3 Mets players we'll be glad are gone, and 2 we'll wish stayed with the team

Wild Card Series - San Diego Padres v New York Mets - Game Two
Wild Card Series - San Diego Padres v New York Mets - Game Two / Jim McIsaac/GettyImages
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The New York Mets had a rollercoaster of an offseason. It began with a bang as the club re-signed Edwin Diaz almost immediately, and ended with the Carlos Correa saga.

The team that won 101 games last season will look very different. They'll be good, but it'll be hard to know how much better they truly got if they even did get better, until they play.

All of the roster turnover is bittersweet. Some of the players who left were infuriating to watch while others were among my favorite players ever.

Almost every NY Mets fan is thrilled James McCann is gone

It just never worked from day one. The James McCann signing never made any sense with J.T. Realmuto available, and thankfully we no longer have to watch him play.

McCann had one good season and one good 30-game stretch in the shortened 2020 season with the White Sox. The Mets then decided to guarantee him four years in a contract, just one less than what Realmuto ended up getting. While I never saw the appeal, I didn't think it'd be this bad.

McCann's first year was infuriating to watch. He slashed .232/.294/.349 with 10 home runs and 46 RBI in 121 games. He was one of very few Mets to stay healthy for most of the season, and he rewarded them by providing absolutely nothing offensively.

It somehow got even worse this past season, as McCann slashed .195/.257/.282 with three home runs and 18 RBI in 61 games played. McCann dealt with injuries and had lost his starting job to Tomas Nido, another light-hitting catcher.

The fact that McCann was outhit by Nido tells us all we need to know about his Mets tenure. Mets fans won't miss the double plays and black hole at the bottom of the order. McCann is a really solid defender and should be fine in a backup role in Baltimore, but it didn't work here.

NY Mets fans will miss Jacob deGrom no matter how much they don't want to admit it

I get it. I get wanting to hate Jacob deGrom for choosing to go to the Texas Rangers. I get wanting to hate Jacob deGrom for prioritizing money over being a lifelong Met and winning a World Series on the team he said he wanted to play with forever. Every Mets fan will miss him, at least a little bit.

The last couple of seasons have been frustrating with deGrom. The injuries got incredibly annoying. However, the feeling of watching this man pitch was like nothing I've ever experienced as a Mets fan too young to have watched the likes of Seaver or Gooden pitch live.

Every time Simple Man blasted from the speakers at Citi Field, you felt the Mets had a great shot at winning. You at the very least knew deGrom wouldn't be the reason they'd lose.

I'm going to miss watching him blow triple-digit fastballs past hitters and making those same hitters look foolish on disgusting sliders.

The Mets did well to bring Justin Verlander in to replace him, and they might be an improved ballclub due to Verlander being more durable than deGrom. That doesn't mean Mets fans won't miss deGrom. He's one of the best players this franchise has ever had. He will be missed.

Taijuan Walker's second halves won't be missed by NY Mets fans

There were times Taijuan Walker was the best pitcher on the Mets. Those times were then followed by infuriating second halves. Mets fans won't miss this inconsistency. The contract he signed ended up being worthwhile because of how good he was to begin seasons, but he faltered when the Mets needed him most in both seasons he was here.

In Walker's first season with the Mets, he was an all-star after posting a 2.66 ERA in his first 17 appearances. That ERA rose to 7.13 in the second half as the Mets fell out of contention. With Jacob deGrom out, the Mets needed Walker to really step up and continue pitching well. He ended up being one of the worst pitchers in baseball in that second half.

The same can be said about this past season. Walker was an all-star snub after posting a 2.55 ERA in 16 starts. The second half wasn't as bad, but a 4.80 ERA is not what Mets fans were looking for.

Walker seemed to just run out of gas when the Mets needed him most. He was really good to begin seasons but didn't get the job done down the stretch.

Walker is now in Philadelphia, where Mets fans will see him often. Hopefully the Mets get to face him in the second half more than the first.

Chris Bassitt's consistency will be missed by NY Mets fans

The season didn't end as Mets fans had hoped, but Chris Bassitt was for the most part spectacular in his only season as a Met. Bassitt was acquired in a trade with the Athletics to try and sure up the rotation, and if the Mets didn't make that trade there's no way they win 101 games.

Bassitt was the one constant in the rotation. deGrom was hurt for most of the year. Scherzer had two separate stints on the IL. Walker and Carrasco both missed a little time as well. Bassitt was the guy who took the ball every fifth day and gave the Mets a chance to win.

Bassitt allowed three runs or fewer in 22 of his 30 starts. He went six or more innings in 23 of his 30 starts. He had two more starts in which he fell one out shy of completing six innings.

The Mets replaced Bassitt with Kodai Senga who can be good, we have no idea. Senga comes with plenty of questions. Can he stay healthy? How will he do pitching on four days rest? How will he adjust to a new league?

While Bassitt doesn't have the upside Senga does, we know what we'd get from him. The certainty is and consistency what we'll miss.

NY Mets fans were ready to move on from Dom Smith

Dom Smith had his breakout season in the shortened 2020 campaign. He slashed .316/.377/.616 with ten home runs and 42 RBI. Pete Alonso was the first baseman of the future, but Dom looked like he'd be the left fielder of the future. Even with his subpar defense, his bat would make it worthwhile. Once the DH would come to the National League, the Mets would be golden.

Unfortunately, Dom never did come close to repeating that 2020 season. He slashed .244/.304/.363 with 11 home runs and 58 RBI in 2021. He had more extra-base hits in the shortened season (32) than he did in 95 more games played in 2021 (31).

This past season, Dom had a shot at some of the DH at-bats and had 26 hits in 134 at-bats. He did not hit a single home run and has not hit one since July of 2021.

The former first round pick never showed much of anything outside of that 50-game 2020 season. Both sides needed a fresh start.

Smith did not have a role on the Mets and being non-tendered was a foregone conclusion. I like Dom Smith the person a lot, but the player has given the Mets nothing in the last two seasons. Mets fans have been ready to move on, and the team finally did it.

Next. 3 worst Mets contracts from the last 10 years. dark

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