At just 60 games in length, the 2020 MLB season will be a fight to the finish.

While the shortened season will be detrimental to certain Mets players, others stand to benefit from the shortened schedule. Below is a look at the Mets whose performances will be profoundly affected by the season’s abbreviated nature.

Losers

Jacob deGrom

It’s never wise to bet against deGrom, who is seeking his third straight National League Cy Young award. Few would be surprised if he took home the trophy once again, but there are some obstacles that stand in his way. A 60-game schedule means that, at most, deGrom would be able to take the mound 14 times this year. Just a handful of ugly starts could drastically inflate his ERA and remove him from Cy Young contention.

Remember that before he kicked it into gear last season, deGrom stumbled out of the gate. Through his first eleven starts of 2019, deGrom’s ERA stood at 3.71. The Mets ace put together some uncharacteristic performances, including a start against the Twins in which he was torched for six runs (on three home runs) over four innings. Several of his early missteps could be attributed to inclement weather and lengthy rain delays that disrupted his rhythm. The season starting in July rather than March should be to his advantage, as he will avoid the cold, rainy weather that befalls the northeast in early spring.

The weather conditions will be better for deGrom, but with the Mets only scheduled to play teams from the NL East and AL East, most of his starts will come against formidable lineups. As brilliant as deGrom is when it comes to run prevention, fashioning a Cy Young campaign in twelve starts or fewer represents an enormous challenge.

Marcus Stroman

A Long Island native, Stroman is a natural fit in Queens. He brings unparalleled energy to the ballpark, electrifying the fans with shimmies, fist pumps, and spontaneous roars of passion. The diminutive right-hander is a free agent this offseason, so his walk year will be far shorter than anticipated.

As a 29-year-old with an elite ground-ball rate, Stroman should have no trouble securing a multi-year contract. The problem is that Stroman’s height (he stands at just 5-foot-7) raises concerns about his long-term durability. Another season of close to 200 innings would strengthen Stroman’s resumé and silence his critics. Unfortunately, Stroman may find himself underwhelmed by the offers he fields this winter.

Pete Alonso

Alonso carries himself with the poise of a ten-year veteran, which is why a sophomore slump is doubtful. The 60-game schedule will hurt him, however, by limiting his opportunities to break records. Before the coronavirus pandemic delayed the start of the MLB season by four months, there was no telling what Alonso might achieve in 2020. Over a full slate, one could imagine him becoming the first player to start his career with consecutive 50-homer seasons. That simply won’t be possible this season, because the abbreviated schedule will rob him of approximately 400 plate appearances.

Sure, he won’t produce the same eye-popping numbers of his rookie season, but would anyone be shocked if Alonso leads the majors in dingers once more? Last year, he needed just 59 games to reach the 20-homer mark.

Winners

Jeff McNeil

McNeil is the type of hard-nosed player whose relentless, all-out effort leads to fatigue over the course of a six-month season. In 2019, his first full year as a big leaguer, McNeil saw his batting average suffer a massive drop after the All-Star break.

The beauty of a 60-game season, then, is that McNeil can play with his signature uninhibited enthusiasm without worrying about a decline in production. If he gets off to a particularly sizzling start, McNeil’s batting average will be at, or close to, the top of the league leaderboard. I wouldn’t put him down to hit .400 — even in a 60-game schedule, that number feels too elusive for anyone to reach. But keep in mind that McNeil was hitting .356 through his first 74 games last year. Now that he has fully recovered from the wrist fracture he suffered last September, look for McNeil to take his game to the next level.

Edwin Díaz

We all know that Díaz’s Flushing debut was a flop. Ultimately, his late-season struggles obscured the fact that he pitched reasonably well through the end of May. Had the 2019 season ended after just 60 team games, Díaz would have posted a 2.92 ERA with 13 saves in 15 attempts. Those aren’t exactly the dominant numbers that led the Mets to swing a trade for the closer in the winter of 2018, but they do hint at a possible turnaround for Díaz — one that may only require a few mechanical tweaks.

The extended offseason has given Díaz more time to rebuild his confidence and perfect the grip on his slider, his most effective out-pitch. With a new mindset and a chip on his shoulder, expect Díaz to rebound from his subpar 2019 campaign.

Dellin Betances

Another beneficiary of the extended offseason is Díaz’s bullpen-mate, Dellin Betances. The most pressing concern with Betances is his health; he faced just two batters in 2019 before a torn Achilles tendon brought his season to an abrupt end. If the start of the 2020 season had gone off without a hitch, Betances likely would have spent the first half recovering from the injury and working to regain his velocity.

Back in March, when the Mets were still training in Port St. Lucie, Betances was barely hitting 90 on the radar gun. When MLB was on hiatus, Betances rehabbed at Impact Zone in New Jersey and threw live batting practice to several major league hitters. Since reporting to “Summer Camp” at the start of July, the righty has more closely resembled the electric bullpen arm that earned four consecutive All-Star appearances from 2014 to 2017.

Assuming he’s healthy, a 60-game schedule allows Betances to go full throttle each time he takes the mound. Rather than holding back to preserve his energy down the stretch, he can light up the radar gun with every pitch he throws.

Searle’s Final Say

Though I value the 162-game season because it represents an enormous sample size, a 60-game schedule offers some fascinating possibilities. Pete Alonso will not hit 50 home runs this season, and Jacob deGrom might only muster five wins or so. Nevertheless, the 60-game schedule could allow for some ridiculous rate stats, like Jeff McNeil hitting .375 or Edwin Díaz posting an ERA below one. As a statistician, I am curious to see who will end the season atop the league leaderboards, and what their final tallies might be.