Assessing Mets with one-third of season over: The good, the imperfect, and what's to come

The Mets' win over the White Sox on Monday at Citi Field marked the one-third point of the season, and New York is in strong shape.

With a 33-21 record, the Mets are on pace to finish the year at 99-63.

The above record or something close to it would almost certainly be enough to secure a playoff appearance, which would be historic for the Mets.

New York has never reached the postseason three times in a four-year span. That would change if they get to the playoffs this year following their run to the NLCS in 2024 and entry as a Wild Card in 2022.

Let's assess how things are going for the 2025 Mets and what's to come...

The good

The most obvious thing to highlight is the pitching staff.

Even while dealing with injuries to multiple key contributors in the starting rotation and bullpen (which lost A.J. Minter for the season), New York's pitching has been elite.

They lead all of baseball with a 2.78 ERA, and there have been some incredibly pleasant surprises that appear to have staying power.

In the rotation, Kodai Senga (1.46 ERA a year after losing most of his campaign due to injury) and Clay Holmes (2.98 ERA as he transitions from reliever to starter) are leading the way.

Meanwhile, David Peterson (2.79 ERA) is building off his impressive 2024, Griffin Canning (2.88 ERA) looks like a different pitcher than the one who was with the Angels last season, and Tylor Megill (3.56 ERA) has been solid while missing tons of bats.

In the bullpen, Edwin Diaz has been nearly unhittable after a brief early-season scuffle, Ryne Stanek and Reed Garrett have served as strong bridges to the closer, and both Huascar Brazoban and Max Kranick have emerged as serious weapons.

Offensively, it's been Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor carrying much of the load while having strong campaigns. But they need help.

The imperfect

The offense was humming along early, but has been in a serious rut over the past few weeks.

In the Mets' last 12 games, they've scored just 30 runs -- averaging a paltry 2.5 per game.

Some of the struggles have to do with the fact that Lindor, Juan Soto, and Alonso were slumping at the same time recently. But the Mets also aren't getting much from Brandon Nimmo (.683 OPS) or Mark Vientos (.682 OPS and just five home runs).

New York's approach at the plate has also left a lot to be desired, especially with runners in scoring position -- where they have struggled badly. The Mets are hitting just .213 in those spots, better than only the Rangers, lowly White Sox, and historically-abominable Rockies.

It's fair to believe those RISP numbers will see a serious improvement and that the offense will wake up soon enough. If not, some changes could be in store.

The defense has also been off, both in terms of physical errors and mental mistakes. The normally surehanded Lindor is having a merely very good season at shortstop, not a best-in-class one. Alonso has made a number of miscues at first base, and Vientos' defense at third base has really hurt New York's cause.

Going by Outs Above Average, Vientos is grading out as just about the worst defensive third baseman in the league -- in the first percentile.

With Jesse Winker out, Brett Baty up, and the DH spot open, it makes all the sense in the world for the Mets to use Vientos as the DH and other options at third -- at least for now.

Of course, the elephant in the room is Soto, who is not off to the start he or the Mets would have hoped. But it's impossible to believe he won't break out in a big way soon enough.

What's to come

The cavalry should be coming in waves starting soon, as injured players make their way back.

First could be Frankie Montas, who is in the middle of a rehab assignment. After Montas should be Sean Manaea, who is set for a live bullpen session on Thursday and is nearing a rehab assignment of his own.

The Mets are expected to turn to a six-man rotation once healthy, but it will be interesting to see how they handle things soon if they have seven viable starters for six spots.

Also making strides toward a return is Jose Siri, who is doing some running and is set to hit on Thursday. As far as Winker, he's a ways off.

Later in the season, it's possible the recently re-signed Brooks Raley makes his way back. Even Drew Smith could make a late-season return.

The Mets could also get a jolt from the minors, with the two most buzzy possibilities being pitchers Brandon Sproat and Nolan McLean, who are both at Triple-A Syracuse.

One or both could make it up this year in the rotation, but it's also possible they debut in the bullpen -- something David Stearns has done in the past with top pitching prospects.

As SNY contributor Joe DeMayo recently pointed out, Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, and Freddy Peralta all got a significant amount of time in the bullpen early in their careers while Stearns was in charge in Milwaukee.

Beyond the pitching prospects, it's possible the Mets get a contribution from outfielder Drew Gilbert, infielder Ronny Mauricio, and even infielder/outfielder Jett Williams.

There's also the trade deadline.

With the Mets now firmly in their championship window, the philosophy has changed when it comes to how they might handle things. That doesn't mean they're going to gut their budding farm system, but the willingness to deal a prospect of note for an impact return is different than it was last season.