The Jays start a three-game series with the New York Mets today.
The Mets are 78-65, tied for second in the NL East, as well as tied for the last Wild Card spot, with the Mets on both counts.
They are fifth in the NL in runs scored per game at 4.76 (Jays are 4.24). And eighth in the NL for runs allowed per game at 4.35 (Jays are 4.62).
I send off some Mets’ questions to Brian Salvatore of Amazin’ Avenue, SB Nation’s Mets site and Brian was nice enough to answer them for us.
In a tie for the final Wild Card spot, how confident are Mets’ fans of playoffs this year?
We would feel a lot more confident if the team we were tied with wasn’t the Braves. I’d imagine that Jays fans regard the Yankees much in the way that Mets fans regard the Braves, which is that even in their ‘down’ years, the spectre of their decades-long dominance is always present. This is a much-diminished Braves team, down their best position player and starting pitcher, but something about the team still strikes fear in the hearts of Mets fans. Also, that damn chop still exists, somehow.
Can we have a scouting report on the starting pitchers the Jays will see?
Paul Blackburn (Tom: Tylor Megill has been switched in for Blackburm. He has a 4.95 ERA, in 12 games, 11 starts. In 56.1 innings he’s allowed 24 walks with 64 strikeouts. He throws a mid-90s fastball, change and a slider) was acquired at the trade deadline and has been a bit of a mixed bag for the Mets, though he’s not pitched all that much due to an injury that he returns from this evening against the Blue Jays. Blackburn throws six pitches, though the Mets have been encouraging him to throw his 4-seam fastball less and that has seemed like a solid adjustment. Expect a little bit of everything.
David Peterson had been a fairly well regarded prospect that never quite put it together at the Major League level, and then 2024 happened. It’s a bit of a mystery, as none of his underlying metrics have changed all that much, but they’ve changed just enough to make him all of a sudden a very impressive starting pitcher. He is limiting walks a bit, getting a few more ground balls, and made a slight adjustment to his release point. He’s also fully healthy which, honestly, may be the biggest difference maker for Peterson. His stuff won’t blow you away, and you’ll look up at the end of his outing and ask “how did that stuff get these results?”
Sean Manaea has been the best pitcher on the Mets for much of the season, but since shortly after the All-Star break, he’s been easily their best starter. Both before and during the season, he’s made adjustments to his mechanics and the results have spoken for themselves. His last start was almost done in by a pair of home runs, but he has been incredibly consistent and has avoided the meltdown innings/outings that have plagued other Mets starters this season.
Who is your favourite Met to watch?
This is a tough question because it is always changing, but the clear answer is Francisco Lindor. If not for Shohei Ohtani having a video game season, Lindor would be the NL MVP this year, and it is because he does it all. He’s a defensive wizard, he can clobber the ball, hit a double the opposite way, or beat out an infield single. He’s the most complete player the Mets have had since peak-era David Wright, and the fact that he is a great person with a million watt smile makes it even sweeter.
How confident are you that Pete Alonso will sign with the Mets after this season? Would you be comfortable with him getting a seven-year contract?
If Pete Alonso were represented by any agent not named “Scott Boras,” I think he’s a slam dunk Met in 2025. I won’t parrot the folks online saying that Alonso has basically destroyed his value by “only” putting up 31 home runs and 2.4 bWAR, but he certainly hasn’t had the kind of no-doubt superstar season you want going into a walk year.
This is a situation, much like with Jacob deGrom, where a reunion makes more sense than it does for another team to sign Alonso. Pete loves New York and has ingratiated himself with the community in ways big and small, like his commitment to honoring first responders each year on 9/11. But, as deGrom showed, what makes sense on paper doesn’t really matter when the promise of truly stupid money is on the table.
As for a seven year deal…I’m torn. As I recently discussed on a podcast, sometimes fandom – even a fandom like mine that tries to be rooted in logic and statistical analysis – is about how things feel. And it just feels right for Alonso to be a career Met. We have had so few of those, and Pete has the makeup for that type of perennial guest at Citi Field in the way that Mookie Wilson and John Franco are.
If the price for Pete to become a lifelong Met is to overpay for him to be a bench player for the last three years of his career, I think I’m ok with that. But I can totally, absolutely, see why someone wouldn’t want to.
After missing last season, Edwin Diaz hasn’t been quite the same, do you feel comfortable with him in a tight save spot? Who are his setup men?
Díaz has not been the same as he was pre-injury, but he’s still been pretty damn good. Bullpens are mercurial, impossible things, and he’s been both lights out and “cover your eyes with your hands to avoid the carnage” bad at times, but for most this season, he’s been a very good, but not often great, reliever.
However, he’s a player who loves the spotlight and wants a big stage, so a playoff race might be exactly what he needs.
As for his setup men, Phil Maton has emerged as the finest of the non-Díaz relievers over the past month or so after being acquired from the Rays. Danny Young was a depth signing in the offseason who has emerged as a key piece of the Mets’ bullpen. Reed Garrett went from afterthought to dominant reliever and had settled back into “probably pretty good.”
What else should we know about the Mets?
This team is fun. The OMG of it all, the Grimace of it all, the trumpets for Díaz’s entrance, it all adds to a team that is maybe more vibes than talent, but the vibes are so strong that they make you forget that part.
Which isn’t to say that the team isn’t really talented! An already good team got better throughout the year. The trade deadline bolstered the bullpen, shored up the fifth spot in the rotation, and added Jesse Winker, who fits this team like a glove.
The facts that Kodai Senga has barely played, top pitching prospect Christian Scott may need Tommy John surgery, and Jeff McNeil is out for the rest of the year due to a hit-by-pitch on a stupid bunt attempt would have been more than enough to sink the spirits of most Mets clubs of my lifetime. But this team is still rolling, still dancing to their utility man’s reggaeton single, still saluting dudes in blow-up McDonald’s costumes, and still winning games.
Like I said, they’re just fun.
A team that is fun….that must be nice. Thanks Brian.