New York Mets: Three underrated players crucial to success in 2020

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - AUGUST 17: Relief pitcher Justin Wilson #38 of the New York Mets throws in the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on August 17, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - AUGUST 17: Relief pitcher Justin Wilson #38 of the New York Mets throws in the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on August 17, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 14: Justin Wilson #38 of the New York Mets in action against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on September 14, 2019 in New York City. The Mets defeated the Dodgers 3-0. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 14: Justin Wilson #38 of the New York Mets in action against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on September 14, 2019 in New York City. The Mets defeated the Dodgers 3-0. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

If the New York Mets are going to win in 2020, they are going to need a little help from these underrated contributors.

The New York Mets recently began spring training 2.0, aka “Summer Camp,” at their home stadium in Queens. So far, the talk of Mets town has revolved around whether Yoenis Cespedes is healthy enough to DH, how Dellin Betances’s bullpen sessions are going, and whether Jed Lowrie is indeed a figment of our collective imaginations.

Aside from those three, many other Mets players have reported to summer camp. Depending on how the 2020 season shakes out, the Amazins are going to need as deep of a roster as possible to compete against the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals, the rest of the NL East, and the perennial title contender New York Yankees.

The Mets roster, while strong overall, has question marks related to bullpen effectiveness and depth at the catcher position. With that said, let’s take a look at three players in those areas who have not been talked about much recently, but could play an important role in winning games for the Mets this year.

Justin Wilson

Amidst the shuffle of trading for Edwin Diaz and Robinson Cano, along with the fruitful trade for J.D. Davis, Brodie Van Wagenen’s signing of Justin Wilson proved to be one of his best moves last offseason. Wilson started off last year ominously battling elbow soreness. He had two separate IL stints in the first half and made only one appearance between April 19 and July 2. Wilson’s prolonged absence contributed heavily to the Mets’ first half bullpen woes.

But once he was back on the field for good in July, Wilson was a crucial piece of the Mets’ bullpen and served as the primary left-handed reliever. Though he began his Mets tenure with a 4.82 ERA in his first 10 appearances, from July 2 through September 15 he pitched to a 1.40 ERA. His reliability led to several 9th inning appearances in September, resulting in four saves.

Wilson’s 2019 campaign may get overlooked because of his lengthy injuries. However, he finished the year with a 2.54 ERA in 45 appearances, the best ERA in the Mets bullpen, and even lower than Seth Lugo’s 2.70 mark.

Though Lugo was heralded as the bullpen savior for the Mets in 2019, Wilson deserves just as much credit for his role in securing victories in 2019. This season, the Mets recently bolstered their relief supply by signing Hunter Strickland and Jared Hughes, both righty relievers. This still leaves Wilson as the best lefty in the Mets bullpen. Given the ever-tenuous nature of that bullpen, any chance the Mets have of competing this year rests heavily on the health of Wilson’s left elbow.

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 27: Drew Smith #62 of the New York Mets during a game against the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field on September 27, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Mets defeated the Braves 4-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 27: Drew Smith #62 of the New York Mets during a game against the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field on September 27, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Mets defeated the Braves 4-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Drew Smith

When the Mets said goodbye to slugger Lucas Duda via trade in 2017, they received hard-throwing right-hander Drew Smith in return. Smith made his major league debut with the Mets the following season. He was a bright spot out of the bullpen in 2018, with his 3.54 ERA in 28 innings suggesting a promising future.

The next year in spring training, with his eyes on a permanent spot in the Mets bullpen, Smith tore his UCL after four scoreless appearances. He had Tommy John surgery in March of last year, missing all of the 2019 season. Given his relatively brief tenure in Queens so far, Mets fans may have forgotten about him.

But Smith is too important to ignore. At age 26, he has yet to pitch a full season in the major leagues and is still relatively unseasoned at the big league level. Names like Lugo, Betances, Edwin Diaz, and Jeurys Familia may be grabbing most of the headlines early on in this baseball restart, but Smith was included on the 60 player pool for a reason. The Amazins clearly believe he is healthy enough to contribute on the field, and Smith aims to prove that his newly repaired right arm will hold up to a major league pitching workload.

“I try not to think about my elbow or throwing too hard or too slow, anything like that,” said Smith in a February 2020 interview. “I’m just doing exactly what I did before surgery and letting everything else take care of itself.”

With any luck, it will.

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – MARCH 08: Rene Rivera #44 of the New York Mets in action against the Houston Astros during a spring training baseball game at Clover Park on March 8, 2020 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The Mets defeated the Astros 3-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – MARCH 08: Rene Rivera #44 of the New York Mets in action against the Houston Astros during a spring training baseball game at Clover Park on March 8, 2020 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The Mets defeated the Astros 3-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Rene Rivera

After Wilson Ramos, the catching options are rather slim. For the last couple of years, Tomas Nido has served as the primary backup catcher. Though Nido is often cited for his superior defensive glove, his batting averages of .167 and .191 in 2018 and 2019, respectively, do not inspire much confidence in his offensive ability.

Luckily for the Mets, they’ll have another potential backup catcher this season in Rene Rivera. The 36-year-old backstop first played for the Mets in 2016, when he spent 65 games behind the plate. He returned to that role in 2017 until his first stint in Queens ended in August when he was claimed off waivers by the Chicago Cubs.

Rivera returned to Flushing last year on a minor league deal. He spent much of the season in Triple-A Syracuse, where he mashed 25 home runs. After a brief cup of coffee back in the big leagues at the end of the 2019 season, mostly catching Noah Syndergaard, the Mets re-signed him in January 2020.

Rivera’s career stats of a .221 batting average and a .626 OPS are not head-turning, by any means. They do suggest that he is slightly more threatening at the plate than the often ice-cold Nido. Rivera also has a much higher career caught-stealing percentage, albeit with a much larger sample size. He has thrown out 36% of potential base stealers in his career, exceeding Nido’s career 13% mark by a wide margin.

With any luck, Ramos will catch the large majority of Mets games this season. However, on days he does not catch, the Mets might be better off with Rivera behind the plate than Nido. Rivera is nearly as good defensively as Nido, with more power and a better overall bat. Rivera’s presence on the field might not be the deciding factor in the Mets’ success this season, but his arm, more so than Nido’s, can minimize stolen base threats and halt opposing rallies.

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None of these three players are poised to compete for “team MVP” in 2020. However, the Mets should hope that one of them will exceed expectations and become a prominent figure on the 2020 roster.

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