Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
The Athletic conducted their annual poll of anonymous Major League players to ask questions about the postseason teams. The article has the caveat that the poll was conducted until mid-September, and players did abstain from some of the questions posited.
When the answers were collected, one thing was readily clear. Major League players fear the Mets pitching come the postseason.
Concerning the question as to who players would want starting in a Game 7, 33.9% of players said Jacob deGrom. Coming in second place was Max Scherzer with 17.2%. That means 51.1% of players want a Mets ace on the mound with everything on the line.
This should come as a surprise to nobody as this is really the best 1-2 punch in all of baseball. The Mets aggressively pursued Scherzer in the offseason specifically to help the Mets win a World Series.
With deGrom, we already know he’s the best pitcher in baseball when he’s healthy. Moreover, in 2015, we saw his ability to raise his game in the postseason. His starts in the NLDS are now Mets legend.
As for Scherzer, he already has a ring and 11.2 K/9 in the postseason, and he has a presence that intimidates opponents. As a quoted unnamed MLB player said, “He’s filthy. He’s nasty. He’s a complete competitor.”
If having the top two postseason starters weren’t sufficient, Major League players fear Edwin Diaz most come the postseason. In a Game Seven situation, 44.5% of players said they want Diaz on the mound.
Again, this shouldn’t be a surprise. When asked why Diaz, a player responded, “He strikes out half the guys he faces. That always plays.” To get more specific, as pointed out by MMO‘s own Michael Mayer, he’s struck out 50.7% of the batters he has faced.
On the topic of Diaz, we get “Narco” blasting from the speakers as he enters the mound to a raucous Citi Field crowd. Concerning the atmosphere, a player said, “It’s like playing in a f—ing nightclub in there.”
Despite all of this, the players did not name the Mets as the team most likely to win the World Series. That designation went to the Los Angeles Dodgers who garnered 39.5% of the vote. The Mets (14.5%) came in third behind the Dodgers and Atlanta Braves. It should come as no surprise the pitching was the reason.
One player said, “That Mets rotation, they’re something different. They’re an anomaly.” Another player proffered, “They’ve been scuffling lately and they need to clean some things up, but that pitching staff is complete.”
Mets fans know better than any franchise just how much pitching can win you a World Series. In 1969, it was Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman, In 1986, it was a deep staff led by Dwight Gooden. In fact, that rotation was so deep, Sid Fernandez was an All-Star, and he was in the bullpen.
Looking at recent Mets history, deGrom, Matt Harvey, and Noah Syndergaard pitched the Mets to the World Series. If this team finds their version of Daniel Murphy, they will be unstoppable.
Ultimately, when you break it down, this could be the deepest rotation the Mets have ever taken to the postseason. They have two future Hall of Famers atop it, and they have a closer having one of the most dominating seasons in history. When you ask the players, they fear the Mets pitching. While they may not ultimately believe the Mets will win the World Series, they know better than anyone the Mets have the pitching to dominate all comers and win the World Series.
The post Major Leaguers Fear Mets Pitching In Postseason first appeared on Metsmerized Online.
