Even The Mets Don’t Know Why They’re So Bad

The 2023 New York Mets are baseball’s cautionary tale. The most expensive team ever assembled, with a collection of All-Stars in the lineup and experienced Cy Young winners in the rotation.

Yet they were eliminated from the division by early September, and their next loss will ensure a losing record.

The data indicates any number of potential explanations, starting with underperformance from key contributors like Starling Marte and Francisco Lindor. But as always with disappointing teams, there’s always more going on that’s not publicly visible. And while the Mets have some theories for why they haven’t lived up to expectations, even they’re not entirely sure how it got so bad.

The Athletic spoke to numerous players to try and get some answers, but most were as confused as the outsiders. One exception though, was outfielder Tommy Pham.

Pham, who was dealt to Arizona at the trade deadline, was extremely critical of the Mets’ work ethic.

Pham reportedly told Lindor, “Out of all the teams I played on, this is the least-hardest working group of position players I’ve ever played with.”

But others disagreed. “Guys are super professional around here,” said Jeff McNeil. “We go about our business, and everybody comes ready to play and does what they need to do.”

So if that’s not it, what is it?

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - AUGUST 14: Carlos Carrasco #59 of the New York Mets in action against the Pittsburgh Pirates of a game at Citi Field on August 14, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

Mets’ Struggles Hard To Nail Down

Outfielder Brandon Nimmo seemed to imply that some individuals were a bit less dedicated than others.

“Each person needs to assess that individually,” said Nimmo. “You can only lead a horse to water; you can’t make him drink. Ultimately, a lot of this comes down to individuals and what they’re willing to do.”

Reliever Adam Ottavino simply said there’s no one thing he can think of to explain what happened.

“We weren’t good in any facet of the game, honestly,” Ottavino said. “What’s been the challenge this year is explaining it, because there’s no one thing that broke the system. Everything underperformed all at once.”

He certainly has a point.

Before their respective trades, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer hadn’t performed to their usual standards. Despite hitting for 45 home runs, Pete Alonso’s offensive production dipped. The team’s defense has also been subpar; outside of Lindor and catcher Francisco Alvarez, most have graded out well below average.

The Mets’ issues might stem from poor roster construction, with the front office prioritizing big names and flashy offensive statistics over a cohesive unit with complementary skills. No wonder they just made a major new front office hire.

READ: METS MAKE NEW FRONT OFFICE HIRE IN FIRST MAJOR SHAKEUP

As always with baseball, considering its 26-man roster, there’s no easy fix for a team this disappointing. Maybe some combination of harder-working players, younger pitchers and better defense may be enough.

Maybe Dave Stearns will have a better idea of what went wrong than his players do. Mets fans better hope so.