No doubt that New York Mets President of Baseball Operations David Stearns still has Scott Boras on his speed dial. The Mets are just 4 weeks away from “Pitchers and Catchers” reporting on February 12, 2025, for the start of Spring Training in Port St. Lucie, and they still have not come to terms with Boras’ “other” client Pete Alonso. Sans the Polar Bear, here’s our first projection of the Mets 26-man opening day roster.
BATTING ORDER
- Francisco Lindor, SS (S)
- Juan Soto, RF (L)
- Mark Vientos, 1B (R)
- Brandon Nimmo, LF (L)
- Starling Marte, DH (R)
- Jeff McNeil, 2B (L)
- Francisco Alvarez, C (R)
- Brett Baty, 3B (L)
- Tyrone Taylor, CF (R)
Q: Who protects Soto in the lineup?
If Alonso signs, he could slide into the 3 hole to protect Soto, and hope he gets the same type of career-year boost that benefited Aaron Judge last season in the Bronx. Otherwise, the emerging Vientos could get the opportunity to prove that his breakout 2024 was not a fluke.
Q: What about top prospects Luisangel Acuna and Ronny Mauricio?
Soto will get most of the attention in Florida, but these two prospects are the Mets wild cards with their high-end skills and positional versatility. You could easily see both secure spots in the opening day lineup, but for the purposes of this exercise, we have Acuna starting on the bench in a super-sub utility role, and Mauricio playing every day in Syracuse.
RESERVES
- Luis Torrens, C (R)
- Luisangel Acuna, UTIL (R)
- Luis De Los Santos, INF (R)
- Jose Siri, OF (R)
These projections are written in light pencil, because Alonso could sign to play first, which will move Vientos back to 3rd and make Baty the lefty bat off the bench. Also, if Nick Castellanos believes that current free agent José Iglesias should’ve been the 2024 NL MVP, shouldn’t Stearns consider bringing him back to reprise his utility role?
Starting Rotation:
- Kodai Senga (R)
- Sean Manaea (L)
- Frankie Montas (R)
- David Peterson (L)
- Clay Holmes (R)
- Tylor Megill (R)
A year after turning Luis Severino (who signed with Oakland) and Manaea’s careers around, the Mets Pitching Coach Jeremy Hefner is going for an encore. The Mets signed former front-of-the rotation starter Montas, and former All-Star reliever Holmes to help fortify their 2025 rotation.
Bullpen:
- Edwin Díaz (R)
- Reed Garrett (R)
- Dedniel Núñez (R)
- José Butto (R)
- Sean Reid-Foley (R)
- Danny Young (L)
- Paul Blackburn (R)
The Athletic reported earlier this week that the Mets have met with Tanner Scott who is considered the best reliever still on the free agent market. Speculation is the Mets are also checking in on Carlos Estevez and Kirby Yates as teams, players and agents start to feel the heat with the clock ticking.
Only 28 days until “Pitchers and Catchers” report in Port St. Lucie and 71 days until the Mets open on March 27th in Houston against the Astros.
