New York Mets: What could the 2020 Opening Day roster look like?

Meet the Mets, meet the Mets, step right up and meet the Mets!

History has shown that the Mets will hardly ever do anything conventionally. Just look at the Bobby Bonilla deal or that Yoenis Céspedes contract. You can even look at the Marcus Stroman trade. The common theme with all of these moves is that no one could’ve predicted any of these transactions and their outcomes.

You can now take into account the aggressiveness of young general manager Brodie Van Wagenen. This past offseason was one of the more wild ones in recent memory and had many head-scratching moves. Well, I’m going to become Brodie Van Wagenen for the moment and will take you through my construction of the New York Mets’ 2020 Opening Day Roster.

The pitching staff

As known, the Mets have an exceptional rotation — especially following the acquisition of Marcos Stroman. The only bump is that right-hander Zack Wheeler will become a free agent. The bullpen has struggled despite the acquisitions of Edwin Diaz, Jeurys Familia, Justin Wilson, and Luis Avilan. The ‘pen will need some work, too. Van Wagenen always talks about creating depth, so I will also have to account for that.

The rotation:

Zack Wheeler will sign a three-year, $49.5 million deal with the Mets.

The bullpen:

The Mets will trade 1B/LF Dominic Smith and LHP Kevin Smith to the Baltimore Orioles for Mychal Givens, LHP Keegan Akin, and OF Austin Hays.

Sergio Romo will sign a one-year, $2.2 million deal with the Mets. The deal will include a $1.9 million team option for 2021.

Will Smith will sign a three-year, $32 million deal with the Mets.

With the acquisitions of Givens, Romo, and Smith, the Mets will have acquired reliable veteran arms who have had some great success in years past. The signing of Zack Wheeler will retain the current powerful rotation. There is no guarantee that this will push the Mets over the top, but it sure is due diligence.

The infield

There are really only a couple of places of need in the Mets infield: a backup catcher and a third baseman.

First-Base: Pete Alonso

Second-Base: Robinson Cano

Third-Base: Josh Donaldson

Shortstop: Amed Rosario

Catcher: Wilson Ramos

Backup catcher: Travis d’Aranud

Backup infielder: Dilson Herrera

The Mets will sign Josh Donaldson to a three-year, $52 million deal.

The Mets will sign Travis d’Aranud to a two-year, $10 million deal.

The Mets will select the contract of Dilson Herrera

Go ahead and roast me for d’Arnaud and Donaldson all you want, but the Mets haven’t had a true cemented player at the hot-corner since David Wright. With the departure of Todd Frazier in free agency, it opens up the corner for an MVP in Josh Donaldson. This should give much more length to an already well-structured lineup.

The Mets would also benefit from a rejuvenated Travis d’Arnaud. His defense and versatility have improved greatly. I think it could be a true split of time between Wilson Ramos and d’Arnaud.

The outfield

All they need is a center fielder at the moment.

No, Yoenis Céspedes will not be in my plans, despite how much I love him.

Left field: Jeff McNeil

Center field: Austin Hays

Right field: Michael Conforto

Backup Outfielder: J.D. Davis

Backup Outfielder: Brandon Nimmo

With the trade mentioned before, the Mets will have acquired a high-potential centerfielder in Austin Hays who, before his injury, showed his potential as an All-Star caliber player. The rest of the outfield will stay the same as it is currently.

Overall, the Mets needed to improve in the bullpen, center field, catcher, and third base.

With the acquisitions of Zack Wheeler, Sergio Romo, Will Smith, Mychal Givens, Josh Donaldson, Travis d’Arnaud, and Austin Hays, the Mets will have addressed their needs within the payroll and farm system limitations.

To recap, this is what I would make the Mets’ 25-man roster look like come Opening Day 2020:

SP: Jacob deGrom

SP: Noah Syndergaard

SP: Marcus Stroman

SP: Steven Matz

SP: Zack Wheeler

CL: Edwin Díaz

RP: Seth Lugo

RP: Jeurys Familia

RP: Robert Gsellman

RP: Justin Wilson

RP: Mychal Givens