With Max Scherzer officially introduced as a Met, to go along with Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar and Mark Canha signing within the span of a few days, one could say owner Steve Cohen & Co. have done enough to set themselves up for the 2022 campaign.
But any great team knows that improving the roster is never-ending – there’s always something that can be done. Sure, the Mets spent a boatload of money in recent days to set themselves up for success, but that spending may not be over.
Speaking during Scherzer’s introductory news conference, GM Billy Eppler discussed what the Mets will be doing moving forward and propping their feet up on the desks and waiting for spring training isn’t on the docket.
“Ultimately what we’re going to try to do is improve the club,” Eppler said. “That can be done in a number of ways, whether that’s done with another pitcher, another pitcher or two, whether it’s starting or relief. We do feel pretty good about this position player group, but want to remain opportunistic as we navigate the rest of the winter and look for areas that we can improve the club, but also be mindful of some of the things that I talked about in my opening press conference two Fridays ago, which was not taking away too many future World Series expectations in the forward-looking years just for a small gain right now. Want to kinda balance that calculus but we will remain opportunistic and look for areas to improve the club.”
Eppler’s comments reflect what many have believed about the Mets in the aftermath of the Scherzer signing. They’re likely to be aggressive with more pitching even with Jacob deGrom and Scherzer at the top of the rotation. They lost Noah Syndergaard and Marcus Stroman (a potential candidate to re-sign) in free agency, and their depth at the moment with Tylor Megill and David Peterson – Carlos Carrasco and Taijuan Walker figure to be somewhere in the rotation come spring training – could use some more competition.
In the bullpen, a reunion with Jeurys Familia was recently rumored and there’s many others the Mets could go after, too.
But what about someone like Kris Bryant, who would fit well with the Mets? Eppler says the team will be opportunistic, which likely means they’ll be doing their due diligence on just about everyone they see as a fit in Queens. So, while there’s no rumor connecting the two right now, or any position player for that matter, who knows what will happen as the winter still unfolds here?
Ultimately, Eppler, Cohen, Sandy Alderson and the rest of the Mets staff has made it known that they’re gunning for a World Series title now and in the future, which means no stone will be left unturned until the roster is set to head to Port St. Lucie for spring training.
Even then, the Mets will be sure to do what’s best for the club by addition and subtraction as they see fit down the line.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].