A National League pennant and World Series berth leads to high expectations for the New York Mets. Can they deliver in 2016?
By Jeremy Fialkow
There’s much to like about the moves GM Sandy Alderson made in New York’s shortened offseason.
From re-signing Yoenis ‘La Potencia’ Cespedes to a 3-year, $75 million deal (which will likely only be 1-year, $27 million), to letting go of playoff hero and new Met-enemy Daniel Murphy, Alderson has made it clear the Amazin’ Mets are here to stay.
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Toss in a star-studded rotation that will even see another year of Bartolo Colon and the return of another flame thrower in Zack Wheeler come mid-July, and fans quickly realize there isn’t much to complain about.
Still, following up a season as successful as last year’s, will not be easy.
Just ask David Wright, who lived through the highs that come with winning the NL East in 2006, and the lows of the epic 2007 collapse.
In 2015 the Mets finished 90-72, good enough for the top-spot in the NL East, yet with an improved Nationals roster as well, 90 wins might not be enough to earn a division crown this time around.
2016 is also the 30th anniversary of the Mets last World Series Champion team from 1986. With that, the team decided its time to bring back the ridiculously fresh pullover jerseys from that season, which is obviously good for a couple wins throughout the regular season.
It’s time for the Metropolitans to repeat the success of 30 years ago and bring home the franchise’s third Commissioner’s Trophy.
Can they do it? Of course.
Will they do it? Only time will tell.
Without further ado, here’s ESNY’s preview of the 2016 New York Mets season:
Key Additions
Zack Wheeler:
Sure, this 25-year-old came over a few years ago from San Francisco in a trade for Carlos Beltran, but it’s been over a year since we’ve seen him in action.
Last season Wheeler’s 3.50 career ERA and mid-to-high 90s fastball was surely missed while he rehabbed following Tommy John surgery.
Can you imagine adding this kind of talent to the already stacked New York rotation?
Wheeler, Harvey, deGrom, Syndergaard, Matz.
Give me two of each, please and thank you.
Neil Walker, Asdrubal Cabrera:
How’s this for a new-look infield? Goodbye, Daniel Murphy. Hello, better defense and a slightly more powerful version of Murph.
That’s a mouthful, so we’ll just call the new Met second baseman Neil Walker. Coming over from Pittsburgh in a trade for longtime pitcher Jon Niese (who can’t seem to shut up about his former team), Walker has already looked the part as half of the starting middle infield.
Cabrera, on the other hand, is also very capable on both offense and defense. While his range will never best that of Ruben Tejada, or even Wilmer Flores, Asdrubal is sure-handed when he can reach the baseball. Slide him over to third base when The Captain needs a day off (or five) and you’ve got a capable player on a solid 2-year, $18 million deal.
Antonio Bastardo:
Adding to a New York Mets bullpen is always a good idea. Antonio Bastardo looked far from great in spring training, but he’s certainly still expected to become the 7th-inning setup man for Addison Reed and Jeurys Familia who have high hopes in dominating the 8th and 9th.
Anything to replace Tyler Clippard and that circle changeup he always seemed to leave hanging down the middle of the plate, is more than a welcomed addition.
Key Subtractions
Daniel Murphy:
This was touched on before, but everyone knew what they were getting with Daniel Murphy.
This guy doesn’t strike out. He makes contact (lots of it), he doesn’t hit home runs (unless it’s the playoffs, as he’ll hit one in six straight games), and he’s just a terrible second baseman.
Replacing a .280 average, 14 bombs, and 73 RBI that comes from Murph with about the same offensive output and better defense from Neil Walker is a deal you take nine of the 10 times it’s offered.
Of course, seeing Murphy in a Washington Nationals uniform is slightly aggravating, as he’s bound to break many Amazin’ hearts at least once or twice this season.
Juan Uribe:
What will be missed of Juan Uribe really has nothing to do with what he brought to the table on the diamond.
Instead, it was his clubhouse antics and overall ability to bring a team together that will not be forgotten.
Players to Watch
Yoenis Cespedes:
Yoenis Cespedes is a bonafide diva in the truest form, and why shouldn’t he be?
He grew up poor and now finds himself as an all-star outfielder with a fat contract to go along with it.
He, much like Noah Sydnergaard, is a lightning rod for action. No one can forget his home run binge during the last two months of the 2015 season.
It will no doubt be difficult for him to repeat history, but is a +.300 average, 100+ RBI and 35+ home runs too much to ask of the 30-year-old Cuban?
Of course not. He’s equipped with a nice contract, a new arsenal of cars, and he’s definitely ready to prove his worth for a full season in Flushing.
Will he stay another year? That’s a question to be answered in about five, maybe six, months.
Noah Syndergaard:
There’s a whole lot that could be said of the rising superstar pitcher they call Thor. At 23-years-old he’s ridiculously polished and brings the heat. Within a star-studded flame-throwing rotation, no one slings the stitches as fast as this guy.
Seriously, every time this guy is thrown out on the mound he brings electricity, much like his superhero namesake. He strikes fear into opposing hitters faster than lightning strikes ground. (Hyperbole? Perhaps.)
Throwing a hard-breaking curveball at 80 mph, immediately after nailing 101 on the radar gun is a match made in heaven, bound to produce a plethora of downright ugly swings.
When the season is said and done, Syndergaard not only can be a top 5-or-10 pitcher, he should be. Adding the nasty ‘Warthen slider’ to his arsenal is plain unfair, just ask everyone he faced in the Grapefruit League.
Wilmer Flores:
Wilmer Flores may not provide the greatest impact for the Mets this season, but there’s no doubt he’ll be put to use.
The Mets are trying to turn Flores into some sort of Ben Zobrist super-utility man. In fact, they expect Wilmer to get his turn at nearly every position in the infield.
When (insert infielder here) needs a break – even Lucas Duda – Wilmer Flores will be there to answer the call.
He is, after all, the once-traded-turned-folk-hero of yesteryear who’s tears one day, and walk-off home run against the Nationals the next, turned a whole franchise around.
Breakout Player
Michael Conforto:
How can you not love this kid?
The 23-year-old outfield slugger out of Oregon State took less than two-years to not only be called up the bigs, but also make a stunning impact for a pennant winning team.
In nearly three months of Major League Baseball (68 games including playoffs), showed he’s more than an everyday player both in left field and at the plate. He laced the stitches off nine baseballs and finished with a .270 average.
More importantly, he brings a cannon to the plate and with his arm in left.
Conforto proved his defense was incredibly underestimated by scouts heading into his Mets debut, and made quite a few run saving catches and outfield assists.
A victim of an abundance of outfielders, Conforto was rarely given any playing time against lefty pitching, one half of a righty/lefty platoon with Juan Lagares.
No one, not himself, teammates, nor coaches, doubts the kid can hit southpaws, so it’s about time he was enabled to display his ability against the Clayton Kershaw‘s of the world.
Simply put, Conforto, much like Thor and Matz, is a young, cornerstone talent capable of bringing success to the Mets now and for many years to come.
Michael Conforto will be the everyday left fielder in New York for years to come.
This season, he’s going to show you why.
Question Marks
Matt Harvey:
For a day, at least, Mets Nation was on the edge of panic for Matt Harvey. Luckily, a mystery illness turned out to be a minor blood clot that was passed, and the Dark Knight will be on the mound to kick off the season Sunday night.
Still, there are questions to be answered. Yes, Harvey looked incredible last season, not including the innings-limit B.S., finishing with a 2.71 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP.
He’s a special talent, but the talent looked very on-edge during the preseason. Whether it can be attributed to the UTI or some other distraction, a 7.50 ERA in 12 innings pitched is never a good sign.
But, don’t worry…yet. When there’s one ace struggling, there will be another two or three to pick him up.
How’s that for reassuring a fan-base?
David Wright:
It’s hard to put the face of the Mets franchise on a list of question marks, but I wouldn’t be doing my job by leaving him out.
The Captain missed all of four months last season due to his degenerative back condition known as Spinal Stenosis.
Wright returned to the lineup in a late August matchup against the Phillies, where he mashed a two-run bomb on the first pitch he saw.
Still, there are concerns that go along with the talented third baseman. He didn’t look extraordinary, other than that first AB in his return, and he looked straight-up terrible in the 2015 playoffs, save for a critical RBI single in the NLDS against the Dodgers, and a Game 3 World Series home run.
In short, Mets fans need to hope and pray the power that the 33-year old Wright who used to be able to create through the torque of his swing does not completely vanish.
The goal from Mets GM Sandy Alderson is for El Capitan to play around 130 games this season. In all honesty though, nobody truly knows how fair an estimate that is until opening night comes around.
Predictions
A Cy Young Award and the 2016 World Series Championship
30 years after the likes of Doc, Straw, Mex, and The Kid headlined the 1986 New York Mets all the way to a World Series title, the franchise will repeat history and defeat the Boston Red Sox in an epic 7-game Fall Classic.
Along the way a Rookie of the Year Award winner and All-Star right-handed pitcher will take home the National League Cy Young Award.
Matt Harvey? No, dummy, he never won a ROY award.
Jacob deGrom? You bet.
Additionally, both Harvey and deGrom will win 20+ games throughout the course of the year.
Finally, look for Cespedes and Lucas Duda to combine for at least 55 homers and 180 RBI.
“The 2016 Champions of Baseball: YOUR NEW YORK METS”
How does that sound?