New MLB Rumors Reveal Mets' Behind-the-Scenes Issues Prior to Carlos Mendoza's Firing as Manager
Even though the Carlos Mendoza was made the scapegoat for the New York Mets' struggles this season when he was fired as manager on Friday, people in the organization consider him only a small part of what has gone wrong in 2026.
Per The Athletic's Will Sammon, more than a dozen people within the Mets organization put the onus on president of baseball operations David Stearns for how he assembled the roster in the offseason.
In particular, Stearns' decision to add as many new players as he did combined with the number of them that are heading into free agency after this offseason has resulted in a sense that there isn't a lot of focus on the team's success.
"When you get new players, young players, old players, guys in contract years, their first year in New York, they're not doing well — they're focused on themselves," one person affiliated with the Mets told Sammon.
Sammon also noted Mets' personnel doesn't think the players are "bad" guys, but they don't "have a full roster doing whatever it takes to win."
Mets pitcher Sean Manaea openly said "it's not good" when asked about the psyche of the locker room after Wednesday's loss to the Chicago Cubs.
"We're not playing up to our capabilities," Manaea added. "We know we're better than this, but right now we're playing some really bad baseball."
Fan frustration dates back to the offseason when the Mets let Pete Alonso and Edwin Díaz leave as free agents.
Alonso was arguably their most beloved player since David Wright. Díaz, while not a homegrown player, had become wildly popular thanks to his success closing games and Timmy Trumpets entrance from the bullpen.
Jorge Polanco, Marcus Semien, Luis Robert Jr., Freddy Peralta, Tobias Myers, Luke Weaver, Devin Williams and Bo Bichette were all brought in via trades or signed as free agents in the offseason.
Those eight players have combined for 3.2 fWAR, with Semien, Myers and Polanco all having negative WAR totals entering Saturday.
Injuries have also decimated the Mets' roster to this point. Robert and Polanco are currently on the 60-day injured list. Semien went on the 10-day IL prior to Thursday's game against the Chicago Cubs due to a hip injury.
Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor have only combined to play a total of 89 games. They have only played nine full games together this season due to injuries.
There was also speculation after last season that Lindor and Soto had a frosty relationship with each other, though both dismissed it when asked about it at the start of spring training in February.
Stearns did take some accountability for his role in the Mets' 34-48 record at this point. He told reporters during a press conference on Friday after Mendoza's firing that it's "possible" all of the offseason changes, including an overhaul of the coaching staff, has contributed to where they stand right now.
"I certainly think it's possible," Stearns said. "When you have a first half like this, you play like this for a prolonged stretch, it's never just one thing. It's probably a variety of things, and that is possible."
The Mets posted winning records in each of Mendoza's first two seasons, including reaching the NLCS in 2024. Their .415 winning percentage entering play on Saturday is on pace to be their worst since 2003 when they finished 66-95.
