3 NY Mets offseason concerns we already have

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The New York Mets got started on their offseason earlier than Major League Baseball. That’s what happens when you exit from the playoffs in the first round.

While memories of the 2022 remain and continue to keep us awake at night, attention does begin to shift toward the offseason. And already, there are some concerns.

We all expect the Mets to do a bang-up job this offseason. Backed by Steve Cohen’s wealth and desire to not have the same thing happen again, the Mets should be aggressive. Not all predators end up getting their prey. There is enough reason to think it might not be a perfect winter for this ball club.

1) How can the Mets re-sign everyone at a reasonable enough rate?

If the Mets re-signed Jacob deGrom, Brandon Nimmo, and Edwin Diaz they will have pulled off something pretty awesome. Those three are tough to replace. Keeping them around is pretty important.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t ease any of the worries. Chris Bassitt, Carlos Carrasco, and Taijuan Walker could all be gone. The team will have to rebuild their starting rotation in a major way.

There is zero chance the 2023 Mets come back looking like a mirror image of the 2022 team. It’s best they don’t. It’s also just not going to happen. Even if they had interest in each of their free agents, someone is going to outbid them on one or two of them.

The Mets will wield a lot of power in this offseason yet again. Only because everyone is hitting the open market at the same time has it caught up with them.

2) What are the alternatives for the guys who might leave?

So, assuming a few guys do leave, what do the Mets do then?

In the starting pitcher category, it’s almost impossible to replace everyone. It’s also going to be tough to pivot to players of similar or better ability. Tylor Megill isn’t proven enough nor is David Peterson although we can hold out hope that the 2023 season is better for each.

In Nimmo’s case, the most important offensive free agent on the roster, the Mets will not find a suitable replacement outside of Aaron Judge. He’s a vastly different player and more of an alternative to deGrom than a direct replacement for the starting center fielder on this ball club.

There are, of course, trades the team could always makes. However, we’ve seen them reluctant to part with many of their best prospects. It would seem the Mets are eager to see what they can do rather than watch them succeed elsewhere.

The biggest concern for the Mets this offseason is definitely with the starting rotation. It feels inevitable that a downgrade in at least one of the spots will occur unless they make one of those free agent additions nobody saw coming.

Adding to the difficulty, the Mets have a huge gap in one part of their roster that I’ve failed to mention thus far. Almost the entire bullpen is headed to free agency.

3) Building a bullpen through free agency in one offseason is tough

Diaz is the big name but Seth Lugo, Trevor May, Trevor Williams, and Adam Ottavino also see themselves become available this offseason. The Mets could always re-sign one or two or maybe even three of them. They’re going to need to or at least find suitable replacements. It doesn’t seem like any answers are coming up from the minor leagues.

Building a bullpen in free agency or with the help of some trades is tough to do in a single offseason. Even the greatest general manager in the world with unlimited resources will miss. Relief pitchers are the ultimate crapshoot in sports.

The Mets already had some questions in their bullpen. They can no longer ignore the lack of a lefty reliever they can rely on. Along with replacing each of their free agent relievers or inviting them back, the Mets need to add to their relief corps.

Bullpens can make or break a team. It wasn’t the ultimate decider for the 2022 team. Whether we look at the regular season or the postseason, the Mets failed because their starters came up short and the bats went into silent mode.

Keeping a strong rotation and also improving the offense are a top priority. At the same time, the Mets cannot ignore their bullpen.

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3 Mets offseason concerns we already have

1) How can the Mets re-sign everyone at a reasonable enough rate?

2) What are the alternatives for the guys who might leave?

3) Building a bullpen through free agency in one offseason is tough

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