Predicting what the Mets playoff roster will look like

The postseason is approaching fast, and the New York Mets have already punched their ticket. One thing to watch over the last two weeks of the regular season will be the players on the fringes of the roster competing for playoff spots. Buck Showalter and Billy Eppler will have some interesting choices to make.

Here is my prediction on what the New York Mets’ playoff roster will look like:

NY Mets Playoff Lineup:

1. Brandon Nimmo (CF)
2. Starling Marte (RF)
3. Francisco Lindor (SS)
4. Pete Alonso (1B)
5. Daniel Vogelbach (DH)
6. Mark Canha (LF)
7. Jeff McNeil (2B)
8. Eduardo Escobar (3B)
9. Tomas Nido (C ) 

NY Mets Playoff Bench:

10. Luis Guillorme
11. James McCann
12. Terrance Gore
13. Tyler Naquin
14. Darin Ruf

The lineup and bench will basically stay the same. With the rosters shrinking back down to the normal 26, Mark Vientos loses his spot to Darin Ruf, barring an injury between now and the start of the playoffs. Marte is on track to return next week, which is good because he will have a week or so to get back up to game speed before the playoffs start. And of course, playoff baserunning and defense specialist Terrance Gore makes the cut. There weren’t really any tough choices here.

NY Mets Playoff Rotation:

15. Jacob deGrom
16. Max Scherzer
17. Chris Bassitt
18. Taijuan Walker

NY Mets Playoff Bullpen:

19. Edwin Diaz
20. Trevor May
21. Adam Ottavino
22. Mychal Givens
23. Seth Lugo
24. David Peterson
25. Trevor Williams
26. Carlos Carrasco

There were a couple of tough decisions with the pitching staff. The first one came with the rotation: should Walker or Carrasco be the 4th starter? I think Walker is better suited to that role, but I wanted Carrasco on the roster too because of his experience, so he can be a long man in the bullpen alongside Trevor Williams and David Peterson. Having innings-eaters is crucial in October.

There are a couple of decisions to be made in the bullpen as well. I decided to leave Joely Rodriguez off the playoff roster due to his walk issues (5 BB/9) and just general struggles this season. With Peterson available out of the ‘pen, I don’t think we need Rodriguez. I certainly wouldn’t want the Mets to put him in just because he’s lefty when there are safer options from the right side.

The other choice I had to make was Drew Smith, Tylor Megill, or Mychal Givens for the last bullpen slot. Smith has home run issues, allowing 2 HR/9, and that’s not what you want in the playoffs. Megill didn’t look sharp in his first appearance back from the injured list, and since I already have three long relievers on my playoff roster, he’s not needed unless they want to put him on the taxi squad. I went with Givens because he walks fewer batters than Rodriguez, and he gives up fewer homers than Smith.

Obviously all of this is subject to change. Let’s say Nimmo or McNeil miss time with their injuries in Wednesday’s game, that might open up a starting spot for Naquin or Giullorme, which opens up a bench spot for someone like Vientos or maybe even Dominic Smith. It’ll be interesting to see what the playoff roster looks like.