2 NY Mets strengths, 2 weaknesses already on display this season

A 2-0 start won’t have the New York Mets booking a parade in late October/early November, but what more could you ask for? They’ve taken down the Pittsburgh Pirates twice and did it in very different ways.

Game one was a beating that got a little too close for comfort by the end. Game two was less of a pitcher’s duel and more of a battle of offenses that didn’t want to score.

Through two games, we’re learned a lot more about the 2026 roster. Two strengths and two weaknesses have already gone on display.

A pair of strengths and a pair of weaknesses we’ve alredy seen with the mets

Strength: Luis Robert Jr. and Jorge Polanco in the middle of the lineup

Luis Robert Jr. was the hero on Saturday with his walk-off home run. Two really good games with superb at-bats, he has been the catalyst in the lineup in a year where there are plenty of questions. His health at the forefront of the questions, he’s proving his ability to hit isn’t an issue.

We should also give credit to Jorge Polanco. The less distracting corner infielder learning a new position, he walked 3 times on Saturday. He now has 5 on the season. That patience cannot be overlooked.

Weakness: Bo Bichette’s defense

While Polanco hasn’t been charged with an official error or been the butt of any jokes because of his regular season defense, Bo Bichette didn’t wait long. An errant throw in the fourth inning on a routine ground ball should have us at least a little concerned.

Bichette hasn’t hit much either. He broke his oh-fer with a single on Saturday but he has struck out 5 times. It’s premature to say he’ll have a year like he did in 2024, his one poor outlier. The defense, on the other hand, is suspect and it didn’t take long for us to collectively cringe.

Strength: Defined roles, or at least some purpose with everyone

The Mets had an early chance to pinch hit for Carson Benge and give Mark Vientos his season debut. They, instead, opted to give Benge a chance to face a lefty. He failed but it perfectly set up for Vientos to come in later and single to help load the bases in the 10th inning.

Defined roles, with flexibility, is something the Mets are still trying to figure out. With Vientos, he’s clearly going to be someone the Mets could turn to in both instances where Benge was matched up against a southpaw reliever. The same could happen with Brett Baty. Tyrone Taylor coming in as a pinch runner and Jared Young entering as the last-guy-off-the-bench defender in right field showed where he’ll fit in for now. It does confirm the Mets should probably keep Baty out of the DH spot because of how useful he’ll be to move around the field late in games.

Weakness: Two easily replaceable bullpen arms

The Mets bullpen structure is actually pretty lousy and we saw it with back-to-back innings of Luis Garcia and Richard Lovelady. Each allowed a run. The problem is bigger than them, though.

Tobias Myers and Sean Manaea in the same bullpen together becomes a little wasteful. With Manaea as a planned yet unspecified piggybacker and Myers used on Opening Day, there was no turning to their longman for an appearance in extra innings. Reliever usage is often one of the most criticized parts of any ball club. Carlos Mendoza has his work cut out for him not in each individual game necessarily but from day-to-day when he has to consider all circumstances that can arise.