The Mets are heading into another winter with plenty to sort through, and the biggest concern isn’t just what David Stearns will do - it’s what he might talk himself into doing.
There’s real reason for optimism in the young talent already in place. Nolan McLean and Carson Benge should get Rookie of the Year consideration.
A.J. Ewing looks like a major league starter.
Nate Lavender has already shown he can be a useful bullpen arm. But that doesn’t mean the front office can afford to get comfortable.
If anything, the 2026 season should be a warning that the Mets can’t afford to misread their own roster.
One obvious trap: assuming the rotation is covered. A look at one possible depth chart had Sean Manaea buried at sixth and Jonah Tong down at seventh, which would put Manaea back in the bullpen and send Tong to the minors if everyone stayed healthy.
That’s a big if. The Mets were fortunate to open this season with a fully healthy starting staff, and there’s no reason to expect that kind of luck again.
At minimum, they need to add one top starter. Tarik Skubal feels unlikely given the payroll situation and the likelihood that the next CBA will hit the biggest spenders hard, but there are other options.
The danger is that the Mets decide they can get by with Nolan McLean, Christian Scott, Zac Thornton, Manaea and Tong, with Tong fighting for innings alongside Jonathan Santucci, Jack Wenninger and whoever else emerges. One starter should be the floor, not the wish list.
The question is whether they’ll convince themselves Justin Hagenman-types are enough.
The other roster mistake waiting in the wings involves two veterans who do not look like clean answers anymore: Jorge Polanco and Marcus Semien. Polanco had the injury excuse, but nobody is going to forget the .148 batting line, especially with no defensive burden attached.
Semien’s issue was simpler: a steep decline. The Mets are going to have an expensive bench in 2027, and the smart move is to treat both players as near non-entities who could be released midseason if necessary.
Polanco is the likelier short-term headache, since his contract runs out after 2027. Semien’s deal appears likely to stretch through at least part of the 2028 season.
He’s not unplayable, just too costly for what he’s giving them.
That leaves the Mets with some awkward roster math. They need a right-handed first base option, and they need Brett Baty able to cover nearly everywhere. A right-handed hitting first baseman/outfielder would solve a lot at once, especially if he can platoon with Jared Young and handle the corner outfield spots from time to time.
The final danger is more philosophical: getting so scared of a bad move that the Mets freeze up altogether. They’re probably going to make at least one mistake this offseason, and they could even make it in the same move.
That’s part of the game. The tougher part is knowing when to trade young players and when not to overreach selling prospects you’re not fully sold on or who might be blocked.
It’s a balancing act, and there’s no clean answer.
Last offseason, the Mets looked too cautious. They held onto several players coming off poor 2025 seasons, and the results came back to haunt them.
Sean Manaea, Kodai Senga and David Peterson all had cases to be dealt in the winter. Mark Vientos and Ronny Mauricio saw their trade value sink, then disappear.
Maybe the front office simply didn’t think the offers were good enough. That part is impossible to judge from the outside.
But if the Mets wind up stuck with another batch of unsatisfying leftovers in 2027, then this stops being a one-off and starts looking like a pattern.
In Other News...
Mets Face One Offseason Problem Bigger Than Just The Rotation
The Mets have already started shaping their next step after finishing the 2026 season, keeping Andy Green in place as manager and bringing Derek Falvey into the front office mix. Even with those moves, the bigger picture is still messy. New York has holes that go beyond the usual rotation talk, with third base depending on Bo Bichettes contract decision, plus open questions at designated hitter, first base and on the mound.
What makes the offseason so tricky is that there is no single fix waiting to solve it. The Mets can lean on some internal options, but the roster still looks like it needs veteran help if the goal is to get back into true contention. The rotation will get attention, as it always does, but the more pressing issue may be whether the club can fill enough of the lineup and bench around it to avoid entering next year with too many unanswered questions. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Core Players Just Sent A Brutal Message About This Season
A disappointing season ended with the Mets stuck at 74-87 and buried in last place in the National League East, a finish that hardly matched the expectations built around this roster. Sean Manaea, Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor all framed the year the same way in the aftermath, calling it disappointing after injuries and underperformance kept the club from ever finding much traction.
Andy Green now faces the familiar task of trying to turn the page without letting the memory of this collapse fade too quickly. The manager said he wants to change the narrative around the team, and the offseason will now become the first real chance to do it, with preparation for next year already moving to the center of the conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Enter Offseason With A Roster Crunch Fans Can Feel
The Mets are heading into the offseason with the kind of 40-man roster squeeze that usually forces hard choices before the winter market even gets going. Between guaranteed contracts, arbitration cases and a batch of pre-arbitration players, the front office has to sort through who stays protected, who becomes expendable and where there is enough room to add the next wave of talent before the Rule 5 draft arrives.
For fans, the interest is in the churn as much as the moves themselves. Some players look like obvious non-tender candidates, others could be trade chips or simply fall victim to numbers, and a few prospects may force their way into the conversation if the Mets want to keep them off the open market. The roster picture is still fluid, but the pressure to make space is already building. [Read more 🡒]