The Mets may be barreling toward the finish line with little left to salvage in the standings, but September still matters for one big reason: this month could shape how the front office attacks the offseason.
With 18 regular-season games left, the club still has some real decisions to make before winter arrives. And at the center of that process is a familiar name who suddenly looks like a possible answer in a very different role.
Kodai Senga has become one of the more interesting variables on the roster. After looking like he might be on the way out, he has revived his value as a reliever, working to a 3.91 ERA with six saves.
His stuff plays up over shorter outings, and his two best pitches fit naturally in an inning at a time. The idea of him finishing games as a hard-throwing late-inning weapon is easy to see.
But that idea comes with real complications. Senga has made it clear he wants to return to the rotation, so a permanent move to the bullpen may not be his preference.
And while the results have been encouraging, the Mets still have to weigh whether what he has done in lower-pressure spots will hold up when the outs get heavier and the games mean more. His performance in big moments over the last couple of years leaves that very much in question.
So the Mets need the rest of September to tell them more. They’ll have to look beyond the surface numbers and try to figure out what they really have in Senga. A setup role is still on the table, and whatever they decide will ripple through the rest of the bullpen plan.
There’s another cluster of decisions coming, too, and it centers on the group once dubbed “The Baby Mets.” Brett Baty, Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez were supposed to be part of the next wave.
That looked like one of the bright spots of 2024. Now it feels like a long time ago.
Vientos appears to be the most vulnerable of the three. He looks like a non-tender candidate this offseason, even though he has shown some power since coming off the IL. For the most part, though, he has been a non-factor at the plate.
Baty has offered a little more lately, especially with a few clutch hits, and his versatility gives him some appeal as a super-utility piece. Even so, that same versatility has come at a cost this year, particularly offensively. The Mets have to decide whether the tradeoff is worth it or whether they could find a depth option who brings steadier offense and better defense.
Alvarez is the most frustrating case of all. The former No. 1 prospect in baseball still hasn’t come close to matching that hype, and his production has slipped both offensively and defensively this season.
The Mets passed on moving him at the Trade Deadline because of the power and talent still in the profile, but he has been a net negative since the All-Star break. If he closes the year in a slump, the club may have to seriously consider moving on, especially with Luis Torrens under contract.
The rotation brings its own set of questions, even if Nolan McLean, Christian Scott and Zac Thornton look like the clearest building blocks for 2027. McLean has shown he can be the ace of the staff, while Scott and Thornton have each flashed plenty of upside.
After that, the picture gets murkier. Sean Manaea had looked like his old self after rejoining the rotation, but the wheels have come off lately. He has given up 20 earned runs over his last five starts, and the Mets still need to determine which version of Manaea is the real one.
Jonah Tong is another name to watch in the final stretch. The hope is that he can finish strong and prove he is ready to become a full-time major league starter. If he does, the Mets might only need a couple of veterans to round out the rotation and could direct the rest of their attention elsewhere this winter.
In Other News...
Marcus Semien Just Put A Real Mets Job Battle In Play
Marcus Semiens first look in New York has left the Mets with a clearer picture of the challenge ahead than anyone likely wanted. The veteran second baseman still has two years left on his deal, and while president of baseball operations David Stearns has pointed to Semiens work ethic and defense as positives, the offense simply has not matched the level the club expected when it brought him in.
That makes next spring worth watching, because this no longer looks like a spot he can take for granted. Jefferson Rojas, Mitch Voit and milien Pitre are all in line to get a look in camp, and the Mets suddenly have the outline of a real competition at second base if Semien does not hit better next season. [Read more 🡒]
Bo Bichette Has Created A Mets Debate Nobody Expected
Bo Bichette has spent most of the season turning what looked like a straightforward addition into a much more complicated conversation for the Mets. After signing a three-year, $126 million deal and getting off to a below-average start, he has settled in since June 1, hitting .299 with 11 home runs and 44 RBIs over 83 games while handling third base, a position he had never played before. For a team that wanted impact and stability, the late rebound has at least made the fit look better than it did in the opening months.
Still, the bigger question around Bichette is not just how well he has played lately, but what the Mets have in him beyond this year. His overall season numbers remain below his career norms, which keeps the evaluation from being simple, and the contract includes an opt-out after the season that now hangs over the situation. For a club that may have expected clarity when it made the deal, Bichette has instead created a debate about value, role and how long this partnership might last. [Read more 🡒]
Jonah Tong Just Showed The Trait Mets Need In Their Rotation
Jonah Tongs outing in the Mets 9-4 win over the Marlins had the kind of early turbulence that can unravel a young starter, but it never did. In five innings, he allowed four runs on four hits, walked one and struck out seven, and the inning-by-inning arc mattered as much as the final line. He showed enough swing-and-miss stuff to miss bats, but the real takeaway for a Mets club still sorting through its rotation is how he responded after things got loud.
Mets interim manager Andy Green pointed to Tongs growth through adversity, and its easy to see why that would matter to a staff looking for stability. The rotation does not need every arm to be perfect, but it does need pitchers who can take a punch, reset and keep the game from slipping away. Tongs ability to do that, along with the possibility of help from other pitchers moving forward, gives the Mets something worth tracking as they try to firm up the group behind their top options. [Read more 🡒]