00:00What about this transformation?
00:01Bo Bichette, Jorge Polanco, Marcus Simeon, Luis Robert,
00:06maybe even some others that didn't start opening day for them last season.
00:09It seemed like the Mets were just tired of not getting over the top.
00:13Is this the lineup and is this the team that does it?
00:17Well, there's a lot of moving parts beyond just the lineup, Craig.
00:20A lot of pitching questions, right?
00:23We'll see how this rotation and new look bullpen work out this year as well.
00:27But I do think that this lineup has what it takes to excel in 2026.
00:32Obviously, it's a tremendous ceiling for that group.
00:35And there are a lot of X factors there, particularly in the bottom half.
00:39I mean, we know what we're going to see from Soto, Lindor, Bichette, Polanco,
00:42if those guys are healthy and playing at a high level.
00:45But, you know, what kind of version of Marcus Simeon do the Mets get this season?
00:50An aging player who they brought in for defense.
00:52But, you know, can he somehow recapture that old MVP form?
00:56And I feel like Luis Robert Jr. and Francisco Alvarez, like if they're able to recapture their old form
01:04and slug throughout the entire season, it really just elongates the middle of that order
01:09and turns this into even more of a high-octane group.
01:12And obviously, you have the youngsters like Benj and Beatty, Mark Vientos as well.
01:16You know, what kind of role does Ronnie Mauricio play this year?
01:19I feel like he might start it short if Lindor, for some reason, isn't ready to go on opening day
01:24because of that surgery he had on his handmate bone.
01:27The Mets are so optimistic that that'll be the case, that he'll be ready.
01:30But, you know, we shall see. A couple weeks to go.
01:32But I feel like this could end up being one of the best lineups in the National League, Craig.
01:36But they've got to stay healthy.
01:38Yeah, and that's going to be the key, especially for several of those players with some injury history there.
01:43Although, adding Luis Robert and Simeon to this group, I think, is a big upgrade, if healthy.
01:48That's a good point.
01:49All right, starting pitching here, Freddy Peralta announces the opening day starter for the Mets.
01:54Maybe a contract extension in the future for him.
01:56We will see.
01:57Beyond that, a lot of talent.
01:59But I guess my question is, are these guys going to go more than five innings a game in Major
02:04League Baseball?
02:04McLean, Peterson, Holmes, and Minaya, they're really going to need their signing of Devin Williams
02:09and some of these other bullpen arms to work out.
02:11Now, I mean, look, I think the first two guys there can go deeper into games.
02:14But this is not a rotation that has that kind of experience.
02:18No, and I obviously didn't cover this team last year.
02:22But when I look at the numbers and when I ask around, it's really the rotation collapsing down the stretch
02:27was one of the reasons why this team ended up missing the playoffs.
02:31So I do think that there's a relatively high floor here if everybody's able to stay healthy.
02:36And, you know, they do have six starting pitchers with big league experience that they could go to.
02:41You know, that's a really good problem to have if everybody stays healthy.
02:44Then you also consider Tobias Myers, the other arm that they brought in from the Brewers in the Freddy Peralta
02:49trade.
02:49You know, he's capable of starting.
02:51Jonah Tong, Christian Scott, the prospects, they're loaded in AAA with some young depth.
02:56But it begins to be a little more of a prickly situation if the injuries start to add up,
03:01which obviously you and I know is to a certain extent kind of inevitable.
03:06And that's why these teams that have this kind of depth is those are the teams that are, you know,
03:11in a better position to succeed.
03:12So I feel like Peralta McLean could end up being one of the best one-two punches.
03:17But after that, you know, then the question marks start to present themselves.
03:21And I totally agree with you.
03:22I think that the back of the bullpen obviously needs to excel.
03:26But when you look at the rest of that pen and the way that the Mets are going to be
03:30smart with these guys early on in the season,
03:32you know, I don't think Clay Holmes is going to be throwing seven innings every start.
03:35Like they're going to ease these guys in and make sure that everyone is healthy for what the Mets are
03:41expecting to be a long season and then a long October as well.
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