The 2016 season was a good one overall for the New York Mets. The team finished with a record of 87-75 capturing the first wild card in the process. Unfortunately, they were unceremoniously bounced in the wild card game by Madison Bumgarner and the San Francisco Giants. Many players had outstanding individual seasons for the team while a few left something to be desired. Let’s look at a few players that have a chance for a bounce-back season.
He had an outstanding rookie campaign for the Mets hitting 9 HRs with 26 RBI and a .270 BA in 194 Plate Appearances. He also performed quite well in the postseason and was one of the few Mets who hit well in the World Series. The 2016 season started out well for Conforto as he hit .365-4-18 RBI in April before tailing off to the point of being demoted to Triple-A Las Vegas. He hit quite well in Vegas and was eventually called back up to the big club. He never seemed to fully regain his stroke and is entering this season without a guaranteed spot on the team.
Early on in Spring Training, Conforto has been hitting quite well as he looks to prove his worth to the team.
Prediction:
Conforto will start the season at Triple-A Las Vegas but will hit too well to stay long. He will be called back up to the Mets by the end of May either due to injury or a trade clearing a roster spot and finish with a .285-15-60 line
He had a tough 2016 season that eventually ended when he decided to have surgery to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome with the removal of a rib. His finished 2016 4-10 with a 4.86 ERA. He seemed to have difficulty with a lack of velocity and no bite on his slider. These factors combined to severely diminish his ability to get batters out, no doubt resulting from his injury.
Pitchers coming back from this surgery have had a mixed bag of results though Harvey is confident that he will have success.
Prediction:
Harvey will be healthy and regain some of his lost velocity and control. A full healthy year of Harvey will be key to a successful Mets season and he winds up 13-7 with a 3.22 ERA
He had an up and down season that was eventually ended by surgery to remove an irritated nerve from his pitching elbow. He finished 7-8 with a 3.08 ERA. He had a difficult time getting deep into games and at times struggled with his command.
Prediction:
A full recovery from offseason surgery and some better run support should do wonders for deGrom’s record, as he posts a 16-6 record with a 2.87 ERA
If two of these three players have a bounce back season approaching what I have predicted in this article the Mets should be in great position to contend for a playoff position for a third straight season.
No Travis d’Arnaud? Man fell further than Conforto after a very good 2015 showing.
I don’t understand deGrom’s inclusion in this list. His 6.16 IP per game wasn’t that bad and he had a fine ERA.
If those three all perform like 2015, we’ll be in darn good shape.