3) The Mets need a bullpen that breaks the bank or at least takes fewer fliers
Equally as frustrating early on for the Mets was the bullpen. Well, they did perform well in the first month. Then came May and everyone seemed exhausted. First month hero Reed Garrett reverted back to his old ways. We’ve been trying to figure out who he is ever since.
Garrett was an early pleasant surprise while pitchers like Yohan Ramirez and Michael Tonkin were cheap options who probably never should have shared a roster together. One is fine if that’s what you can get.
The Mets were active in free agency, signing Adam Ottavino, Jake Diekman, and Shintaro Fujinami in a short span. None worked particularly well. Diekman got outpitched by Danny Young who signed a minor league deal. Fujinami couldn’t even make the team and is now lingering in the minors trying to figure things out, off of the 40-man roster, and out of our minds.
In building the bullpen, David Stearns seemed to have a budget and Edwin Diaz ate up a lot of it. He did a fantastic job adjusting on the fly. He can help the team win a few more early games by spending more on those fabled “sure things” we all think are out there in free agency. A willingness to go more than one year on contracts can help here.