Mets New Players Could Be the Difference in the NL East Race
The New York Mets are hoping to catch the Washington Nationals in the National League East. On Friday, the Mets made a move to acquire power hitter Yoenis Cespedes from Detroit in an attempt to add punch to their batting order.
New York trails the first place Nationals by 2 games after defeating Washington on Friday in dramatic fashion with a walk-off home run in the 12th inning.
Only two contenders are left standing in the NL East as the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies and Miami Marlins all sold or traded away top players to help rebuild for next season.
Washington has remained in first despite inconsistent play and injuries. They traded for Jonathan Papelbon to help their bullpen.
Sensing the possibility of reaching the postseason, the Mets added players during the week for the first time in the past eight seasons, capped by the addition of Cespedes from Detroit.
Sandy Alderson the Mets general manager said the organization feels the team is in the position to compete for a spot in the playoffs and we have done everything possible to compete at the top level.
Last week, New York traded for Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson two complementary pieces of the puzzle. They also picked up Tyler Clippard the closer for Oakland, a longtime Washington National, to help a strong bullpen.
However, as the trade deadline clock was nearing his 4 p.m. end, they made the biggest showing they plan to compete by dealing two prospects from their pitching corps in the minors Luis Cessa and Michael Fulmer to Detroit in exchange for Cespedes, who in just three months can became a free agent.
The Nationals manager Matt Williams admitted the Mets had improved their team. He said he knows Clippard well and called him a quality pitcher. He said he did not know Cespedes since he has played in the American League, but he said the player’s stats spoke for themselves. Williams added that his team would have to play well to finish above the Mets.
The big reason New York was not taken that serious in the race for the NL East was their lack of offense and the payroll of the club.
The Mets are 18th in MLB in payroll but play in the largest market.
Cespedes will change that, as he is batting .293, has 18 home runs and a .829 on-base-plus-slugging-percentage.
Now the fun should begin. With the Nationals visiting the Mets for two more game this weekend, New York could start next week tied for first, as they won on Friday in the series opener 2-1.
