The kids have defined the Mets’ and Yankees’ seasons.
And the two teams, who are set to begin the latest round of the Subway Series on Tuesday night at Citi Field — Max Scherzer starts the opener against Luis Severino, and Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole square off Wednesday — have reversed courses since the start of the season in what they’ve asked and expected out of their youth.
It’s not necessarily positive in either case, but examining the Mets’ and Yankees’ first- and second-year players reveals larger trends about the teams’ outlooks.
And perhaps each team’s ultimate flaw.
Francisco Alvarez, Brett Baty and Mark Vientos for the Mets. Anthony Volpe and Oswaldo Cabrera for the Yankees. Their roles have told the stories of their respective clubs.
The Mets began the season without any of Alvarez, Baty or Vientos on the roster, instead completing spring training signaling each was still not ready for the majors and could use more time honing their games at Triple-A.
All three players were on the big league roster by the middle of May.
It says as much about the rest of the Mets’ roster and their season — a season quickly gone off the rails — as it does about Alvarez, Baty or Vientos.
Though Baty and Vientos were raking at Triple-A and Alvarez had shown flashes of his enormous potential, all were called up due to the failures of the major league roster.
The kids — primarily Alvarez and Baty — were supposed to perhaps complement a strong lineup at some point later in the season, not serve as the focal point.
Eduardo Escobar’s ineptness paved the way for Baty’s call-up, while lackluster production at designated hitter from Daniel Vogelbach and Tommy Pham helped lead to Vientos’ call-up. Omar Narvaez’s injury and woeful hitting from Tomas Nido prompted Alvarez to get called up and then stay on the MLB roster.
All of a sudden, a season that began without any of the kids in a veteran-heavy lineup now revolves around those kids to save a sinking season.
That wasn’t supposed to be the Mets’ blueprint to success. It points to just how much veterans Francisco Lindor, Starling Marte, Jeff McNeil — in addition to Escobar, Vogelbach and Pham — have struggled.
Alvarez looks like a budding star, and is showing why he was the No. 1 prospect in all of MLB. His 12 home runs are second-most among catchers, and he’s received strong compliments from the pitching staff about his defense and work ethic. Baty has held his own, slashing .228/.311/.352 and flashing his full-field hitting ability. Vientos appears like he may not be ready quite yet, though, with just seven hits in 45 at-bats.
With Pete Alonso injured, Alvarez is as dangerous of a hitter as there is in the Mets’ lineup — and Baty isn’t too far behind.
At the moment, the kids — particularly Alvarez — are the best thing the Mets have going for them. But as exciting as it may be for Alvarez’s or Baty’s long-term potential, it’s equally as troubling for the Mets’ outlook.
The kids are likely not ready to carry a struggling roster. If the Mets (31-35, three games out of playoff position with five teams to jump) are to save their season and contend in the postseason, it must be through their veteran stars, many of whose struggles opened the door for the kids in the first place.
If the veteran stars are unable, the kids will become a silver lining to a failed season.
The Yankees, conversely, entered the season with big expectations around Volpe and Cabrera.
Both were expected to play integral roles to the team’s success from Day 1 — Volpe as the everyday shortstop and spark plug in the lineup after winning the job in spring training and Cabrera as a versatile utilityman who would start at a multitude of positions, including possibly solidifying an uncertain lineup spot in left field.
They were expected to lengthen the Yankees’ lineup around Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo Stanton.
Instead, both Volpe and Cabrera have struggled mightily, and the Yankees have become even more reliant on their stars.
Volpe entered Monday’s games with the lowest batting average (.186), lowest on-base percentage (.260), second-lowest OPS (.605) and most strikeouts (77) among qualified MLB shortstops, and has been inconsistent in the field. Cabrera is slashing a measly .196/.244/.307, and was briefly sent down to Triple-A amid his struggles.
Again, that wasn’t the Yankees’ blueprint.
The Yankees’ lineup has become incredibly dependent on Judge, and to a lesser extent Rizzo, as Stanton has missed most of the season on the injured list and DJ LeMahieu has struggled to find the same form he enjoyed in years past.
Judge is capable of carrying the lineup and started the season on a similar trajectory as last year’s record-breaking season, but the Yankees now will have to navigate an uncertain next few weeks without him while he recovers from a toe injury.
The Yankees have struggled without him, losing four of their past six games — to shrink their wild-card cushion to one game at 38-29 — with a lineup that increasingly looks meek.
Rizzo has proved to be a capable Robin, but he’s struggled mightily during Judge’s absence and also has dealt with a neck injury.
Even with Judge and Rizzo healthy, the Yankees need more from the rest of their lineup when they face better opposition. And as recent history has shown, Judge and Rizzo need help for the Yankees to succeed in October.
At least some of that help was envisioned to come from their kids, but it’s so far been absent.
Both the Mets and Yankees have had to recalibrate from what they thought they’d be getting from their youngsters at this stage in the season. Beyond what it says about Alvarez, Baty, Vientos, Volpe or Cabrera, it’s glaring in what it reveals about the two teams.
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There’s a new king in the NBA.
Nikola Jokic completed one of the most dominant postseason runs in NBA history as the Nuggets beat the Heat 94-89 in Game 5 on Monday night in Denver to win the 2023 NBA Finals.
Unstoppable in the regular season, perhaps even more unstoppable in the postseason, Jokic might not have won his third consecutive MVP award this season, but he’s firmly taken over the mantle as the best player in the world after securing his first championship.
Jokic became the first player in history to lead the league in points (600), rebounds (269) and assists (190) in a single postseason.
Just don’t ask him about sticking around Denver for Thursday’s parade. The man just wants to go home.
With Jokic, playoff supernova Jamal Murray and the rest of a young core returning, the Nuggets opened with the best betting odds to win the title next season.
“We’re not satisfied with one,” head coach Michael Malone yelled after the team received the trophy.
Joe Schoen’s sterling tenure as the Giants’ general manager is facing its biggest test yet.
As is his reputation among the team’s fan base.
Schoen has seemingly had a year-long honeymoon with the Giants and their fans, immediately helping turn a bottom-feeding team into a playoff contender with his roster management and hiring of Brian Daboll.
Now, he’s up against another fan favorite — one fans actually get to see on Sundays.
The Giants and Saquon Barkley are engulfed in a contract standoff. Barkley still has not signed his franchise tag tender while he seeks a long-term deal with the team.
The Post’s Paul Schwartz has reported Barkley previously turned down offers worth $12.5 million and $13 million annually.
Schoen appears opposed to going much above those figures, and the situation has gone from tense to uneasy with Barkley’s latest comments.
Speaking publicly for the first time this offseason on Sunday, Barkley did not rule out holding out of training camp or part of the season, and said “it’s all about respect.”
Was he implying Schoen is disrespecting him?
In June, before players are even allowed to wear pads, most fans seemingly will continue to support Schoen given the state of the running back market and their trust in him to find the best deal for the Giants, no matter how cold.
Though nobody really believes Barkley would sit out the regular season, how much will fans’ faith in Schoen waver if Barkley sits out of training camp? When his teammates start to hit the field and hold real practices without him? If he starts to become more vocal or aggressive about the “respect” he believes he deserves? If the Giants’ offense struggles without him in a preseason game? If Schoen taking a stand makes Barkley share his unhappiness while playing on the tag?
Yes, Schoen’s negotiations with Daniel Jones came down to the 11th hour, but there was greater confidence a deal would get done and neither side made uncomfortable public comments.
As much as fans love Schoen for his work, Barkley is the one they have watched on the field running past defenders. Will they care more about the money the team can save on the cap, or the touchdowns they watch their star score?
The player almost always wins a popularity contest over the executive.
The esteem Schoen holds among fans is facing its greatest test yet, and he’s up against someone who might be even more popular than himself.
Floyd Mayweather has always shamelessly chased paydays, but this is a new low.
The former undefeated boxing world champion and former No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world fought John Gotti III — the grandson of the notorious New York City mobster — in an exhibition fight Sunday night in Florida.
The fight was delayed after the two fighters’ corners got into it, and Gotti was then disqualified after the sixth round for relentlessly holding and grabbing Mayweather.
Moments after the referee stopped the bout, Gotti charged at Mayweather and a brawl erupted in the ring.
Since retiring from competitive boxing with a 50-0 record, Mayweather has fought seven exhibitions against influencers and low-level fighters such as Logan Paul, Deji Olatunji and most recently, Gotti.
Though the others haven’t ended in brawls, none has been an enthralling fight or held any semblance of intrigue. The only intrigue left, it seems, is just how low “Money” Mayweather might sink to cash a check.
The former champion who beat Canelo Alvarez and Oscar de la Hoya is now fighting mob relatives and YouTubers.
Is this really what he wants his last moments in the ring to look like?