NY Mets Opening Day roster prediction 3.0

Spring training is wrapping up as the New York Mets are just a week away from their Opening Day matchup versus Framber Valdez and the Astros at Daikin Park in Houston. This means it is time for one last Opening Day roster prediction before the final decisions are made.

Updated injury notes and ongoing roster battles set the stage for numerous difficult roster decisions in the coming days

Positional Starters:

C: Luis Torrens
1B: Pete Alonso
2B: Brett Baty
3B: Mark Vientos
SS: Francisco Lindor
LF: Brandon Nimmo
CF: José Siri
RF: Juan Soto
DH: Jesse Winker

Recent injuries to Francisco Alvarez and Jeff McNeil have pushed Luis Torrens and Brett Baty into starting roles to begin the season. Baty has looked good at second base this spring despite having no prior in-game experience at the position. Brandon Nimmo is dealing with some nagging knee soreness and may see increased time at DH early in the year.

Bench:

C: Hayden Senger
OF/DH: Starling Marte
OF: Tyrone Taylor
INF: Donovan Walton

With Luis Torrens being pushed into the starting catcher role, Hayden Senger and Jakson Reetz are competing for the backup spot. Both catchers have limited offensive upside, but Hayden Senger has looked sharp defensively, giving him the upper hand. Donovan Walton earns the backup infielder spot over Luisangel Acuña, who the Mets may want to see get consistent playing time in Syracuse.

Starting Rotation:

SP1: Kodai Senga
SP2: Clay Holmes
SP3: David Peterson
SP4: Tylor Megill
SP5: Griffin Canning

There is a three-man race amongst Paul Blackburn, Griffin Canning, and Tylor Megill for the last two rotation spots with Canning and Megill outperforming Blackburn thus far. The Mets will likely turn to a six-man rotation at various points throughout the season, especially once Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas return from injury. Carlos Mendoza recently named Clay Holmes as the Opening Day starter. 

Bullpen:

CL: Edwin Díaz
SU: A.J. Minter
SU: Ryne Stanek
MRP: Reed Garrett
MRP: Dedniel Núñez
MRP: José Buttó
MRP: Danny Young
LRP: Paul Blackburn

A.J. Minter and Dedniel Núñez are increasingly likely to be ready for Opening Day with Núñez throwing a 1-2-3 inning in his first appearance of spring on March 17th and Minter having made multiple appearances. Out-of-options reliever Danny Young should earn an Opening Day roster spot as the Mets second lefty out of the pen. Spring surprise Max Kranick may be left off the roster as an additional multi-inning arm is not needed with Paul Blackburn taking that role.