OT: Mets 2026 Season Thread

[cubuffsdoug_rivals]

This is a fairly routine move for a non-contender at this time. Reds did the same with Eugenio Suarez.

If Robert is claimed, it's a win-win. Mets save one month's worth of salary, and also save his $2M 2027 buyout. Robert gets to finish the season with a contender.

If Robert clears waivers, as he likely will, then it's probably a non-event. He will likely just play out the season as a Met. It's possible the Mets would release him, but there's no reason why they should.

David Stearns has given y'all some reasons to rip him over the last two years. This is not one of them.

Not ripping him for this move. It's all the others he has made. Too many to count. As someone said, Stearns has a punchable face.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Jonah Tong line last night: 7 inning CG (it was a doubleheader), 88 pitches, 0 runs, 1 hit, 2 BB, 8 K. In his last four starts, Tong has given up a total of two runs. He's ready to return. I suspect that this is his last minor league appearance for the foreseeable future.

In other news, Jarred Kelenic has signed a minor league contract with... the Yankees!

 

[yesrutgers01]

This is a fairly routine move for a non-contender at this time. Reds did the same with Eugenio Suarez.

If Robert is claimed, it's a win-win. Mets save one month's worth of salary, and also save his $2M 2027 buyout. Robert gets to finish the season with a contender.

If Robert clears waivers, as he likely will, then it's probably a non-event. He will likely just play out the season as a Met. It's possible the Mets would release him, but there's no reason why they should.

David Stearns has given y'all some reasons to rip him over the last two years. This is not one of them.

Seriously??????????? This is not a reason to rip Stearns? Are you referring to if we only look at this trade for Robert in a singular bubble or the move to get Robert as one of his showcase moves in the first place.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Seriously??????????? This is not a reason to rip Stearns? Are you referring to if we only look at this trade for Robert in a singular bubble or the move to get Robert as one of his showcase moves in the first place.

You do recall what the Mets gave up for Luis Robert, do you not? Luisangel Acuña and Truman Pauley. Pauley you probably don't know, which is excusable. He is a low A pitcher, 3-11 with a 5.47 ERA. A lottery ticket at best.

But you do know Acuña. And PLEASE tell me you don't miss him and his .541 OPS.

You refer to this as a showcase move. I view it more like using Cohen's financial muscle to take a low risk flyer on a high ceiling guy which didn't work out.

Stearns' root error in all this was his Kyle Tucker miscalculation. I don't think he expected anyone to outbid him. He then pivoted to Plan B, of which Bichette and Robert were both a part.

Ironically, NOT signing Tucker looks like a fortuitous move at this point.

 

[Leonard23]

You do recall what the Mets gave up for Luis Robert, do you not? Luisangel Acuña and Truman Pauley. Pauley you probably don't know, which is excusable. He is a low A pitcher, 3-11 with a 5.47 ERA. A lottery ticket at best.

But you do know Acuña. And PLEASE tell me you don't miss him and his .541 OPS.

You refer to this as a showcase move. I view it more like using Cohen's financial muscle to take a low risk flyer on a high ceiling guy which didn't work out.

Stearns' root error in all this was his Kyle Tucker miscalculation. I don't think he expected anyone to outbid him. He then pivoted to Plan B, of which Bichette and Robert were both a part.

Ironically, NOT signing Tucker looks like a fortuitous move at this point.

Stearns's error was thinking he's smarter than everyone and claiming "run prevention" was the new strategy, so he didn't re-sign Alonso and instead wasted $ elsewhere on players like Bichette for $126M over 3 years, Semien for $72M over 3 years, Polanco $40M over 2 years, and Roberts $20M.

 

[Knight Shift]

All right, please don't flog me. Is Jared Young quietly having a pretty good (albeit limited) year at the plate?

Flog away.

.272 avg

.332 OBP

.447 SLG

.780 OPS

Jared Young 2026 MLB Splits - ESPN

View the 2026 MLB season full splits for Jared Young of the New York Mets on ESPN. Includes full stats per opponent, and home and away games.

www.espn.com

 

[Knight Shift]

Who? He's still around?

 

[yesrutgers01]

All right, please don't flog me. Is Jared Young quietly having a pretty good (albeit limited) year at the plate?

Flog away.

.272 avg

.332 OBP

.447 SLG

.780 OPS

Jared Young 2026 MLB Splits - ESPN

View the 2026 MLB season full splits for Jared Young of the New York Mets on ESPN. Includes full stats per opponent, and home and away games.

www.espn.com

He is a pretty good player. And fits Stearns plan for how he wanted to replace Pete. His secret, he really didn’t want Polanco, Vientos, Baty to replace Pete. He knew he had Young.

actually, Young is a decent player but not an answer.

 

[Knight Shift]

He is a pretty good player. And fits Stearns plan for how he wanted to replace Pete. His secret, he really didn’t want Polanco, Vientos, Baty to replace Pete. He knew he had Young.

actually, Young is a decent player but not an answer.

Should they make a move for "an answer," and if so, who would be a good candidate?

 

[yesrutgers01]

Stearns's error was thinking he's smarter than everyone and claiming "run prevention" was the new strategy, so he didn't re-sign Alonso and instead wasted $ elsewhere on players like Bichette for $126M over 3 years, Semien for $72M over 3 years, Polanco $40M over 2 years, and Roberts $20M.

According to some of our fans on here- none of that matters. $200 million of crap and $60 just more crap.
not to mention Peralta and Williams.
We seriously have the most incompetent GM in baseball and people still defend this idiot because Benge is a good player.

 

[yesrutgers01]

You do recall what the Mets gave up for Luis Robert, do you not? Luisangel Acuña and Truman Pauley. Pauley you probably don't know, which is excusable. He is a low A pitcher, 3-11 with a 5.47 ERA. A lottery ticket at best.

But you do know Acuña. And PLEASE tell me you don't miss him and his .541 OPS.

You refer to this as a showcase move. I view it more like using Cohen's financial muscle to take a low risk flyer on a high ceiling guy which didn't work out.

Stearns' root error in all this was his Kyle Tucker miscalculation. I don't think he expected anyone to outbid him. He then pivoted to Plan B, of which Bichette and Robert were both a part.

Ironically, NOT signing Tucker looks like a fortuitous move at this point.

Actually- under $1 mil for 23 runs or $20 mil for 24 runs…I don’t know…save $19 mil and add it to the $20m for Polanco and have Acuna on the bench, Pete at 1B and still have Benge and Ewing playing over Polanco sucking and not playing and Robert waived.

im not seeing the argument for Stearns here.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Three HR's for Vientos today for Syracuse. I think he will be back on Tuesday. Mauricio continues to rake. I think we see him before the season is out. Rojas also homered, but we won't see him for awhile.

Bullpen threw a nine inning no-hitter. Three hitless innings from Tobias Myers. I don't think we've seen the last of him either.

 

[yesrutgers01]

Three HR's for Vientos today for Syracuse. I think he will be back on Tuesday. Mauricio continues to rake. I think we see him before the season is out. Rojas also homered, but we won't see him for awhile.

Bullpen threw a nine inning no-hitter. Three hitless innings from Tobias Myers. I don't think we've seen the last of him either.

Vientos and also Baty are guys that just seem that they need a change of venue. There are some guys that just can't thrive in the NY market. It is a shame as both have showed that they can hit major league pitching.

Mauricio- just seems like a forgotten man.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Vientos and also Baty are guys that just seem that they need a change of venue. There are some guys that just can't thrive in the NY market. It is a shame as both have showed that they can hit major league pitching.

Mauricio- just seems like a forgotten man.

All three are arbitration eligible and the Mets will need to make decisions on them in November. They have some rookies coming up who will need roster protection (notably Rojas) and will need to free up roster slots for them.

 

[shields]

Tired of seeing Baty hitting .220.

 

[Toddwills00]

Vientos and Mauricio seems like your typical 4A players. Alvarez is so frustrating to watch and Baty is nothing more than a bench piece. That graduation class produced nothing.

 

[MadRU]

 

[Doctor Worm]

Yep. Most likely tomorrow when the roster limit expands to 28.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Orioles claim Luis Robert on waivers! Did NOT see that coming. Mets recall Morabito.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Vientos has been activated and is in the lineup tonight as DH. Morabito will be activated tomorrow.

 

[yesrutgers01]

BTW- the NLROY- I think it really is Stewarts to lose. Screw the WAR guys. But- I do think Wetherholt gets the number 2 spot with a .240is BA because he is the media darling. Though, not Benge, McLean should actually be number 2. I think if he didn't have a cameo last year- he would be neck and neck with Stewart. Benge should be number 3 but will be either 3 or 4 with McLean.

 

[Knight Shift]

BTW- the NLROY- I think it really is Stewarts to lose. Screw the WAR guys. But- I do think Wetherholt gets the number 2 spot with a .240is BA because he is the media darling. Though, not Benge, McLean should actually be number 2. I think if he didn't have a cameo last year- he would be neck and neck with Stewart. Benge should be number 3 but will be either 3 or 4 with McLean.

????
Stewarts? Root beer
WAR Guys? Iran war?
Wetherholt?

Seriously, for those of us not up on wtf is going on granularly in MLB. . . .

 

[Doctor Worm]

????
Stewarts? Root beer
WAR Guys? Iran war?
Wetherholt?

Seriously, for those of us not up on wtf is going on granularly in MLB. . . .

Never heard of Sal Stewart? Please allow me to introduce you to him.

He is 22 years old and plays first base, and sometimes second base, for the Cincinnati Reds.

He has 31 HR and 105 RBI. He leads the majors in the latter category.

That's all I got, and that's all you need.

 

[Knight Shift]

Never heard of Sal Stewart? Please allow me to introduce you to him.

He is 22 years old and plays first base, and sometimes second base, for the Cincinnati Reds.

He has 31 HR and 105 RBI. He leads the majors in the latter category.

That's all I got, and that's all you need.

I follow the Mets and MLB standings generally, I don't have the time or interest in much else related to MLB. So to answer your question- nope, never heard of the guy. Can you help me out with Wetherholt and the WAR guys? I see there is a JJ Wetherholt playing for the Cards, so that must be him- never heard of the guy. WAR guys must be guys who care about WAR over everything else.

As far as a Met winning rookie of year, don't see it happening, unless Benge or McLean (I keep wanting to type McClean!) have a really solid finish.

As I type, Tampa Bay looking like a clown team tonight.

And Stock's stock rose today!

 

[shields]

Good for Stock.

 

[Doctor Worm]

I follow the Mets and MLB standings generally, I don't have the time or interest in much else related to MLB. So to answer your question- nope, never heard of the guy. Can you help me out with Wetherholt and the WAR guys? I see there is a JJ Wetherholt playing for the Cards, so that must be him- never heard of the guy. WAR guys must be guys who care about WAR over everything else.

As far as a Met winning rookie of year, don't see it happening, unless Benge or McLean (I keep wanting to type McClean!) have a really solid finish.

As I type, Tampa Bay looking like a clown team tonight.

And Stock's stock rose today!

JJ Wetherholt is a rookie 2B, good stick, elite glove.

When @yesrutgers01 referred to "WAR guys", he didn't mean players, he meant voting media guys. The traditional stats guys, who are impressed by HR's and RBI's, will vote for Stewart. The analytics guys will vote for Wetherholt and his 4.6 WAR. McLean and Benge will get votes, but not first place votes.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Good for Stock.

FWIW, Robert Stock is listed as 260 pounds. He must have lost some weight since then. I had no idea he was (dare I say it?) so stocky.

 

[RUnotentertained]

MOVE THE RAYS TO NASHVILLE

best record in AL

No one there
Mets having terrible season have more fans in building

PS Perralta still sucks

 

[Doctor Worm]

MOVE THE RAYS TO NASHVILLE

best record in AL

No one there
Mets having terrible season have more fans in building

PS Perralta still sucks

I guess you missed the announcement. It's official! The Rays are moving! They are leaving St. Petersburg!

And going across the bay to Tampa. Target date for occupancy of the new stadium is opening day 2029.

 

[RUforJERSEY]

Meanwhile...

 

[yesrutgers01]

Meanwhile...

who is that?

 

[Doctor Worm]

who is that?

That is Billy Amick. Acquired in one of the deadline trades. Recently promoted to AAA. Strikes out a ton, but strikeouts no longer matter. Homers a lot too. Those still do matter.

 

[Doctor Worm]

Quick, who is the richest MLB owner?

WRONG! It is now Stan Kroenke, new owner of the Angels. He edges out Cohen by a billion or so.

 

[yesrutgers01]

Should they make a move for "an answer," and if so, who would be a good candidate?

make a trade with Baltimore lol

 

[yesrutgers01]

Quick, who is the richest MLB owner?

WRONG! It is now Stan Kroenke, new owner of the Angels. He edges out Cohen by a billion or so.

Wasn't there a time when you could only be an owner of one professional sports team...

 

[Doctor Worm]

Wasn't there a time when you could only be an owner of one professional sports team

Not to my knowledge. You can't own multiple teams within the same league. One exception is (or at least was) MLS. Kroenke owned several teams at one point. His money pretty much kept the new soccer league afloat, until it found its footing.

 

[yesrutgers01]

Not to my knowledge. You can't own multiple teams within the same league. One exception is (or at least was) MLS. Kroenke owned several teams at one point. His money pretty much kept the new soccer league afloat, until it found its footing.

Looks like it had been an NFL rule that has since been overruled.

 

[yesrutgers01]

As we are coming close to the end of the season. A couple of bright spots and a couple of concerns.

Benge is obviously the huge bright sport- looks like he could be our PCA with a lethal arm in right field. But be does everything well. And AS for many years to come.
McLean - had a couple of hiccups but a frontline pitcher for years to come
Senga??? - could we have found a closer?
Thorton - Not a front line guy but could be a solid back end of the rotation guy for years.
Scott- TBD but could become something pretty good

Concerns-
Ewing - Did the league figure him out after facibg him a few times. My biggest concern is that he is known for discipline at the plate and that has been lacking in a major way. He needs a lot of work in the off season- but, this could all be progression as he was rushed up here.
Alvarez- he just is not good. Gary Sanchez 2.0
Vientos - not good
Manaea - teased us but looks washed up
Williams- not good
Semein - not good
Bichette- maybe worth half his contract

 

[Doctor Worm]

As we are coming close to the end of the season. A couple of bright spots and a couple of concerns.

Benge is obviously the huge bright sport- looks like he could be our PCA with a lethal arm in right field. But be does everything well. And AS for many years to come.
McLean - had a couple of hiccups but a frontline pitcher for years to come
Senga??? - could we have found a closer?
Thorton - Not a front line guy but could be a solid back end of the rotation guy for years.
Scott- TBD but could become something pretty good

Concerns-
Ewing - Did the league figure him out after facibg him a few times. My biggest concern is that he is known for discipline at the plate and that has been lacking in a major way. He needs a lot of work in the off season- but, this could all be progression as he was rushed up here.
Alvarez- he just is not good. Gary Sanchez 2.0
Vientos - not good
Manaea - teased us but looks washed up
Williams- not good
Semein - not good
Bichette- maybe worth half his contract

Excellent analysis. A few thoughts.

Benge - unfair comparison. Benge I think is a very good player and potential all-star. PCA is a frickin' unicorn.

Senga is intriguing. He's got a plus fastball and a nasty secondary pitch, which is all a closer needs.

Ewing I think will be fine.

Alvarez - Let's try to avoid comparisons to the #1 prospect we thought we were getting, and instead compare him to what else is out there at the catcher position. In that comparison, he still looks pretty good. Maybe he is destined to be Gary Sanchez - a bat-first career part timer. There are worse fates.

Williams - Not yet ready to give up on him. Relievers are SO volatile.

Pretty much agree on everyone else.

 

[cubuffsdoug_rivals]

Excellent analysis. A few thoughts.

Benge - unfair comparison. Benge I think is a very good player and potential all-star. PCA is a frickin' unicorn.

Senga is intriguing. He's got a plus fastball and a nasty secondary pitch, which is all a closer needs.

Ewing I think will be fine.

Alvarez - Let's try to avoid comparisons to the #1 prospect we thought we were getting, and instead compare him to what else is out there at the catcher position. In that comparison, he still looks pretty good. Maybe he is destined to be Gary Sanchez - a bat-first career part timer. There are worse fates.

Williams - Not yet ready to give up on him. Relievers are SO volatile.

Pretty much agree on everyone else.

And to think we had PCA , but the previous bad GM traded him for a pack of smokes.
That GM thought he made the Mets a playoff contender off that trade.