Darren Yamashita/USA Today Sports, via Reuters
Part of the reason the Mets stumbled the last two seasons was a startling lack of depth. The teams that succeeded them as National League champions since 2015 — the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Dodgers — had versatile, interchangeable parts throughout their lineups. Their players stayed fresh and their managers had the tools to exploit matchup advantages. The Mets did not, and they fell far behind.
To help remedy that, the Mets reached a two-year, $20 million contract agreement on Thursday with Jed Lowrie, an All-Star for the Oakland Athletics who hit .