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By Dalton Allison
Where were you when The Great Fire Sale of 2023 happened? If you don’t remember exactly where you were, it is still reasonable to believe the way that you felt when it happened. Any mixture of anger, frustration, and sadness is applicable to the situation. The immediate speculation was that with the significant prospect haul the team received, they would be punting on 2024 to try to compete in 2025. This sentiment was echoed by Max Scherzer, who told reporters “Billy and Steve had to do a different vision now. The math changed on them. They wanted to be able to flip guys for prospects and so they were willing to — I assume they still are looking to be able to trade guys off the roster to try to get more players that are going to be with them in those seasons in 2025 and 2026 that can help them win then.”
While Scherzer is correct in saying that the Mets acquired players that will help them win in 2025 and 2026 in Luisangel Acuna and Drew Gilbert, it was the pitching that severely doomed the team this season. Scherzer was part of the issue, pitching to a 4.01 ERA and rarely making it to the sixth inning in his starts. Starting pitching has been the biggest disappointment for the team, as the unit has accounted for a cumulative WAR of 5.6 this season, better only than the Yankees, Nationals, Royals, Rockies, and Rays. If the Mets want to be anywhere near competitive or even watchable, they’ll have to make additions to that unit. If the Mets are punting next season as initial reports made it seem however, the starting pitching free agency pool in the offseason leading up to the 2025 season is nothing to write home about.
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