By Timothy Boatman
The New York Mets once again are in an underdog role with not too many expectations. Mets GM Sandy Alderson made some headlines saying that he believes the Mets can win 90 games this year. This is a big number considering the past two years the Mets have gone 74-88 the last two years, and haven’t put up 90 wins since their amazing 97 win 2006 season where they were one game away from reaching the World Series. So this statement for the Mets to reach 90 wins is a statement that makes even the biggest Mets fans uncertain. With their ace, Matt Harvey, out for the year due to Tommy John surgery, there is clearly a big hole in the starting rotation. To help fill this role, the Mets signed free agent Bartolo Colon. Obviously it will be extremely difficult to recreate Harvey’s numbers, but if Colon can put up 10-15 wins, the Mets would be pretty happy with that. Pitching prospect Zack Wheeler showed what he is capable of and may become the Mets ace for the year. Acquired in the R.A. Dickey trade a couple years ago was pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard. He impressed in Spring Training and could get the call up to the show at the end of the year. The 1-2-3 punch of Harvey, Wheeler, and Syndergaard should be enough to make any team scared of the Mets in the coming years, but until then, Mets fans will have to wait. The Mets have a sneaky-good rotation and could surprise some people. Other holes that the Mets had was their outfield and their shortstop position. For their outfield, they signed Chris Young and Yankee’s slugger Curtis Granderson. These signings have drastically changed the outfield for the better because last year the outfield was one of the worst in all of baseball. There were speculations that the Mets would sign shortstop Stephen Drew to help fill the shortstop role, but the signing never occurred so it seems as if the Mets will rotate between Wilmer Flores and Ruben Tejada. First base may be a problem as well, but if Ike Davis can perform like he is very capable of, the Mets may surprise some people this year. I do not know if they will reach the 90 win mark, but I do think they may be able to make a run at that coveted second wild card spot!
The New York Mets once again are in an underdog role with not too many expectations. Mets GM Sandy Alderson made some headlines saying that he believes the Mets can win 90 games this year. This is a big number considering the past two years the Mets have gone 74-88 the last two years, and haven’t put up 90 wins since their amazing 97 win 2006 season where they were one game away from reaching the World Series. So this statement for the Mets to reach 90 wins is a statement that makes even the biggest Mets fans uncertain. With their ace, Matt Harvey, out for the year due to Tommy John surgery, there is clearly a big hole in the starting rotation. To help fill this role, the Mets signed free agent Bartolo Colon. Obviously it will be extremely difficult to recreate Harvey’s numbers, but if Colon can put up 10-15 wins, the Mets would be pretty happy with that. Pitching prospect Zack Wheeler showed what he is capable of and may become the Mets ace for the year. Acquired in the R.A. Dickey trade a couple years ago was pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard. He impressed in Spring Training and could get the call up to the show at the end of the year. The 1-2-3 punch of Harvey, Wheeler, and Syndergaard should be enough to make any team scared of the Mets in the coming years, but until then, Mets fans will have to wait. The Mets have a sneaky-good rotation and could surprise some people. Other holes that the Mets had was their outfield and their shortstop position. For their outfield, they signed Chris Young and Yankee’s slugger Curtis Granderson. These signings have drastically changed the outfield for the better because last year the outfield was one of the worst in all of baseball. There were speculations that the Mets would sign shortstop Stephen Drew to help fill the shortstop role, but the signing never occurred so it seems as if the Mets will rotate between Wilmer Flores and Ruben Tejada. First base may be a problem as well, but if Ike Davis can perform like he is very capable of, the Mets may surprise some people this year. I do not know if they will reach the 90 win mark, but I do think they may be able to make a run at that coveted second wild card spot!
Potential Opening Day Starting Lineup 1. Eric Young LF 2. Daniel Murphy 2B 3. David Wright 3B 4. Curtis Granderson CF 5. Ike Davis 1B 6. Chris Young RF 7. Travis d’Arnaud 8. Ruben Tejada SS | Potential Starting Rotation 1. Dillon Gee 2. Bartolo Colon 3. Zack Wheeler 4. Jon Niese 5. Jennry Mejia |