The New York Mets are the team to beat

“Team to beat” brings up some unfortunate memories, both old and new, for Mets fans. Anyone who doesn’t remember Jimmy Rollins’ declaration in 2007 about the Philadelphia Phillies being the team to beat in the National League East, probably didn’t suffer from 2006’s conclusion. Rollins’ exclamation started a war of words between he and Carlos Beltran. Eventually, the Phillies would win out on that debate, and dominate the division for the next five years, with a World Championship to show for it. For a New York fan base who had just suffered a harsh postseason the October before, it was a defining moment that started a very quick decline. That decline sparked an ugly battle with the franchise ivory towers that lingers today. Rarely has a fanbase shown more passionate hatred and disregard toward their team’s owners. But the Mets and the Wilpons have vast history, and we can just leave it at that.

Much more recently Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals proclaimed during an interview that his Nats were obviously the team to beat in 2015. Early on it looked like he was right. They Mets had a great first few weeks of the season, but then struggled mightily to keep pace with first place. However, things haven’t gone so well for the Nationals since May either. They have weathered the storm of having Anthony Rendon, Jayson Werth and Ryan Zimmerman on the disabled list most of the year, and Stephen Strasburg could be back in form right for a playoff run. But they have had every opportunity to claim the NL East with authority and put the rest of the division in the rearview mirror. They haven’t done so. They are finally trying to make a definitive push with all their pieces on the board. There is one team standing directly in their way.

The New York Mets are fresh off the biggest trading deadline in years, and for the first time in a while, it was to buy. Kelly Johnson, Yoenis Cespedes and Juan Uribe are all upgrades offensively, and bring solid veteran and playoff experiences. Uribe has two rings already, and wouldn’t mind adding a third with a third franchise, I’ll bet. Sandy Alderson did not have to give up any pitching that significantly subtracts from their current roster in any way. Whether or not they leveraged pitching for the future is a different debate. No one can deny that these were moves to win now, and that at least is refreshing.

But are the Mets the team to beat quite yet? Isn’t that getting ahead of ourselves a bit? As new-Met Tyler Clippard said though, the “Nats are beatable”. That sounds like confidence to me. Lucas Duda has started hitting the cover off the ball again like he did in April and May, which is critical to overall lineup success. Likewise, Travis d’Arnaud is back behind the plate, and should provide a nice power boost, provided he stays healthy. As Terry Collins said, Kevin Plawecki will likely still see regular games behind the plate, so hopefully that should help both young backstops optimize their talents.

Meanwhile, Matt Harvey is beginning to look like a lockdown ace once again. Jacob deGrom has been nearly untouchable most of the season. Noah Syndergaard is improving by leaps and bounds each start it seems. Jon Niese has been a revelation at times. Steven Matz might be healthy at just the right time to help a final push. So the rotation is certainly still the strength it has been throughout the year.

What the additions of Johnson, Cespedes and Uribe also offer is a chance for Michael Cuddyer, David Wright and Juan Lagares to heal and contribute later. Getting a healthy Wright is probably the most immediate upgrade, but anything Lagares or Cuddyer can do to improve their combined underwhelming stats would only help take the pressure off everyone else. Meanwhile, a return to regular Lagares-style defense would literally be a sight for sore eyes.

Both teams have lingering problems to address. The Nationals went out to get a lock-down closer, but Clippard could fill that role if necessary for the Mets if Jeurys Familia continues to struggle with save situations. It would be another chapter in the strange book on this season if the former National reliever helped closed the door on their 2015. The Nationals also have most of their infield playing out of position, and there have been reports of Matt Williams’ bullpen mishandlings since last year. With their utility upgrades and the big bat they brought in, the Mets now seem like the team more prepared to survive any further injuries. And let’s not forget what things would have looked like had the Mets actually traded for Ian Desmond this year.

So yes, it is premature to call the Mets the favorites to win the NL East. But it’s looking like if the Nationals have a shot to make the playoffs, they are going to have to go through the pesky Mets. And I think, by definition, that makes the Mets the team to beat.