David Stearns didn’t sugarcoat it.
Throughout his end-of-season press conference, the Mets’ president of baseball operations pointed to his roster’s inability to prevent runs as a primary culprit in the team’s demise.
An inconsistent starting rotation that struggled to provide length and a defense that graded as one of MLB’s weaker units proved to be a costly combination for the Mets, whose monthslong collapse ended Sunday with them missing the postseason at 83-79.
“We came into this year with, deservedly so, very high expectations, and we didn’t come close to meeting them. I’m keenly aware of that,” Stearns said Monday at Citi Field, before confirming manager Carlos Mendoza would return.
“I’m the architect of the team. I’m responsible for it.”
Starting pitching appeared to be a strength for the Mets through the season’s first two and a half months.
On June 12, the Mets’ rotation owned an MLB-best 2.79 ERA, despite not receiving a single inning from Sean Manaea or Frankie Montas to that point due to spring-training injuries.
The Mets boasted baseball’s best record at 45-24 at the time, but Kodai Senga (hamstring), Tylor Megill (elbow) and Griffin Canning (Achilles) suffered injuries in quick succession.
Manaea and Montas struggled upon returning, as did Senga.
And while the Mets were active at the trade deadline, adding three relievers and center fielder Cedric Mullins, they did not import another starting pitcher.
“Holistically, as I look at our pitching staff, we needed to do more over the course of the season. That is very clear,” Stearns said.
“What we were faced [with] at the deadline, I think our fan base would actually be perhaps even more upset if we had made some of those moves. But the entirety of our run-prevention unit was not good enough this year.”
From June 13 on, the Mets’ rotation posted a 5.27 ERA, which ranked 27th among MLB staffs, and averaged only 4.6 innings per start.
“We need more innings out of our starting staff,” Stearns said. “There’s no question about that.”
The Mets went 38-55 over that stretch, ending with a 4-0 loss to the Miami Marlins in Sunday’s regular season finale. Had the Mets won Sunday, they would have claimed the National League’s third and final Wild Card spot.
“On a number of levels, there are probably areas where we can be a little bit more proactive and I can be a little bit more proactive,” Stearns said, before declining to go into specifics. “I think some of these lessons, we’re still investigating and still fully understanding various aspects of our team.”
The Mets attempted to navigate this season without a traditional ace, instead leaning on veterans on shorter-term contracts such as Manaea, Montas and Clay Holmes.
By the end of the year, the Mets’ rotation included three rookies in Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat.
Asked if this season might prompt a change in his philosophy toward adding external pitching, Stearns replied, “I think we have to be open to everything.”
“My continued emphasis is doing everything we can to support our development infrastructure and developing starting pitchers,” Stearns said. “Ultimately, that is where we’re going to have sustained success and get the organization to a consistently good spot from a run-prevention perspective. But going into this offseason, I’m not going to take anything off the table.”
Senga was limited to one regular-season start in 2024, and after getting off to a torrid start this year, he struggled mightily upon returning from the hamstring strain.
He went 0-3 with a 5.90 ERA in nine starts before agreeing to be demoted to Triple-A Syracuse in early September.
“Kodai’s had two very inconsistent, challenging years in a row,” Stearns said. “We know it’s in there. We know there’s potential. We’re going to do everything we can to help get it out of him. Can we put him in ink as making 30 starts next year? I think that would be foolish.”
Defensively, the Mets ranked 21st in baseball by recording -13 outs above average (OOA) as a team.
Stearns acknowledged that the Mets’ defense “wasn’t good enough” and that it contributed to the Mets’ pitching issues.
“We’re going to have to be open-minded on our position-player grouping so that we can improve our run prevention,” Stearns said. “Does that mean there are robust changes? I don’t know. Does it mean people will be playing different positions? Maybe. Does it mean we ask people to play different roles? Maybe.”
The Mets’ most notable forthcoming free agent is Pete Alonso, whose -9 OAA ranked toward the bottom among MLB first baseman.
Alonso, a homegrown fan favorite, led the Mets with 126 RBI after re-signing on a two-year, $54 million contract with an opt-out. Alonso said Sunday that he plans to decline his player option and test the market for a second winter in a row.
“Pete is a great Met. He had a fantastic year,” Stearns said. “I said this last year and it worked out: I’d love to have Pete back, and we’ll see how the offseason goes.”
The Mets entered the season with sky-high aspirations after making a surprise run to the NLCS last year and signing superstar slugger Juan Soto to a 15-year, $765 million contract in December. Their $341.7 million payroll, according to Cot’s Contracts, was the second highest in baseball.
But now Stearns is left to determine what’s next after he said the Mets “underachieved greatly.”
“Tremendously disappointing season,” Stearns said. “Not nearly good enough.”
