Reese Kaplan -- Inertia: My Recurring Nightmare

Spring training 2018 rolls around and once again the Mets have not added a single major league player to the roster.  They have picked up the option of Asdrubal Cabrera and signed free agent Jose Reyes.  Sitting in the dugout holding the lineup pencil is soon-to-be 69 year old Terry Collins.  He’s on the phone to Sandy Alderson saying yes to whatever his boss demands.  Dan Warthen is staring off into space while there’s obviously something going wrong during the bullpen session prior to the start of the game.  Kevin Long is encouraging uppercut swings from everyone, including the pitchers.  Sandy Koufax saunters around camp with Fred Wilpon, muttering under his breath about what a circus this has become.  Kevin James is fielding grounders and looks positively svelte next to Dom Smith.

Fortunately I wake up from this nocturnal horror show and realize it can’t possibly be that bad.  After all, no sane GM would possibly think that his club is so perfect that it’s not in need of improvement, right?

Furthermore, no savvy GM would possibly want to build for the future around 35 year old infielder who’s lost several steps and range in the field.  No keen strategist would reward a malcontent who demanded a trade with another year in uniform.

Surely a manager who is hopelessly out of touch with modern  metrics, an inability to develop younger ballplayers and who holds the dubious distinction of the club record as the losingest manager in its 45 year history wouldn’t be asked back. 

Then there’s the pitching coach who never seems to notice when someone is overcompensating or changing their natural motion, setting himself up for injury…they can’t want him back again, right?

Then there’s that swing for the fences mentality that has the Mets setting club records for home runs while fighting to stay out of the cellar…surely they would want to change that!

Then there’s the whole health and nutrition thing.  Given the many years of injuries and conditioning problems they wouldn’t keep bringing back what hasn’t worked, right?

There’s no way the Mets can go into 2018 with Smith at 1B, Reyes at 2B, Rosario at SS, Cabrera at 3B, a timeshare of d’Arnaud and Plawecki behind the plate, Cespedes in LF, Nimmo/Lagares platooning in CF and Aoki in RF, can they?

Futhermore, the starting rotation built more on hope than reality, would right now include Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler and Steve Matz.  Behind them would be solid backups like Rafael Montero, Chris Flexen, Robert Gsellman, Seth Lugo and Tommy Milone.  That worked so well in 2017, right?

Then the bullpen will contain Jeurys Familia, A.J. Ramos, Jerry Bleviins, Paul Sewald, Hansel Robles, Erik Goeddel, Josh Smoker and Chasen Bradford with nothing to show from any of the salary dump trades from this summer…that can’t be happening, could it?

Sometimes it’s tough being a Mets fan.  It’s like a reality TV show where the audience is yelling at the screen about what they should do and then they go off charging in the opposite direction.  Parting ways with Collins and Warthen would be baby steps in the right direction.  Kicking the veteran infielders to the curb would represent more progress because as long as they are there, the temptation will exist to bench the developing players in favor of the ones past their prime.  I’d truly believe they want a change in direction if they suggest Sandy Alderson also find a hammock on a beach somewhere, but that’s got as much chance of happening winning the lottery (which is about as likely as the Mets winning a pennant without a complete overhaul top to bottom).