Mets Roster: A comprehensive guide to building an elite defense

In a few simple steps, the New York Mets can have an elite-level team on defense.

The New York Mets roller coaster of a 2020 season has been emblematic of a wild year. While it feels like nearly everything has changed during this unique season, one thing remains the same: the Mets’ defense is struggling.

New York finished the 2019 season with a porous -26.8 defensive rating as a team (26th out of 30 teams).  So far in 2020, they are ranked 21st overall with a -3.3 rating.  For the record, the franchise has averaged a finish of 26th overall from 2015-2018. Simply put, the team’s defense has been a major Achilles heel.

Can the Mets solve this longtime flaw in time for aces Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard to lead the way in 2021? Here are a few practical offseason steps the front office can take to go from the bottom to the top.

Sign J.T. Realmuto

How’s this for a splash?! The Mets have lived in catcher purgatory for a long time. While the likes of Travis d’Arnaud, John Buck, Josh Thole, and Rod Barajas all had fun moments in orange and blue, none were considered to be elite options.

All things considered, adding former All-Star Wilson Ramos before the 2019 season has given the Mets their best catcher in recent memory. While his bat has proven valuable (2020 struggles notwithstanding), he has also been a major defensive liability. In fact, Ramos’ 94 stolen bases allowed in 2019 was worst in the league by a wide margin.

So why not fix this issue in one power move? J.T. Realmuto has widely been considered the best catcher in baseball for the past several seasons. His Gold Glove defensive abilities combined with his .279 career batting average and an average of 21 home runs per season makes him the complete package.

Not only would he become one of the most dangerous hitters on the roster, but the Mets’ overall defense would receive a massive boost. He would also immediately stop opposing base runners wreaking havoc.

While Realmuto would be a perfect fit in NYC, he will come with a lofty price tag. Some have speculated that he could receive roughly $18 million a season on a five-year deal. Jon Heyman has reasoned that he will seek to break Joe Mauer’s record of $23 million per season on up to a seven-year contract.

The presence of the pandemic and the team’s ownership uncertainty could affect their wiliness to commit to such a large contract. However, if things fall right, there is no reason the Mets could not afford to make this franchise-altering move.

Stop Playing Bad Defenders Out of Position!

I understand why the Mets construct their lineup in the manner that they do. They have an abnormal number of players with great bats, but no natural defensive position where they can excel. Dominic Smith, J.D. Davis, and to some extent Jeff McNeil and Nimmo have all spent time playing out of position.

The addition of the DH slot is a major plus. In fact, there is no National League team that is positioned to benefit more from removing a bat from the field than the New York Mets. It will allow the team to build a much more natural defensive unit.

The first step will be to take Smith’s glove away as much as possible. He is not a good defensive first baseman. And he may be worse in left field. While his flexibility is helpful in a pinch, the rising star needs to take over as the everyday DH. I would limit his defensive play to a maximum of once per week.

If Smith resides at DH, it means Davis will need to be the everyday third baseman. He will likely never be a Gold Glove option at this spot. However, he has played very well in limited action in 2020. If you’re not a stat person, you can skip the next two paragraphs.

Davis’ 7.1 UZR/150 is by far the best of his career. His lifetime average at the position is -3.3.  Those numbers are advanced, but they indicate he may have turned a corner as an everyday third baseman. For the record, his numbers are awful in the outfield (career UZR/150 of -17.2). This means they can live with him at 3B.

McNeil’s metrics are solid at 3B (10.0 UZR/150) and LF (6.1 UZR/150). David needs to play third, and McNeil can proficiently man LF. This leaves Alonso locked in at 1B, Cano at 2B, and some combination of Gimenez and Rosario (trade notwithstanding) at SS. The Mets can live with this lineup.

Simply stated, Davis is terrible in the outfield and proficient at 3B. McNeil is a solid defender in most places, making him the ideal everyday LF. The key to this arrangement is the team has to stop shuffling players around unless absolutely necessary. If they trade for a center fielder, Nimmo can take over duties at any OF spot if needed.

The team needs to stop forcing Smith and Davis to play out of position.

Conclusion

These three steps should boost the Mets into the top tier of defensive units. Realmuto would control base runners and provide the best backstop glove in the league. A legitimate center fielder would allow the Mets to get the most from their pitching staff and save the team runs. A Rosario trade also opens up a starting spot for what appears to be a more consistent glove in Gimenez.

If the team is disciplined at keeping each player in their best position, the rest of the diamond will also drastically improve. However, as we have seen, this strategy collapses the moment a player more suited as a DH attempt to play an important position.

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If these three moves are made, there is no reason the Mets cannot enter the 2021 season with a healthy staff, a dangerous offense, and a top-five defense in the league.