The New Year is here as today is the first day of 2019. That means baseball isn’t far away from our lives, with pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training sites in Florida and Arizona in just under six weeks. The New York Mets are scheduled to start showing up for work on February 14th, and they have high hopes for the coming year. In order to meet those goals, however, there are a few resolutions that key people in the organization should make. We have taken the liberty of outlining a few of those resolutions for you right here, so let’s dive in with . . .
Noah Syndergaard: Stay Healthy
The Mets have listened to trade offers for Noah Syndergaard for a while now, but it appears likely that the young righty is staying put. Syndergaard should resolve to stay healthy and make a full season’s worth of starts for the Mets, who have suffered record wise when he misses time. In only 25 starts for the Mets in 2018, Syndergaard went 13-4 with a 3.03 ERA, numbers that are surprisingly effective considering how he struggled with consistency. A full season of health could allow Syndergaard to take the next step towards stardom.
Jacob deGrom: Don’t Regress Too Much
Even after winning the Cy Young Award, it would be unreasonable to expect Jacob deGrom to duplicate his historic 2018 campaign. deGrom pitched to a 1.70 ERA and never gave up more than four runs in a start last season, figures he is extremely unlikely to duplicate. Those stats should regress a bit for deGrom, but even if his ERA goes up half a run he will still be working to a 2.20 ERA for the season. An improved offense and bullpen should help deGrom convert more of his efforts into wins, which would make some other statistical regression more tolerable.
Brodie Van Wagenen: Stay Aggressive
Mets’ General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen set an aggressive tone early in the offseason, swinging a monster trade with the Seattle Mariners and jumping the market to land good deals with Jeurys Familia and Wilson Ramos. Van Wagenen hinted after the press conference introducing Ramos that the Mets were done with the heavy lifting, but he should resolve to continue to be aggressive to fill the team’s holes. The Mets need at least a center fielder, two bullpen arms, and rotation depth if they hope to win in 2019 and stopping now won’t get the job done.
Fred and Jeff Wilpon: Open Up The Checkbook
Jeff Wilpon has been more visible this winter than ever before, speaking to reporters on multiple occasions and hinting that the Mets’ payroll would increase from a year ago. The Mets spent $155 million on their 2018 Opening Day payroll, a figure that included David Wright’s $20 million salary, so their actual outlay towards big league players was only $135 million. So far this winter, the Mets’ payroll is projected to be $149 million, but $44 million of that is going to Wright (who is unofficially retired) and Yoenis Cespedes (who will miss at least half the season), meaning the team has only committed $105 million to its big league roster. That’s not nearly enough to contend in a loaded division, so the Wilsons need to resolve to live up to their words and let Van Wagenen do whatever he deems necessary to give the Mets the best chance to win in 2019.
Mickey Callaway: Lean on Jim Riggleman’s Experience
Mickey Callaway had his fair share of struggles adjusting to the National League’s rules in 2018, including failures to let pinch hitters be announced and the infamous batting out of order fiasco in Cincinnati. The Mets did Callaway no favors by pairing him with a bench coach with no NL experience in Gary DiSarcina, but that has been corrected with the hire of veteran Jim Riggleman. Riggleman has managed four different NL clubs and has over 12 years of managerial experience, so he will have a lot of good advice on how to strategize in the NL game. Callaway should use Riggleman’s knowledge as a resource to help the Mets win more games in 2019.
Amed Rosario: Build On A Strong Second Half
One of the key players for the Mets in 2019 is shortstop Amed Rosario, who got off to a tough start in 2018 before being benched for a few days in late June to give him a mental break. The break agreed with Rosario, who was notably more effective down the stretch and flashed many of the five tools that made him one of the top prospects in baseball two years ago. Rosario has the potential to take a massive leap forward in 2019, and if he does that it could help the Mets make up a significant offensive gap since there are numerous question marks in the lineup (as currently constructed).
Michael Conforto: Put Together A Full Season of Production
Michael Conforto has shown flashes of brilliance throughout his big league career, but he has yet to put it together for one dominant season. Whether it was due to injuries or slumps, Conforto has yet to go wire to wire as an anchor in the Mets’ lineup. Conforto has demonstrated he is capable of being a run producer in the middle of the order, notably during the first half of 2017 and the last two months of 2018, but he needs to put it all together with one complete season. A clean bill of health this winter should allow Conforto to resolve to make himself the dominant slugger in the middle of the Mets’ lineup.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
