2013 Team Preview: New York Mets

Notable Numbers

28.6%: Matt Harvey's K% in 59 1/3 innings last season. Had he done that for the full season, he would have ranked first on the team in that statistic. With the Mets not having a whole lot to look forward to in the near-term, watching Harvey grow and mature as a pitcher is one of the few things Mets fans can be excited about. Although it is unlikely he posts a 2.73 ERA like he did last season, Harvey could still be one of the better pitchers on the Mets this year.

141: Ike Davis' second half wRC+. After starting off poorly, Ike Davis responded in the second half by catching fire and hitting just about everything that was pitched to him, The first baseman is looking to finally be able to put together a full, injury-free season, and Mets fans have to be excited about that prospect. If he puts it all together, he could be representing the Mets on their home field in the All-Star Game.

2012 Season in Review: The Mets surprised everyone, starting off 45-38 and looking like legitimate contenders. With David Wright hitting everything in sight (and then some), Johan Santana finding his old form, and Matt Harvey knocking on the door to the Major Leagues, the Mets appeared set to make a second-half run. Instead, the team collapsed, falling flat on its face. R.A. Dickey continued his magical season and would go on to win the Cy Young Award, but other than that the Mets lacked a lot of bright spots last year.

Key Offseason Moves:

Extended David Wright for eight years and $138 million: After an excellent season, the Mets decided to lock up their superstar and face of the franchise, doing so at a fair market price. This will likely ensure that the third baseman finishes his career in the orange and blue. For a rebuilding team this does not make a ton of sense, but from a PR standpoint the team almost needed to re-sign Wright, or face the wrath of Mets fans.

Traded R.A. Dickey to Blue Jays for package of prospects: This was the biggest move the Mets made this offseason, trading Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey for a package of prospects built around Travis d'Arnaud, the potential catcher-of-the-future. This move could help set the Mets up for success in a few years, which is surely an exciting proposition.

Depth Chart: The concern here is the outfield, which at the moment is projected to be Lucas Duda, Colin Cowgill, and Marlon Byrd. While they won't be confused for Atlanta's outfield anytime soon, that should be good enough to not cripple the team. The infield will look the same as last year, and John Buck should start the year out behind the plate.

Check out New York's 2013 depth chart at MLB Depth Charts.

2013 Outlook: With the trades and lack of high-quality outfielders, the team will likely be in the 70-80 win range again. They should be entertaining, however, with young players trying to establish themselves as building blocks for the future.

Check out New York's 2013 ZiPS projections at FanGraphs.

Bold Prediction: The team starts off hot, Wheeler and d'Arnaud join them mid-season and catch fire, and the team pushes itself into the playoff race. A swift move for an outfielder coupled with some Orioles-luck, and the Mets end up in the Wild Card play-in game.