After spending boatloads of Steve Cohen’s money, the Mets entered 2023 with the highest of expectations. The goal was to return to the postseason and make a deep run toward the World Series. The chances of that happening at this point in the year are slim.
New York is more likely to trade players away before the deadline instead of contending for a postseason spot. They enter a series against the Boston Red Sox with a 45-51 record. That has them 17.5 games out of first place and 7.0 games back of the final NL Wild Card spot. FanGraphs currently has the Mets’ odds of making the playoffs at just 14.8%.
There’s no way around it. This year has been a nightmarish disaster and essentially the worst-case scenario for a team with a $350-plus million payroll. But if you’re a glass-half-full kind of person, it could be worse. Seriously.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post spent a chunk of his local MLB notes column discussing the Mets’ anticipated pursuit of David Stearns for their front office this winter. At the end of that discussion, Heyman added this:
Though this season is an abject disappointment so far, one rival pointed out: 1) the big deals aren’t long; 2) they haven’t traded great prospects; and 3) they can afford it.
These are all valid points. See? It could be worse than what it currently is!
We talked about this last winter while the Mets were constantly grabbing hot stove headlines. In an effort to be competitive in 2023, New York had no choice but to spend big. And that’s what they did. But outside of Brandon Nimmo’s eight-year deal, nothing was for more than five years.
Investing all this money into an underperforming team isn’t the ideal scenario. However, it’s not like the Mets have committed big money to aging veterans for the rest of this decade or something. Lots of money will be coming off the books this winter and the following winter.
While general manager Billy Eppler got rightfully hammered for how he handled the 2022 trade deadline, the Mets still have the top prospects they covet within the organization. Last, but most certainly not least, they’re one of the only MLB teams who can go through something like this and not have it completely change the immediate outlook of the franchise.
That’s the benefit of having the game’s richest owner in Cohen, who has a net worth approaching $20 billion.
Mets fans have every right to be disappointed and frustrated with how this season has gone. But, this is another reminder that the Wilpons are no longer in charge. If they were, this would set New York back for at least the next five years. That thankfully won’t happen. And hopefully, strategic moves at the deadline (should they sell) will aid in the organization’s desire to rebuild the farm system as quickly as possible.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
