2 METS

OVERALL RANK 4

ENEMY LINES

A RIVAL SCOUT SIZES UP NEW YORK

Yoenis Céspedes is so strong and such a good mistake hitter.... José Reyes still has good hands and plenty of arm.... [Hitting coach] Kevin Long got Curtis Granderson back into taking the ball the other way.... Last year Jay Bruce's timing was off. He was giving away at bats. He'll bounce back.... A healthy Lucas Duda could be a potent bat at the bottom of the order.... Travis d'Arnaud has been kind of a bust. A lot of it is due to injuries. He's shown flashes but it seems like he has amnesia and can't remember the adjustments he has made.... Wilmer Flores is still a good infield option, even at shortstop for a day. I feel bad for him—had he been given an opportunity to play every day, he might've become a pretty good hitter.... Michael Conforto got rushed to the big leagues, and his holes were discovered. He's not there yet.... The odds have to be against David Wright getting healthy. I admire that he wants to keep trying.... Noah Syndergaard is scary good. There's a good cockiness too.... Last year Jacob deGrom started to feel something in his elbow, but this spring he was throwing free and easy.... Matt Harvey is an enigma. But last year his stuff was nowhere near what it is now.... Steven Matz has a chance to be a No. 2 starter.... Robert Gsellman's stuff is crisper. He used to pick Bartolo Colón's brain, and that has helped.... Jeurys Familia's stuff wasn't as good late in the season. He has been ridden hard. Fernando Salas or Addison Reed could fill in for him.

MANAGER TERRY COLLINS

7TH SEASON WITH NEW YORK

B-T BA OBP SLG WAR

3B JOSÉ REYES [DECLINING]

S-R .267 .326 .443 0.4

CF CURTIS GRANDERSON

L-R .237 .335 .464 2.5

LF YOENIS CÉSPEDES

R-R .280 .354 .530 2.9

RF JAY BRUCE [DECLINING]

L-L .250 .309 .506 0.6

2B NEIL WALKER

S-R .282 .347 .476 2.4

SS ASDRUBAL CABRERA

S-R .280 .336 .323 2.7

1B LUCAS DUDA [INJURY RISK]

L-R .229 .302 .506 0.6

C TRAVIS D'ARNAUD [INJURY RISK]

R-R .229 .302 .412 0.1

BENCH

B-T BA OBP SLG WAR

UT T.J. RIVERA [ROOKIE]

R-R .333 .345 .476 0.6

OF JUAN LAGARES [DEFENSIVE STAR]

R-R .239 .301 .380 0.8

OF MICHAEL CONFORTO

L-R .220 .310 .414 0.4

W-L ERA K/9 WAR

RH NOAH SYNDERGAARD [TEAM MVP] [BARGAIN]

14--9 2.60 10.7 6.0

LH JACOB DEGROM [BARGAIN]

7--8 3.04 8.7 3.7

RH MATT HARVEY [INJURY RISK]

4--10 4.86 7.4 0.1

LH STEVEN MATZ [INJURY RISK] [BARGAIN]

9--8 3.40 8.8 2.8

RH ROBERT GSELLMAN [ROOKIE] [RISING]

4--2 2.42 8.5 1.4

SV ERA K/9 WAR

RH JEURYS FAMILIA

51 2.55 9.7 2.0

RH ADDISON REED

1 3.53 10.5 2.9

NEW ACQUISITION

2016 STATS

(R) ROOKIE

TEAM MVP

DEFENSIVE STAR

INJURY RISK

BARGAIN

RISING

DECLINING

MODEST PROPOSAL

For all the attention paid to their young rotation, the Mets' everyday lineup is now among the oldest in baseball—and more than half of the starting lineup can depart at the end of the season. This feels like a last chance for this group. With that in mind, the Mets should move from developing those young starting pitchers to riding them. Their chances hinge on big seasons from Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz. The three made 76 starts and threw 464 innings in 2016. Let them carry full workloads, rather than managing them for a future the Mets may not even own.

BOTTOM LINE

There are some injury concerns for their great starters, but any team would gladly take them.