Now that it’s known the Kansas City Royals will be the opponent, here are the New York Mets top concerns heading into the World Series.
By Robby Sabo
Instead, the reason baseball fans feel overwhelmed with excitement has everything to do with witnessing starving fanbases finally see and feel success.
Whether it was 2014 when the Kansas City Royals shocked the world with their clean sweep of the American League en route to the World Series, or the New York Mets magic carpet ride this season, ballparks in October have rarely been more frenzied.
We have been quickly reminded that the starving fan, turns into the most rabid fan. We then find ourselves rooting for this underdog who’s been irrelevant for decades on end.
As luck would have it, 2015 brings not one organization who’s been waiting a long time to taste ultimate success, but two.
From a Mets perspective, they suddenly find themselves as the hot team. Heading into the tournament as underdogs, they’ve now quickly turned into the story of the “hot commodity” – which is their already famed phenom starting pitching.
There are plenty of reasons why they’ll continue this raging playoff success, but there are also a few concerns about why it’ll be the Royals who’ll wind up hoisting the World Series trophy in the end.
Here are the Mets top five concerns heading into the 2015 World Series:
5. Defense Against A Contact Team
When thinking about the World Series from a strategy standpoint, the first thing that comes to mind is how different a team the Royals truly are.
These guys, who’ve now won two straight AL Pennants, aren’t a power hitting team. They don’t even possess great starting pitching. In fact, it can be argued their rotation is average at best.
What they do possess is an uncanny ability to come through when the situation calls for it most. Part of the reason they come through so often has everything to do with how their lineup is constructed. These guys are a contact hitting team who puts pressure on defenses with their speed along the base-paths.
The Mets defense is the exact opposite type you want handling the Royals lineup. The defenses who handle the Lorenzo Cain’s of the world well are ones who catch the ball well up the middle. Granted, the combination of Yoenis Cespedes and Juan Lagares in centerfield is top notch, but Wilmer Flores and the hitting-god himself, Daniel Murphy, are far below-average in the middle of that infield.
There will be anxious times for Mets fans during the series when Kansas City puts massive pressure on this below average Mets infield. Terry Collins and company need to hope their young studs who start the game can pile up the strikeouts a smidge more than they already do.
Although Murph has been a straight up monster this postseason (even in the field and on the basepaths amazingly enough), he’s due for a gaffe in the field. Let’s hope the Royals don’t put too much pressure on the defense.
4. deGrom’s Fatigue, Cespedes’s Shoulder
Sandy Alderson has to be ecstatic about how healthy this club has remained since the stretch run to end the regular season. Only Juan Uribe was forced off each postseason roster due to injury, and he might be back in the World Series.
For the guys who haven’t missed time, there are two who have Mets fans a bit worried at the moment.
Firstly, Jacob deGrom. The guy who tied a franchise record in winning three straight postseason games (Jerry Koosman) has been downright filthy. Not filthy in the sense that his stuff is top-notch, but filthy in how he’s completely out-competed the competition.
deGrom has officially arrived as a big-game pitcher this postseason. His sheer will to win starts No. 2 (Dodgers) and No. 3 (Cubs) has solidified his position as the man.
Although, this doesn’t mean everything is roses. deGrom not having his top-notch stuff is worrisome, even to Terry Collins and the rest of the powers that be. So worrisome, that they’re still on the edge of their seats in deciding who should get the Game 1 ball: the deGrominator or Matt Harvey.
deGrom has now ventured into an innings territory he’s never seen before (211 IP in total). He faltered down the stretch of the regular season a bit and these first and second innings to his postseason games garner more worry than wanted.
Perhaps it might be the right move to give deGrom an extra day of rest and allow Harvey to not sit out too long. Fortunately for New York, they’re so loaded with arms it doesn’t really matter who starts the series.
The other guy of note, under the bucket of a little banged up, is Yoenis Cespedes.
Although there are some rumors that Cespedes injured his shoulder playing golf (as it’s no secret the man plays a load of golf, even on gamedays), he denies it.
The fact of the matter is this: His shoulder is injured, but he won’t miss time (aside from the innings he missed in Game 4 of the NLCS). Hopefully, it’s not so banged up that it takes away one of the more important spots in the lineup for the Amazins’.
3. The Royals Bullpen, Speed
We saw it in four straight games in the NLCS, how the New York Mets would just jump the opposition from the get-go. These guys scored nine first-inning runs in four NLCS games against the Chicago Cubs – or better named the best “good old-fashioned butt-whipping in quite some time.”
This is exactly the type of thing this lineup needs to carry over to the World Series if they have designs on becoming 2015 World Champions.
Kansas City’s strength lies in the bullpen. Johnny Cueto, Yordano Ventura and the rest of the Royals rotation hasn’t been anything of note in October. In fact, Cueto is supposedly their ace and he’s pitched only one solid game (Game 5 of the ALDS).
8 ER in just 2 IP against the Blue Jays is anything but ace stuff.
The Mets must keep this formula of jumping out to early leads a constant in the World Series. It’ll allow them to neutralize this vaunted Royals pen and keep the Mets pitching strength (the starters) as holding the upper hand.
The speed aspect will be tough to deal with all series long. The Mets simply don’t have the defense capable of stopping it. While Travis d’Arnaud is a great hitter and solid receiver, his arm is questionable. Jumping out to early leads will mean everything for New York.
2. Murphy Becoming Human
So, is there anything Daniel Murphy cannot do?
The guy has been so good that the Mets organization might have no other choice but to bring him back in 2016. Sometimes a player just reaches a level in which he immerses himself into the fabric of that organization’s history to such a point, that no other option but to keep him remains.
Having said that, to rely on Murph to keep up the incredible, MLB-record setting pace of homering in six-straight games would be foolish.
Collins and the rest of the lineup needs to go into the series thinking there needs to be a new hero. If Murphy continues to tear it up, then fantastic, we’ll crown him even further. But it just can’t be expected.
David Wright, Yoenis Cespedes, Curtis Granderson – somebody will need to step it up to another level.
1. The Long Layoff
The most disheartening aspect about the 2015 World Series at this very moment for Mets fans is this: the long layoff.
When a hot team steamrolls its way through the NL or AL, they certainly do catch a break as it relates to resting players. At the same time, and very unfortunately, they also lose the mojo it once had going for them.
Tuesday is too far down the road. If it were up to the Mets, they would’ve started the World Series on Saturday instead of showing up at Islanders games and on Jimmy Kimmel Live. There’s no question about this.
Matt Harvey has made two starts thus far in these playoffs. His first start, against the Dodgers in Game 3 of the NLDS, came off a long layoff. He struggled.
His second start came off more normal rest in Game 1 of the NLCS. He thrived.
Concerns about the long layoff have to top the list.
We’ve seen it so many times in the past rear its ugly head. How about the Colorado Rockies in 2007. Clint Hurdle’s team suddenly turned hotter than the next Taylor Swift song. They ripped through the NL, then waited for the Boston Red Sox to comeback from a 3-1 series deficit in the ALCS, only to get swept in the World Series.
Hopefully, for the Mets sake, they shake off the rust early in Game 1 on Tuesday night.