Shoutout LL Cool J

I know it's hard to feel optimistic about the Mets after two straight disappointing seasons, but I genuinely believe their championship window may just be opening.

I wrote about why I think the Mets are in a better position than many realize and why this offseason could be so important to their future.

Curious to hear what others think.

I was wondering what a team of all former Mets would look like, for the purposes of reminiscing on old names as much as anything else. I also thought it was fun to compare to the current group that we finished 2026 with. I ended up doing some digging on BRef and pulling together the best team I could. I'm sure I missed some guys.

The rules:

1. No 2026 Mets, even those that were traded at the deadline. It felt against the spirit of the exercise- obviously a team will offload some of its better players when selling.
2. Prospects count. Any player that was in the Mets farm system is fair game.
3. When in doubt, I tended to just choose the player with a higher bWAR for 2026.
4. I can reconfigure defensive positions as needed- there aren't many SS options, so I shifted Gimenez there

Starting Pitchers (2026 bWAR, innings, ERA):

1. Zack Wheeler (6.0, 162, 3.00)
2. Jacob deGrom (1.7, 162, 4.20)
3. JT Ginn (3.4, 138, 3.71)
4. Michael Wacha (4.3, 200, 3.32)
5. Anthony Kay (1.2, 158, 4.44)

Bullpen (2026 bWAR, innings, ERA)

LR: Luis Severino (1.0, 62, 4.16)

MR: Matt Festa (0.4, 66, 3.78)

MR: Gregory Soto (1.2, 67, 3.63)

MR: Anthony Nunez (0.1, 59, 4.07)

SU: Colin Holderman (1.3, 52, 2.73)

SU: Tyler Rogers (1.8, 71, 1.77)

CL: Paul Blackburn (3.1, 85, 1.69)

?: Edwin Diaz (-0.9, 18.2, 8.68)

Offense (bWAR, At Bats, OPS+)

C: Endy Rodriguez (0.8, 135, 128) S

1B: Pete Alonso (4.9, 602, 149) R

2B: Jeff McNeil (0.4, 478, 87) L

SS: Andres Gimenez (1.1, 468, 78) L

3B: Amed Rosario (-0.2, 227, 88) R

LF: Brandon Nimmo (1.2, 593, 111) L

CF: Pete Crow-Armstrong (9.8, 626, 156) L

RF: Drew Gilbert (1.7, 340, 106) L

C/DH: Gary Sanchez (0.6, 225, 116) R

Bench

COF: Jake Mangum (0.9, 435, 90) S

COF: Michael Conforto (0.7, 271, 118) L

CF: Jose Siri (0.7, 228, 102) R

UT: Luisangel Acuna (-0.1, 210, 52) R

Lineup

1. Crow-Armstrong (L)
2. Alonso (R)
3. Nimmo (L)
4. Sanchez (R)
5. Gilbert (L)
6. Rodriguez (S)
7. McNeil (L)
8. Rosario (R)
9. Gimenez (L)

Thoughts:

The team definitely lacks thump on the left side of the infield. A decent bat at third would be huge for an offense with star power but little depth. A fine shortstop would allow Gimenez to second and move McNeil to the bench, but Lindor has held down the position for so long on the real team that there aren't many options to choose from there.

The pitching staff is really good. Wheeler is still an ace. Ginn and Wacha were both very solid starters (borderline all-star level) in 2026, but deGrom had a bad season by his standards. Even Kay was a passable back-end starter this year.

Of course, it's easiest to assemble a good bullpen in this exercise due to the constant roster churn there. That's probably the area where I missed some good names. Diaz had a terrible year, but has looked much better recently. His ceiling is so high and he was a longtime Met, so I figured I should include him.

What do you think? How do you think this roster compares to the end-of-2026 Mets?

At least we have the best menu in the mlb 🙏

Rough season overall but under the hood there's a lot to like. Very interesting project to get for a middle reliever who struggled with the Phillies.

seeing how he abandoned the Brewers to come to the Mets, I guess he has 50 million reasons why he is glad he came if you think money is everything, I seriously wonder if he is rooting for or against the Brewers considering this is essentially his team

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CLE 1 @ TB 3 - Top 9, 0 Outs

^{Last Updated: 10/13/2026 10:49:10 PM EDT}

The Mets could plausibly field a 26-man big-league roster if the season started tomorrow.

That, however, isn’t an ideal roster, and it already costs the Mets about $243 million in salary and $270 million against the luxury tax. The Mets’ primary needs entering the winter are, in some order:

• A frontline starting pitcher
• Another mid-rotation starting pitcher
• A first baseman who preferably hits from the right side
• A fourth outfielder who preferably hits from the right side
• Between one and three high-leverage relievers

We’re going to look at a few diverse scenarios, starting with one that is very unlikely to happen. These are meant to be pretty broad looks at each price point. While Tim Britton provides specific players within, that’s basically to make it tangible. The vitally important trade market this winter hasn’t come into much focus. As such, the suggestions are generally in pencil.

Read for free: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7679147/2026/10/12/mets-payroll-salary-cap-2027-tarik-skubal/?unlocked_article_code=1.IFE.pdnh.WN6vC19gU2KL&source=emp_shared_article&smid=re-share-ta

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LAD 4 @ MIL 7 - Final

CLE 7 @ TB 3 - Bottom 9, 0 Outs

^{Last Updated: 10/12/2026 11:02:10 PM EDT}

Today is the 40th anniversary of one of my all-time favorite baseball games. I was 11 when it happened and I remember parts of it vividly.

I rewatched Game 3 of the 1986 NLCS and took good notes on everything that happened.

From Bob Knepper's opera consumption habits to Darryl Strawberry's unheralded defensive play to Len Dykstra's walk-off home run. Enjoy!

While cleaning out our basement last week, my mom discovered a true treasure: The Mets’ 1986 yearbook in surprisingly great condition — I’m assuming this was purchased by my dad (RIP) for both the 25th anniversary of the Mets, and to (maybe) have a future heirloom to commemorate the birth of his first child (me) in July of ‘86. Who knew they would go on to win the World Series this year!? Great find, mom ☺️

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LAD 1 @ MIL 2 - Top 9, 2 Outs

^{Last Updated: 10/11/2026 11:06:21 PM EDT}

He could throw that speedball by you.
Make you look like a fool, boy.
Saw him the other night at this roadside bar
I was walking in, he was walking out
We went back inside, sat down, had a few drinks
But all he kept talking about was

Glory days

After Zac Thornton's impressive rookie season, I think there's an interesting argument that his trade value may never be higher.

I wrote about why the Mets could consider selling high on him, but also why I think they'd be making a mistake doing so.

Still clearing stuff and found these. I have two to give away. Free to anyone who wants one. Pickup in Elmhurst Queens. As per pics they both fold and unfold well. The material is more of a synthetic canvas rather than paper.

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CWS 0 @ CLE 2 - Final

^{Last Updated: 10/10/2026 10:45:20 PM EDT}