All-time New York Mets roster based only on WAR

What if the all-time New York Mets roster was decided by nothing other than a single statistic? All-defining one known as WAR is the place to start.

Using Baseball-Reference as the place for these numbers, we’ve created the all-time Mets roster relying only on this number they accumulated while with the team. Amazingly, WAR got it almost perfectly correct. Active players even made the ball club.

Let’s waste no time and begin with our starters in the field.

All-time NY Mets starting lineup based only on WAR

C – Mike Piazza (24.6)
1B – Keith Hernandez (26.6)
2B – Edgardo Alfonzo (29.6)
3B – David Wright (49.92)
SS – Jose Reyes (28.2)
LF – Mookie Wilson (20.8)
CF – Carlos Beltran (31.1)
RF – Darryl Strawberry (36.6)
DH – Howard Johnson (22.0)
P – Tom Seaver (76.1)

We’re going with a DH here simply to make it modern and because this lineup feels so much deadlier with Howard Johnson in his prime there. He’d make the roster anyway. These nine position players actually are the top 9 in WAR which spreads out nicely to give us a perfect starting lineup.

Exactly how would we order them? Let’s see:

1-Jose Reyes
2-Keith Hernandez
3-David Wright
4-Darryl Strawberry
5-Mike Piazza
6-Carlos Beltran
7-Edgardo Alfonzo
8-Howard Johnson
9-Mookie Wilson

Order them however you’d want. This is an all-time starting lineup and we have way too many good players to choose from. Jose Reyes at the top is the one obvious place we’re all in agreement with. It’s everything in the middle we can toy with. Don’t forget to separate the lefties and righties a little bit. We’ll be playing the all-time Phillies roster based on WAR which means an older yet still equally as effective Tug McGraw will be coming out of their bullpen, too.

I’m not sure there is another team out there where the top 9 players in WAR for position players could make such a perfectly defensive team. Because we are putting together a full roster, we now need to dive a little deeper and create our bench. We’ll do our best to not skip over anyone.

All-time NY Mets roster based only on WAR bench players

Lucky for us, the next four players to make up our bench are nearly perfect to round out the ball club.

C-John Stearns (19.6)
INF-Bud Harrelson (18.7)
OF-Brandon Nimmo (18.7+)
UT-Jeff McNeil (18.2+)

We get a backup catcher, an infielder with a glove, an outfielder who can play center field as well as the other two positions, and then the ultimate utility man. These are conveniently the next four players listed on the WAR charts for the Mets. Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil add a modern flare to the team. They get a plus sign next to their names. Their WAR totals are as of the start of June 2023.

If there is one possible change to make it might be to swap out Bud Harrelson for the next guy on the WAR list, Cleon Jones. This Mets roster already has Howard Johnson as a potential backup infielder. Adding Harrelson and Jeff McNeil might be a little overkill. This gives them with only Brandon Nimmo as a true backup outfielder. McNeil could easily serve this role anyway. And because he recently nudged himself above Cleon Jones and his 18.1 WAR with the Mets, he’ll be here when this hypothetical game never takes place.

Others just missing the cut are John Olerud (17.3), Lenny Dykstra (16.5), and Pete Alonso (15.8) as well as Kevin McReynolds (15.8).

We have a pretty good roster so far. Now we turn our attention to the pitching staff.

All-time NY Mets bullpen based only on WAR

Before starting, let’s set a few ground rules. If any Mets player spent a significant amount of time as a reliever, they’re an acceptable option for this roster’s bullpen. Back in the day, pitchers would often flip between being a starter and reliever which means a couple of guys have an advantage in WAR over others who might be more deserving. WAR is largely about longevity and starting pitchers get more of it due to the number of innings they pitch.

Make sense? Anyway, here are the eight players who would make the Mets bullpen.

RP1-Tug McGraw (12.8)
RP2-Jesse Orosco (12.3)
RP3-John Franco (11.2)
RP4-Armando Benitez (9.8)
RP5-Seth Lugo (8.4)
RP6-Skip Lockwood (7.7)
RP7-Ray Sadecki (7.4)
RP8-Jeurys Familia (6.8)

We did actually have a tie between Jeurys Familia and Jim McAndrew in WAR. McAndrew was used as a starter and reliever. He wouldn’t be a very bad long-man to have in this bullpen. It’s kind of the same role Ray Sadecki could have as well. Needing a tie-breaker, the more traditional reliever, Familia, gets the nod instead.

As expected, it’s a bullpen with a lot of closers. Only Seth Lugo and Ray Sadecki don’t fit the bill. We’d probably want to do some sort of a closer by committee with this bullpen. Tug McGraw and Jesse Orosco can handle the bulk of those opportunities.

Of course, as with any bullpen, there’s going to be a lot of angst. Imagine watching Armando Benitez and Jeurys Familia toss back-to-back innings. Nobody’s heart is strong enough to get them through it.

Putting a bow on this roster, here’s how a 26-man roster would look:

C – Mike Piazza (24.6)
1B – Keith Hernandez (26.6)
2B – Edgardo Alfonzo (29.6)
3B – David Wright (49.92)
SS – Jose Reyes (28.2)
LF – Mookie Wilson (20.8)
CF – Carlos Beltran (31.1)
RF – Darryl Strawberry (36.6)
DH – Howard Johnson (22.0)
C-John Stearns (19.6)
INF-Bud Harrelson (18.7)
OF-Brandon Nimmo (18.7+)
UT-Jeff McNeil (18.2+)
SP1-Tom Seaver (76.1)
SP2-Dwight Gooden (41.6)
SP3-Jacob deGrom (41.2)
SP4-Jerry Koosman (39.5)
SP5-Al Leiter (28.0)
RP1-Tug McGraw (12.8)
RP2-Jesse Orosco (12.3)
RP3-John Franco (11.2)
RP4-Armando Benitez (9.8)
RP5-Seth Lugo (8.4)
RP6-Skip Lockwood (7.7)
RP7-Ray Sadecki (7.4)
RP8- Jeurys Familia (6.8)