Mets roster newcomers: 1 to keep, 1 to send far away, 1 worth debating
Three newcomers to the Mets roster on three different timelines.
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After a trade deadline sale, it might feel like the first day of high school. You recognize a few kids from eighth grade. Plenty more are brand new to you. The New York Mets went through this over the summer when several newcomers joined the roster.
The playing time many of these guys have received was originally out of necessity. Someone had to take those at-bats or pitch those innings. Many won’t be back while some could show the Mets enough to remain.
Sorting through those newcomers to the roster, we find one worth keeping, one to send far away, and one whose status with the team is still up for debate.
NY Mets should keep DJ Stewart around in, at the very least, a bench role
DJ Stewart has been one of the reasons to watch the Mets these last few weeks. He isn’t having an overachieving stretch of baseball. He’s having the kind of performance we’d accept from just about anyone at any level of experience as long as we’re not constrained to keeping him in the starting lineup. As good as Stewart has been for the Mets, we’d all prefer to not push him into a starting role unless absolutely necessary.
This isn’t to diminish what Stewart has accomplished. A first-round draft pick by the Baltimore Orioles, there was clearly some untapped potential in his bat. For whatever reason, Stewart has figured it out over this short period of time in New York.
With a minor league option left as well, the Mets have some roster flexibility by choosing him over any number of other external options. They can always demote him next year if they find a better choice.
NY Mets should send reliever Phil Bickford away without a second thought
What’s Phil Bickford doing here anyway? A two-time first-round draft pick who didn’t sign when he was selected tenth overall by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2013, Bickford ended up as the 18th overall selection in the 2015 draft by the San Francisco Giants. He has had only one good major league season when he posted a 2.50 ERA in 50.1 innings for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Not nearly as good in 2022 or 2023, the Dodgers saw him as expendable in a trade deadline deal with the Mets this summer.
Bickford hasn’t been good enough for the Mets to justify giving him any more leash. They’ve already moved on from Adam Kolarek, the other player acquired in the same trade. Could they do the same with Bickford?
Making matters worse, Bickford doesn’t even have minor league options. There’s no patience to be had with him. You either keep the guy on the major league roster or you DFA him. Bickford has yet to show enough consistency to warrant a stay on the roster.
If the Mets are serious about competing next year, they will cut Bickford loose. Unfortunately, they might feel the need to push him on us a little while longer. After all, what do they have to lose other than a few more games?
NY Mets outfielder Rafael Ortega is a debatable player to keep around
On the right roster, Rafael Ortega can be incredibly useful. His 2021 season with the Chicago Cubs is a perfect example. In 330 plate appearances, Ortega slashed .291/.360/.463 with 11 home runs and 12 stolen bases. It was about as ideal of a performance as you could ask for from a part-time player capable of playing center field.
The problem with the Mets keeping Ortega around involves his lack of minor league options and whether or not the roster is good enough with him and Stewart on it. Stewart has outperformed Ortega. However, Ortega adds a bit more on defense and brings much more speed to the game. The two are very different yet maybe not so necessary to have both.
The upside of holding onto Ortega and Stewart as two bench pieces next year comes down to a matter of “so what?” If Ortega doesn’t work for the Mets, he’s gone. It’s not a matter of choice between Ortega and a more proven starting outfielder. He’s merely a cog in the catastrophic plan to spend a little less money on the players in 2024.
Ortega will need to show a little more in the final weeks to officially earn a stay with the Mets for next year. A reunion on a minor league deal isn’t out of the question. A major league roster spot is where things get congested.
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