After a successful spring training opener on Saturday, the New York Mets return to the field on Sunday for two split-squad games. In the second, they will get an up close and personal look at an ace they could target on the trade market.
The Mets entered spring training with Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea set to front their rotation. While both pitchers are solid options, neither of them would be considered a true ace. Senga is coming off of a season that saw him pitch a meager 5.1 innings in the regular season, so despite the optimistic projections, it will be a tall ask of him to come close to qualifying for the ERA title.
Meanwhile, Manaea took his game to a new level in 2024, pitching to the second-highest ERA+ of his career. However, it was still only a 114, and he otherwise vastly outperformed his underlying metrics. A Baseball Savant page full of blue indicates regression is coming and that it will not be pretty.
The top of the rotation has many clamoring for further additions to be made, though offseason acquisition Clay Holmes did his best to quell the voices with a fantastic performance through three innings in Saturday’s Grapefruit League opener.
It still may not be enough to compete pitch for pitch in the National League East, where both the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves have multiple aces each, while the Mets realistically do not have one.
All of that could change should the organization look deeper into a pitcher they will face on Sunday when they take the field against the Miami Marlins. Sandy Alcántara will be taking the mound for the Marlins, allowing the Mets to get a closer look at the ace as he returns to action after recovering from Tommy John surgery.