The Yankees and Mets have a lot in common as they enter the season’s second Subway Series.
Both teams are in wild-card position (although the Mets standing 1 ¹/₂ games ahead of the Padres and Pirates for the sixth playoff spot is obviously much more precarious).
And both teams could use some help.
The funny thing about it is that the Yankees, who are 7 ¹/₂ games to the better, are the ones who appear to need significantly more assistance.
Over the last month, the Mets played like a fringe playoff team, which is a lot better than the Yankees, who have plain stunk. The Yankees are 10-20 since their slide started, which is better than only the White Sox, the punching bags of the South Side who are challenging the historic 1962 Mets.
When the New York teams met late last month, our matchup man extraordinaire Dan Martin gave just about every edge to the Yankees, and no one complained (except me, a little). Now he has them just about even, which is fair.
While the Mets are only three games over .500, their deadline goal should be extraordinarily simple. First let’s dispense with the idea they will become a big seller and trade Pete Alonso. That’s insanity. The players worked their way into this position for a team in the biggest market with the richest owner. If they sell now, they should move to Des Moines. Anyway, I doubt they will.
The great thing about the Mets’ current situation is that they already own the very two things most teams lack: rotation depth and lineup depth. The Mets possess enough starting pitchers that enabled them to move the emerging Jose Butto to the bullpen, and the lineup has a chance to contain threats one through nine if former batting champion Jeff McNeil can get his act completely together (among ex-batting champs, he’s at least ahead of DJ LeMahieu, whose first homer Monday was celebrated as if he’d discovered the Fountain of Youth, which is one idea).
The Mets can consider right field if they like (red-hot poser Randy Arozarena would be interesting), and if they want to get cute, they could even trade from their rotation stash once Kodai Senga shows he’s some semblance of the ace he was a year ago, as Mike Puma suggested weeks ago. But their lone pressing need remains obvious: they must bolster a bullpen that’s mostly moved to the season injured list (Brooks Raley, Drew Smith), the temporarily injured list (Reed Garrett) or low-leverage situations (Adam Ottavino, Jake Diekman).
It’ll be a seller’s market for just about everything, but the good news is this: relievers still cost quarters on the dollar compared to positional starters or certainly rotation mainstays at a time when the Mets remain intent on keeping their prospect stash together.
As for the Yankees, in a word: Oy.
General manager Brian Cashman, the years-long whipping boy of fans, looks like he needs a miracle. Or two.
The rotation that was the best in baseball for two-plus months became close to the worst for a month. The lineup that was the best in the game for those same two-plus months was close to the worst for that same month.
For weeks the Yankees were talking like they needed only a bullpen reinforcement or two. Now, if that’s their total take, fuhgetaboutit.
The pen still needs some help, especially of the swing-and-miss variety, that’s true. But now they will need to look more seriously at rotation help. While the Yankees have talent galore among their starting stable, Gerrit Cole, the game’s best pitcher, is generally looking effective since his return, and Clarke Schmidt is coming back soon, they need help. And incidentally, despite a report, I still doubt they’ll surrender the “next Aaron Judge” (i.e. Spencer Jones) for Garrett Crochet, who’s a better fit for a team like the Dodgers with a big lead due to his innings crunch.
The Yankees’ most glaring issue, however, is that two-superstar offense that’s unlikely to work come the playoffs. Luis Severino was already my favorite local player to interview for his unusual honesty, and it turns out he talks similarly among friends as his memorable remark that the Yankees “have only two good hitters” in a trash-talk session with former pinstriped pals proves, is darned close to the truth.
I’d only edit Severino’s comment slightly to say two “all-time great hitters” but his point hit the target. I won’t go over all the ugly numbers here, but suffice to say, it’s hard to imagine a lineup composed of the game’s two best hitters and seven guys who are struggling will go anywhere in October.
The Yankees presumably will have to assume guys with track records who are in their primes like Alex Verdugo and Gleyber Torres will regain some semblance of form, and hope that Giancarlo Stanton will produce as he did before his annual injury. A third baseman looks like a must, with Luis Rengifo, Jonathan India, Matt Chapman and Isaac Paredes among potential targets.
They’ll need to do something. To rely on assumption and prayer at this point would be folly. As constituted, the Yankees simply are not good enough.
