NY Mets Scapegoats: 2 to fire without thinking, 1 to put on notice, 1 to question

The Mets should start questioning Jeremy Hefner

Jeremy Hefner has been untouchable as Mets pitching coach. He began his tenure with the ball club in 2020 and has often been praised for his guru-like work minus the cultish guitar playing around a campfire; as far as we know.

Hefner probably isn’t to blame for the shortcomings of many of their pitchers. At the end of the day, responsibility always falls on the player to perform. Many good arms had worse years than they should have. Can we really blame him?

The Mets’ focus on pitching with their lab being referenced in just about every conversation early on this season should have them hesitant to make any major changes in terms of personnel. Firing him would be impulsive and unnecessary. The greater issue with the Mets pitchers was injury and a lack of talent.

If we’re going to fire the hitting coaches for their lack of getting the most out of young hitters, we need to start to question Hefner more. Although the ball club now has some young players we can start to believe in, there haven’t been any significant risers with the ball club during his tenure. David Peterson is the best. He is melting down late in the year.

Hefner’s job should be safe. There should come a point where the Mets start to think about alternatives. Is it the coach or the pitching lab system they have in place?