By: Manuel Polanco
After a disappointing 2025 season where the team finished with a record of 83-79 and missed the playoffs by one game. The team entered the 2026 season with fresh faces and said goodbye to old friends like franchise first baseman, Pete Alonso, who left in Free Agency as he signed a five year $155 million dollar deal with the Baltimore Orioles.
The 2026 season was another disappointing year for the blue and orange. Bad offseason deals, multiple injuries, and plain bad luck were all to blame for a lackluster season where the team sits in last place with one of the highest payrolls in the league.
The team has a record of 71-85 and were eliminated from the playoffs on Monday after a loss to the Baltimore Orioles. But the question stands, how did they get here? With one of the top payrolls in the league, an under .500 season is utterly unacceptable.
Well for starters, the team signed veteran switch hitter Jorge Polanco on a two year deal worth 40 million dollars to play first base, hoping to replicate or alleviate the hole left by Alonso’s departure in free agency.
The thing is, Polanco has played second base all his career except for one inning in the 2025 season. Polanco’s season is over due to injuries and his stats are horrible. He was hurt for most of the year and when he was healthy, he wasn’t good either. Polanco wound up playing 34 games as the team’s DH instead of first base.
He had a slashline of .146/.201/.230/.431 in 135 at bats, which is utterly unacceptable for a designated hitter, let alone a player earning 20 million dollars annually. This was a theme of the season, how can the team replicate decent offensive production at first base? Failure to allocate a sufficient replacement plagued the Mets with subpar production at an important offensive position.
This wasn’t the team’s only issue either. They had a 12 game losing streak that spanned from April 8 to the 21. This losing streak was a bad omen for what came next as multiple players missed time with injuries, notably Shortstop, Francisco Lindor with a calf injury.
During this time, the Mets big three of Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Bo Bichette had been in the starting lineup together only seven times. Injuries were the name of the game this season. Mets pitcher Clay Holmes fractured his fibula during a subway series game when Yankees rookie, Spencer Jones hit a line drive to Holmes leg.
There was outcry to fire manager Carlos Mendoza for his inability to right the ship during this stormy streak.
Mendoza was ultimately fired on June 26, 2026 after the Mets record was a measly 34-47. Mets President of Baseball operations David Stearns expressed his support for Mendoza despite them parting ways.
“Carlos has led the organization with passion and grace and is beloved by everyone who works with him on a daily basis,” Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said in a statement. “Carlos’ impact on our players, staff, and culture over the last three seasons has been transformative. Unfortunately, we know we are falling short, and change is necessary to move forward.”
After his departure, Mendoza thanked Mets owner Steve Cohen and his wife, Alex Cohen, in a statement to ESPN.
“New York will always hold a special place in my heart,” Mendoza said. “I leave with tremendous gratitude, pride in what we accomplished together, and confidence that the future of this organization is bright. I wish the Mets and their fans nothing but success in the years ahead.”
Andy Green became the Mets interim manager, and his tenure has been nothing short of excellent. In what has become a historically lost season, Green has excelled in his role and mentorship of the young core.
Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, Zac Thornton, and Nolan McLean are some of the Mets’ youngest players, yet they are cementing themselves as cornerstones of the franchise.
As the Mets sit in last place in the National League East and hold a potential top 5 draft pick for the 2027 draft class, the bright spots shine even brighter and make a lackluster season worth watching.
Benge is currently slashing .272/.355/.413/.748 with 19 home runs and 22 stolen bases. His 156 hits have broken the previous Mets rookie record of 155, which was held by Pete Alonso (seems like we can’t stop mentioning him?) Benge is currently in pursuit of the National League Rookie of the Year award, a feat he can accomplish if he notches a rare 20/20 season as a rookie.
Despite the season being pretty much over, there is still much to look forward to! Lindor currently sits at 299 career home runs, and seeing him notch his 300th career homer will be amazing for fans to see.
The future in Queens is bright, and hopefully the cycle of mediocrity ends here.