New York Mets news: See who’s being added to the roster
2020 was a rough year for everyone, especially for fans of the New York Mets. Not only did they have to deal with the negative implications of COVID-19 – they also had an abysmal Mets’ season in which the team went 26-34, earning themselves a fourth-place finish in the NL East. However, could recent news of some roster upgrades save both the franchise & its fans from another pathetic season?
We’re decades removed from the 1969 “Miracle Mets”, and for many New York Mets’ fans, these new roster acquisitions might just be the miracle that they need in order to get back in the pennant hunt and, at the very least, compete against teams within their division, including the Washington Nationals, the Miami Dolphins, the Atlanta Braves, and the Philadelphia Phillies.
So, what’s the latest news on the New York Mets & their roster?
2020 New York Mets
Even with postseason hopes dangling in front of them like grapes hanging from a vine, the New York Mets still found a way to throw away a golden opportunity late last season, even with the league’s best pitcher Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor) out due to injury.
With epic late-season collapses by both the Philadelphia Phillies & the San Francisco Giants, the New York Mets had a chance to enter the MLB postseason by winning their final three games. Sadly, the Mets and their final weekend of the season ended in what New York Mets’ fans might call “familiar fashion”, as the team was once again sent home early.
Luckily for the Mets, there’s a new hope resting past the sunset, as businessman Steve Cohen purchased the ball club on November 6, 2020, for an estimated $2.6 billion dollars, giving fans reason to cheer for their blue & orange franchise once more as the ballclub promises both stronger & long-term goals that will ultimately end in a winning product.
2021 New York Mets
Steve Cohen earned much of the fans’ intrigue after his entry press conference as team majority owner. There, he verbalized the same grief Mets’ fans have been experiencing for decades, giving them the feeling of his empathetic nature as well as his hunger to win. He even stated he would be extremely disappointed if the Mets didn’t win a World Series within the next five years.
With this commitment to winning, who did the New York Mets pick up in order to boost their roster?
Offseason acquisitions
On January 7th, 2021, news broke out that the New York Mets had acquired INF Francisco Lindor as well as RHP Carlos Carrasco from the Cleveland Indians in a blockbuster trade made up of INF’s Amed Rosario & Andres Gimenez, along with two other minor league players.
Twenty-seven-year-old shortstop Francisco Lindor had thirty runs in the 2020 season as well as twenty-seven RBIs. He also had six stolen bases. Lindor should help the infield presence of the New York Mets, giving them experience at the shortstop position who rarely makes mistakes and will offer consistent at-bats.
Right-handed pitcher Carlos Carrasco, nicknamed “Cookie”, is a ten-year MLB veteran out of Venezuela. The thirty-three-year-old played twelve games for the Cleveland Indians last season with an ERA of 2.91. It felt pretty obvious to fans of the Mets that pitching would need to be addressed in the offseason, as the ballclub lost Zack Wheeler to free agency as well as Noah Syndergaard to Tommy John surgery last March.
Why it works
This blockbuster Mets’ trade with Cleveland shows that the team is serious about winning ball games, especially the trade for Carrasco, who will have big shoes to fill in holding down the fort until Syndergaard’s return, which isn’t expected till June.
As well, who’s to say that Cohen and the Mets’ management team isn’t done with their offseason acquisitions?
With Spring training expected to take place in February and the season kicking off in early April, it’s fair to assume that this new aggressive Mets’ staff & ownership may roll all their dice in accumulating a roster that can compete with not only division rivals, but the rest of the MLB as well.
