3 NY Mets roster questions the team failed to address properly

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From almost Opening Day onward, the New York Mets roster has had a couple of questionable spots. Whether a defined role or an actual position on the field, there were some obvious places to make better or cross your fingers and hope things worked out.

It’s now the final four weeks of the 2022 MLB season and many of those doubts continue to knock us on the head each game. Many of us tried to justify what the team did at the trade deadline because we understood the strategy. As many of those players have gotten more playing time, it has become obvious how they might not have been the right fits.

A variety of important roles the Mets couldn’t ignore have been overlooked or not addressed at all. The team has managed to remain stable despite this. Will it eventually catch up with them?

1) NY Mets failed to address the catcher spot or at least come up with a solution

Let’s ask a hard-hitting question—or maybe in this case, a not-so-hard-hitting one: what’s going on at the catcher spot

Any offense the Mets have gotten from their catchers this season has been a bonus. Starter James McCann is having an absent season at the plate. Tomas Nido has been about where we would expect him to be which is a non-factor at the plate. He serves the team best as a backup so it’s harder to get on his case about the performance.

The Mets had a few options this season to try to improve the position from an offensive viewpoint. Willson Contreras was available at the trade deadline as was Christian Vazquez.

The Mets didn’t bite. And while we can make a case to say it was the right move to stick with what they had because of the relationship with pitchers and defense they can occasionally provide, it remains a problem because of some other weaknesses around them.

Specifically, it’s the one position the Mets did try to fix.

2) NY Mets may have had an epic fail at trying to improve the DH spot

Why settle for one DH when you can have two? The Mets added both Daniel Vogelbach and Darin Ruf at the trade deadline. Paired off in a strict platoon, it doesn’t look like the best move for Billy Eppler to lead his resume with.

Vogelbach has been productive but not at the level he was early on or what the Mets need him to be. Ruf has been almost completely absent from the box score other than a bunch of goose eggs running horizontally next to his name.

Extended beyond those two, we can also feel a little unsatisfied with Tyler Naquin. While not a DH, his presence does give the team another option and could even allow some of the outfielders to shift into the spot. His poor play outside of a few early hits has fans frustrated, too.

The DH spot was the one on the team where the Mets began the year with too many options. Would J.D. Davis or Dominic Smith get the bulk of the at-bats? Would it, in fact, be the perfect way for Robinson Cano to return and show off he can still play baseball?

Nothing seems to have worked. The Mets did try some moves but none of them have gone as planned.

Something the team didn’t try was to hand those at-bats over to a rookie like Mark Vientos. Nobody is still quite sure exactly why he was never given a chance.

3) NY Mets didn’t do enough to find a lefty reliever solution

Joely Rodriguez has carried the weight of the lefty reliever role on his shoulders all year. He has had company with Chasen Shreve joining him at the beginning of the year. Shreve’s poor performance got him designated for assignment. Rodriguez, probably because he was a trade acquisition, has lasted through and should reach the conclusion of the regular season.

A lefty reliever isn’t as valuable as it used to be due to the three-batter minimum role. Relievers need to be able to retire batters from both sides out. However, especially in the postseason, it wouldn’t be so bad to have a guy to even get one big out to end an inning with a lefty at the plate.

The Mets haven’t even touched making a move to improve their fortunes here. Rodriguez has become more of a regular reliever to pitch mostly in games with a big enough lead or when they’re chasing the opponent. What’s going to happen in the postseason when the opportunity arises to call upon a southpaw to get one big out?

It has become tiring to discuss the lack of a trusted lefty relief pitcher on this team. There were doubts from the start of the year when they didn’t sign a single major free agent or pick anyone up in a trade. Could the Mets really be holding onto hope that Rodriguez figures it out or is there some belief David Peterson or Joey Lucchesi is available in the postseason for the job?

Whatever the thinking was, the lefty reliever spot has been a constant complaint and not one the front office managed to solve.

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