What's Next?

Posted by: Patrick Gorman 1/3/2025

As the 2024 calendar comes to an end. The 2025 calendar begins which means we are closer to pitchers and catchers reporting. The Mets so far have had a very good off-season. David Stearns kicked off the winter by adding much needed pitching with Frankie Montas and newly converted starter Clay Holmes. Both Holmes and Montas will be key pieces in the rotation as they look to replace the innings that Quintana and Severino produced last year. The Mets didn't stop there as they signed Griffin Canning to a major league contract. Canning is an intriguing arm with pretty good breaking pitches, but a below average fastball that gets hit hard. If Jeremy Hefner and the rest of the pitching staff can make Canning's fastball average, then Canning can be a serviceable swing man for the 2025 Mets. The most recent move on the starting rotation side of the pitching staff was bringing back fan favorite Sean Manaea on a fair market deal with some deferrals as well. Manaea coming back was such a pleasant surprise because the price of starting pitchers on the open market has been astronomical. This contract shows that Manaea indeed wanted to come back, especially with him being open to deferrals. Barring anything Sasaki related. I believe the starting staff is just about complete.

Now let's talk about the elephant in the room. With the help of Steve Cohen and family The Mets made a franchise altering signing with one of the brightest stars in the game Juan Soto. Not only did we sign Juan Soto to the largest contract in history, but they also stole him away from The New York Yankees. This makes it more significant than it already is because we have never seen the perceived lesser Mets take a star player away from the Yankees. It could change the course of New York baseball as we know it, but everyone can agree with me when I say that when both Mets and Yankees are good it benefits the city as a whole. With the signings of multiple arms and the addition of Soto this team is still incomplete.

For starters, who is going to protect Juan Soto in the lineup? There is no need to panic yet on this topic as Stearns and other GMs across the league are waiting for the Boras demands to drop. What really surprised me is the Mets offering a contract to arguably the best bat left on the market Teoscar Hernandez. Newsday reporter Tim Healy reported how the Mets offered Hernandez a two-year deal, before he went back to the Dodgers. This would've been a massive upgrade in the lineup and it would most likely end the tenure of Pete Alonso. Other options would include Alex Bregman, Anthony Santander, and old friend Pete Alonso. I will go more in detail on the Alonso front in a separate blog, but I think all signs point to Pete returning.

My other question mark is who is going to back Edwin Diaz in the bullpen? In 2024, there was a stretch in the season where Edwin Diaz hit a roadblock and it hurt the team drastically in the short run. It is key that Stearns does indeed have Diaz insurance going into the 2025 season. I know everyone is clamoring for hard throwing lefty Tanner Scott, but unless his price drops in years I simply can't see that happening. I think the Mets will be looking into one-year types in the reliever such as David Robertson or Chris Martin to name a few. If the Mets can somehow bring one of the guys I just listed with a Brooks Raley reunion, then this makes the bullpen deeper and pushes guys like Dedneil Nunez and Reed Garrett in more respectable roles.