3 NY Mets player role changes, suggestions for September to keep them best-prepared

September has arrived which means you better scramble to buy your leaf bags. They’ll be out of stock by next week. The New York Mets have defined “rollercoaster season.” The highs from early on to the lows of midsummer, the truth is that this ball club is playing meaningful baseball down the stretch regardless of the outcome. Between you and me, the playoffs are inevitable thanks to the Cincinnati Reds showing up to a gunfight with a highlighter marker.

In the final month, both in preparation for the playoffs and sustained life to get there, the Mets have some player changes to make. Even if they’re limping into the final month of the regular season, they should continue to look at things through a broad lens.

The Mets need to move one of their starting pitchers to the bullpen

Full disclosure: until their most recent outings, it still felt like there was hope for Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga being effective starters. Shifting Clay Holmes to the bullpen was the practical solution. However, with that pair struggling as badly as they have, plans have changed.

The fact that Holmes has the recent history of pitching well in relief should have the Mets considering how they could effectively use him there. It shouldn’t be as a one-inning reliever either. Keep him stretched out. Have Holmes be an option to finish off games for 3 innings or bridge a short start for 4. Just don’t let it get to 5. We know better.

However, with Holmes giving the Mets more length than the duo of Manaea and Senga, this move fans have been screaming about for months should wait. The bar has, sadly, been lowered. If all Holmes does is go 5 and allow 3 runs, it's a success. The Mets shouldn't wait too long to decide which of their starters could be effectively used in relief, though. Given how structured Senga needs to be, Manaea is the more sensible alternative.