Three Interesting Storylines Surrounding Mets In 2022

WASHINGTON -- As we ascend into the 2022 regular-season, following what was a long and draining offseason brought on by an 100-day lockout, the Mets are a club with high expectations, albeit a number of question marks.

There will be a lot of new faces in Queens this year, headlined by general manager Billy Eppler, veteran manager Buck Showalter and future Hall of Fame pitcher Max Scherzer, among others.

Ahead of his second season as team owner, Steve Cohen funded a roster that has the second-highest luxury tax payroll in MLB at $285 million. And the club that was constructed this winter should at least be able to contend for a postseason spot, and potentially challenge the reigning World Series champion Atlanta Braves for the National League East division title.

But for this to happen, the Mets must live up to expectations. And a good portion of their success will be centered around the health of the club, bounce-back performances and proper performance calculations.

So with the first pitch of their season-opener against the Nationals just hours away, here are three interesting storylines surrounding the Mets in 2022.

Health Of Rotation

A significant amount of the Mets' success in 2022 will be heavily reliant on the health of their starting rotation. But the team is off to a poor start in this area.

In the wake of an exciting offseason that included a flurry of moves pre-and-post work stoppage, the Mets were blindsided by the injury bug towards the end of a shortened-spring training.

Jacob deGrom will likely miss the first two months of the season due to a stress reaction in his right scapula, Max Scherzer is dealing with a hamstring issue and Taijuan Walker has been experiencing soreness in his surgically repaired knee from January. Beyond this trio the Mets have Carlos Carrasco, who is now healthy and ready to go, but still coming off October surgery to remove a bone spur from his right elbow.

Luckily, the team acquired star pitcher Chris Bassitt from the Oakland Athletics in March. They also have promising second-year right-hander Tylor Megill, who will receive an unlikely start on Opening Day, filling in for deGrom.

If the Mets are going to achieve their goals of making the postseason for the first time since 2016, while also asserting themselves as serious contenders in the National League, they’re going to need their rotation to stay intact across a full season.

Losing deGrom was a crushing blow, but the rest of the rotation isn’t too shabby behind him on paper. The Mets appear to have enough starting pitching, led by Scherzer and Bassitt, to hold down the fort until deGrom is ready. But the current five in place must remain healthy, despite featuring several question marks.

If they are able to do so, and deGrom makes a full recovery with no setbacks, it could be a major boost to an already talented rotation. However, if the injuries in the rotation wind up increasing before deGrom can make it back, it could spell disaster for the Mets.

It's safe to say that the team has a lot riding on the health of their rotation this season.

Bounce-Back Campaigns

Bounce-back is a term that you've probably heard numerous times when it comes to the 2022 Mets.

Last season the Mets' offense struggled immensely, resulting in down years from Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil, Dominic Smith and James McCann, among others.

And although adding Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar and Mark Canha in free agency should help improve the lineup's production, the Mets will still need some of last year's underperforming hitters to turn things around as well.

That's why Eppler went out and hired former big-leaguer Eric Chavez to serve as the Mets' new hitting coach. And several players have already lauded Chavez for his ability to communicate in order to help them simplify things in the batter's box.

It starts with Lindor, who is entering the first season of his 10-year, $341 million deal. Lindor had a rough campaign in his first year with the Mets, but finished the season strong with nine home runs and 25 RBI in the month of September. He also became the first Mets' shortstop to hit 20 homers in a season since Asdrubal Cabrera did it in 2016. If Lindor can get back to being the superstar offensive force he was in Cleveland, the Mets should boast a fierce lineup this season.

McNeil and Smith were tied to a number of trade rumors during the offseason, but they are still members of the Mets as of this date. Both hitters could be key pieces of New York's offense this season if they can revert back to their career norms.

The Mets must receive bounce-back performances from at least a few of their hitters this season. But if their lineup collectively falters in similar fashion as 2021, they could be in for another disappointing offensive campaign as a team.

Did They Do Enough In The Bullpen?

Here's a question that hasn't been brought up enough heading into the regular-season: Did the Mets do enough to improve their bullpen?

The club lost their best relief pitcher from a season ago in Aaron Loup, who signed with the Los Angeles Angels in free agency. But instead of pivoting towards replacing him with another capable left-hander on the market such as Andrew Chafin, Jake Diekman etc., the Mets decided to head in a different direction.

This direction included the signings of Adam Ottavino and Chasen Shreve. Eppler also acquired lefty Joely Rodriguez in a rare trade with the crosstown rival Yankees. The cost was righty Miguel Castro, who was expected to serve as a middle reliever in the Mets' bullpen this season.

The Mets' bullpen had the ninth-best ERA in baseball last season with a mark of 3.90. However, Loup's historic 0.95 ERA was a crucial factor behind this unit's overall ranking.

Returning in the Mets' bullpen this season will be closer Edwin Diaz, who is entering a walk-year, Seth Lugo, Trevor May and Drew Smith. Lugo posted a 3.50 ERA in 2021, but wasn't his dominant self on the mound due to elbow surgery last spring training. Luckily for the Mets, the righty is now healthy and should make a bigger impact as a setup man this year.

The Mets did not make a major move to upgrade their bullpen during the offseason. They instead added some complementary pieces to a group of solid right-handers that were already on the roster. Now we are about to find out what this unit will bring in 2022, and if the front office did enough to improve this area.