New York Mets final report card grades for the 2020 season

After a short and strange 2020 season, the New York Mets sit at home in October once again. Time to give the final report cards out.

The New York Mets completed a disappointing season with a 26-34 record and missing out on the playoffs for the 12th time in the last 14 seasons. They dealt with multiple players opting out, losing Noah Syndergaard to injury, and a complete shut down of the league.

Yet, there is still no excuse to not make the expanded playoffs. This win-now team that won 86 games in 2019 have only themselves to blame. Bad pitching, poor defense, awful baserunning, and fundamentals. It was just an awful year for the Mets which fittingly ends the Wilpons tenure as owners of the franchise.

Grading the players, the general manager, and manager is tough with only two months of action. One bad game can put a big dent in a player’s stat line. Guys like Pete Alonso really picked it up in the last week and if he was given more time, I’m sure he would’ve performed better. But alas, here are the player grades for the 2020 season.

Jacob deGrom

His 2020 season might not have been as dominant as the previous two, but he will still be in the top three for the National League Cy Young Award. deGrom went 4-2 with a 2.38 ERA striking out 104 batters in 68 innings pitched. The 104 strikeouts led the National League despite the fact that he missed a start with injury and left another start early due to injury. deGrom displayed increased velocity which saw his fastball top out at an absurd 102.2 miles per hour. His fastball averaged 98.6 miles per hour which was the hardest in all of baseball. His strikeout rate was as high as it has ever been as well at 38.8% and he struck out 13.8 batters per nine innings, by far his highest. Previously it was 11.3 last year. deGrom somehow is getting better and better.

Grade: A+

Michael Conforto

Conforto took his game to another level in 2020. He had a .322/.412/.515 slash line with 9 home runs and 31 RBI. While the power production is a bit down, he still is on pace for about 25 home runs in a 162-game season. He raised his batting average by 65 points from last year and his on-base percentage by 49 points. He went the other way consistently and was a table-setter for the middle of the order bats. Conforto also really stepped up in the field as he made a number of outstanding plays in right field including one that could be a top catch of the year candidate against the Orioles. Conforto was the most consistent bat in the Mets lineup all season. Steve Cohen, please extend him.

Grade: A+

Dominic Smith

Once Yoenis Cespedes opted out, Dominic Smith got his shot to play every day. And boy, did he take advantage of that opportunity. Dom had a .316/.377/.616 slash line with 10 home runs and 42 RBI. He was top five in the National League in slugging, OPS, doubles, RBI, and extra base hits. This was all while only starting 48 of the 60 games the Mets played. Dom was one of the few Mets who actually hit with runners in scoring position as he hit .333 in those situations. He was the middle of the order bat they needed and really broke out. The Mets must figure out a way to get him in the lineup every day in 2021.

Grade: A+

Robinson Cano

This season gave Mets fans some hope that they got something out of the Jarred Kelenic trade. Cano had a .316/.352/.544 slash line with 10 home runs and 30 RBI. Cano did get hurt and spend a little time on the IL but other than that one stint, he played virtually every day either as the DH or as the second baseman. This kind of production at the plate will help Mets fans cope a little easier with losing a future star in Kelenic. The hope is that he can stay healthy in a 162-game season and produce the entire way. We’ll see what happens next year.

Grade: A

David Peterson

Peterson gave the Mets more than they could have ever hoped for this season. He began the year at the alternate site, losing out on the fifth starter job to Corey Oswalt. Luckily for him and for the Mets, they had to use Oswalt in a blowout loss against the Braves the first week of the season and were forced to call up Peterson to start in Oswalt’s place. Peterson pitched 5.2 innings and allowed two runs in a win at Fenway Park in his debut and pitched really well most of the time after that. He inexplicably was even removed from the rotation at one point but never lost his poise and his confidence and was really solid. He went 6-2 with a 3.44 ERA, striking out 40 in 49.2 innings. The one issue that needs to be fixed is his walks as he walked 4.3 batters per nine innings. But for a guy who never pitched an inning in AAA, this season was remarkable. He has solidified himself a spot in the rotation next year and hopefully the long-term future.

Grade A

Erasmo Ramirez

This is a name I’m sure none of you had on any list entering the season. Ramirez was called up in early September out of desperation as the Mets needed a long man in the bullpen. Ramirez fit that role perfectly. He allowed just one run in 14.1 innings pitched, a 0.63 ERA. He helped save multiple games for the Mets by pitching scoreless innings of relief and giving time for the bats to come back. He’s presented an interesting case for a return next season.

Grade: A-

Luis Guillorme

He could not have done any more with the opportunities he was given this year. He had a .333/.426/.865 slash line in 57 at-bats and provided great value in the spot starts he made. The arrival of Todd Frazier really cost him all of the playing time he was getting earlier in the season. I still don’t get why they never played Guillorme more. He played great defense at second, third, and short, and went 7/18 with runners in scoring position, a .389 average. I hope the Mets can find some playing time for him next year, but it’ll be tough with all of the other bats they currently have.

Grade: A-

Edwin Diaz

We saw the flashes of dominance last year, despite the horrible year from Diaz. This year, it seems that he has finally put it all together as a Met. He had a 1.75 ERA in 26 appearances and struck out an unheard of 50 batters in 25.2 innings pitched. This adds up to 17.5 strikeouts per nine innings pitched. Last year, his two biggest problems were the walks and home runs given up. Last season, Diaz allowed 2.3 home runs per nine innings. This year, Diaz allowed just 2 home runs in 25.2 innings pitched, 0.7 home runs per nine innings. A massive improvement. The walks are still an issue, but if he can work on that next year, he will be very tough to handle late in games. The reason he is not at an A+ is he only converted 6 of his 10 save opportunities. Had he converted those, the Mets would be in the postseason. However, he did complete his last four opportunities, and only allowed one run in September. A very good year for the likely closer in 2021.

Grade: B+

Jeff McNeil

McNeil got off to an uncharacteristically slow start and dealt with a couple of injuries this season. Even with the slow start, he managed to put up a .311/.454/.836 slash line with four home runs and 23 RBI. McNeil, who hit 23 home runs last year, didn’t hit his first until September 6th. He then proceeded to hit the rest of the home runs he hit the next three games. It was an odd year for McNeil who felt like he didn’t even have a good year yet he was still able to hit over .300 and played four positions in the field.

Grade: B+

Brandon Nimmo

Nimmo had an A+ bat this year. He had a .280/.404/.484 slash line with 8 home runs and 18 RBI. He was on pace for 21 home runs, the most he’s had, while having an on-base percentage of over .400. He was getting on base consistently for the Mets this year and it’s unfortunate the team struggled so much to drive him in. While he was great at the plate, he was awful in the field. Nimmo has proven he is not a center fielder and the Mets need to bring in someone who can play every day in that position. What this means for Nimmo is yet to be seen but I do know Nimmo cannot be the everyday center fielder anymore.

Grade: B+

Andres Gimenez

Another great rookie this year was Andres Gimenez. He was a surprising presence on the opening day roster but he performed well above expectations. He had a .263/.333/.398 slash line with two home runs and 12 RBI. He also led the team with eight stolen bases in nine attempts. Gimenez looked comfortable at the plate, and that was a concern for the Mets leading up to this season. Gimenez has always been known for his glove and he did not disappoint in that area. He was a steady force at shortstop, second base, and third base this season. Down the stretch, he was playing every day against right-handed pitching. I’m very interested to see what the Mets do with Amed Rosario because the Gimenez’s performance this year warrants a lot of playing time next year.

Grade: B+

Chasen Shreve

Shreve had the new role of being a long reliever out of the Mets bullpen. He struggled a bit down the stretch which is why his ERA is at 3.96 but he pitched much better than that number shows. He came in early after the starters struggled and kept the Mets in game they had no business being in. The 30-year-old has solidified a role in the Mets ‘pen in 2021 and I couldn’t be happier. Left-handed hitters went just 2/32 against Shreve, a .067 average. He showcased a really good splitter in two strike counts which led to him striking out a career-high 12.2 per nine innings. A very good season by someone the Mets expected to be a low leverage innings eater at best.

Grade: B+

Seth Lugo

Lugo faced a tough situation moving into the rotation mid-season. He was forced to stretch out which is not easy to do in the middle of a season, and had some good starts down the stretch for the Mets He did also have some clunkers. The inconsistency in the rotation raises a lot of question marks about his status for the 2021 season. I was a big advocate of the switch for this season as the Mets desperately needed a starting pitcher to give them quality length. He definitely gave them more of that than guys like Michael Wacha, Rick Porcello, and Steven Matz did. He is clearly better out of the bullpen. But the Mets’ lack of starting pitching might force him to at least begin the year in the rotation. Hopefully, with a full offseason of being stretched out, he can perform with more consistency in the rotation if that is indeed where he is to begin next season.

Grade: B

Justin Wilson

Wilson quietly had a very solid 2020 campaign. His ERA was inflated due to a couple of bad outings in the beginning of the season, but he allowed just one run in September and helped get the Mets out of multiple jams. He’s a free agent and is someone I wouldn’t mind the Mets bringing back. He’s proven to be a good high leverage left-handed reliever. If he leaves, the Mets would have to find a replacement and it’s hard to tell if the replacement will be as good as Wilson has been in his two seasons as a Met.

Grade: B

Jeurys Familia

It was a nice bounce-back season for Familia. While he still didn’t show that the contract the Mets gave him was worth it, he was at least usable this year. Familia still has a really bad walk issue as he walked 6.4 batters per nine innings, but he was able to get out of the jams he created a lot of the time. As long as he throws scoreless innings, it doesn’t really matter how many base runners he allows. He had a FIP of 4.92 which shows he got lucky getting out of the jams he did get out of. He only struck out 7.8 batters per nine innings, more than a strikeout less than his career average of 9.3. That does however raise red flags for next year as to whether he will still be able to be productive. Hopefully, he can.

Grade: B-

Brad Brach

14 walks in 12.1 innings was the story. In September in particular, Brach could not find the strike zone. In two of his final three outings Brach walked all three batters he faced. That’s just unacceptable. Brach has always had a walk problem but never like this. He had a 5.84 ERA this season after his bout with COVID-19.  He has a $1.25 Million Dollar player option which he will likely accept. Next season, he will have to find the strike zone to be a part of this bullpen.

Grade: D

Robinson Chirinos

Chirinos was trded to the Mets at the deadline for reasons I won’t ever understand. He slashed .219/.242/.375 as a Met with one home run in 32 at-bats as a Met. The way Tomas Nido played should give him the opportunity to be the backup catcher next season, so hopefully Chirinos won’t be back.

Grade: D

Rick Porcello

The 2016 American League Cy Young Award winner signed a one year $10 Million Dollar deal this offseason to be in the back of the rotation for the Mets. Due to the Syndergaard injury and the Stroman opt-out, Porcello was pushed up to be the third starter. The one thing he did well was make every start. He was the only Met to do that. Other than that, it was an awful season for the lifelong Mets fan. Porcello went 1-7 with a 5.64 ERA in his 12 starts this season. What bumped his grade from an F to a D- was his second to last start of the season. He went seven innings and allowed one run with 10 strikeouts in a loss to the Braves. The signing made no sense after he had the highest ERA of all qualified starters in the American League last year, and it shouldn’t be too shocking that he wasn’t productive.

Grade: D-

Amed Rosario

Very disappointing year for Rosario. He lost his starting job, and was awful for most of the year. Rosario slashed .252/.272/.371 this season with four home runs and 15 RBI. It was not the breakout year many expected after his outstanding second half last year. Rosario drew his first of four walks this season on August 31st. In order for Rosario to claim his starting job back he must show better plate discipline because he went half of this season without a single walk. Another shocking stat is that Rosario did not steal a single base. Yes, he was not on base a ton but someone with that much speed has to have at least one stolen base in two months. Pete Alonso had more stolen bases for crying out loud.

Grade: F

Dellin Betances

Betances was one of the more exciting signings this offseason. He was expected to be that dominant set up guy to get to Diaz or Lugo to close a game out. That never happened. In my first set of report cards, I wrote that I was worried about his stuff. His fastball was topping out at 94-95 mph and he wasn’t getting the strikeouts he had gotten his entire career. That trend continued. He struck out 8.5 batters per nine innings this year. Not bad, but when you compare that number to the 14.5 K/9 in his career, you can see that his stuff just isn’t the same. Betances had a 7.71 ERA this year and walked a whopping 9.3 batters per nine. Anytime a pitcher walks more batters than he strikes out, that’s bad news. While he’s always had a walk problem, he’s always had the stuff to just strike out every batter. It appears that he doesn’t have that anymore. Betances missed a lot of time with a lat injury, and he said he was hiding that injury for much of the season. Hopefully next year he will be fully healthy and can regain that 98-99 mph fastball we were so used to seeing when he was a Yankee. The Mets need him to be that dominant set up man he used to be. He has a $6 Million Dollar player option which he will likely take. So, expect him to be a Met and expect to see him on the mound in close games. Hopefully he can step it up.

Grade: F

Michael Wacha

The 2013 NLCS MVP got through five innings just three times in his eight appearances. Wacha was expected to fight for a rotation spot with Steven Matz but after the injuries, he was deemed the number four starter. It was a disaster. Wacha went 1-4 with a 6.62 ERA this season. Wacha along with Porcello, were reclamation projects. They were guys who have had success in the past but haven’t been affective lately. The Mets took a chance on both of them and failed miserably. Wacha did not have a single quality start as a Met and his only solid start was his first start of the year against the 24-36 Red Sox. The home run ball really cost him as he allowed nine home runs in 34 innings pitched. He allowed a home run in every appearance but one. It just did not go well at all for Wacha this season.

Grade: F

Wilson Ramos

2020 was a big struggle for the Buffalo. He slashed .239/.297/.387 with five home runs and 15 RBI. Last season, Ramos was huge for the Mets with his clutch hitting. That took a huge step back this season as he went just 5-36 with runners in scoring position, a .139 average. Last season, Ramos hit over .300 in those situations. He was just one of many Mets who seemingly shrunk with runners in scoring position. Furthermore, Ramos struggled mightily behind the plate. Last season, he was hitting so it was less noticeable just how bad he is defensively. The way the Mets had him set up was on one knee to try and get more low strikes called. This didn’t work, and this made Ramos even more immobile than he was before, and it was pretty much impossible for him to block a ball. Ramos also cost the Mets a game not getting a tag down. The Mets must look elsewhere to find a catcher who can actually play the position and hit. It’s been way too long since the Mets have had that.

Grade: F

Steven Matz

Boy, what a disappointing season. With the injuries to the rotation, Matz was bumped up to be the number two starter in this rotation behind Jacob deGrom. His first start went well, he allowed one run in six innings. After that, it all went downhill. Matz finished the season with an 0-5 record and an ERA of 9.68. He allowed 14 home runs in 30.2 innings pitched. 4.1 home runs per nine innings. Matz has always had a home run problem, but never this bad. Matz showed a ton of promise at the second half of last season, and this season was just such a disappointment. He never got on track. The Mets cannot pencil him in as a member of their rotation for next year and need to seriously consider non-tendering him.

Grade: F

Luis Rojas

The first-year skipper certainly had his ups and downs. I thought his lineup construction in September was subpar. J.D. Davis was clearly struggling the entire month yet he hit third pretty much every night. I understand the point of this was to balance the righties and lefties, but when the lefties are hitting better against righties and lefties than the righties, there’s no reason to put a struggling hitter in the heart of the order.

Furthermore, Jeff McNeil hit .356 in September. He was hitting 7th most nights. Again, I get the righty lefty balance but a big part of the reason runners were left on base is because guys like Pete Alonso and J.D. Davis were leaving them on. In regards to the bullpen, I think the fact that nobody other than Jacob deGrom gave the Mets consistent length out of the bullpen, it was a pretty impossible job to do well. Arms were tired and options were low most nights. I think he did the best with what he had.

The players love Rojas, and I think he hasn’t done anything to lose this job yet. I think Brodie is the one to go when Steve Cohen takes over. If it were me, I give Rojas another year at least to see how he does with a competent General Manager and competent ownership.

Grade: B

Brodie Van Wagenen

Clearly not fit to be a General Manager. He doesn’t value any kind of minor league pitching depth. His statement of wanting to win now and in the future obviously meant just win now. His plans of winning now have not worked. While Cano and Diaz played much better this year, the Mets still got fleeced in that trade, and both players have their flaws.

The trades of young assets for one-dimensional center fielders, I will never understand. The Jake Marisnick, Keon Broxton, and Billy Hamilton trades all failed miserably. I understand the Wilpon’s didn’t want to re-sign Zack Wheeler, but the guys Brodie picked out in Porcello and Wacha to try and fill that gap were a disaster. The Marcus Stroman trade, while you can say it’s not completely his fault as Stroman opted out, backfired. The Mets likely traded two good prospects for a couple of months of average production from a starting pitcher who didn’t help them reach the playoffs.

The one move I can say worked was the J.D. Davis trade. Yet, even he did not play well this year. To sum up, I hope the Mets let Brodie go. I think they will, and that’s a very good thing. They should hire someone who has a front office background, preferably an analytical background, who can build this team right. The one positive from this year, is he didn’t sell the farm for anyone. The Chirinos trade made zero sense, the Frazier trade made little sense, and the Hamilton trade was just a disaster.

Grade: F

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