Really, New York? Really?

Ok, what’s going on with the Mets? First they signed OF Curtis Granderson to a four-year, $60 million contract. Overall, it is not a terrible acquisition, but here are some down sides to it:

Here’s why I don’t like the acquisition, and it refers to the money reason. Teams like the Mets, the Chicago Cubs, the Houston Astros, among others, won’t be contending teams until about 2015, 2016, or even further. I’d say that, pending how healthy the team stays, and how well pitcher Matt Harvey can recover, they’re not contending teams until 2016.

This means that when they are a contending team, Granderson is 35 years old, and their star player, David Wright, is 33. The only reason why I see them making this deal is because of revenue from fans, and a hope that Matt Harvey can come back in gear for a potential playoff run. Remember, they are in a division with the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals, two teams that are very talented, and will continue to be talented in future years.

What Granderson does bring to the table is his good power, his ability to pull the ball, and a lefty bat. He can bring up the team’s Slugging %, OBP, and is a new face into the Mets system that can increase fan revenue.

Here’s what will most likely be the starting lineup for the Mets in the 2014 season:

1.      Eric Young Jr.

2.      Daniel Murphy

3.      David Wright

4.      Curtis Granderson

5.      Ike Davis

6.      Chris Young

7.      Travis d’Arnaud

8.      Ruben Tejada

9.      Pitcher

Looking at that, it’s not too bad. Five of those players had at least 10 steals in the 2013 season. Wright and Granderson supply a big power bat, but watch out for Travis d’Arnaud too. He’s not the biggest power bat, but his arm as a catcher is great.

Are they enough for a contending team? Well, it’s hard to tell when you don’t look at pitching. But they have not stopped since Granderson. The Mets reportedly have signed a two-year, $20 million deal to veteran Bartolo Colon.

Now I’m confused. They really must think that, even without Harvey, they have a chance to make the playoffs in the 2014 season. Colon will turn 41 in May, which will make him the oldest player in the MLB since Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, and Darren Oliver have retired. 

Despite his age, Colon put up great numbers over the past two years with the Oakland Athletics. Last year, he went 18-6 with a 2.65 ERA and a 5.0 WAR, his second highest WAR in his 16-year career (even better than his 2005 Cy Young year). He finished 6^th in the Cy Young voting.

With that, the Mets have six starting pitchers that they can go with. Here are the six:

1.      Bartolo Colon

2.      Dillon Gee

3.      Zack Wheeler

4.      Jonathon Niese

5.      Jenrry Mejia

6.      Noah Syndergaard

The first five starters are projected to have ERA’s around 4 (Colon’s is a little bit lower), according to projected sources. Syndergaard is their number one prospect, and might not be on the starting lineup at the start of the season.

But remember what I said before! The Mets are not a contending team yet, even with an old player like Colon. Unless Wright and Granderson put up historic numbers and Colon wins his second Cy Young award, they’re not going to make it.

So if you put Harvey back in that lineup, which we’ll just assume will be the start of the 2015 season, Colon will be 42, Wright 32, and Granderson 34. They still might not even be a contending team then.

Will they be a better team? Yes, definitely! But it’s going to be real tough to become a contending team with the Braves, Nationals, and even the rising Phillies and Marlins.

Do I think the Colon move is bad? Yes. The only reason to get a guy like Colon is if you are already a contending team or if you have a lot of young prospects that you want the older guy to teach some moves. But the Mets do not have a dominant farm system like the Twins or the Cubs or the Astros.

This team finished 74-88 last season, which was 3^rd place in the division, but 22 games back from the Atlanta Braves.

I would like to see this team starting some type of rebuilding program, but that does not look like it will be the case. If they want more to this club compared to next year, they’re going to need more pitching.

The whole thing with Matt Harvey out really hurts them a lot, and it’s quite unfortunate. Watching Derrick Rose and the entire Bulls team injured this year is killing me. But they have to build around that, and so far they’re doing just ok with that.

They’re looking like the Los Angeles Angels right now, buying big players but not getting much out of them. Mets fans, don’t get too hyped up on this new New York roster.

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns.

-Evan Boyd