NEW YORK — And now the New York Mets have to contend with that most insidious of October obstacles: days off.
The Mets advanced to the National League Championship Series for the first time since 2015, and they will enjoy three days off their feet before beginning that best-of-seven in Southern California — latitude TBD — on Sunday. That gives New York plenty of time to ponder how best to shape its roster for a showdown with either the Dodgers or Padres.
What’s the latest with Jeff McNeil?
After McNeil went through several workouts with the Mets this week, the major hurdle standing between him and a return is facing live pitching. The initial plan had been to send McNeil to the club’s spring training facility in Port St. Lucie, Fla., for at-bats against minor-league pitchers training there. However, Hurricane Milton altered those plans, and the Mets received permission from the league to send McNeil instead to the Arizona Fall League. He’ll play in games there at least Friday and Saturday.
Jeff McNeil is scheduled to be in the lineup for the Scottsdale Scorpions on Friday and Saturday!
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— MLB’s Arizona Fall League (@MLBazFallLeague) October 9, 2024
There are pros and cons to that arrangement. The quality of pitching should be higher in the AFL than it would have been in Port St. Lucie, and McNeil will be playing in actual games. However, that limits the number of at-bats he can receive in a given day. The Mets can’t manipulate the game to have McNeil lead off each inning, as they might in a simulated game, or just cycle through having different pitchers face him so he can get a dozen at-bats in a day. The Mets thought maybe 15 at-bats in Florida would be enough to prepare McNeil. They now look ready to settle for something like eight in the AFL on back-to-back days.
How would McNeil fit into the roster?
That said, the likelihood of McNeil being on the NLCS roster is high. The Mets are unconcerned about bringing someone back into the fold after an injury, as evidenced by the return of Kodai Senga to the rotation in the NLDS.
McNeil’s versatility and his left-handed bat give Carlos Mendoza several ways to work him back into the mix. He’s probably not going to be handed his old job as the everyday second baseman right away, not after José Iglesias hit .393 in his absence down the stretch. Iglesias has cooled in the postseason with a .440 OPS through seven games, but he’s remained an integral part of the infield with his contact skills and defense.
McNeil could fit in the corner outfield as well, giving Mendoza another option if he wants to sit Tyrone Taylor, Starling Marte or one of his designated hitters.
At the least, McNeil would provide another left-handed bench bat. The Mets have become very right-handed since his injury, with Brandon Nimmo the only regular who hits exclusively from the left side.
Who would McNeil replace on the roster?
The simplest solution would be using McNeil to replace Luisangel Acuña, who earned a spot on the roster because of the need for an additional infielder.
However, Acuña has appeared in six of the Mets’ seven postseason games as a late-inning defensive replacement, and there should still be a need for that role if McNeil is looked at as more of a bench bat.
The Mets could also trim their pitching staff from 13 pitchers to 12. They’ve made it through two rounds of the postseason without pitching either Adam Ottavino or Danny Young; Young hasn’t even warmed up in the bullpen. The return of Senga means the Mets should have six starters on their NLCS roster, with Tylor Megill in place to give them length should it be needed. David Peterson has pitched out of the pen in the playoffs, taking on a role that might otherwise have been given to Young before his late-season struggles.
The Dodgers, in particular, are likely to render Young superfluous on the roster. They’ve been the best team in baseball against left-handed pitching, and there’s no obvious lane in their lineup to bring in a lefty reliever. The Padres have ranked in the middle of the league against lefties, and there would be opportunities for a lefty reliever to face three to six batters for a stretch. That was the case with Philadelphia as well, and the Mets still didn’t find a slot for Young.
How might the Mets organize their starters?
Because they closed out the Phillies on Wednesday in Game 4, the Mets will have several options for Sunday’s Game 1 of the NLCS. They can go with Senga in another abbreviated outing with Peterson or Megill behind him, they can go with Luis Severino as they did in the Wild Card Series, or they can go with Sean Manaea.
Speculatively, the Mets could set it up with Manaea in Game 1 on regular rest, followed by Senga piggybacking with Peterson in Game 2. Manaea has been at his best all season on just four days of rest, including down the finishing kick of the regular season. Starting Game 2 would give Senga an extra fifth day of rest before returning to pitch in Game 6 — a luxury not afforded if he were to start either Game 1 or Game 3. Severino could start Game 3, followed by Jose Quintana in Game 4.
(Photo of Jeff McNeil: Adam Hunger / Getty Images)
