive who has had a hand in transforming the club into one capable of participating in playoff baseball.  The frustration is that nothing has been done since April to improve the roster.  Again, that countdown from 10 days to a single 1 has already begun and the Mets have not yet made a single move (other than returning recovering Brooks Raley to their bullpen).  When will something substantive happen that we’ve all wanted since the season began (and especially during the month of June?)

Tick, tick, tick...