PORT ST. LUCIE — We’ve seen buildup and cleanup at this place for three years, with Mets manager Terry Collins doing everything besides actually wielding a mop in his role as head custodian. Any brief glimpse of the Mets actually contending from 2011 through 2013 served only as a serendipitous mirage.
So when Collins took a seat Friday in the first official 2014 event from Tradition Field, we officially arrived at the long-awaited step-up phase of the Mets’ revival.
“We think we’ve added some talent to this team,” Collins said, in a de facto “State of the Mets” news conference SNY televised live. “We think 2014 is going to be a good year for us. … We’ve got some guys now, it’s time for them to step up and show everybody that they are true major-league players and can compete at this level.”
Can the Mets actually compete for a playoff spot, after five straight losing seasons? Maybe. Who would say anything more promising than “Maybe?”
Collins’ boss, general manager Sandy Alderson, also in his fourth year on the job, and Alderson’s boss, Jeff Wilpon, have long talked up the financial flexibility they would gain once the lousy contracts of sunken costs Johan Santana and Jason Bay came off the books after 2013. Bay is retired, having never recovered from his severe case of Citi Flu, while Santana, less than a year removed from his second serious left shoulder procedure, works to sign a minor league deal elsewhere.
In their place, on a payroll that essentially has stayed flat, are starting pitcher Bartolo Colon and outfielders Curtis Granderson and Chris Young. Not here is Stephen Drew, still a free agent as Collins praised the offseason commitment displayed by young shortstop Ruben Tejada. Veteran closers Kyle Farnsworth and Jose Valverde come aboard on minor league contracts, both looking to revive their careers setting up for healing young closer Bobby Parnell, who threw off the mound Friday for the first time since his neck surgery last September.
“We knew we had to get some players,” Collins said, “and Sandy has done that.”
You can talk yourself into a scenario in which the ancient Colon replaces the rehabilitating Matt Harvey as staff ace; Granderson shakes off a fluky 2013 to become a middle-of-the-lineup hitter again; Young’s winter work with Rod Carew pays off; Ike Davis finally figures it all out while Zack Wheeler surges; and six or eight other similarly fortuitous events happen to make the Mets relevant in September. Collins is happy to do so.
“All of a sudden, our middle of the lineup is a completely different scenario than it was a year ago,” Collins said, as he envisioned Granderson, Young and Davis helping out captain David Wright. “I think right there makes us better.”
As we sit here, with not even pitchers’ and catchers’ workout to witness, you’d say the Mets made themselves a modestly improved team. What stands out more is how many other National League teams didn’t do even that much.
The Pirates lost their horse, A.J. Burnett, to the Phillies, while their fellow wild-card team, the Reds, said good-bye to steady Bronson Arroyo (Diamondbacks) and on-base machine Shin-soo Choo (Rangers). Neither club filled those voids with accomplished players. The Phillies’ pickup of Burnett is mitigated by news of Cole Hamels’ left shoulder problems. The Braves clocked a quiet winter, counting on internal improvements, while the Rockies added Justin Morneau, LaTroy Hawkins and not much else.
On the flip side, the Nationals added Doug Fister, the Brewers signed Matt Garza, the Padres picked up Josh Johnson and Joaquin Benoit and the Giants imported Tim Hudson. And the Cardinals, who operate in their own elite universe, signed Mets target Jhonny Peralta to play shortstop.
If the Mets signed Drew and traded Davis before Opening Day, they’d put themselves in the running for “Best NL offseason” with Washington and San Diego. As is, they’re intriguing, but the idea of meaningful games in September still requires some heavy optimism.
Collins will be expected to do more than clean up. He has many puzzles to solve, some in spring training, some during the season. For now, he’ll have to settle for owning more interesting pieces.