The Mets are in the World Series.
You can say it again if you want – doesn’t it feel good? The Mets have been on fire since a mid-season trade for Yoenis Cespedes gave them an offense to pair with their elite pitching rotation. They just demolished the 97-win Chicago Cubs and celebrated a National League Pennant in Wrigley Field. Yes, the Mets are riding high – but they still have one goal left to turn into a reality.
The Mets will face the Kansas City Royals, the American League’s best team, in the 2015 World Series this year. Can they bring a championship home to New York? Sure they can – as long as they get these four key things right.
Overcome the Royals’ Contact Hitters
In the lead-up to the World Series, much has been made of the Royals’ ability to hit power pitching – and rightly so. The Mets rely on a lot of young arms, and while their top couple guys have masterful breaking balls, the fastball is still key for this staff. The Royals hit disproportionately well off of 95+ MPH fastballs, and they rarely strike out. The Mets were able to take advantage of the swing-happy Chicago Cubs, but Kansas City’s hitters won’t be nearly as cooperative about getting themselves out.
What does that mean? It means that Travis D’Arnaud will have to call games very carefully, and that Matt Harvey and Jacob DeGrom will need to make superb use of their breaking and off-speed pitches. If they can do that, they can keep this Royals team from running up the score.
Go Beyond the Long Ball
The Mets are enjoying a bit of an offensive renaissance. Daniel Murphy is the star of the playoffs, of course, but the Mets have actually been a great hitting team for a while now: they’ve been the best offense in the National League ever since they acquired slugger Yoenis Cespedes.
The problem, though, is that many of the Mets’ best hitters rely on the long ball. Cespedes loves to put them out of the park, as does Lucas Duda (though he’s struggled to do so in the playoffs). The new-look Daniel Murphy is also a power guy. All of these players could soon be struggling, because the Royals – who have home-field advantage – have a very deep park. The Mets will look to contact hitters (like Curtis Granderson) and guys who are patient at the plate (like David Wright, whose postseason slump has a bright spot in the form of a very high walk rate) to keep the runs coming in a deeper park.
Hit the Royals’ Starters
The Royals have some great pitchers, but they’re not as tough as the guys that the Mets have already faced. The Mets managed to get to the World Series despite facing guys like Zack Greinke, Clayton Kershaw, Jon Lester, and Jake Arrieta. They’re rewarded with nothing but more aces, but at least this time the pitchers are human. The Royals don’t have anyone as good as Greinke, Kershaw, or Arrieta, and ace Johnny Cueto has been a liability lately.
Getting to the Royals’ starters is important, because the Royals have a fantastic bullpen. Their middle relievers are much better than the Mets’ are, so New York shouldn’t count on any late-game heroics. They’ll have to take the lead early and hold on.
Chill Out With the Running Game
The Mets weren’t much of a running team all year long, but they sure as heck were in the National League Championship Series. They stole bases, took more bases on hits, and challenged the Cubs’ outfield arms right and left. That worked like a charm in Chicago, because the Cubs are terrible at stopping other teams from taking bases. But the Royals? They’re another story.
The Royals are great at stopping just about every facet of the run game. They’ll pick off base runners, catch players stealing, and gun down greedy runners from the outfield. The Mets will have to adjust their strategy and play more conservatively in order to stay safe on the base paths and preserve their chances to win.
