The Mets and Yankees will each get 2023 started on Thursday. We obviously don’t know how things will eventually end, but expectations are high pretty much everywhere you look.
Before the first pitch is thrown in the Bronx and Miami, we thought it was a good idea to collect a bunch of power rankings to see how various outlets view the Bombers and Amazins.
MLB.com
Will Leitch ranks the Mets fifth overall, saying the following:
Look, we were all upset to see Edwin Díaz go down after celebrating Puerto Rico’s victory in the WBC, and no one was more damaged by it than the Mets. The bullpen is a question mark now, and already a couple of their 30-something pitchers are dealing with injuries. They are still a team that won 101 games last year and added Justin Verlander. You can understand some Mets fans’ inherent fatalism, but this team is loaded with terrific players, and keeping Brandon Nimmo in the fold might quietly be one of the best moves any team made this offseason. And we know the owner will do whatever it takes to win his team a World Series. The Mets have a lot of questions. But they also have a lot of answers.
He also ranks the Yankees sixth overall. However, Leitch only supplied blurbs about the top five.
CBS Sports
Matt Snyder also has the Mets and Yankees right next to each other. Unlike MLB, though, he has them both in the top five. The Amazins are fourth:
The bullpen was already the biggest question mark and the loss of Edwin Díaz was obviously major, but remember he was just pretty good in 2021 and horrible in 2019. It’s a good illustration of how volatile relievers are. It’s also the most acquirable position in front of the trade deadline. All this is to say, it’s plausible to believe somehow the Mets end the season with a good bullpen.
And the Bronx Bombers are fifth:
The Carlos Rodón injury, especially given his history of arm issues, is a huge concern going in. It’s a bigger deal to me than the Díaz injury to the Mets, hence the swap. Still a loaded team, of course.
Bleacher Report
Joel Reuter tabs both New York squads in the top 10. The Mets have the upper hand, coming in at number four:
Losing closer Edwin Díaz to a torn patellar tendon is a major blow for the Mets, but they have capable replacements in David Robertson and Adam Ottavino, and that injury is not enough to remove them from the top-tier of teams. There is no clear hole in the starting lineup, the rotation is deeper with the additions of Justin Verlander and Kodai Senga, and top prospects Francisco Álvarez and Brett Baty are ready to make an impact.
The Yankees are hanging on by a thread at number 10:
With Carlos Rodón, Luis Severino and Frankie Montas all expected to start the season on the injured list, it’s tough to move the Yankees any higher up these rankings for the time being while they trot out a patchwork starting rotation. The position battle at shortstop between Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Oswald Peraza and Anthony Volpe has been one of the more compelling storylines of the spring.
ESPN
The Worldwide Leader has the Yankees ahead of the Mets as the regular season gets underway. This year will be a success for the Bombers — who rank fourth in ESPN’s Opening Day power rankings — if this happens, says Dave Schoenfield:
They win the World Series. Do we need to explain this? The Yankees haven’t even been to a World Series since 2009. Bad luck, garbage can scandals, conspiracy theories, too many strikeouts, bad clutch hitting, not enough left-handed hitters, no heart, no Jeter, no Rivera, Aaron Boone can’t manage his way out of a wet paper bag … whatever the excuse or reason, Yankees fans have multitudes of them. It’s time to raise the trophy.
The Mets aren’t far behind, checking in at sixth. How will this season be a success, you ask? It sounds similar to what it does across town, according to Schoenfield:
Let’s just say that owner Steve Cohen doesn’t have any vacations to Hawaii planned for the first week of November. Remember to leave a couple of additional days for a ticker-tape parade, Steve!
The Athletic
These rankings sound similar to that of ESPN. The Athletic also puts the Yankees fourth and the Mets sixth. There is no legitimate blurb about either team. Zach Buchanan, Nick Groke, and Stephen Nesbitt make a case for each team’s Opening Day starter to win the Cy Young Award.
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You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
