MLB rumors: Braves sweep could force Cohen’s hand, Didi is back, Red Sox call-up, more

Belief that Mets could make changes, and Braves could force it

In Ken Rosenthal’s latest for The Athletic, he wrote about the New York Mets and the possibility, if not likelihood, that big changes could come, and they could come fast (subscription required).

Steve Cohen spent lavishly this offseason — the Mets $345 million payroll is the highest in the league, the second-highest is $66 million lower — and the expectation is to win.

Not next year, not three years from now, the expectation is to win now. You don’t spend that much money to lose.

The Mets aren’t winning, though, at least not convincingly enough. They were swept by their division-rival Atlanta Braves on the road last night, despite leading all three games by three runs or more at one point. The Mets made implosion look routine, there’s no other way to describe it.

Now, they sit at 30-33, 8.5 games back in the NL East, having lost five in a row. They are 1-5 against the Braves.

Rosenthal’s report described it as, “increasingly difficult,” to see manager Buck Showalter lasting if the Mets can’t pull up from a nosedive. He hinted general manager Billy Eppler might not be around for much longer either if things don’t improve dramatically.

While for now it’s speculation, one has to assume that from Rosenthal, it’s pretty well-informed speculation.

A managerial change midseason can completely change a talented team’s fortunes. The Phillies, last year, fired Joe Girardi and interim manager Rob Thompson stepped in. The Phillies snuck into the Wild Card spot and ended up winning the National League before losing in the World Series.

For a team like the Mets who have few places to upgrade their roster via the trade market, a managerial change could be the clearest adjustment to make.