Just Mets

There’s no denying or trying to hide it. The Mets have more than a slight dilemma which is quickly approaching.

The players they’ve ridden all year long to a 57-50 record and a one game lead over the Nationals in the National League East are without a doubt their young and budding star pitchers in their rotation.

The issue now, or very soon, will be the dreaded innings limit that have been imposed on them throughout the year.

Sandy Alderson has said these pitchers will pitch in the playoffs if they get there, although neither he or Terry Collins have ruled out a shutdown during the regular season if necessary.

So, how can the Mets keep these young starting pitchers throwing in games down the stretch while keeping them under their innings limits?

The club is expecting Steven Matz to return in early September from his lat injury, which will help mitigate this problem as they will once again employ a six-man rotation, Collins recently said.

But that’s still 3-4 weeks away, with the clock – or innings limit – ticking down, which doesn’t help matters considering there is more than 1/3 of the season remaining.

In order to bridge the gap between today and Matz’s return, the club is expected to use a spot starter and skip their young pitchers at times this month to help manage their limits.

Here is a look at three different options…DILLON GEE

Gee was designated for assignment by the club on June 15th and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Las Vegas to rediscover his game.

Alderson said the day they designated Gee he hoped Gee could contribute to the big league club again this season, and he very well could get an opportunity in the near-term.

It would seem Gee is the most logical players to be the spot starter this month. While he got off to a rocky start in Las Vegas – he allowed 14 earned runs in only 9 1/3 innings – he has a 2.95 ERA in his last six starts, including his last two efforts in which he has pitched two complete games while allowing a total of four earned runs.

The biggest issue with Gee is he is not currently on the Mets 40-man roster. So, if the Mets think Gee is the guy. they will have to designate someone else for assignment to make room for him.

That might not seem like a huge problem, but remember, the Mets also have to make 40-man roster moves to accommodate both David Wright and Jerry Blevins once they’re ready to return, since they’re on the 60-disabled list.

LOGAN VERRETT

In his brief time with the Mets earlier this season, Verrett was impressive in his 12 1/3 inning of relief. But he was demoted to Triple-A on July 7th to make room for Jenrry Mejia, mostly out of fear the organization would lose someone like Alex Torres to waivers, who they ultimately designated for assignment anyway on Tuesday.

Verrett has been starting in Las Vegas, and has been decent for the offensive heavy league. But he has yet to provide the 51s with sufficient length as he continues to stretch out his innings as stamina as a starting pitcher, having not thrown more than five innings in any of his three starts to date.

That could mean when the time comes for the Mets to use a spot starter, Verrett might not be ready simply from an innings and pitch count perspective.

The biggest thing Verrett has going for him is that he is indeed on the 40-man roster, so the club would only have to demote someone else on the active roster to accommodate him.

Given the club’s history and the threat of losing somebody else to waivers, the Mets may take the roster-conservative route, even if it means asking the bullpen for an extended outing during Verrett’s start.

CARLOS TORRES

It wouldn’t necessarily be an unfamiliar task for Torres to serve as an emergency starter for the Mets. He has started before, he has served as a long-man before, and he has shown he can be effective in an unpredictable role for this club.

It hasn’t been the easiest of seasons for Torres, as he’s often struggled with the command of his breaking ball inside the strike zone. He was also pitching in short relief in the seventh and eighth innings, a role he’s really not suited for. But he has looked a lot better lately, allowing just one run in his last seven relief appearances to lower his ERA to 3.67 for the year.

There are a couple of problems using Torres.

Like Verrett, Torres hasn’t been stretched out to serve in this role. He could only give the team four or five innings at most, at which point they’ll have to turn to the bullpen no matter what.

In addition, if Torres starts, he will be unavailable in the bullpen in the days following that start, leaving Terry Collins short-handed in critical, late-summer games.

But, Torres is here, and they don’t have to maneuver the roster at all if they decide to start him once or twice over the next week. It wouldn’t be ideal, but he could be the lesser of the three evils in this equation.

If only Rafael Montero were available…