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00:00The 2025 Mets season will be remembered for all the wrong reasons, sadly.
00:07A $340 million payroll, sky-high expectations, and in the end, no October baseball.
00:13Now the question begins, what went wrong?
00:17Who stays? Who goes?
00:18Now, how does this team get back to being a contender in 2026?
00:22Joining me to break it all down is the host of the Subway to Shea podcast, my guy, Anthony Rivera.
00:27Anthony, what's going on, man?
00:30Healing a little bit from these wounds of this Mets season,
00:33this slow burn that just kept driving a stake into your back.
00:37It was just so rough and so long and a little bit glad that the season's kind of over.
00:43I wish they made it to the postseason, but this just wasn't it this year, that's for sure.
00:48You used the same term I said to Tyreek Butler of ESPN Radio.
00:52I had him on with me for another discussion here on Straight Outta Flushing,
00:56and I said slow burn. That's exactly what it was.
00:58It was a slow burn for the Mets fan, and I'm not sure if that's worse than 2007 or better.
01:05I don't know.
01:06And it's not good.
01:07I'll say this.
01:09I was in the stands for the 2023 season that was kind of out of hand already by the trade deadline,
01:14and this is worse than that to me, and that team had no chance.
01:18You know what?
01:19Sometimes you just rather know it's over quickly.
01:21I can understand that.
01:22You just rather know that.
01:23All right, let's get into it because David Stearns, Carl Spendoza,
01:26they are under the microscope after this collapse, undoubtedly.
01:30How hot is their seat heading into 2026?
01:33I'm going to say that David Stearns' seat is safe for now,
01:39and that's because Steve Cohen for years was trying to pry away David Stearns from the Milwaukee Brewers,
01:47and he finally gets them.
01:49After two years, I don't think he goes anywhere.
01:51Maybe after next offseason, if we don't make it to the postseason again,
01:55maybe you can start looking into David Stearns,
01:57but I think his seat is safe for now.
01:59Now, that does not absolve him from the issues and the failure that this team went through,
02:05and it just trickles down all the way to Carlos Mendoza.
02:08Unfortunately for him, he has to deal with the roster that's been given to him,
02:13but I think Carlos Mendoza is more on the hot seat right now.
02:17I think I read that Andy Martino of SNY said that he is safe,
02:21but this is the final year of his contract, and if they don't get off to a hot start,
02:25I mean, look at what we saw what happened to Willie Randolph in 2007.
02:29This could be something similar if they do not get going right off the start in 2026.
02:34Yeah, we could see that because expectations are sky high.
02:36Andy Martino of SNY did report exactly what you said,
02:40and, you know, I think after a season like this, Anthony,
02:44a lot of times you're going to hear words, okay, how do we describe this,
02:49and failure is the word you're going to hear a lot in terms of this team.
02:52We've heard a lot of talk about this being the most expensive failure.
02:55In baseball, do you think that's a fair label for this Mets season?
03:00I guess so.
03:02I feel like there's been more failures like 2007 where they had, I think,
03:07seven-game lead with 17 to play.
03:11I think that's the worst collapse that the Mets have had,
03:13but this is probably second for me considering the payroll that they had,
03:19but a lot of this team was not put together by David Stearns.
03:24You know, Francisco Lindor was signed in 2021.
03:27They signed Brandon Nimmo after the 2022 season, if I'm correct,
03:31and those are big contracts that you have right now.
03:34You add Juan Soto, which adds a lot of money, but, you know,
03:39to me this has just been, like you said, a failure.
03:44Is it the most expensive failure?
03:46Probably on paper it is, but I don't know.
03:49I feel like there's been worse than this.
03:52No, it's tough.
03:542007 is, that's just tough.
03:56I think because how rapid it was, you know, seven games, 17 to go.
04:00This is, we said, much more of a slow burn here for the Mets.
04:04Let's look at where this team fell short and then where can they improve.
04:08So let's start with the lineup.
04:09Where did this team fall shortest offensively?
04:13And in your eyes, what needs to change for them offensively next season?
04:18I think where it falls short, one, is with runners in scoring position.
04:23If you see the stats on paper, the Mets are, you know, middle of the pack,
04:29a little bit towards the top echelon when it comes to offense.
04:32But when it comes to scoring with runners in scoring position and getting those big hits,
04:37they really could not come through probably for the entire season.
04:41They had a good three-week span in August.
04:43And even that, they went 11-17 because the pitching was so bad.
04:47So they need to figure a better philosophy and a better way to attack at the plate,
04:54which they've struggled with attacking fastballs and going after pitches outside of the strike zone
04:59has been a huge struggle for this entire team.
05:02And then they have to really decide here because this was the year that the Mets said,
05:07you know what, we're not going to go with the veteran presence on the bench
05:11with Jose Iglesias and J.D. Martinez.
05:13And I know Jesse Winker was there and got hurt.
05:16But this was the year they were like, you know what,
05:17we are going to finally give the kids their opportunity.
05:21And for the most part of the season, it didn't work out.
05:24And most of that failure, to me, falls on Mark Vientos.
05:26And you and me have talked about this during the offseason.
05:30I said, Mark Vientos is a prime candidate for a sophomore slump.
05:33And we saw that clear as day during this season.
05:38You had Francisco Alvarez dealing with a lot of injuries,
05:41but he's not been that guy that he was in 2023 when he hit over 20 home runs.
05:46Brett Beatty kind of turned the season around, got hurt the last couple of days.
05:50But, you know, even him, it was a long time for him to get going.
05:53And Ronnie Mauricio was basically a no-show.
05:56He probably should not have been there.
05:58He could probably have gone to AAA, played a little more,
06:00and healed a little more down there.
06:02But I think even I heard Gary Cohen to say his mind wasn't in it
06:06after being, you know, sat for about like four or five weeks.
06:09He really wasn't into the game.
06:11Yeah, and he wasn't getting the everyday playing time.
06:14But you know what?
06:14It's a great point that you make.
06:16The young guys definitely didn't pan out in the way I think Mets fans thought they would.
06:20But you were right on it.
06:21You said this to me in the offseason about Vientos,
06:24and he definitely had that sophomore slump.
06:27And now the Mets have some decisions to make about what they're going to do
06:29with the young guys, where is Vientos going to play.
06:32Beatty looks like he should be a third baseman.
06:33He finally has come around.
06:35But what do you do with Vientos?
06:37Alvarez, what's his situation?
06:39Is he the answer, a catcher?
06:41A lot of questions.
06:42The big question, I think, for Mets fans going forward is Pete Alonso.
06:46He's got to opt out.
06:47He said that he's going to opt out.
06:49He said that after game 162.
06:51How should the Mets approach Pete Alonso as a free agent here this time?
06:56Is it pay him at all costs?
06:58Or is there actually an argument to let him walk?
07:01Which I know some fans are going to say, Anthony, it's crazy.
07:04You cannot let your all-time franchise leader in home runs walk out the door,
07:09especially when he just set the record this past year.
07:11But how do you think the Mets should approach this?
07:14Because right now, Pete Alonso seems like he's got all the leverage here.
07:19He does.
07:20He has 100% of the leverage.
07:22If it's not for Pete Alonso the first two months of the season
07:25and how clutch he was and how almost MVP-like he was,
07:29this team is not even close to making it into the playoffs.
07:33We talked about runners in scoring position.
07:35He was probably the best player with runners in scoring position this year.
07:39He has his slumps.
07:40We know what he is, but the thing that wants me to bring him back
07:45is the fact that he can play in Queens.
07:48We don't get that many players that do that.
07:50And then how are you replacing Pete Alonso's production?
07:54Are you throwing Mark Vientos at first after the season that he had?
07:57You know, this team's already struggling to score runs.
08:00We saw Francisco Lindor as well as Juan Soto.
08:03Both of them struggled to score with runners in scoring position.
08:06And Brandon Nimmo hasn't really been the same, even though he hits for power
08:10and he overmatched his home runs as well as his RBIs.
08:14But in some big spots, he was unable to, you know, bring in some important runs
08:20that we needed to win some games here.
08:22I find it really hard to let Pete Alonso go,
08:26not knowing where they're going to go from here.
08:29Are they going to go after Kyle Schwarber?
08:30Or is it, you know, from within with Mark Vientos?
08:34Like, it's a tough decision to make, but this is something that David Stearns
08:38really needs to think about because it's not like last year where they had the leverage.
08:42They don't have any leverage on Pete Alonso this offseason.
08:45No, he doesn't.
08:46He knows it.
08:47His agent Scott Boris knows it, and they're going to work that leverage.
08:50I'm pretty sure it's going to be interesting to watch this offseason.
08:54Outside of Alonso, who from the lineup do you feel like has to be back in 2026?
08:59And who would you be willing to move on from?
09:03Who are you looking at and saying, okay, time's up.
09:05You got to get out of flushing.
09:07So, obviously, Francisco Lindor comes back.
09:10Juan Soto comes back.
09:13And I think, like you said, Brett Beatty should be the third baseman.
09:19Guys that I would probably move on from, I think, you know, Jesse Winker.
09:24I think just the back injury, that's just too much to have and to count on.
09:28And I would definitely not bring back Cedric Mullins.
09:34He did not show up at all for this team.
09:37Jose Siri, goodbye.
09:38See you later.
09:39I would start thinking about trying to move on from Jeff McNeil as well.
09:44I don't think he provides enough offense for this team.
09:47A lot of people have said if he's not batting over 300 in that batting champion form that he was in 2022,
09:53what's the purpose of having him on the team?
09:56And I know this is really hard because I'm a fan of his.
10:00But, and it's probably hard because of his contract, there should be some consideration of, you know,
10:07thinking about trading Brandon Nimmo if they can.
10:09Obviously his contract is very expensive and it's hard, but this is a guy that was signed to play center field.
10:17He gave us one year of that.
10:18They moved him to left field.
10:20He hasn't been great as a left fielder either.
10:23He doesn't have a great arm.
10:24It's taking him a long time to get to routes when the ball goes past him.
10:28And he's totally changed as a hitter.
10:32He's more a power hitter, more RBIs, and less of that guy that was getting on base.
10:35It's really hard to figure out where to put him in the lineup because he's not really a four guy.
10:40He's not really a five guy.
10:41He should be at the top of the lineup.
10:43But you got Lindor and Soto there, and I don't want to move him from that spot.
10:47So, you know, it may be time to start thinking about if you can try to trade Brandon Nimmo.
10:53But I know it's going to be extremely hard to do so.
10:55But that's just my opinion.
10:56One other guy for you in that lineup.
10:58Where are you on Alvarez?
11:00Where are you on him as a catcher?
11:02It's tough because he hasn't hit.
11:03He's had all these injuries, too, and credit to him because he toughed it out down the stretch.
11:08No disrespect to that man at all.
11:09He absolutely toughed it out.
11:11But where are you on Francisco Alvarez right now as the Mets catcher going forward?
11:16Because he's 23, 24 years old, I'm not going to give up on him just yet.
11:23I'm actually fine with the tandem that we have of him and Luis Torrens.
11:28If they're both healthy, I am good with those two guys as my catcher.
11:32That's one less thing to worry about.
11:34I want to see if he can have a bounce-back season and stay healthy.
11:39I mean, a lot of him getting hit in the hand or, you know, sliding and hitting his hand on a base or getting stepped on, that's a lot of freakish stuff.
11:47Yeah.
11:47So, I want to see if he can stay healthy and figure out a way to get his offense back.
11:53Because we saw it, right?
11:54You know, they sent him down.
11:55He comes back, and he was the hottest hitter we had in August.
11:58And then he gets hit in the hand again.
12:00And he got hit in the hand again in AAA when he was rehabbing.
12:03So, you know, it's been a struggle for him.
12:06And he had the big hit in Chicago to kind of help save what was left of that part of the season.
12:12So, I'm not giving up on Francisco Alvarez yet.
12:15All right.
12:15So, let's see then.
12:16Now, if you're going to send some guys out, if possible, or you're going to move on from some guys, there might be some bats you want to target.
12:23So, which bat should David Stearns target this winter, either in free agency or via trade, to fix the inconsistency with runners in scoring position, knowing that's the biggest thing this offense needs to fix.
12:35So, are there any bats out there you'd like to see the Mets go after?
12:38Man, if they could pry away a Kyle Schwarber from Philadelphia, I think he's going to be a free agent after this year.
12:46If that's someone that they can get, whether it is to be DH or I don't know if they want to throw him at first base or something like that.
12:54I still need more time to assess what's coming at free agency.
12:59I haven't really looked into it as much as just knowing that Kyle Schwarber is one of the guys that is available.
13:05That's the type of guy that I would bring in here.
13:08Another power bat to bring in there.
13:09Let's go to the pitching side.
13:10Kodai Senga, he'll be back fully next year, we hope.
13:14But, do the Mets need to add a true number one to this rotation, or do they just need to add some more solid mid-rotation guys?
13:23They need to add someone at the top of the rotation.
13:25No doubt.
13:26I don't want Kodai Senga being a number two or even a number three.
13:31He's another guy that I, you know, talk about someone to be willing to move on from.
13:36I think I'm willing to move on from Kodai Senga.
13:39There's just too much maintenance that he needs to get ready.
13:43You need to have a six-man rotation around him.
13:46He's got to pitch every six-day.
13:48That's just too much for this rotation to handle.
13:51And if David Stearns is not going to go after an ace, if he's not going to spend money and go after an ace,
13:57and he's going to do all this projects and reclamations, if he's going to do all that stuff,
14:02then there's really no point in having a guy like Kodai Senga because we don't know if he's going to be able to stay healthy, for one,
14:08and all the things that come with him in maintaining, whether it's his arm or what.
14:13I think he even said during his press conference he didn't feel right.
14:16And, like, we've gotten that for so long.
14:18We need a guy that's going to pitch at least five innings.
14:20And he's not one of those guys that can do that.
14:23Yeah, it's tough because when he has pitched and been healthy, he's looked really good on the map.
14:30But then he has been healthy and has been able to come back right.
14:33And I'm with you.
14:34I think the Mets need to go get a top-of-rotation guy.
14:37I said this at the deadline.
14:38I thought they should have went after Sandy Alcantara from the Marlins.
14:41I thought that was a guy they should go after.
14:43It was probably going to cost him a prospect or two.
14:45But, look, he pitched in good form.
14:47Hey, Mets fans saw him in good form on Friday night.
14:50They saw exactly the form he was in on Friday night.
14:53So, yeah.
14:54And Edward Cabrera was another name that was being thrown around at the trade deadline.
14:58And he ended our season today.
15:00Yeah.
15:01Yeah, that just adds a little bit more salt on the wound there for the Mets fan going on.
15:06But Mets fans were excited about something they saw down the stretch.
15:10And that was with the young pitchers.
15:11So, my question for you here is, Anthony, how much trust should be placed in the young pitchers?
15:16We're talking about Brandon Sproul, Jonah Tong, and Nolan McClain, who was really impressive down the stretch.
15:21How much trust should be put into those guys to contribute in 2026?
15:26I don't want this to be like this season where they were labeled the saviors of the team to end the season.
15:33It just wasn't fair to them.
15:34And all the lumps that Jonah Tong had to take, I felt so bad for him.
15:40I think he needs to start in AAA and just get a little more season down there.
15:45I think Nolan McClain is ready for prime time.
15:48I think he's ready to go, and he'll be a part of this rotation.
15:50A good solid number two to start the year, and maybe he becomes the ace down the line.
15:56I'm very interested to see a little bit more of Brandon Sproul.
15:58I think he pitched well when he could, and if it wasn't for bad defense behind him on Friday night,
16:04he could have probably stayed in the game a little bit longer.
16:06So, those two guys I'm very excited to see contribute a lot more.
16:11And Jonah Tong maybe gets a little more seasoning in AAA and maybe comes back halfway through the year.
16:16Okay, that could be good.
16:17Not putting pressure on all the kids, but get a couple of them that could pitch at this level to start next season.
16:23That would be really good for this Mets team as they need some improvement in the starting rotation.
16:28Now, the bullpen, I'm just shaking my head because that was an adventure this year.
16:32We saw them struggle to close out games.
16:34We saw arms that they acquired not really do what they were supposed to.
16:38We're talking about Ryan Helsley.
16:39What kind of relief help do they need in 2026?
16:43And is this a place where you're looking at David Stearns as, okay, you've got to spend big here.
16:48You've got to go out and spend and get some arms here for this pen.
16:52It's crazy because I thought that David Stearns did everything right at the trade deadline.
16:57I thought all those moves were perfect, getting Helsley for the eighth inning, Tyler Rodgers with his unique delivery, the sidearm delivery or underarm delivery.
17:07And then you add in Gregory Soto, which we needed another lefty.
17:12They brought back Brooks Raley, which I thought was a great move as well.
17:16And the three that they got at the trade deadline, they just didn't work out.
17:20And it was crazy.
17:21I mean, Tyler Rodgers gave us a little bit more of what we needed, but Helsley was awful.
17:26Gregory Soto started off well and then fell apart.
17:29They really need to put a lot more emphasis on guys that can get the strikeout.
17:36You know, let Ryan Stanix go.
17:38Obviously, Reid Garrett is going to be out with Tommy John surgery.
17:42But they need guys that are going to throw more strikes than walks because this team gave up a lot of walks out of the bullpen.
17:48And guess what? Edwin Diaz is a free agent.
17:52You know, if you let Edwin Diaz go, this bullpen is very, very bad, very bad without Edwin Diaz.
18:00So they better figure out what they're going to do with Edwin Diaz first before they decide everybody else in the bullpen as well.
18:05That's a great point.
18:06Edwin Diaz who can opt out here.
18:08And he's another guy.
18:09He's got all the leverage as well, just like Pete Alonso.
18:12He's got all the leverage here in terms of those negotiations.
18:15Now, finally, Anthony, what would be your message to Mets fans?
18:19Like, what should Mets fans realistically expect from this team in 2026?
18:25Because I know we're going to hear it from the front office.
18:28They're going to want to bounce back.
18:29This is a disappointing year.
18:30That is an understatement here and all that stuff.
18:33But what should Mets fans realistically expect from this team?
18:36Because I asked this before in another conversation, which was the trust level has got to be down from the fan base right now.
18:43And I think that would be fair after what they saw from this year and the expectations that they were heading into 2025.
18:48So what should be realistic expectations for this team in 2026?
18:55First off, I think that making the postseason last year may have been a little bit of a detriment.
19:01I wouldn't take that away for anything.
19:03But I think in David Stearns' eyes, it may have been a little bit of a detriment because it had to speed up what he was going to do.
19:10And I don't think he wanted to spend as much money as we did when it went to getting Juan Soto and Pete Alonso.
19:16Obviously, a lot of that stuff didn't work.
19:18And like you said, they gained a lot of trust last season getting to the sixth game of the NLCS.
19:25And now I feel like they've lost that, right?
19:28This is a team that in 20 years has made the postseason four times.
19:35Wait, 2006, 2015, 16, 2022.
19:40Okay, five times, right?
19:42Out of 20 years.
19:43Also in that 20 years, we've had three collapses.
19:46So I can understand the fans being upset with the way this season ended, especially with, you know, even Carlos Mendoza and all the players.
19:54We have the talent.
19:55We have the talent.
19:56Well, the talent did not show up.
19:58You had all the talent in the world.
20:00And on the back of the baseball card, we thought you could make it to the postseason.
20:04The fans came out in droves because Steve Cohen asked for it.
20:09And we did that.
20:10And this team disappointed.
20:12They failed.
20:12They were an absolute failure and they collapsed.
20:15And I don't fault any fans for feeling upset about the way that this season ended and not being as excited right now for the 2026 season.
20:27I need to see more of what happens during the offseason and what David Stearns does.
20:32And I'll be honest with you.
20:34And I posted this on Twitter earlier today.
20:36I'm not 100% confident in what David Stearns is going to do this offseason after what we've seen this year.
20:43Getting Frankie Montas and a lot of the other mistakes that he's made.
20:48I'm not 100% confident that he's going to go all in and do what it takes to get back to the postseason and get back to the NLCS.
20:55So it's going to be a struggle.
20:58I always like to remain cautious, optimistic.
21:01And that's how I will do it every year moving forward.
21:04The last time the Mets burnt me was 2006, and I never believed 100% in a team ever since then.
21:12I'm not laughing at you, Anthony.
21:14I'm just laughing at the pain of that.
21:17Yeah, it's there.
21:18I think you bring up a great point, right?
21:19When you looked at it, and I think it was fair of you to look at the last 20 years of the Mets, and obviously they've made the playoffs five times.
21:26That is a fourth of the time.
21:28They had 25% of the time they've reached the playoffs, but to that point, when you look at what Steve Cohen has talked about, what David Stearns has talked about,
21:37they've talked about sustained success, and that's something they've wanted for this franchise.
21:41And in those 20 years that you just mentioned, the Mets have only made the playoffs in back-to-back years one time, one time.
21:47And I think from what you gather from the fan base, they'd like to see a little bit more sustained success.
21:53And this is what this front office and ownership has talked about, but when you're coming off of 2024, and I do agree with you,
21:58that might have maybe accelerated things a little bit faster than they wanted to, you're thinking, okay, 2025, we'll see some sustained success.
22:05And then going to 2026, however things ended up here, it feels like a step back.
22:11And that's the challenge for this front office and for the fan base and fans like you and content creators like you, Anthony, to get that trust back.
22:20They've got to try to do that, and there's going to be a road to that this offseason.
22:24So we'll see if the Mets can do that as they try to build towards 2026.
22:28But this was a good conversation, my friend.
22:30We will see what the Mets do more in the offseason.
22:32I feel like you need to reset.
22:34I need to reset.
22:35The Mets fan base needs to reset.
22:37The Mets themselves need to reset.
22:40So we will see how all this goes down in the offseason.
22:43That is Anthony Rivera.
22:44Check him out on the Subway to Shea podcast.
22:46He does a fantastic job covering the Mets all season long.
22:49Anthony, I appreciate you, man.
22:51And we will talk after we reset.
22:54We will do that.
22:55Absolutely.
22:55Thank you so much, Dexter.
22:56Appreciate it.
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