Category: MLB

What we learned: Red Sox could've beaten Yankees but were never real contenders originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

To be as clear as humanly possible, the Red Sox could have won the Wild Card Series over the Yankees. To be blunt, they should have won the series, as the miscues in a winnable Game 2 — a dropped liner in left, a popped-up bunt, a base-running blunder — were plays that Major League Baseball players have to make.

They could have won. They should have won. But they didn’t. They lost Game 3 at Yankee Stadium, losing 4-0 and getting just one single baserunner as far as second base, and now it’s off to a long, cold winter for the Red Sox.

Still, at no point in this brief postseason run did any reasonable person believe the Red Sox had the roster to really make a run to the World Series. The presence of Connelly Early — who looks like a high schooler and made his MLB debut 23 days ago — on the mound in a do-or-die Game 3 displayed that reality better than any words ever could.

This was a team that overachieved, and their eight-win improvement from a year ago provides plenty of reason to celebrate Alex Cora and the players who made that happen. But this was not a team built for a deep October run.

And that has to be the takeaway from every decision-maker with the Red Sox, from Alex Cora up to Craig Breslow up to Sam Kennedy up to the owner in John Henry. This team came this far with a lineup that included Masataka Yoshida and Romy Gonzalez as cleanup hitters in the playoffs and also had career minor leaguers Nick Sogard and Nate Eaton for the first two games of the series.

It’s a team that tried to patch holes with Nathaniel Lowe (DFA’d by the last-place Nationals) and Dustin May (let go by the reining-champion Dodgers amid another World Series run) while leaning entirely on a 21-year-old rookie in Roman Anthony to carry their offense.

The Red Sox, quite simply, were not good enough.

That has to be the takeaway for the front office if this team is to make something of this year’s step forward. But it’s not a given that they feel that way.

Surely, everyone can recall the 2021 postseason run, when the Red Sox made it to a sixth game of the ALCS. They did lose that series — getting outscored 23-3 by the Astros over the final three games — but hearing Henry and Kennedy speak at that infamous “Winter Weekend” event in front of booing fans, you wouldn’t know it. The powers that be used that postseason run as a shield, evidence that their plans were working, that they knew best, that the angry mob was wrong.

Yet clearly, with a couple of last-place finishes after the ALCS run and then an 81-81 record in 2024, the Red Sox were not actually built to contend — not in the short or long term. Everyone on the outside had known that for years.

On the inside? There seemed to be a bit of misplaced confidence in the direction of the club after the ill-fated Mookie Betts trade. There was a level of smugness that reared its head once again in the wake of the Rafael Devers trade.

Had the Red Sox advanced past the Yankees, perhaps there’d be some more self-assuredness. Cutting Devers loose while getting almost nothing in return was objectively a bad move, but a run to the ALDS and perhaps beyond could have emboldened them into believing whatever they wanted to believe.

Yet after scoring six runs in three games and getting bullied in Game 3 in Yankee Stadium, will the decision-makers feel the urgency in the months ahead? There are no cutting corners on the path to true contention, and a don’t-you-remember-we-made-the-ALCS-in-2021 refrain can’t be used a shield for any mismanagement that lies ahead.

This lineup is not built to contend, and the rotation needs serious investment. The Red Sox aren’t miles away, and with the proper attention, they can be in contention as soon as next year. They just need to remember that they’re the Boston Red Sox and then act — and spend — accordingly.

As for this one, let’s check in with some of what we learned in the disappointing season finale.

Defense was a problem again

After Jarren Duran butchered a shallow pop in Game 2, you’d think he’d be entering Game 3 with a renewed focus. Instead, he stood by idly as Giancarlo Stanton’s moonshot … hit the base of the wall in left-center field. Stanton should have had an all-time blooper moment by getting gunned down at second after standing and admiring his wall ball, but Duran took so long to get to the ball and got absolutely nothing on his throw into the infield, giving second base to Stanton.

Stanton didn’t score, but Connelly Early had to throw 18 high-leverage pitches with the runner in scoring position after the missed opportunity by Duran.

The much costlier mistake came form an unlikely source in Ceddanne Rafaela. He is, without question, one of the best center fielders in baseball at tracking and closing in on everything hit anywhere in the outfield. Yet in the fourth inning, he took a puzzling, slow route to a shallow fly, missing on his diving attempt and giving Cody Bellinger a double. The ball had a 90 percent catch probability for Rafaela off the bat.

Prior to that misplay, Rafaela had seemingly backed away from a couple of balls in the right-center field gap, leaving plenty of space for Wilyer Abreu to make two catches. You’ll recall that Abreu nearly freight-trained Rafaela in Game 1. Alex Cora was asked before Game 2 if he needed to impart any wisdom on how his outfielders can communicate, and the manager largely pooh-poohed the suggestion.

“No, no, it’s two guys trying to make a play. Obviously communication has to be better, and they know it,” Cora said. “We got an out. A lot of people in the dugout are kind of like, ‘Oh!’ I’m like, ‘Wait, we got an out. Let’s go. Move on.’ But they know. … They know what they have to do. They are big leaguers, and they understand sometimes, you know, like mistakes like that, what am I going tell them? Communicate better? They know it.”

It didn’t seem like they did in Game 3, and it was costly, as the bloop double kick-started a four-run fourth inning — the only frame of the ballgame when runs crossed the plate.

Nathaniel Lowe also kicked away what could have been an inning-ending double play ball, which would have stopped the bleeding at two runs. That wasn’t an easy play, per se, but this is the big leagues. It’s one that should be made more often than not.

Ryan McMahon risked his neck for an out

This might be unfair, but this photo of Ryan McMahon flipping into the Red Sox dugout to make a catch with his team up 4-0 in the late innings kind of presents the proper perspective on the defensive effort levels on display in Game 3.

Cam Schlittler was nasty

While five hits and no runs is a miserable night of offense for the Red Sox, you do have to give credit where it’s due. Cam Schlittler was unbelievable. Elite velocity, total control, complete dominance.

This wasn’t, say, Jon Lieber silencing the Boston bats in the 2004 ALCS. The Yankees have themselves a good one in Schlittler.

Masataka Yoshida had … some singles

Designated hitter Masataka Yoshida batted .571 in the series. That’s good, right?

Sort of.

He did drive in the key runs in Game 1, but he also had four singles. One of which stayed in the infield. Which is fine, but the Red Sox need a cleanup hitter. And a DH.

Trevor Story (.385/.385/.615, HR, 3 RBIs) had a good series at the plate. Alex Bregman was 3-for-10 with a double, an RBI and two talks. But that was it.

The quintet of Ceddanne Rafaela, Carlos Narvaez, Romy Gonzalez, Rob Refsnyder and Wilyer Abreu were a combined 1-for-37. Jarren Duran was 1-for-11. Nathaniel Lowe was 1-for-7. Nick Sogard and Nate Eaton, guys who weren’t even supposed to be on the team, accounted for 21 percent of the team’s hits and two of their three doubles.

Ultimately, the offensive concerns from the regular season caught up to them in the brief series.

Connelly Early was a bright spot

There wasn’t too much to like on Thursday night, but Connelly Early’s temperament would have to make the list. The kid wasn’t afraid of the moment, and if Rafaela had simply made a play that he needs to make, it’s anyone’s guess what Early’s final line would have looked like.

Early obviously doesn’t have the raw power that his counterpart, Schlittler, had. But he mixed his pitches to keep batters off balance, showed off his big sweeper, and looked like a young player who should have a spot in the rotation at the start of the 2026 season.

Payton Tolle was the rookie who had the most electric debut, but Early is the one with the best finish.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone met with the media prior to Thursday's do-or-die Game 3 against the Red Sox...

Rice back in against the lefty

SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino reported earlier today that he expected Ben Rice to be right back in the Yankees’ lineup against left-hander Connelly Early. 

And to no surprise, Rice was indeed in there, batting fifth and playing first base when the starting nine officially dropped a few hours later.

Boone said it was a tough decision, but Rice’s hot bat swung things his way.

“The way Benny is going right now,” the skipper said. “The impact he’s having, the ability to change the game, the presence in the box right now and really over the last few weeks -- and understanding not how they are going to deploy everything.

“Having that true balance in the lineup and then I wanted [Austin] Wells in the game behind the plate, where I feel like he’s been really good and swinging the bat well, and it gives you a real weapon with Goldy on the bench to use in a big spot or for defense late.”

Rice is hitting just .189 against southpaws this season, but he has gone deep three times over his last two games. 

Confidence in Cam 

Boone asked Thursday's starter, Cam Schlittler, if he was really to roll as he walked out the door. 

The rookie’s response: “Oh yeah.”

The Yanks have seen that exact confidence from Schlittler throughout his rookie campaign, and they aren’t expecting anything less with the season on the line.

“He expects to go out there and pitch well,” Boone said. “I saw him right before he left and he said he's ready -- whatever result comes I know the moment won’t be too big, I have a ton of confidence in Cam.”

Schlittler posted a 2.96 ERA over his first 15 big-league outings. 

Stanton not off by much 

Giancarlo Stanton was a monster for the Yanks last year in the playoffs. 

The slugger has been very quiet over the first two games of this series, though, going hitless across eight at-bats. 

Still, Boone likes what he’s seen from Stanton and he expects him to come through in the win-or-go-home contest. 

“He looks like G,” he said. “I don’t feel like he’s been off by much at all -- there’s been three or four pitches the past two days that he’s just missed flipping, so I expect him to have an impactful at-bat for us tonight.”

Stanton laced an opposite-field double off of Early back in June during a minor league rehab assignment.

In the wake of a failed season, Mets fans want change to the team’s core 00 and understandably so. But the consensus among scouts and evaluators I spoke to this week is that important changes are coming organically, via the farm system. As such, there’s no need to overreact, at least on the position-player side.

That is, with one rather huge exception.

"Kyle Schwarber would solve a lot of their problems," is the way one scout put it. "I don’t know if it’s possible, but if Steve Cohen wants to flex again this winter, he should pay whatever it would take to get Schwarber to leave the Phillies."

By "a lot of their problems," the scout was referring mainly to Pete Alonso’s free agency. Everyone I spoke to acknowledges that while Alonso’s bat is vital to the Mets’ offense, his defense, and specifically his throwing, has become too much of an issue to ignore.

"That high throw to (Kodai) Senga changed their whole season," another scout said, speaking of the play that resulted in Senga’s hamstring injury on June 12. "And I can remember a bunch more where he put his pitchers in harm’s way. Also, his throws to second, throws to the plate. If you’re the Mets, you’re holding your breath every time he has to make a throw."

Factor in David Stearns, at his end-of-season news conference, emphasizing the need for better run prevention for next season, and it adds even more intrigue to Alonso’s free agency, since the Mets’ slugger has given every indication that he wants to remain a first baseman, not be a DH.

Schwarber, of course, is a DH, the best one in baseball after hitting 56 home runs this season and racking up an MLB-leading 132 RBI. He’s also a folk hero of sorts in Philadelphia, with a big-spending owner in John Middleton, who is expected to go the extra mile to bring Schwarber back -- especially if the alternative would be losing him to the rival Mets.

"The fans here would never forgive (Middleton) if Schwarber signed with the Mets," one Philly media person told me. "And honestly Schwarber is so much the heart and soul of that team -- and he takes that role seriously -- that it’s hard to see him taking the money to go to such a big rival. But you never know; everybody has their price.

"And I’ll say this: if Cohen really does decide to go after him the way he went after (Juan) Soto, it would scare the hell out of Philly fans."

If the Mets were somehow to pull it off, that would give Stearns and Cohen a free pass of sorts to move on from Alonso. Fans love the idea of the homegrown Polar Bear as a career Met after he became the team’s all-time home run leader and, perhaps more importantly, had an outstanding season offensively. But I think most would be fine with essentially slotting Schwarber into the lineup for Alonso.

Even Cohen wouldn’t sign both, especially with Edwin Diaz likely opting out and the Mets absolutely needing to sign at least one top free agent pitcher from the likes of Framber Valdez, Michael King, Dylan Cease, or Ranger Suarez.

Instead, Stearns surely would look for a right-handed-hitting first baseman with a good glove. The free agent market doesn’t offer an obvious fit, though Paul Goldschmidt had a solid season in the Bronx and put up big numbers against left-handed pitching. So it might be on the president of baseball operations to find one via trade.

Left-handed hitting prospect Ryan Clifford looms as a potential long-term answer at first base, but he’s only 22 and scouts think he needs more time in the minors. In truth, the lineup would be more balanced if the Mets could convince Alonso to re-sign as at least a part-time DH as part of, say, a four-year deal, but it would make for a tricky negotiation, especially if another team assured him of being a full-time first baseman.

In any case, the Schwarber scenario aside, it’s the Mets’ farm system that may dictate the core stays mostly intact entering next season. Specifically, Carson Benge and Jett Williams, ranked 20th and 29th among all minor league prospects by MLBPipeline.com, loom as answers at second base and center field at least at some point next season, if not the start.

"They both could be impact players," one scout said. "Benge is coming fast: he has a very advanced approach and a lot of natural ability as a hitter, and Williams has been slowed by injuries but he’s still young, with good plate discipline and a knack for getting the barrel to the ball.

"They both stalled a little after getting to Triple-A (in August) but if you’re the Mets, you’re probably not going to sign anyone this winter who would block their paths."

In that case, perhaps it makes sense to bring back Jeff McNeil, even as badly as he finished the season, as a placeholder of sorts for Williams at second base in the final year of his contract. Unless you want to start the season with Luisangel Acuña, whose bat remains a big question mark, even while he offers value with his speed and defense.

As for center field, Tyrone Taylor doesn’t hit enough to be an everyday player, but the Mets missed his sparkling defense in September when he was out with a hamstring injury. Perhaps they could find a left-handed-hitting platoon partner not named Cedric Mullins until Benge is ready.

To that end, Trent Grisham would be an intriguing option, after he hit a whopping 34 home runs for the Yankees this season, but it would almost certainly take a multiyear contract to sign him, and his lack of a track record plus Benge’s presence would seem to work against that happening.

As for other positions, Brandon Nimmo could be a trade candidate for the sake of shaking up the core, but his contract -- with five more years for $102.5 million, means the Mets would likely have to eat significant money and still probably not get the value they’d want. Nimmo also has a full no-trade clause.

Meanwhile, if Brett Baty’s last couple of months were a sign that he’s finally over the hump offensively, he could be a solid answer at third base.

Likewise, if Francisco Alvarez’s improvements as a hitter following his demotion to Syracuse (.921 OPS) are a sign of things to come, he should give the offense considerably more thump.

Finally, it’s hard to give up on Ronny Mauricio’s potential, as flawed a hitter as he appears to be, although it does feel like the Mets should trade Mark Vientos, even selling low, unless he winds up being their best option as the full-time DH.

Add it all up and it may not be the winter of new names a lot of Mets fans would like to see on the position-player side, unless Stearns gets creative with trades.

Signing Schwarber, of course, would change all of that. Is it realistic? Perhaps only if Cohen throws crazy money at him.

Otherwise, the Alonso decision will be front and center. And while it would be awfully hard to re-sign him and still stay true to the run prevention that Stearns indicated he would prioritize, his bat is vital to the Mets’ run production.

"If I’m Cohen and I can’t get Schwarber," one scout said, "I sit down with Alonso and find out how much money it would take to convince him to DH at least most of the time. Even if it’s millions more, it’d be worth it."

If that’s what ultimately happens, it’s possible that the core doesn’t change much at all. And yet the Mets could still be significantly better, upgrading the pitching staff, benefiting from Baty and Alvarez continuing to grow, and waiting on the likes of Benge and Williams to blossom.

But they should at least try first for Schwarber.

At this hour an army of scientists, dressed in white lab coats, are hunkered in the Yankee Stadium offices, pouring over biomechanical data regarding Ben Rice’s swing path, and endeavoring a deep dive into Paul Goldschmidt’s REM sleep over the past nine days.

They are preparing Aaron Boone’s orders for tonight’s lineup, delivered with the usual threat to follow their numbers … or else.

Just kidding.

Boone and bench coach Brad Ausmus, two humans, discussed and wrote the lineup before leaving the ballpark last night, as they always do. In case you haven’t yet heard, this is how the Yankees make decisions.

I haven’t seen tonight’s lineup, but amid all the chatter about first base and catcher, I fully expect the Yankees to start Rice at first in Game 3, Austin Wells at catcher and use Goldschmidt off the bench.

In Game 1, Boone opted for a righty-heavy lineup against Boston’s lefty ace Garrett Crochet. In a few cases, the manager actually went against what the team’s analytics department wanted. That’s a fact.

A game plan against Crochet is different from a game plan against another pitcher, regardless of handedness.

With their season on the line tonight, the Yankees are facing rookie left-hander Connelly Early. After Game 2 Boone would only reveal that he will start Jazz Chisholm Jr. against Early. He left first base and catcher open (why tell Alex Cora before he needs to know, right?).

But he said this:

“It's not just, it's a lefty. It's, what lefty? Is that guy going to be out there for six or seven innings? I want to leverage a spot for whoever my bench guys are to have a good matchup, not three bad matchups that I can guarantee. All of these things factor into it.”

An argument for starting Rice against Early tonight — in addition to the fact that he’s been smoking balls all over Yankee Stadium — is that the Red Sox have five left-handers in their bullpen. And that’s assuming that Crochet won’t give them an inning. It might be six lefties.

This means that if Boone starts Goldschmidt with the intent to swap in Rice after Early leaves (which could be … early), he might be waiting all night. Cora can counter with one lefty reliever after another. Might as well just start Rice.

As for catcher, that does not seem in question, and it has little to do with Wells’ game-winning hit last night. Wells is a superior game-caller, and that’s hugely important in the playoffs, not to mention when working with a rookie in Cam Schlittler.

How Derrick White randomly became a good luck charm for Red Sox originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Can we get Derrick White to Yankee Stadium on Thursday night?

The Boston Red Sox’ season is on the line in the Bronx as they face the New York Yankees in a winner-take-all Game 3 of their American League Wild Card series. And while White likely has other plans — his Boston Celtics just kicked off training camp — recent history suggests the Red Sox would benefit from the veteran guard being in the building.

Here’s why: White has been to three games at Fenway Park since the start of the 2024 season that have ended in Red Sox walk-off victories. Here’s the list:

• June 24, 2024: Walk-off win over the Toronto Blue Jays
• April 10, 2025: Walk-off win over the Blue Jays
• Sept. 26, 2025: Walk-off win over Detroit Tigers

(A recent social media post suggested White was also at a Red Sox walk-off win on May 14, 2024; while White did attend the May 16 game — a Red Sox loss to the Rays — there’s no video evidence of White in the stands on the 14th.)

“Yeah, I’ve picked good games,” White deadpanned to Celtics Insider Chris Forsberg at Media Day when asked about his remarkable luck at Fenway Park. “… It’s been kind of crazy.”

White had some company at that first walk-off win in June 2024, as the entire Celtics team was honored at Fenway Park shortly after winning the 2025 NBA title. Jarren Duran did the honors that night with the walk-off single that sent White and his Celtics teammates into a frenzy.

White was back at Fenway on April 10 of this season to throw out the ceremonial first pitch, then witnessed Trevor Story hit a dribbler to second base that allowed David Hamilton to score the winning run against Toronto.

White’s most recent trip to Fenway was by far the most memorable, however, as the Celtics guard was in the house for Ceddanne Rafaela’s dramatic walk-off triple against the Detroit Tigers that clinched Boston’s spot in the playoffs.

For White, the fun didn’t end with the final out; he actually wandered onto the field to watch the Red Sox celebrate their playoff berth, then managed to take a selfie with the Wally the Green Monster head costume that Boston players wear after hitting home runs.

“They were like, ‘We’re going to take you through the field’ so I could get to my car, and the celebration was going on, so I was kind of just staying out there, kind of enjoying it,” White explained to Forsberg. “Then I had to use the bathroom, and then outside of it I saw (the Wally head), so I took a selfie, really for my dad. And I thought it was funny.”

White’s father, Richard White, is a die-hard Red Sox fan who grew up in the Boston area, so he deserves a hat tip for inspiring some of White’s fandom. And while we’d imagine White isn’t heading to New York on Thursday night, perhaps he’d make an appearance at Fenway next week if the Red Sox are able to punch their ticket to the American League Division series with a win Thursday night.

If that happens, history suggests there will be drama.

As the Mets' 2025 season spiraled out of control, with the team falling from 45-24 in the middle of June to 83-79 and out of the playoff field, there were lots of things that went wrong.

But the main culprit was a starting rotation that didn't have enough depth to withstand the injuries that hit it, had most of its members underperform down the stretch, and wasn't seriously bolstered externally at any point during the season.

Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns spoke the day after the season ended about run prevention (both pitching and defense) being a big reason for the team's downfall and a huge point of emphasis this offseason.

And as he took responsibility for things going wrong, Stearns was blunt about how he handled the team's in-season pitching woes. He also said one of the things he learned was that he needed to be more proactive.

"From a roster construction perspective, on the run prevention side of the ball, we didn't do a good enough job of fortifying our team when we had injuries midseason," Stearns said. "Clearly, that was a point in our season where on the run prevention side of things we went from a very good team to a team that wasn't good enough to maintain a sizable lead -- not only in the division, but in the playoff chase."

Stearns added:

"I think holistically as I look at our pitching staff, we needed to do more over the course of the season. That is very clear. What we were faced with at at the deadline? I think our fanbase would 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."

While Stearns is well aware of what needs to change ahead of 2026, the Mets are in a tricky spot when it comes to maneuverability.

In other words, with so many starting pitchers already under team control for next season, how will New York make big changes while also incorporating some of their homegrown pitchers and adding help via trade and/or free agency?

As things currently stand, here are the starting pitching options who are under team control for 2026:

Sean Manaea ($25 million owed in 2026, under contract through 2027)
Kodai Senga ($15.4 million owed in 2026, under contract through 2027)
Clay Holmes ($13 million owed in 2026, under contract through 2027)
David Peterson (arbitration-eligible for the final time)
Nolan McLean
Brandon Sproat
Jonah Tong
Christian Scott

Frankie Montas will earn $17 million in 2026 in what is the second and final year of the deal he signed last offseason, but is expected to miss the year due to Tommy John surgery. Tylor Megill is arbitration-eligible for the second time, but -- like Montas -- is expected to be out for the season because of Tommy John surgery.

Of the veterans above, all but Holmes struggled badly this season. And aside from Holmes, they all have huge question marks attached to them.

Manaea missed the first half of the season and pitched the second half with loose bodies in his elbow. The results were ugly, as he posted a 5.64 ERA and was eventually removed from the rotation.

Senga was fantastic until hurting his hamstring in June. After he came back, he struggled so badly that he was sent to the minors. Once there, he was unable to get his mechanics right, and did not pitch again in the majors over the final few weeks of the year. Stearns said after the season that it would be "foolish" to count on Senga for 30 starts in 2026 given what's happened the last two seasons.

Peterson had a first half that got him an All-Star nod, but fell off in a big way late. From Aug. 6 through the end of the season, Peterson had an 8.42 ERA, though the 3.88 FIP he had during that span suggests he also got pretty unlucky on balls that were put in play.

As far as McLean, Sproat, and Tong, one of them -- at least for now -- is unlike the others.

McLean was mostly dominant in 48.0 innings over eight big league starts, posting a 2.06 ERA (2.97 FIP) and 1.04 WHIP while striking out 57 batters -- a rate of 10.7 per nine. His stuff was filthy, and his poise and mound presence was off the charts.

Sproat and Tong both showed flashes, but it will be a surprise if either one enters spring training as a favorite for a rotation spot. In Tong's case, it seems likely he'll start the year with Triple-A Syracuse since he made just two starts there before his promotion to the bigs.

Scott, who should be healthy and ready to go after having Tommy John surgery during the 2024 season, is a nice depth option to have.

After dissecting all of that, it's easy to envision this kind of scenario:

Holmes (who stretched out to 165.2 innings and excelled while transitioning from reliever to starter), Manaea (who flashed serious potential in 2024 and had an uneven 2025), and McLean (who looks like a possible frontline starter) are earmarked to open the 2026 season in the rotation, with the two other members to be added via trade and/or free agency.

That would mean a decision on Senga, who is coming off two lost seasons and is under contract through 2027. It would also mean a decision on Peterson, who is out of minor league options and has shown the ability to excel in the bullpen.

Regarding who the Mets could target for those empty spots? 

It can be argued that they should be looking for one frontline level starter and another who can pitch in the middle of the rotation.

Looking at the free agent market, there are some intriguing top of the rotation options, including Ranger Suarez, Michael King, and Framber Valdez. But all of them are on the wrong side of 30, and only Valdez has had a real extended run of success pitching at an ace level. Dylan Cease is an interesting option and has an enticing arsenal, but he's had two down years out of the last three.

There's also the fact that Stearns has suggested he doesn't love making huge free agent commitments to starting pitchers.

So perhaps the Mets sign a middle of the rotation option and turn to the trade market for the top of the rotation guy.

With one of the best farm systems in baseball, the Mets should theoretically be able to trade for pretty much any starting pitcher who becomes available. And it's possible a bunch of really interesting ones are out there this winter.

That includes Sandy Alcantara of the Marlins, Joe Ryan of the Twins, and possibly Tarik Skubal of the Tigers. Skubal is set for free agency after the 2026 season, and if Detroit determines that he's likely to walk after the year, they'll have an enormous decision on their hands this offseason -- and the ability to get a huge haul back for someone who will be coming off back-to-back Cy Young seasons.

In the event the Mets do add a frontline starter and a middle of the rotation arm to a group that also includes Holmes, Manaea, and McLean, the question becomes what they do when some of their young talent is ready to contribute. The answer, as the Mets found out this season, is that you can never have enough pitching.

How will Thomson have Phillies attack Dodgers in NLDS? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

If you ever get the chance to play poker with Phillies manager Rob Thomson, be leery. If his demeanor over the past month or so when it comes to the playoffs is anything close to what it would be at the card table, good luck getting a read on him.

Thomson has been playing his thoughts on his team when it comes to the playoffs very close to the vest, from the roster, starting pitching, bullpen and the lineup. You know the answers are in his head, but they certainly aren’t about to be shared with anyone who, in his mind, doesn’t need to know.

The only leak in his secrecy has been that Cristopher Sanchez will be the Game 1 starter when his club faces the Dodgers in a best-of-five National League Division Series starting on Saturday at Citizens Bank Park. Beyond that, well, it’s up to us to speculate. So that’s just what we’ll do here.

Roster

Because there is a day off between all games except Games 3 and 4 in Los Angeles, the bullpen will have plenty of time to rest and everyone should be available for just about every game. Therefore, I believe Thomson will go with 14 hitters and 12 pitchers for his 26-man roster in this series.

Thomson does use his bullpen a lot come playoff time, maybe even excessively, so the 12-man may surprise some, but because of the amount of rest in which they are going into the series and the way the schedule is laid out, I think that’s how he will go. So here it is:

Bryce Harper, Bryson Stott, Trea Turner, Alec Bohm, J.T. Realmuto, Edmundo Sosa, Kyle Schwarber, Brandon Marsh, Harrison Bader, Max Kepler, Nick Castellanos, Rafael Marchan, Otto Kemp, Weston Wilson.

Cristopher Sanchez, Ranger Suarez, Jesus Luzardo, Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker, Walker Buehler, Tanner Banks, Matt Strahm, David Robertson, Orion Kerkering, Jhoan Duran, Tim Mayza.

Starters

As we know, Sanchez is the No. 1 and will go every fifth day, maybe even sooner if elimination is on the table. That much is guaranteed. It seemed that having a Sanchez, Suarez, Luzardo trio to begin the series would be almost a given as the three have been the stabilizing factors among the starters since Zack Wheeler went down with his season-ending injury back in mid-August.

Also, Sanchez and Luzardo are power pitchers and having the command-centered, lighter throwing Suarez in between would probably be a strategic way to go for Thomson. But there are other factors that have to be considered.

First, Suarez has proven to be a big-game pitcher, particularly when it comes to the playoffs. As Thomson likes to say, Suarez has a heart-rate that doesn’t change, no matter the circumstances of the game. That may lend itself to Thomson wanting Suarez to start a Game 3 on the road in Los Angeles, where no matter the outcome of the first two games, is going to be a pressured situation. Suarez boasts a 2.84 ERA on the road and pitched well out in Los Angeles last month in the division-clinching win, when he allowed seven hits and three runs in six innings.

Another factor is this. Thomson has an extremely high level of confidence and loyalty to Nola, who looked phenomenal in his last start of the season against Minnesota when he went eight innings, allowed two hits and one earned run while striking out nine. It’s just a gut feeling, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he finds a spot for the veteran right-hander to start one of these games, even though a three-man rotation is doable with the schedule.

Bullpen

The single certainty about the ‘pen is that Duran will close out games for Thomson. And don’t be surprised, in fact expect it, that he will be called on to get four, maybe even five outs at times during this playoff run. But getting to him with whom seems to be a pretty good problem that Thomson has right now.

Let’s assume that in these playoffs all relief appearances are high-leverage, because, well, that’s playoff baseball.

For most of the season, Kerkering has been the first right-hander that Thomson has called upon. However, since being brought to the team in early August, Robertson has earned the trust of his manager and even leaped ahead of Kerkering as the first righty out of the ‘pen.

Kerkering didn’t help his case late in the season as in four appearances from Sept. 15 to 24, he allowed four earned runs on six hits in four innings. However, in two appearances to end the season, Kerkering faced four hitters and struck out each of them, perhaps garnering his manager’s faith once again.

From the left side, it’s pretty much a given that Strahm is the first lefty that will be called upon. Strahm has given up just one earned run in his last 11 outings, which encompasses 11 innings. Thomson also has Banks in left-handed situations, and he has been very good. He is more the lefty who will come in with runners on base, and he’s been quite effective, having not allowed a run in his past seven outings.

How Thomson will use Walker or Buehler remains to be seen. Should they need a long reliever in any of the games, those are the first choices. Beyond that, it would be hard to imagine either coming in for an inning or so to get outs. If that is the case, Buehler is the first choice there.

Lineup

We all know Thomson’s propensity for changing his lineup, never more so than this season. After Turner, Schwarber and Harper, the rest of the lineup has been changed numerous times, pending on hot hitters and slumping ones. Also, how much platooning will the manager do during the postseason? Will Sosa and Stott share duties at second base? What about Castellanos and Kepler?

The Dodgers will throw right-hander Shohei Ohtani at the Phillies to begin the series on Saturday, so the outfield will most likely be Marsh in left, Bader in center and Kepler in right. Game 2 would probably be a start for Dodgers’ left-hander Blake Snell, which would may mean Sosa and Castellanos in the lineup. That deserves watching, however, as Stott has been swinging the bat very well lately and is a premier defensive second baseman.

As for the order after the first three, I think it’s a safe bet that the hot-hitting Bohm remains in the cleanup spot. Since returning from a shoulder injury nine games ago, the third baseman has gone 17 for 37 (.459) with eight RBI.

After that, Thomson may do the lefty-righty thing with Marsh and Realmuto and Kepler, Bader and Stott. Bader has cooled a bit with just four hits in his last 30 at-bats, but his comfort level will probably be higher now that Turner is back. Bader can now be a catalyst for the bottom of the order for Thomson, the role they envisioned for him when he was brought over at the trade deadline.