1 Mets roster flaw the team has improved, 2 continuing to linger in redundancy

There were tons of questions about the New York Mets roster coming into the 2024 season. Between the personnel and the structure of it, fans were right to have their doubts.

We have yet to see the full effect of what the team did in the offseason. J.D. Martinez has yet to debut. The missing piece on offense should be the rocket fuel they need to be a much more effective team at the plate. The keyword being “should.”

Already, the Mets have been able to fix one of the roster weaknesses staring us in the eye. Meanwhile, two others continue to stick out like a sore thumb.

1) The Mets have given themselves more flexibility in the bullpen

Overtaxing a bullpen is one way to run yourself into trouble. The Mets are in the midst of a lengthy stretch with no days off and that’s where they’re going to need to ask the starters for an extra three or six outs to get through it.

A normal team might rotate through some arms. The Mets, who opened the year without an optional reliever on the roster, didn’t originally have this tool at their disposal. The decision to DFA Michael Tonkin will fix this. They can now use a bullpen spot for players like Reed Garrett, Josh Walker, and Grant Hartwig to rotate through. It’s not ideal but availability of fresh arms is essential.

In the first week of the season, the Mets relied on pitchers like Tonkin, Garrett, and Yohan Ramirez to go multiple innings. The starters haven’t gone particularly deep nor should we expect this to change all that much.

Positive results might arrive from this roster spot of optional relievers, but at least it’ll save them from having to routinely call upon arms better used in a close game.

3) Fourth outfielder Tyrone Taylor is proving he’s as good if not better than Harrison Bader

Other than breaking up a hitless streak for the Mets extended between two games, Harrison Bader hasn’t done a whole lot. He’s even seeing himself sit on a regular basis which isn’t a bad thought, given his limitations. But the word redundant returns here. The Mets already have Tyrone Taylor with similar skills and swinging from the same side of the plate. A much better hitter in recent seasons than Bader with some good pop to go along with it, having them together on the roster doesn’t mesh as perfectly as other options would.

Bader and Taylor can both hit lefties well. Their known struggles versus right handed pitchers—the majority in MLB—should have each profiled as a fourth outfielder. This is precisely where Taylor fits in but for some reason the Mets felt the need to pay Bader like an everyday guy.

Bader’s weak bat in the ninth spot of the lineup isn’t going to murder their season, but as the case seems to be on a regular basis, they could’ve spent the $10.5 million they did on him elsewhere. Taylor was already on the roster and while not a suitable everyday center fielder, he could have easily taken the position routinely when the Mets face a lefty with Brandon Nimmo remaining at the spot when the club goes against a righty. Pair Taylor with a left-handed hitting left fielder and the Mets have a pretty good platoon situation.

Instead, we get a roster hole in the starting lineup on a near-nightly basis. It’s one of those weaknesses compiled on top of others. During the doubleheader against the Detroit Tigers, DJ Stewart got the start at DH batting ninth which is bad enough. When the Tigers had a lefty to face him late, Bader pinch hit for him—going hitless in his chances. This refused the Mets the opportunity to use Bader in the more appropriate way of actually playing defense. 

It’s small potatoes when your star shortstop and others are barely doing a thing. Bader is 5 for 22 to start the season with a run scored and none driven in plus a team-high 9 strikeouts. Taylor, who has actually one more plate appearance, has started off 4 for 21 with a run scored and 3 RBI including a walk-off hit. Neither has been very good which further exacerbates the problem. We don’t need two guys like this.