NY Mets: Five biggest challenges facing the Mets this offseason

The New York Mets will face five critical challenges this offseason to open the new Steve Cohen era of baseball in Queens.

The New York Mets are set out for an interesting offseason this winter with new owner Steve Cohen taking control of the reigns and a wide net of sweeping changes expected throughout the organization. With Mets fans already looking towards the start of the offseason as a dawn of a new era and excitement mounting by the day, there are certainly several challenges the franchise will face this winter when remolding the organization for the better.

The Mets ended the 2020 abbreviated season with quite a few questions surrounding the organization that will challenge not only Steve Cohen but also new Team President Sandy Alderson, as well as whoever may be sitting in the General Manager chair this winter.

This is a ballclub that is not too far away from being a legitimate playoff contender and this upcoming offseason may be one of the most important offseasons in recent memory in regards to building a team with sustainable success for the future seasons to come.

The Amazins’ will face several challenges this winter to continue building off of the young nucleus of players they have developed, maximizing the remaining years of Jacob deGrom’s prime, as well as bringing in pieces to the ballclub that will allow the team to reach its full potential and shore up the flaws that cost the club an opportunity at the postseason.

Due to these obstacles that the Mets will be looking towards, I’ve outlined the five biggest challenges that the organization will be facing head on this offseason.

2) Who manages the 2021 Mets?

After the Mets solve their General Manager dilemma, the next challenge the organization will face will be who is the leader in the clubhouse for the Mets next spring?

Current Manager Luis Rojas seems to check all of the boxes in terms of the analytical approach the team wants to invest in beginning this offseason. Rojas is also familiar with Sandy Alderson from his days as the General Manager in the organization, in which Rojas was a manager at multiple levels in the minors and was heavily considered as a riser in the coaching ranks.

However, there is no guarantee that Rojas is back managing the Mets in 2021. While Rojas did get the short end of the stick by having to navigate his first managerial experience in a shortened season, Rojas’s ultimate fate may lie at the feet of who is sitting in the General Manager’s office.

While Rojas’ decision making and overall comfortability in the dugout seemed to steadily improve as the season wore on, it’s currently undetermined if the Mets will want to keep the camaraderie with the young skipper and allow him a full 162 games to be evaluated on, or whether the Mets will target a more veteran option to try and take this team to the next level.

Rojas handled his job admirably this season considering all of the circumstances he faced after accepting the managerial job, as well as having to swallow he wasn’t current GM Brodie Van Wagenen’s first choice this past offseason. The players seem to back Rojas as the best option in the press, and his style certainly fits the new culture the Mets are building.

In the end, it will be the Mets General Manager’s first decision to make in regards to Rojas’s job security and it certainly will be one of the biggest challenges the organization has to answer this winter.

3) How will the Mets rebuild their rotation behind Jacob deGrom?

If there ever was one person in baseball who you would want to assist in fixing the disaster that was the Mets starting rotation in 2020, that person would be Mets President Sandy Alderson. It’s no question that besides ace Jacob deGrom and rising rookie David Peterson the Mets rotation was an unmitigated disaster. The biggest challenge for the Mets in terms of the on-field product will be rebuilding the starting rotation with three potential spots available this offseason.

Noah Syndergaard who underwent Tommy John Surgery in March will be back at some point next season, but the Mets can’t afford to put all of their marbles on a dominant return after a one-year layoff. The Mets will certainly need to be active in the free agency as well as the trade market to upgrade their starting rotation.

With starting pitchers Trevor Bauer, Marcus Stroman, Taijuan Walker, Jake Odorizzi, among others hitting the open market there will be no shortage of options for the Mets to build depth behind Jacob deGrom. The Texas Rangers will also be dangling Lance Lynn this offseason which could be another solid option for the Mets to consider adding this offseason.

The Mets also will need to build depth this offseason in terms of starting rotation options. After the losses of Syndergaard and Marcus Stroman, the trio of Rick Porcello, Michael Wacha, and Steve Matz were largely ineffective, which led the Mets having to patch the rotation with options who also weren’t effective. Those options included Corey Oswalt, Ariel Jurado, and a double-dip into the bullpen with Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman.

There may be no bigger challenge this offseason for the Mets than revamping the starting rotation back to the caliber we’ve come to expect over previous seasons.

4) How do the Mets upgrade the catching position?

With the expected departures of catchers Wilson Ramos and Robinson Chirinos, the Mets will be looking for a new starting catcher that provides an upgrade behind the plate both offensively and defensively. Luckily, one of the most highly-regarded catchers in baseball will be dipping his toes in free agency this winter and looking to break the bank with a record contract. Yes, that backstop goes by the name of J.T. Realmuto.

Whether the Mets cave into Realmuto’s demands in terms of money and length of a deal remains to be seen, but there is no doubt that Realmuto would immediately upgrade the backstop position. Realmuto would give them a superstar behind the plate that they haven’t had since Mike Piazza.

If the Mets don’t choose to engage in a potential bidding war for Realmuto’s services, James McCann would be a solid back-up option for the Mets to explore as he is highly regarded as one of the best catchers in baseball, with his bat also catching up to his defense over the past few seasons. McCann wouldn’t command the amount of money Realmuto would, and would still provide a significant upgrade behind the plate.

Other options this offseason include signing long-time nemesis Yadier Molina (yikes I can’t believe I just said that) or exploring a trade for a catcher such as Christian Vasquez or Salvador Perez. The entire offseason may depend on what stance they take at the catching position which makes this potential challenge all the more magnified this winter.

5) Who is the Mets starting shortstop in 2021?

The Mets starting shortstop situation oozes with possibilities for the 2021 campaign. After top prospect Andres Gimenez outplayed Amed Rosario for most of the season, many questions have arisen as to how the Mets should handle the shortstop position. With two very young and promising shortstops at the organization’s disposal, it may be very likely that they move one of the two this offseason for a position of need on the Major League roster.

There is also the possibility that the team makes a big splash this winter and secure a blockbuster trade this offseason with the Cleveland Indians for 26-year old superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor. That would be the type of move to send shockwaves through the baseball community and announce the arrival of new owner Steve Cohen in a grand fashion.

There have also been rumblings of potentially moving Amed Rosario to center field next season which I think would be a big mistake for a team that already tends to struggle defensively in addition to playing many players out of their natural position. If the team believes Rosario isn’t their shortstop of the future it may be the best move for the team to make him expendable this offseason.

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The Mets certainly have a formidable challenge on their hands this winter when trying to figure out who will man the shortstop position. Whether the Mets make a deal for Lindor or choose to stick with one of their homegrown shortstops in Gimenez or Rosario, there will be many eyes from fans as well as other teams around the league as to how the Mets plan to handle their shortstop situation.