2 legitimate and 1 unjustified reason for Mets fans to panic

Colorado Rockies v New York Mets
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The New York Mets sit at 17-18. They've won three of their last 12, and three of the four series were against the Nationals, Tigers, and Rockies. They played the Nats and Rockies at home and lost four of the six games they've played against those teams.

To say the Mets are playing bad baseball right now would be an understatement. They're not pitching well or hitting well. They've been losing consistently to some of the worst teams in baseball.

Fortunately, it's May 9, and there's plenty of time for a turnaround. The Mets are healthier than they've been all year with both Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer available. Could they provide a spark? The season depends on it. For now, there are legitimate reasons for fans to worry about the 2023 New York Mets, but there're also some complaints I see on social media that I believe are completely unjustified.

Legitimate reason to panic: The NY Mets have gotten nothing out of their aces

The Mets pitching has been disastrous. It all starts at the top. Justin Verlander hurt himself in Spring Training and had been out the entire season before coming back in Detroit. He allowed two first inning home runs but settled in nicely and looked mostly fine in his Mets debut.

Max Scherzer on the other hand has been more concerning. We all know about the suspension that cost him a couple of starts. If that wasn't bad enough, his results when healthy have not been good at all. He has a 5.56 ERA through his first five starts and 22.2 innings of work. He's already allowed six home runs while his walk rate has skyrocketed (4.0 BB/9) and his strikeout rate has plummetted (7.9 K/9).

Could this be an age thing for the 38-year-old? Could he be pitching injured? Could this just be a slow start? Mets fans hope that's it, but age and injury concerns are incredibly real. If Verlander is not healthy and Scherzer isn't Scherzer, the Mets are in deep, deep trouble. They need both of these pitchers to be aces, much like the 2022 Mets needed deGrom and Scherzer to be the co-aces.

Legitimate reason to panic: The NY Mets have no pitching depth for the rotation or bullpen

Injuries have decimated the Mets pitching staff. Verlander has missed all but one start. Jose Quintana hasn't pitched yet. Scherzer is dealing with whatever he's dealing with. Carlos Carrasco had been struggling and he's on the Injured List currently. The only starter from the projected Opening Day rotation who has not spent time on the Injured List is Kodai Senga, who has his own injury concerns. The Mets have been trying to keep him healthy by pushing his starts back which has worked, but has also forced them to do things like use Joey Lucchesi on short rest.

One strength I expected this Mets team to have was pitching depth, particularly in the rotation. Both David Peterson and Tylor Megill were very effective last season as the Mets sixth and seventh starters. Peterson had an ERA well over 7.00 and is now in AAA. Megill has been mostly fine, but has completed six innings a grand total of one time. That is a problem.

Elieser Hernandez was supposed to fill the Trevor Williams role but he's hurt. Jose Butto has been ineffective in his chances. Joey Lucchesi had one good start but has just 13.1 innings of work in his last three starts.

The rotation being a disaster has forced the bullpen to pick up the slack. Unfortunately, there're injuries there too. Edwin Diaz is done for likely the entire season. Brooks Raley is on the IL. Other depth arms like Bryce Montes de Oca, Sam Coonrod, and Stephen Ridings haven't thrown a pitch for the Mets this season.

While guys like Tommy Hunter, Jeff Brigham, Dominic Leone, and Jimmy Yacabonis, and Steven Nogosek are fine in certain situations, they're all in the bullpen at the same time right now. Drew Smith, David Robertson, and Adam Ottavino are the only legitimate trustworthy arms the Mets have, and some fans don't even trust Smith at all.

The bullpen has held up better than anyone could've asked for, but the rotation gives no length and the bullpen is decimated with injuries. The Mets pitching and lack of depth should absolutely be a reason for fans to panic.

Unjustified reason to panic: The NY Mets offense will be just fine

I've seen a lot of complaints about the Mets offense, and I get why. It's frustrating to watch how inconsistent this offense has been after watching it be consistently solid last season. I still think the offense is the least of this team's worries.

During this recent 12-game slump, Pete Alonso has seven hits in 42 at-bats (.167 BA) with just one home run. Francisco Lindor has nine hits in 43 at-bats (.209 BA) with one home run. Brandon Nimmo has 11 hits in 46 at-bats (.239 BA) with one home run. Starling Marte has six hits in 37 at-bats (.162) without an extra-base hit, let alone a home run. How exactly are the Mets supposed to score runs when the first four batters in the lineup produce nothing?

Nimmo, Marte, Lindor, and Alonso are all all-star caliber players or better. If you think they'll struggle all season then you're right, the Mets are going nowhere. I personally will bank on the track records of these four individuals and assume they'll bounce back into the players we expect them to be and were last season. Nimmo has been mostly fine this season, but he's a part of this skid.

In addition to projected improvements for those four players, the Mets lineup is a lengthy one, especially if the kids hit. Francisco Alvarez and especially Brett Baty have looked solid at the plate, and have produced of late. Daniel Vogelbach, while he lacks power, does get on base a ton. Mark Canha hasn't been good, but he's also not the most vital piece of this lineup.

The Mets go as their stars go. Scherzer and Verlander must be Scherzer and Verlander. Lindor and Alonso must be the big boppers for this team to go anywhere. Lindor and Alonso getting hot feels a lot more likely than Scherzer and Verlander being the aces we hoped for.

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