Right after saying the Mets aren't done with their offseason additions, GM Brodie Van Wagenen said something a bit more attention-grabbing.
"Internally, we can argue that we're the favorites in the division right now," Van Wagenen told SNY's Steve Gelbs.
Saying he's "not gonna stop" and that the team still has "some real money to spend," Van Wagenen elaborated on why he feels the Mets can be considered the favorites.
"We've done a lot of what we set out to do this offseason" he said, noting that they added two "premium arms" (Edwin Diaz and Jeurys Familia) and two "middle of the order bats" (Robinson Cano and Wilson Ramos).
Aside from the Mets, the Nationals have made the biggest move in the division so far this offseason, signing Patrick Corbin to a six-year deal worth $140 million. While they added Corbin, the Nats are expected to lose Bryce Harper, who the Phillies are in pursuit of along with Manny Machado.
FanGraphs currently projects the Mets as an 85-win team, while it projects the Nationals to win 91 games. The Braves are projected to win 82 games, with the Phillies winning 79.
While the above projection leaves the Mets short in the NL East, it would result in them getting the second Wild Card spot.
The Mets won 77 games in 2018, when they were done in by an abysmal June after starting the season 11-1. In the second half of the season, they went 38-30.