By Nicole Horton
For New York Mets fans, the Brooklyn Dodgers’ adage “Wait ’Til Next Year” and Tug McGraw’s “Ya gotta believe” have been age-old rally cries in times of deep melancholy. Sandy Alderson repeatedly asserted that 2014 was the target year for the Mets to be competitive playoff contenders, after financially rebuilding as a result of Omar Minaya’s bad contracts.
However, young players such as Travis d’Arnaud and Wilmer Flores did not live up to their potentials, Matt Harvey underwent Tommy John surgery, David Wright’s numbers suffered as he tried to play through an injury and Curtis Granderson was not the power bat the Mets had hoped for with only 20 HR and 66 RBI.
There are a few uncertainties going into next season, but there are many aspects to look forward to as well. The team still does not possess a true power bat and the assessment of its minor league batters is overestimated. Has anyone considered looking into whether Carlos Delgado really needed to retire?
The Mets’ PR team is pushing for positive stories about Wilmer Flores’ off-season improvements as he looks to compete against Ruben Tejada for the starting job. If Mets fans knew that the team would still be looking to fill the void left by the dynamic Jose Reyes, they would have pulled him away from the Miami Marlins by his brightly colored necklaces. Each off-season, there have been rumors about the Mets looking to acquire star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, but Sandy Alderson was reluctant to deal young talent like Noah Syndergaard and Zack Wheeler.
Speaking of Syndergaard and Wheeler, the Mets can potentially have one of the best pitching rotations in the league this year and for years to come. The San Francisco Giants have proved that pitching can win championships, and the Mets have certainly tried to follow that model.
Due to Harvey’s injury, he and Zack Wheeler have never pitched a full season together, so it will be exciting to see them bring the heat in the same rotation. Meanwhile, Jacob deGrom has received a great deal of buzz, and Syndergaard is said to be very close to joining the team. Bartolo Colon is a sturdy option in the twilight of his career, and Jon Niese is reliable when healthy. They would make great third, fourth or even fifth starters depending on how the young arms perform.
Veteran leadership from David Wright and Curtis Granderson will be aided by the addition of Michael Cuddyer, who is known for being a positive clubhouse influence. Daniel Murphy will be playing in a contract year and, though he has always been a scrappy contact hitter, he will be challenged to prove that he deserves the biggest payoff in his career.
The anticipated training camp competitions between Travis d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki, along with Flores and Tejada, show that the Mets are looking to solidify the roster and remove uncertainties. The team has the veteran presence and outstanding rotation needed to carry it into the playoffs. Now it’s just time for everyone to stay healthy and get on a hot streak.
