Part three of the David Stearns still-not-done list of roster enhancements is the “noffense” afflicting the New York Mets.
As a refresher, last season’s team included Pete Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil. A look at the scorecard of their performance metrics would include a total of 75 HRs and 272 RBIs. That’s pretty impressive.
Going into 2026 they have added Marcus Semien, Jorge Polanco, no one in left field, no one in center field and no one at DH if indeed Polanco is going to be manning first base as a regular there for the first time in his career. Between Semien and Polanco you have baseball card totals from 2025 that include 41 HRs and 140 RBIs. Now to be fair they are one offensive player short from this comparison but to match what they had in a bad 2025 season they would have to get 34 HRs and 132 RBIs. That matching total wouldn’t include the DH position nor center field. Given what the Mets got from both of those roles in 2025 it shouldn’t be all that difficult to match or exceed the past year totals.
Now everyone is well aware of the two heavy guns still available on the free agent marketplace. Cody Bellinger would most definitely add to the offense and defense but cost pretty much the same range as what they refused to offer Alonso who now will perform for the fans in Baltimore. The other conspicuous unsigned FA is Kyle Tucker who fields, hits, runs and is slated to take a very long term contract at a rate approaching $40 million per year.
Many articles are starting to appear in understanding and faint praise of what Stearns has done thus far during the off season. It is possible they will get more out of elder statesman Semien who had a pretty bad 2025 season. It’s also possible that Polanco will continue where he left off last year. Keeping a somewhat open mind, even the most optimistic fans would agree more still needs to be done.
The other strong bats out there either have character and age issues like the former Braves DH Marcell Ozuna or the unproven Japanese slugger Kazuma Okamoto may be looking for a longer term deal.
The other thing Stearns fans espouse is that they don’t want to block the paths of minor leaguers like Carson Benge, Jett Williams and Ryan Clifford as well as the good singles hitters and speed burners in Binghamton.
As a result you are now seeing multiple names in various media efforts suggesting the Mets focus on players who are on short term remaining deals like Luis Robert, Jr., lesser veterans who might gladly take a one year contract like Max Kepler.
Then there are mid tier outfielders whose names pop up like Austin Hays whose best ever season was 22 HRs and 72 RBIs back in 2021 with the Orioles. The Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran has also been advocated in various places. His best year was 2024 with 21 HRs and 75 RBIs accompanied by 34 SBs. He won’t be cheap to obtain if Boston is foolish enough to consider trading him.
The front office has been very good at playing their cards close to the vest but at the same time the players in prospective move to Citifield are not exactly showstoppers. There is still time as December is just closing, then January and the first two weeks of February are still open for transactions to occur. Whether people are more upset about the lack of activity or the tangible ones that have already taken place is a matter of debate.
6 comments:
Improve 75 runs on defense, lose 150 runs on offense. Not good.
Not yet
Three of the top 2025 bats swing for other teams now
So far replaced by Semien, Polanco and ka-ka
Waiting...
.
So far the offense is a wash between Semien and McNeil, and between Polanco and Nimmo. While the defense is better. Alonzo will be much harder to replace as 35/125 are hard to find. I would like to see us go for the two Japanese players Imai and Okamoto to finish our big spending (not long term contracts). Then round out the roster with some relief help. Both Japanese players have a relatively high upside but unfortunately low floors as well being unknown commodities. It is a gamble, letting Pete walk away was also a gamble and we still need room for the kids.
The Mess are rebuilding...and lying their asses off about it. Rebuilding around the many prospects they now have. Don't expect them to sign any FAs with any length on them that will block the prospects assent. Maybe a FA pitcher or Japanese player, but don't expect them to contend this year...they pulled the plug on that with the moves they made. Also, don't expect them to make a trade involving any of their prospects because that would defeat the point of the plan. This will be a transition year as these prospects get more innings
and advance. For those of us who expected them to go all in again this year, forget that. They tried that last year but Stearn's rotation and trade deadline deals were a bust.
3 spots to replace Pete & DH: LF, CF, DH. Still time.
Even if they only replace 75-80% of Pete plus DH spot with Lf, CF, DH & they save 40-50 runs via pitching & defense they are a playoff-caliber team that will evaluate young talent next year. Sets them up for a competitive 2026 season & a bigger jump in 2027 with youth, FA market & ripened farm system for trade possibilities. All while peeling off dead money this year. Not a bad situation IMHO.
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