Kodai Senga may be setting the tone for a Mets redemption story, but he’s not the only one in Queens with something to prove. Sean Manaea has already started his own repair job, and a handful of other Mets still have a long way to go before they can feel good about where they stand.
For some, that means turning things around before the year ends. For others, the wait may stretch into 2027.
Mark Vientos is the first obvious case. It’s difficult to imagine him back on the Mets roster next season, and even a non-tender would not come as a shock.
The roster is crowded at the spots he plays, and the path back looks narrow. Still, if he returns from the IL and keeps punishing lefties, he could at least help himself.
Vientos has hit .281/.316/.539 against southpaws this year, with 6 of his 11 home runs coming against them. If he weren’t so rough at first base, there might still be a place for him.
Brett Baty’s route is even simpler, if not any easier: just do one thing well on offense. He has one of the league’s worst offensive lines across the board, and outside of a strong finish in 2025, there hasn’t been a long stretch where he looked like a major league bat to fear.
Power, average, walks - pick one. Anything would help.
Right now, he’s been too ordinary in every possible way.
Devin Williams has a different kind of cleanup job. His 4.66 ERA with the Mets is actually a little better than what he posted last year with the Yankees, but the season has still felt worse.
The numbers force you to dig for positives: -0.6 bWAR this year compared with -0.3 last year, even with a 3.09 FIP that still looks strong. The bigger issue is the damage in play, including 10 hits per 9 innings and a 1.65 WHIP.
He needs cleaner results, not a scavenger hunt for the encouraging stuff.
Bo Bichette’s case is fuzzier, but no less important. His first two months were so poor that the season can’t really be salvaged, even with a third strong month taking shape.
July has been more about batting average than anything else, and the bigger question is whether he can erase the doubts that he belongs as a solution for the Mets. At third base, in the middle of the lineup, and as protection around Juan Soto, there isn’t one single thing Bichette has to do to redeem himself.
The Mets will just know it when they see it. And while it’s not 100% that he’ll be back next year, that appears to be the latest understanding.
Jorge Polanco’s path is more modest, but it still matters. Nobody should be planning on him as a 2027 starter, and the Mets would be making a mistake if they expected a big bounce-back.
But there’s still value in a part-time role, especially as a switch-hitting option off the bench and a possible alternative to Jared Young in whatever capacity those two wind up in. If Polanco can get through 2027 and be described as “useful,” that would count as a win.
Marcus Semien, meanwhile, is looking at a longer timeline. There’s no fixing his reputation this year, and the expectation is that he’ll remain in 2027.
The hope is bigger than that: a Gold Glove season that could end the Mets’ drought. Even if Luis Torrens or Nolan McLean - a realistic pitcher for the award - gets there first, a Gold Glove from Semien in 2027 would at least give the Mets something tangible from the trade.
After a badly rated defensive season in 2026, though, nobody’s being told to hold their breath.
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