Mets Notes: Offense, Niese, Collins

Despite struggles throughout their lineup, the Mets aren’t looking at adding any bats via trade, GM Sandy Alderson tells ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin. The Mets prefer to wait until David Wright and Travis d’Arnaud have returned from the disabled list before assessing any needs they may have to fill from outside the organization, Rubin writes. Both Wright and d’Arnaud could realistically return to the team within two weeks, though probably not much sooner. Alderson said a week isn’t enough time and each should require 10 to 14 days to get back.

A few more notes on the Mets to kick off Wednesday morning…

• The Mets should clear a path for their much-ballyhooed pitching prospects to permanently join the rotation by trading Jon Niese, opines Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. However, one executive of a club that formerly had interest in Niese tells Martino that the club waited too long to move the lefty and “missed their window to get a lot for him,” as clubs are increasingly scared of Niese’s shoulder. Martino notes that the front office’s reply is that they never wanted to trade him and want Niese to pitch for them. Despite a pair of rocky performances of late, Niese’s ERA is still a perfectly acceptable 3.72, though estimators such as FIP and xFIP aren’t as bullish, calling for something more in the low-4.00s. Manager Terry Collins told Martino and other reporters following his most recent poor outing that a move to the bullpen isn’t in the cards.
• With Noah Syndergaard and eventually Steven Matz needing rotation spots (to say nothing of the injured Rafael Montero and Dillon Gee — both of whom have made starts in 2015), the Mets do have an enviable surplus of starters. Alderson tells Rubin (Twitter link) that Super Two considerations will not play into the decision whether to keep Syndergaard on the big league roster when Gee is ready to come off the DL. Regardless of the reason, the club would seemingly risk considerable fan blowback were it to bump the prized rookie out of the rotation at this point (unless he falters).
• That the Mets are in first place and acting the part of a contender may actually put Collins’ job in jeopardy, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Certainly, if the team maintains its status at or near the top of the division, Collins’ job would appear safe, but the team has looked more mediocre than great since its 11-game winning streak, Sherman notes. Continuing that stretch and sliding out of playoff contention would leave him as a lame duck manager (he’s signed only through 2015) whose club failed to live up to early expectations. Sherman notes that Collins has been on thin ice multiple times in the past, so it’s possible he could end up there again.
• For all the hand-wringing over shortstop Wilmer Flores, those concerned with the team’s lineup may be missing the real issues. Flores actually rates as the team’s second most productive overall player behind Lucas Duda (by measure of fWAR). In terms of offensive numbers, the real problems lie in the early-season struggles of Michael Cuddyer and Daniel Murphy, combined with those of the club’s reserves. Other than Anthony Recker, who is now one of three catchers on the roster and has only 31 plate appearances, not a single bench player has an above-average overall batting line, with important reserve players like Ruben Tejada, John Mayberry Jr., and the since-designated Kirk Nieuwenhuis all posting rather dreadful numbers.