Soon, the Mets' Opening Day roster will be set.
Opening Day is just a week away, and the Mets’ roster for the first game of the 2014 season looks clearer by the day. Since the last installment of the Make-the-Mets-O-Meter, the Mets have sent several players to minor league camp: Noah Syndergaard, Rafael Montero, Joel Carreno, Ryan Reid, Cory Mazzoni, Miguel Socolovich, Juan Centeno, Brandon Allen, and Matt Clark.
With that, the bullpen seems all but locked in for Opening Day, there are two pitchers remaining for the fifth spot in the team’s rotation, and the team’s bench could break a few different ways. On to the meter!
Starting pitchers
| Player |   | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| John Lannan, LHP | | Although he’s been a starting pitcher throughout his major league career, Lannan seems likely to make the Mets’ roster as a relief pitcher. |
| Daisuke Matsuzaka, RHP |  | Seemingly the favorite for the fifth starter gig since the start of spring training, Matsuzaka has not been particularly impressive in Grapefruit League play. |
| Jenrry Mejia, RHP | | With an excellent start against the Nationals yesterday, Mejia undoubtedly improved his chances of making the rotation. He should win the job, but that doesn’t mean he will. |
Relief pitchers
| Player | | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Vic Black, RHP | | Despite some rough patches in spring games, the Mets’ major league spring training cuts have made it obvious that he’ll get a shot from the beginning of the season. |
| Jeurys Familia, RHP | | Like Black, Familia remains in major league camp, which points to a spot in the Opening Day bullpen at this point. He’s looked awfully good in spring games. Here’s hoping his stuff translates to sustained success at the major league level this year. |
| Gonzalez Germen, RHP | | With Lannan probably stepping in as a relief pitcher, Germen appears to be the odd man out. |
| Jose Valverde, RHP | | He’s thrown hard enough in spring games that the Mets will give him a look in real games. He figures to have a short leash from there, though. |
Position players
| Player | | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Andrew Brown, OF | | Brown hasn’t had a particularly great spring but showed last year that he’s capable of hitting for power in the big leagues. |
| Eric Campbell, OF/1B/3B | | The Connecticut product has raked and can play all four corner positions on the field, but given the number of players on the bubble, the odds probably aren’t good. |
| Ike Davis, 1B | | Davis still figures to get the left-handed side of the first base platoon to open the season. |
| Matt den Dekker, OF | | With a very good spring so far, the left-handed outfielder might have a shot at the fifth outfield spot, as Curtis Granderson is the only one of the Mets’ first four outfielders who’s exclusively a left-handed hitter. |
| Lucas Duda, 1B, "OF" | | Assuming Davis is on the roster, Duda wouldn’t get much playing time if he makes the team, too. He doesn’t have anything left to prove at Triple-A, though, so there’s a chance he breaks camp with the Mets. |
| Wilmer Flores, 2B/SS | | The only thing keeping Flores from the red arrow is the fact that he’s played a few games at short this spring. |
| Zach Lutz, 1B/3B | | Lutz has torn the cover off the ball in spring games, but it’s still hard to find a spot for him with Josh Satin in line to play the right-handed side of the first base platoon. It will be a platoon, right, Terry? |
| Kirk Nieuwenhuis, OF | | He’s had a very good spring, and the same logic that applies to den Dekker applies to Nieuwenhuis. |
| Omar Quintanilla, SS/2B | | So long as Ruben Tejada is the starting shortstop, Q is the favorite to back him up, even if he’s struggling at the plate in Grapefruit League games. |
| Anthony Recker, C | | The presumptive backup to Travis d’Arnaud since the beginning of camp, Recker has raked to the tune of a .310/.412/.552 slash line. |
| Anthony Seratelli, IF/OF | | Seratelli’s spring hitting line still doesn’t look good, but perhaps his positional flexibility will get him consideration. |
| Taylor Teagarden, C | | He’s held his own at the plate in spring games, but he’s pretty likely to start the year in Vegas. |
