Seth Lugo's Elbow Hurts All of Us

The bad news about Seth Lugo came along with my morning coffee. When I saw the words Lugo, elbow, and surgery together in the headline, my first thought was that the frayed medial ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow had finally gone and we were kissing him goodbye for the season. While the news proved to be better than that, the Mets are going to have to figure out their bullpen without one of their best relievers for a while. Lugo will be shut down completely for "at least six weeks," and then he has to ease back into pitching shape. And this is assuming no hidden damage when they cut into the elbow and no setbacks in his rehab. Given what we've seen previously with pitchers and elbow problems, would it shock you if Noah Syndergaard was pitching again before Lugo?

More Comings and Goings

The Mets made an interesting move Wednesday night, getting involved in a trade between the Red Sox and the Royals. While Andrew Benintendi was the "name" player in the deal, Khalil Lee is the prospect coming over to the Mets. Lee will probably begin the season in Triple-A, so his addition gives the club an outfield prospect close to major league-ready. With the Mets system's real prospects at the lower levels, this adds a layer of roster depth they were previously lacking. It's also possible that Khalil Lee might see some playing time with the Mets before the season is over.

Building a Better Bullpen

In more civilized times,
relievers used to enter in style

Last Friday morning Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic tweeted out that the Mets were "close to agreement with free-agent reliever Brad Hand." I saw another tweet from SNY's Andy Martino confirming that his own source verified Rosenthal's tweet. As I'm sure you know, as of Monday afternoon there has been no deal reached. Other sources have pushed back against the idea that an agreement is close, but by most accounts talks are ongoing. Should the Mets and Brad Hand eventually come to terms, the Mets are — barring injuries, of course — heading into 2021 with possibly their finest bullpen in team history.