5 predictions for the Mets with 100 games left in the 2023 season

A 30-32 record isn’t ideal. The New York Mets fought their way three games over .500 with a sweep against the Philadelphia Phillies concluding last week. They haven’t won a game since.

We’re at an important mile marker right now. After playing 62, it means there are 100 left to go. The beating they’ve received against the Atlanta Braves these past two days have pushed them further back in the National League East standings. Not all hope is lost. There is enough road to accelerate and catch up to their hated foe.

What should we expect out of the Mets in these next 100 games? Let’s put down some predictions.

1) NY Mets prediction for the final 100 games: The starting pitching staff carries the team

The starting pitching staff for the Mets hasn’t been nearly as good as it should’ve been. A brutal performance out of David Peterson did major damage to the overall team numbers. A few bad starts from others, even Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, have made it difficult for the Mets starting rotation to finish with the elite totals many of us would’ve predicted. 

The MLB season is a long one. Over the next 100 games, I’m predicting the starting rotation figures it out.

We’ve seen Scherzer already improve. Verlander hasn’t been as atrocious either. Questions remain with them and everyone else. We do need to see more before throwing our full trust into them.

But that’s the fun part about predictions anyway, right? There’s a lot of gut and faith put into them.

For some specifics, Scherzer and Verlander will each have numbers close to their career averages. It’s more than acceptable for them. Kodai Senga will be pampered and excel with regular additional rest. The burden of having to cater to him in this regard will mean a few spot starts for Peterson and Tylor Megill. Carlos Carrasco will be a serviceable fifth starter while Jose Quintana stuns us all and comes back to be one of the better pitchers in the league down the stretch with our biggest complaint being how he never reaches the end of the sixth.

2) NY Mets prediction for the final 100 games: Francisco Lindor fails to break out of his funk

A year-long funk for Francisco Lindor is something the Mets may be dealing with. Unlike 2021 when they had to suffer through it, this year’s club actually has some guys producing at a high level. Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil are pretty much doing what is expected of them. The rise of Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty should also have us confident the Mets offense won’t fully sleep through the last 100 games of the season.

This prediction should include a note that Lindor will continue to hit home runs, drive in runs, and do it all while batting around .230 at best. Not all predictions are fun ones. Something about his performance through the first 62 games of the year has me convinced this will be a near-repeat of 2021.

Lindor slashed .230/.322/.412 for the Mets that season while hitting 20 home runs and driving in 63. This came in 125 total games due to an IL stint. As long as he stays healthy, he should surpass those totals even if he never does raise his batting average.

How good can the Mets possibly be if their star shortstop doesn’t live up to expectations? Smart trade deadline moves could be the difference.

4) NY Mets prediction for the final 100 games: Ronny Mauricio is the team’s super utility man

Ronny Mauricio has done everything possible to warrant a call-up to the majors. The Mets have been careful about having a roster of too many young players. Mauricio’s change to second base and expectation of learning left field should have him joining the ball club as a super utility man.

Mauricio will have already replaced Mark Vientos on the roster as he joins Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty as the newest of the Baby Mets. A far better fit on the ball club because of the positions he is learning, Mauricio will be used the way Jeff McNeil has been in the past.

Regular starts up the middle and in left field will get Mauricio plenty of at-bats. He’ll be used as a pinch runner as well. The Mets became a team even more reliant on using up every position player they can.

Mauricio’s obvious progress as a legitimate power threat in the minor leagues is something the Mets could use in any capacity. He’ll play well enough to the point where we all begin to make the assumption that he’ll be next year’s starting left fielder. We might not be wrong about that. He’ll take some starts from Mark Canha down the stretch but the veteran will benefit from the extra days off.

5) NY Mets prediction for the final 100 games: Third wild-card spot clinched on September 29

The biggest prediction of all is where the Mets finish in the standings. It won’t be an easy summer. The Mets finally clinch their playoff spot on September 29 with a win against the Philadelphia Phillies to start their final series of the season. The Phillies will have already been eliminated. The Miami Marlins, too.

The September schedule is a fascinating one with the final 13 games of the season against the Marlins, Phillies, Marlins, and Phillies again. The Atlanta Braves will have already put enough distance between the rest of those teams who will spend those final days beating up on each other. The Mets will barely pull away victorious thanks mostly to how their pitching holds up.

In addition to the haul of players they get from possibly the Rockies, we should expect the Mets to completely change how we feel about the players in the bullpen. They’ve spent most of the year with three mop-up men, Tommy Hunter, Stephen Nogosek, and Dominic Leone. Billy Eppler can’t possibly expect to keep his job with all three of them around.

Focus for the Mets will be on making the players they currently have better by putting them in situations to thrive. The general manager has big responsibilities. None compare to what the players must accomplish.

Taking the third wild card spot isn’t the most satisfying of predictions for the final 100 games. As the Phillies proved last year with it, that’s all you need.