1 reason the NY Mets have it bad, 1 reason it’s the Phillies who have it worse

Well, things certainly haven't gone according to plan. We thought the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies would be the class of the NL East, but thus far, both clubs are looking up not only at the Atlanta Braves but also at the Washington Nationals and Miami Marlins. Things have been terrible recently. The Mets just snapped a 12-game skid, while the Phillies are in the midst of a nine-game slide.

It's still very early, but the longer the scuffles go on, the more likely it is that things go completely down the drain for one or both of these rivals. They were supposed to be juggernauts, but now they both seem to be paper tigers. Oddly, the roads that led each club to the brink couldn't be more different.

The Mets are where they are because of their major offseason changes

For many years, the heart, soul, and spirit of the Mets was the trio of Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, and Brandon Nimmo. Now, Alonso is an Oriole, McNeil is an Athletic, and Nimmo is a Ranger. Whether it was directly or indirectly, they were replaced by Jorge Polanco, Marcus Semien, and Bo Bichette.

Polanco's performance has left many wishing they had made different choices. Meanwhile, Semien's performance has been worse than even the pessimists expected, while Nimmo is off to a resurgent start that has him on track for one of the better years of his career.

New York made other changes as well, and none have truly worked out. They wanted an ace when they traded for Freddy Peralta, but instead, they have received a back-end starter. They gambled on Luis Robert Jr. and have gotten a punchless performance. Worst of all, Bo Bichette was the big ticket item, and he's been the biggest bust.

It looks bad now, but if there's any sort of silver lining, sometimes it takes players to adjust to their new digs, especially if they've only known one organization for their entire career. That's been the case for Peralta, Bichette, and Robert Jr., so maybe there's a sliver of hope that they can turn it around.

The Phillies might be in even worse shape because they essentially ran it back with an aging roster

The biggest external addition the Phillies made in the offseason was giving Adolis Garcia $10 million for one year. Garcia was a World Series hero for the Rangers in 2023, but has fallen off a cliff the past two seasons, leading to him being non-tendered by Texas. It shouldn't be a shock that he's struggling now.

Otherwise, the biggest deal they handed out was to retain Kyle Schwarber, and their consolation prize for losing Bichette to the Mets was a three-year, $45 million reunion with 35-year-old J.T. Realmuto, who is clearly wearing down and nearing the end.

Philadelphia has already begun to realize the error of its ways. They failed to add another starter despite losing Ranger Suarez and waiting for Zack Wheeler to return from surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome. That led them to rely on Taijuan Walker, who was just unceremoniously released after being so bad that he made opposing hitters look like Joe DiMaggio during his 56-game hit streak. With that, they'll be eating $15 million in dead money.

Why the Phillies may have it worse is the simple fact that they don't have the new-face, new-place excuse. These guys have been here, and they're getting older. That's the likely reason for the struggles. If they don't turn it around soon, they'll have a lot they'll need to address at the trade deadline, but with a bloated payroll, they'll be relatively handcuffed in what they can do.

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