I think most Mets fans are relatively content with the offseason additions the Mets have made. While the team has not been upgraded to a great extent, it’s probably better than it was at the end of last season but probably not 90 win material.
Here are my thoughts on some positives and negatives this offseason thus far.
Losses:
1.) Inability to trade Ike Davis or Lucas Duda: While I agree with not giving these guys away for free, the fact that we harped on trading one of these guys the whole off-season and were not able to get anything for them tells you much other GM’s think of their value. I thought maybe we could get a decent pitching prospect but so far nada. This really leaves our 1B situation a murky mess.
2.) Not adding a legitimate Shortstop: As of now Stephen Drew has not signed with a team. Ruben Tejada is slated to be the starter. I don’t hate Tejada but he clearly was not a major league SS last season and the fact that we did not upgrade this position is quite disappointing. Here’s hoping Ruben returns to decent form.
3.) Not adding a major power bat: There was no major expectation that we would be able to add a big bopper to this lineup but it would have been real nice. (Please don’t tell me Granderson is that bopper). Obviously we would have all loved to see a Fielder, Stanton, CarGo or Tulo added to this roster but I’m sure it would have cost us way too much. Either case I’m putting it down as a loss because we still have a hole in this lineup without a big bopper.
4.) Losing LaTroy Hawkins: You can tell me he’s an aging veteran, but the guy provided a stabilizing presence at the end of the bullpen and was a real team leader. It’s probably not that big of a blow as he is getting older than dirt but the bullpen seems to be a bit unstable early on, especially with health question marks around Bobby P. The hope is Valverde or Farnsworth replace LaTroy but I’m not sure they would be the leader LaTroy was.
Wins:
1.) The Grandy Man: Yes, he wasn’t cheap and yes he’s not very young but at least he’s an above average major league outfielder which is more than we could say we had on this roster the past two seasons. He’s an overall good guy and will be a solid clubhouse presence. He should also alleviate some pressure from D. Wright from a media perspective. He’ll probably bat cleanup on this team, but in a perfect world he would be our number 2 hitter ahead of Wright. I’m expecting .260 with 28 homers and 85 RBI’s.
2.) Bart Man: It’s easy to knock this signing but if Colon can even do half of what he did last year that would be pretty good. I’m hoping he’s also a positive influence on the rest of the rotation from a veteran standpoint. Lastly, I can’t wait to see him try and run the bases, should make for some good comedy and twitter fodder.
Offseason Grade: B-
So will the Mets be a better team this season than last? I think we will be but it’s not a given. Yes we have a bit more talent in Grandy, Colon and potentially Chris Young but from a production stand point we lost Marlon Byrd, Hawkins and of course Matt Harvey.
Unfortunately I don’t see us being legit contenders this year or winning 90 games, rather this season you really want to see D’arnaud and Wheeler take steps forward, you want to see Noah Sydergaard and Rafael Montero make their debuts and do well, you want to pray that a couple of the following guys, Ike, Duda, Lagares, Tejada, Chris or Eric Young show you something and have good years, you want Bobby Parnell to be healthy and continue his progression as a closer.
You start to get the feeling things are getting slightly better, this season could be the beginning of a bigger and brighter future or it could be a repeat of last year, let’s hope for the best but as always expect the worst.
