NY Mets: Simulating 8 years into the future with MLB The Show 21

San Diego Studio’s MLB The Show game has always been a favorite of mine since the glory days of the New York Mets David Wright gracing the cover in 2007. In honor of the MLB The Show 21 and the near conclusion of the 2021 MLB regular season, I have put in the effort of reporting the results of simulating the Mets franchise 8 years into the future, to the year 2029.

Just to give you a taste of how accurate in prediction this game can be take a look at Pete Alonso’s 2021 statistics as we approach the end of the season compared with his simulated statistics for the 2021 MLB season in the MLB the Show game:

Real-life 2021 through September: .260 BA, 35 HR, 89 RBI

MLB 21 The Show simulated 2021 season statistics: .257 BA, 40 HR and 112 RBI

Let’s take a look into the glass ball and predict the future with this game starting with the year 2022.  Find out who stays loyal, who wins the hardware, how the team performs as a whole, and ultimately whether the Mets win a World Series with this MLB The Show 21 New York Mets franchise mode simulation.

Notable Pre-2022 season in-game trades and free agency:

June 20th, 2021, Mets trade 26-year-old 73 overall B potential 2B Luis Guillorme (last year on contract, ~$500k but still three arb years ahead), to the Yankees for 37-year-old, 70 overall, A potential LF Brett Gardner (2 years at 2 million a year left on the contract).

July 18th Mets make blockbuster move to acquire 25-year-old 78 overall A potential CF Kyle Lewis for SS Shervyen Newton, 20 years old, 64 overall, B potential.

Note* Player potential ratings are done on an A-D scale, with an A-level potential player expected to eventually reach an overall rating of 90-99 by their age 29 or 30 season (their peak).

Notable Free agency

The Mets sign sp, 86 overall, 35-year-old Corey Kluber 1 year 18.9 mill

Mets lose 90 overall 28-year-old Noah Syndergaard in free agency to the texas rangers, he signs 6 years/23 million dollar a year deal

Mets sign sp Eduardo Rodriguez to a 2-year deal worth 15.7 million dollars a year

Jonatha Villar signs with 2 year deal with CWS

Not surprising to lose Syndergaard here and it actually makes sense, see him going back to his home state of Texas. Eduardo Rodriguez is a solid replacement.

Here’s what the 2022 starting lineup, rotation, and bullpen shapes to be:

Starters

Starting pitching rotation

deGrom, 99
Kluber, 86
Carrasco, 85
Eduardo Rodriguez, 81
David Peterson, 79

Player ratings are done on a 1-99 scale. Clearly, deGrom’s excellence is still being recognized and he hasn’t started to decline yet one bit. There’s one name that missing here in the rotation and that is Marcus Stroman. It is surprising to me too. The game favors young players, as it should because they have longer and more promising futures. Take a look now at what the 2022 bullpen shapes up to be:

Bullpen

Lrp 79 Walker

Lrp 79 Stroman

Mrp 78 Betances

Mrp 72 Luis Avilan

Mrp 72 Shane Greene

Su 83 Lugo

Su 82 May

Cp 85 Diaz

People might be wondering where Aaron Loup is. Unfortunately, the game disrespected him and maybe due to his age or a stigma towards slow throwing pitchers, he was left out with a 70 overall rating. He’s probably floating in the minors somewhere on the veterans minimum.

And now for the offense:

Lineup

2B McNeil 89

DH Donovan Solano 77

LF Smith 84

1B Alonso 88

RF Conforto 87

SS Lindor 91

CF Kyle Lewis 79

3B J.D. Davis 80

C James McCann 84

The first thing to address here. The Mets did not sign Javier Baez.

Note* The game disrespects Brandon Nimmo with a 74 overall rating. He is a depth piece, presumably a platoon bat against right-handed pitching.

Mets top prospect(s)

Brett Baty, 70 overall third baseman, A potential

Mets lose A potential catcher Francisco Alvarez somehow to the Reds in a trade. He is currently 73 overall and I will continue to check in on him to see how his career plays out. I’d go ahead and simulate at this point to the middle of the season and here’s who got recognized for their great play at the all-star break:

Mets 2022 All-Stars and the team’s season results

Jacob deGrom 11-4, 125.1 ip, 131 strikeouts, 2.66 era, 1.10 whip

Edwin Diaz 1-0, 35.1 ip, 44 strikeouts, 1.02 era, 1.10 whip, 30 saves

Francisco lindor 317 ab, 16 hr, 63 rbi, 6 sb, .278 avg

Dom smith 309 ab, 20 hr, 47 rbi, 3 sb, .317 avg

Skipping ahead to the end of the regular season because there are several more years I would like to cover here’s how the Mets season finished out, and everything else:

The Mets win the NL East with a 102-60 record (.630) and will take on the Cardinals in the division series!! The series is a breeze for the Mets as they sweep the Cardinals and look forward to playing the Dodgers in the NLCS. The Mets play the Dodgers in a competitive series and take the series 4-3. Believe it or not, the Mets will appear in the 2022 October classic. Against who else but cross-town rivals the New York Yankees. The Mets fall to the Yankees in a five-game series in the first Subway Series World Series since the year 2000.

Now for the glory, awards season. Jacob deGrom finishes third in the NL MVP race, ultra-impressive especially for a pitcher with a 19-5 record, 2.48 ERA and 241 strikeouts. Carlos Carrasco finishes second for the NL Cy Young award with a 20-9 record, a 3.11 ERA, and 182 strikeouts. With those stats, deGrom runs away with the NL Cy Young award, the third of his career. The Mets also have some gold glove winners, pitcher deGrom adds another trophy to his case, Jeff McNeil for 2B and Lindor for SS. Lindor also takes the NL Silver Slugger award, an impressive bounce back from his 2021 season. Despite the Mets losing the World Series, Jeff McNeil takes the World Series MVP award with .362, 3 hrs, and 8 RBIs in the series.

Mets 2022 award season

Jacob deGrom in third for NL MVP, 19-5, 2.48, 241 strikeouts

deGrom wins NL Cy Young award

deGrom wins NL P gold glove

McNeil wins 2B NL gold glove

Lindor wins NL SS gold glove

Lindor wins NL SS silver slugger

Carrasco in second for NL Cy Young award, 20-9, 3.11, 182 strikeouts

McNeil in third for NL batting title

McNeil wins postseason MVP with .362, 3 hrs, and 8 RBIs