New York Mets: Dominic Smith helped by signing of Adrian Gonzalez

The recent moves by the New York Mets at first base may actually help Dominic Smith rather than spell his demise.

Stop the presses, the New York Mets have actually made moves. It feels like a bit of a miracle, doesn’t it? At one point we all felt that Fred Wilpon and company weren’t interested in the whole improving the roster thing. However, to the shock of most Mets fans, Wilpon has removed the attack moths from guarding the bank account and actually signed a couple of players. Stand up and give that man an ovation.

The interesting part of the equation is the fact that the two moves that got ANY notice both involve first base to a degree. First we had the Jay Bruce reunion. Sure, his main focus will be the outfield, but he is also supposed to see time at first base. Add that to the Adrian Gonzalez signing, who is a full-time first baseman, and all of a sudden there are a number of bodies vying for the position.

More from Empire Writes Back

Our guy Sean Dyer had a take on this, as he feels the Mets are giving up on Smith, and doing it too soon. Give it a look because the argument he makes is more than fair. When a guy has less than 200 at-bats at the major league level, there is no reason to turn your back on him. He deserves more time.

But what if the Mets really aren’t giving up on the youngster? Maybe these moves aren’t meant to say goodbye to Smith, they are meant to ultimately make him a better player in the long run.

In any sport, experienced players can teach the younger ones quite a bit. Ask the Jets how much they learned from Josh McCown on offense, especially the young receivers.

With that, take a look at Bruce and Gonzalez. Between the two of them, there are 24 years of experience. Isn’t it possible that Dominic Smith will benefit from being around those two guys? Even simple things such as the way they carry themselves, or the way they prepare, will rub off on the Mets prospect.

Next: Mets sign off on several in-house contracts

You know what else is important? Competition. It makes everyone better. These two guys coming into Mets camp will provide competition for Smith right from the start. It will push Smith to bring all of that talent to the fore. It could spur his development and turn him into the top-flight first baseman we all expect, sooner than we expected.

So which article do you agree with? Are they giving up on Smith or trying to help him? Sound off in the comments.

Home/New York Mets