David Stearns sees Mets as ‘well-rounded’ team after first few weeks of action

The Mets have shown what they’re capable of when they’re at their best, and shown what they’re capable of when they aren’t. They have yet to find any sort of in-between mode that can sustain them.

After three weeks of regular-season play, president of baseball operations David Stearns sees a “well-rounded” team that doesn’t rely on any one facet or any singular player to win games. The team he built over the winter is mostly playing up to his expectations, but have yet to really hit their stride.

“I wouldn’t look at any spot and say, ‘Yeah, we’re hitting on all cylinders there,’” Stearns said Friday at Citi Field ahead of the Mets’ series opener against the A’s. “So I think I look at it and say, we set out to build a pretty balanced club that could win games in different ways. I’m not sure we’ve played our best baseball yet, but we’ve won games in different ways, and so that’s been good to see.”

The Mets know that being the best team in April and May doesn’t win you anything. They were the best team in the league for the first half of the 2025 season and still managed to miss the playoffs. So far, the Mets have displayed a very good starting rotation, a lineup that either hits everything or struggles to produce, and a defense that is mostly fine but still making adjustments with players adapting to new positions.

“Run suppression” was a favored phrase of Stearns over the winter. In no uncertain terms, he made it clear the Mets would be better up the middle — both pitching and defense — and for the most part, they have been. It’s the corners where they’ve struggled at times.

Still, their 1 Out Above Average is, well, about average in the league at the moment.

“We’ve been a pretty good defensive team,” Stearns said. “I think around the diamond, we’ve been a pretty good defensive team, and really, that includes the players who are playing slightly different positions, or the players who we are asking to play multiple positions.”

Stearns mentioned two tough plays that proved costly in the Mets’ Thursday loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Brett Baty, a natural third baseman playing right field, couldn’t make a play on a double off the wall with two on and one out in the seventh inning. Mark Vientos, another natural third baseman, bounced a throw home with a very good runner on third base, when he could have made an easy out at first.

The Mets knew there would be learning curves with Baty, Vientos, Bo Bichette and Jorge Polanco. Stearns expects mistakes will be made. What the Mets didn’t expect was injuries to Polanco and Juan Soto, which forced even more defensive realignment.

Baty is playing more outfield with Soto sidelined with a calf strain, but he only played in right field during spring training. Vientos is playing more first base with Polanco dealing with bursitis in his right heel.

“We’re not going to be perfect,” Stearns said. “Those were pretty tough plays, but overall, I’m pleased with how we’ve played defensively.”

Run suppression isn’t the biggest issue right now; it’s run support.

The injuries have played into that, as well as some exceptionally cold April weather. Citi Field becomes a much friendlier park for hitters in warm weather. The Mets have already played four extra-inning games this season, two of which came at home. The lineup produced plenty without Soto after he was injured last week in San Francisco, and Stearns expects that once it warms up, they’ll produce more runs.

“Each April I’ve been here has been pretty similar, where we don’t score as many runs as we’d like, and then the weather warms up and balls start flying out,” Stearns said. “So look, that’s probably the area where we look at just because of some injuries. But overall, I’m pretty pleased with where we are.”

Once again, Francisco Lindor is off to a slow start, hitting under .200 to start the year. Bichette hasn’t yet hit with runners in scoring position like he historically has, and rookie right fielder Carson Benge has struggled at the plate after a big game on Opening Day.

The Mets view Benge as a big leaguer and are confident he’ll be able to figure it out in the big leagues.

“We’re going to be patient,” Stearns said. “Carson is part of this team, and we believe he’s going to help us win games this year. The nice thing about Carson, and what he brings to the team, is that he can contribute in a variety of different ways, so it’s not all on his back.”

Stearns tends to take a rosy approach to the team’s issues when speaking to the media, but to be fair, the Mets have only played 13 games. It’s too soon to draw any real conclusions about the team’s true strengths and weaknesses. There is plenty of time for the team to forge an identity, make the necessary adjustments and start hitting to their capabilities.