For all the hurdles and recent valleys the Mets have had to contend with, they are about to embark on the second half of their season, doing so just a half-game out of first place in the National League East (55-42) behind the Philadelphia Phillies.
Expect supremacy atop the division to be a neck-and-neck race the rest of the way, though a number of hypotheticals could help the Mets snag the upper hand in their pursuit of winning a first NL East title in a decade.
Here are three things to watch as we emerge from the All-Star break.
Double aces at the turn
New York’s rotation has been decimated by injuries all season. Sean Manaea, Frankie Montas, and Paul Blackburn started the year on the IL. Griffin Canning is out for the rest of 2025 with a ruptured Achilles, Tylor Megill is sidelined, and Kodai Senga missed a month with a hamstring strain.
But in the very last series before the break, the Mets got both Manaea (his 2025 debut) and Senga back, which gives New York the five-man unit it had lined up during the offseason, but has never had all together, yet: Senga, Manaea, Montas, Clay Holmes, and David Peterson.
The return of Senga — he has been brilliant with a 7-3 record and 1.47 ERA — and Manaea should stabilize a rotation that was the best in baseball for the first two-and-a-half months of the season, but posted a 5.31 ERA over the last four weeks. Holmes’ transition from closer to starter could not be going much better, and Peterson garnered his first All-Star Game nod this year.
Things could be in a much more dire state, all things considered.
Pitching at the trade deadline
That being said, president of baseball operations David Stearns’ M.O. is depth, and the entire pitching picture in New York is lacking that with two weeks to go until the trade deadline.
Another starter could be brought in as an insurance policy should the Mets’ injury issues follow them into the second half, but it feels far more paramount to make a deal to bolster the bullpen.
The relievers in front of closer Edwin Diaz have not inspired much confidence, especially with left-handed options being wrenched away by injury earlier this season. Within a week, they lost both AJ Minter and Danny Young for the season, forcing manager Carlos Mendoza to navigate an ineffective carousel of southpaws for the last two-plus months.
Brooks Raley is expected to return from Tommy John surgery this month to provide a boost.
The right side isn’t looking much better. Huascar Brazoban, Ryne Stanek, and Reed Garrett have been inconsistent, and Dedniel Nunez alongside Max Kranick are on the shelf for, potentially, the remainder of the year. A lockdown set-up man might have to be Stearns’ priority as the stakes rise.
What about the kids?
This was supposed to be the year that some of the younger Mets provided the necessary depth to create a well-rounded lineup. Instead, there have been regressions and struggles galore.
Catcher Francisco Alvarez lost his starting job to Luis Torrens and was optioned to Triple-A after batting .236 with three home runs during the first half. Mark Vientos has regressed mightily — the third baseman who hit 27 home runs last year has just six in 254 plate appearances.
Luisangel Acuna was sent down after Ronny Mauricio returned from his lengthy rehab stemming from knee surgery two winters ago, and Brett Baty is still only showing flashes of what once was one of the Mets’ top prospects rather than consistently keeping it together.
In a perfect world, one of Acuna or Mauricio — both natural infielders — would have been getting reps in center field by now to ease the burden on Tyrone Taylor, who has assumed everyday duties after Jose Siri broke his leg. Instead, Taylor and occasional relief appearances by Jeff McNeil mean the Mets are getting a paltry .614 OPS from center fielders this season.
Another bat might be necessary at the deadline to bolster the bottom of the lineup, which has turned into a black hole as of late.
