The 2024 New York Mets had been the final word “it is over/we’re so again” baseball crew. They began 0-5, then had a 12-3 run, then misplaced 27 of their subsequent 39 video games, after which had the most effective document in baseball (65-38) from June 3 via the top of the season. The Mets wanted a clutch ninth-inning homer to beat the Braves in Recreation 161 simply to get to the postseason, then they wanted one other to beat the Brewers in Recreation 3 of the Wild Card Sequence. Each time you thought you had been out, the Mets pulled you again in.
In spite of everything these ups and downs, New York’s season got here to finish Sunday evening, with a loss to the Dodgers in Recreation 6 of the Nationwide League Championship Sequence. The magic lastly ran out. The Dodgers will tackle the Yankees within the World Sequence and the Mets are heading house after a profitable season, albeit one with an unsatisfying ending.
Fact be advised although, 2024 ought to solely be the beginning of an prolonged interval of rivalry for the Mets, who’ve virtually unmatched monetary assets, a vibrant entrance workplace led by POBO David Stearns, and a major-league expertise base that features MVP candidate Francisco Lindor and touted younger sluggers Francisco Alvarez and Mark Vientos, amongst others. On the similar time, there’s work to be achieved this offseason. Maybe greater than is normally wanted for a crew coming off an 89-win season and an NLCS berth.
Listed here are three questions dealing with Stearns, the Mets, and proprietor Steve Cohen this offseason.
1. What occurs with Alonso?
For a lot of the final six years, slugging first baseman Pete Alonso has been the Mets’ hottest participant, and definitely one among their most efficient. His 219 house runs because the begin of 2019 are the second most in baseball behind Aaron Decide’s 232, and a typical Alonso season in 2025 would transfer him forward of Darryl Strawberry and make him the franchise house run chief. Since Day 1, Alonso has been an amazing Met, each on the sector and along with his work in the neighborhood.
Along with his thirtieth birthday developing in December, Alonso is ready to grow to be a free agent this offseason, and the very fact of the matter is his manufacturing has slipped the final two years. His 34 house runs this season had been his fewest in a 162-game season, and he had a .324 on-base proportion in over 1,300 plate appearances the final two years. The historical past of righty-hitting/righty-throwing first basemen of their 30s is horrible. In all chance, the Mets have already gotten the most effective years of Alonso’s profession.
Objectively, saying thanks for the final six years and letting another crew pay high greenback for Alonso’s decline is the way in which to go. Simply take the win, you understand? The Mets might then slide Vientos over the primary base, which is probably going his long-term place anyway, and proceed trending towards youthful and extra athletic gamers with a brand new third baseman, or preserve Vientos at third and discover a new first baseman. That mentioned, Alonso may be very fashionable and nonetheless productive, and letting him depart wouldn’t go over effectively with a lot of the fan base. So it goes when a star hits free company.
Nothing on this sport occurs in a vacuum. Re-signing Alonso would change the way in which Stearns & Co. construct out the roster as a result of first base (and in addition to some extent DH) can be occupied, and that is not essentially a nasty factor. Holding the favored participant you understand can carry out in your market is defensible. On the similar time, letting Alonso depart as a free agent would open different doorways, together with maybe …
2. How aggressively do they pursue Soto?
I think the reply may be very aggressively, as in they’re going to be proper there till the end line. My guess — I emphasize that is solely a guess — is Juan Soto will finally return to the Yankees, although my confidence in that’s 55/45 moderately than, say, 90/10. Cohen and the Mets can match any free-agent contract supply in the event that they so select, so it’ll come right down to promoting Soto on the group as a lot as something, and the Yankees have had a 10-month headstart with direct entry. Additionally, the Yankees are within the World Sequence. That most likely will not damage their possibilities of retaining Soto.
Level is, Soto is a generational expertise and he’ll flip solely 26 later this month. He is an in-his-prime megastar and is strictly the type of participant the Mets and each huge market crew ought to pursue. Soto’s prime aligns effectively with what’s left of Lindor’s prime, and he is a magnetic character whose worth transcends what he does on the sector. Signal him and he will promote tickets, he will promote merchandise, he will the Corridor of Fame in your crew’s uniform and can add the franchise’s legacy that method. The query is not will the Mets pursue Soto aggressively. In fact they may. The query is can they persuade him to go throughout city?
3. How can they fill out the rotation?
The Mets had a lot success this season thanks partly to a rotation that had three starters — Sean Manaea, Jose Quintana, Luis Severino — every make a minimum of 31 begins with no worse than a 3.91 ERA. Add in David Peterson, and people 4 pitchers mixed to begin 115 of the crew’s 162 video games, they usually did so with a 3.56 ERA whereas averaging 5.7 innings per begin. Most nights this 12 months the Mets despatched a high quality starter to the mound. That is a reasonably good basis for a contending crew.
Now comes the arduous half. Manaea, Quintana, and Severino are all free brokers — Manaea will certainly decide out his $13.5 million wage for 2025 and hit the market — and Stearns and his workers should fill a number of innings over the winter. Right here is New York’s rotation depth chart utilizing solely gamers below contract or crew management in 2025:
- RHP Kodai Senga (missed virtually all of 2024 with accidents)
- LHP David Peterson
- RHP Tylor Megill
- RHP Paul Blackburn (missed finish of 2024 with spinal fluid leak)
RHP Christian Scott(will miss 2025 with Tommy John surgical procedure)- RHP José Buttó (had his most success as a reliever in 2024)
The Mets might put Buttó again within the rotation — there’s one thing to be mentioned for studying how you can get outs within the bullpen and taking that again right into a beginning function — however he was a trusted high-leverage reliever a lot of the 12 months. Senga and Blackburn are mysteries given their accidents. Prospects like Dominic Hamel, Brandon Sproat, Blade Tidwell, and Mike Vasil might enter the image, although none pitched significantly effectively in Triple-A this 12 months, and ideally they’re midseason call-ups, not Opening Day roster candidates.
Throughout his years with the Brewers, Stearns was excellent at unearthing hidden gems and high quality pitchers, and he can be anticipated to do this this offseason. He has a a lot greater payroll to play with too, so anticipate him to take some greater swings. Nearly each crew has to improve its rotation over the winter. That is simply baseball. The Mets aren’t any totally different besides that their high three starters when it comes to innings pitched are about to hit free company. Beginning pitching can be a major focus this offseason.