The New York Mets salvaged a four game split with the St. Louis Cardinals Thursday, winning behind a near-perfect Jacob deGrom, who delivered eight innings of one-hit ball while striking out 11. Add in two Lucas Duda home runs and the Mets won handily, 5-0. This win represented a complete turnaround from the previous two games, which begs the question, who are these Mets, really?
The previous two nights were polar opposites of Thursday’s outcome. First, on Tuesday night, the Mets got trounced, 10-2, behind a 15 hit attack by the Cards’ lineup and a stellar seven-inning performance from ace Michael Wacha. Then, on Wednesday, Bartolo Colon had one of his regular rough outings, which he’s prone to, lasting only 4 1/3 innings, the first time a Mets pitcher had not completed at least five innings this season. Colon was shelled for 11 hits, giving up nine runs – eight earned – and two walks. The Mets managed only four hits on the night while stranding 14 runners!
As the offense currently stands, with no David Wright or Travis d’Arnaud in the middle of the order, the lineup is sub-par at best compared to most National League clubs. This team is truly an enigma; who are these Mets? Are they the young, spunky group with guys like Juan Lagares, Kevin Plawecki, and Duda? Or are they a hit-or-miss team that is going to go through peaks and valleys the rest of the way, unless, of course, GM Sandy Alderson decides to make a change at the most obvious position-of-need (shortstop)? With teams like the Rockies, Athletics, Dodgers, Red Sox, and Cubs all in the mix to bolster their clubs and deal within the next several weeks, there will be suitors should Alderson decide to make a change. If they want to be in the hunt for at least a Wild Card spot come September, he should really consider doing so.
This team is not as good as the 11-straight wins they compiled between April 12th and 23rd. However, they are not as bad as the team that has gone 4-7 in their last 11 games. With the starting pitching they have, led by staff ace Matt Harvey and supported by deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Jon Niese, and Colon, not to mention Dillon Gee, who should be coming back from the DL next week, and lefty prospect Steven Matz banging on the door at AAA, the Mets have arguably one of the top-five starting rotations in the game. Most games, the starters will give this team a chance to win. However, will the bats be able to take advantage?
Getting Wright and d’Arnaud back will surely help solidify the middle of the order, but the Mets need to get consistent power from Lucas Duda, better production from Michael Cuddyer and his .682 OPS, and trade for a legitimate shortstop, likely from one of the several teams listed above. Obvious names include Troy Tulowitzki, Starlin Castro, Addison Russell, Xander Bogaerts, and Jimmy Rollins. This is not to discredit Wilmer Flores; he has hit six home runs, tied for the most by a shortstop this season, and has driven in 15 runners. However, his production comes in waves and is not nearly as consistent as the Mets would like. Compounding the problem, his shoddy defense has hurt the Mets on several occasions this season.
The Mets need a bat in this lineup to compliment Wright, Duda, d’Arnaud, and Curtis Granderson, someone they can insert right into the middle of the order and trust to contribute on a daily basis. A better defender up the middle will also help the psyches of the Mets’ pitchers, and will bring more stability to the position.
Steady up-the-middle position players are key to winning ball clubs; strong presences at catcher, short, and center field are primary ingredients in a winning formula for any team. Look back at the Yankees in their heyday in the late nineties. When their squads featured Posada, Jeter, and Williams up the middle, they seemingly fielded perennial winners. The 2004 Red Sox relied on a similar formula, with catcher Jason Varitek, shortstop Orlando Cabrera, and center fielder Johnny Damon serving as defensive anchors. I’m not saying you need to have an All-Star caliber talent at each of those postions, but having players that can hold their own and contribute at said positions will go along way to making this Mets club a serious contender.
This team is not far away from being a legitimate force to be reckoned with in the National League East. Their starting pitching is stacked, and will be for years to come. A strong bullpen and some promising young offensive talent waiting in the minors, including players such as Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, Amed Rosario, and Gavin Cecchini, give this team the right formula for continued success. They just need to preach consistency and become a team that is going to battle night in and night out, and not have these blowouts in which they revert back to the “same ol’ Mets” fans have been muttering the past seven seasons. They’re heading in the right direction, but they must avoid veering into oncoming traffic.
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