5 musts if the NY Mets are going to actually compete with 100 games left to go

Okay, so you do believe. You wouldn’t be here unless a little voice was telling you that maybe the New York Mets can turn this season around. Wilder things have happened. The correlation to 2024, right down to the exact same record in late May, has convinced enough fans to wonder if maybe the devil is willing to make another deal.

How does it happen? These five events are a must over the next 100 games.

What the Mets need to in order to make this more than a lost season

1) The Mets must get Francisco Lindor back soon and the best version of him

Francisco Lindor could be back later this month and when he does return the Mets can ill-afford to have a star shortstop in need of some extended warming up. From the moment he arrives, Lindor needs to be the MVP candidate he has been for much of his New York tenure. While winning the award is out of the question, monster numbers are a must.

The fallout of getting Lindor back is the best part of it. Shortstop defense improves and we're no longer waiting for Bo Bichette to finally look like an All-Star. Additionally, it means the Mets can bench an underperforming player at a few different spots, whether it’s Brett Baty or another player who just isn’t giving them what they need.

2) One of the Baby Mets must get red hot and stay that way

On the topic of Baty, he or one of his peers needs to get hot. Red hot. So hot there's a mukbang about eating flaming hot versions of these Baby Mets. The next wave of young Mets players has already arrived. Meanwhile, Baty, Mark Vientos, Francisco Alvarez, and even Ronny Mauricio are trying to solidify their place in the majors leagues.

Amazingly, the Mets have already gotten what we can consider a better start to their careers from Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing, the latter thanks in large part to his defense. Benge and Ewing aren’t going anywhere. The once exciting Baby Mets, now a little more stale, are fighting for their roster lives. We need one to get smoking hot and stay that way. If not, the lineup isn’t going to have the length of a playoff-worthy club.

3) The Mets must figure out their starting rotation

Walter White couldn’t keep getting away with what he did nor can the Mets with the way they’ve handled their rotation. Glueing things together at the moment, they’re routinely turning to openers and bulk guys to get through each week.

Whatever the solution ends up being, they’re not going to survive a situation where they have only three starting pitchers. To be frank, the performances they’ve gotten out of those three haven’t been spectacular either. Freddy Peralta is proving he’s a number two. Nolan McLean has been beatable. Christian Scott, while promising, will remind us he’s essentially a rookie before the season is through.

4) Juan Soto must spend 0 days on the IL

The Mets aren’t guaranteed a win when Juan Soto plays. They are, however, much more likely to lose when he’s not. We saw their 12-game losing streak take place without Soto. In more recent days when he didn’t play, the team seemed inept and incapable. The latter is definitely related to the loss of several others, including Lindor.

Can the Mets survive a day or two without Soto? Absolutely. An IL stint, which requires at least 10 days of an absence, will be too much. The hole they dug themselves into gives the Mets zero room for error.

5) The Mets must be willing to eat some money

Sorry, Steve Cohen. This is still your team and your powerful wallet is what can save the Mets. This means eating both bad salaries already on the payroll when the time comes (it probably already has) and maybe allowing David Stearns to get creative with trades by accepting new ones. This is easy for us to say. It’s not our six-course family meals going down to only five because we’ve added a bad contract to lessen the cost of a player.

Cohen and be understandably frustrated with how much he has already spent on the Mets only for things to go the way they have. If the above musts are all taking place, Cohen needs to greenlight the possibility of spending even more money to make this a season. You get what you pay for. Continuing to pay is an absolute.

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