5 important Mets spring training storylines to keep your eyes glued to

Stretch those hammies. Do another round of arm circles. New York Mets spring training is underway with actual games approaching. The beginning days of spring training remind us that winter does have an end. Vicariously, we enjoy the Florida sunshine and hope we can still fit into last year’s swim wear following a winter hibernation that began with a holiday binge on Halloween night.

Although the expectations have been lowered, the excitement hasn’t. The Mets are aiming to compete at some level this year. We’ll have months to argue and evaluate their chances.

Those first arguments and evaluations can begin as we follow these five important Mets spring training storylines.

1) The DH situation and everything about it

Everything about the DH situation is worth following. We’ve kept our eyes glued at this spot in the lineup all offseason. Spring training is when we’ll get some idea of what’s next.

Mark Vientos appears locked in as the guy to get the majority of at-bats from it. What if he has a terrible spring? Does it change a thing? Then there’s a scenario where DJ Stewart outplays him. As the left-handed option who will have far more opportunities to feast on right-handed pitchers than Vientos on southpaws, could he actually steal a large chunk of those early season at-bats away?

Vientos and Stewart should see far more time defensively than they will during the regular season this spring. Vientos, in particular, needs as many groundballs hit his way as possible. It wouldn’t hurt to have him shag a few fly balls in left field either. Adding another place where he can play has its benefits.

Needless to say, spring performances won’t sway management to extreme measures when it comes to decision-making. They didn’t get rid of Daniel Vogelbach last year when he slumped throughout March. If anything, the spring training results might give the Mets an altered early approach.