Mets still need to do more after signing Jay Bruce

The news of Jay Bruce’s signing was extremely welcome after a bitter cold offseason, but there’s still more work that needs to be done to make this team a contender.

It would be unfair to not give Mets management props for the signing of Jay Bruce. They’ve locked him up on a deal that’s reportedly worth $39 million over three years. According to Ken Rosenthal, the Mets will backload the deal and will only have to pay him $10 million this year with increases coming his last two seasons in New York. Again, great deal.

This, however, should not be the end of the Mets spending or of their activity in general. There are still some glaring needs that have to be addressed before Spring Training starts, and if the organization is serious about contending, they’ll have to covered.

The infield

The infield is arguably the biggest need there is right now. As currently constructed, the Mets will have an infield composed of Asdrubal Cabrera at third base, Amed Rosario at shortstop, an unknown player (maybe Wilmer Flores) at second base, and Dominic Smith at first. That simply can’t work.

While we’re all hoping that both Rosario and Smith feel more comfortable in their second big league season, there are no guarantees that they’ll be able to produce right away the way a team contending for a division title or a Wild Card slot would need. This is why second base, and/or third base is so crucial.

If the Mets are okay having Asdrubal Cabrera play third base, as I personally am, then the focus should be second base. There are a couple of free agent possibilities like Neil Walker still out there, but the trade route seems to have more options. Jason Kipnis’ name has been mentioned several times as have Starlin Castro and Josh Harrison.

If you’re able to give me one of those guys in a Mets uniform, I will be 100% more excited about the upcoming season. Even with Smith and Rosario taking up two spots and looking to grow, a veteran second baseman can be huge in this infield.

The bullpen

While signing Anthony Swarzak was a big improvement, the Mets still need help in their pen. In the era of super bullpens, like the one being put together in Colorado, the Mets have gotten a few good arms in hopes that they can stay healthy and perform as they have in the past.

Jeurys Familia will hopefully stay healthy this year, and having guys like AJ Ramos, Jerry Blevins and the aforementioned Swarzak waiting in the wings makes the pen solid. But the team needs one more above average arm to really make this area one of strength.

I know people don’t like bringing back players from teams that failed, but Addison Reed was arguably the best Mets reliever over the past couple of seasons, so if he can be brought back, that should be a no-brainer.

Reed didn’t pitch as well in Boston as he did in Queens after he was traded, so maybe that contributes to him wanting to reunite with his old team. It wouldn’t be a splashy signing, but fortifying the bullpen with the addition of Reed would set this team up well for the 2018 campaign.

It’s weird to think about it this way, specially after the signing of Bruce, but if the Mets bring back Walker, and Reed, they are a better team than what they are right now and probably a better team than they were for the majority of 2017.