Just Mets

Actions speak louder than words, and the Mets have talked an awful lot this spring.

Throughout spring training, there’s clearly a new attitude and raised expectations with this team, a lot of which have eminated from the coaching staff and players. They’ve even gone as far as to mention – that’s right – the postseason. 

To some, these words have been both exciting and inspiring, a breathe of fresh air if you will, but to others, it’s a bravado that has been scoffed at to some degree.

To be fair, we’ve heard this kind of thing before. Remember Jerry Manuel and the curveball machine? Or the infamous Underdog shirts? Not to mention there was the whole “90 wins” thing last season, which, when all said and done, wound up being a 79-win campaign?

It’s not that it’s not fun to hear the front office, manager and players buying in to the heightened expectations. It gives me hope, whether it’s false or not, and I enjoy dreaming of championships and parades up the Canyon of Heroes. That’s what it’s all about in the end. Still, I am one who still needs to see actions that back up these strong words. They can say anything they want – it’s doing something that makes a difference. I think they’ve started to do that.

The Mets started on this route early in the offseason, forfeiting their 2015 first round draft pick to sign 36-year-old outfielder Michael Cuddyer to a 2-year contract. It’s not a move that’s going to blow anyone away, and it was the biggest acquisition the Mets made in an offseason in which fans were hoping to see more. 

Yet, this was something this franchise hasn’t done in the Sandy Alderson era.

Giving up a first rounder for a player like Cuddyer, especially at his age, is what’s classified as a “win-now” move whether one agrees with signing this player or not. Up until that point, this franchise has been rebuilding and making the organization incrementally better, showing an unwillingness to act aggressively to acquire players on the external markets in order to afford more time for their organization to get deeper. As they’ve waited on these young prospects to develop, Alderson has traded for Zack Wheeler, Travis d’Arnaud, Noah Syndergaard, Vic Black and Dilson Herrera to fortify his base, all of whom are also expected to be big parts of this team’s future. 

But now, the time for incremental improvements and moral victories is over. That’s what this team has been saying for six months now, and they further backed up this talk with the actions they made on Monday, acquiring left-handed relievers Alex Torres and Jerry Blevins to fortify their weakened bullpen and give them chess pieces for late game situations they simply did not have.

While neither move is headline grabbing, it shows the Mets are at a stage of their evolution where they can and will go outside to fill holes as needed. To me, that’s what winning teams do. Sure, it took longer than anyone thought, but better late than never, right?

It’s actions such as these that make me hopeful for what lies ahead. It’s all a part of the, “90-win” mentality this organization began to adapt to a year ago, and we’re finally starting to see it in action. 

Now, it’s time to execute this boldness on the diamond…