The Mets season opener is right around the corner (they play at Cincinnati on Monday afternoon). With the start of the 2009-10 MLB season, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at the Mets roster and see if their worthy of SI’s selection as World Series champions.

Everyday Players (The stats next to their names is their predicted line for the ‘09-’10 season. There’s no mathematical formula to back up these predictions, I just made them up. So be warned.)

C – Brian Schneider (.260 BA, 11 homers, 55 RBI)

You know what you’re going to get with Schneider behind the plate. He’s not going to put up great statistics, but he is a solid defensive catcher who calls a pretty solid game. His arm is strong enough to throw out all but the elite base stealers. The Mets also have two very capable back-ups in Robinson Cancel and Ramon Castro.

1B – Carlos Delgado (.275 BA, 34 homers, 105 RBI)

Delgado is a bit of a question mark. He struggled terribly for the first half of last season and then had the best second half, statistically, in the NL – and maybe the whole MLB. At 36, his career is winding down but you wouldn’t be able to tell that from his career statistics. He’s been one of the most consistent power hitters in the Majors over the last decade and I don’t see him slowing down much in this lineup.

2B – Luis Castillo (.277, 62 runs, 18 SB)

Castillo missed most of last season due to injury and many Mets fans, including myself, were hoping the Mets go after Orlando Hudson this off season. Castillo has had a solid spring, though, and seems to be going into this season with a very positive attitude. I’m not too worried about what he does at the plate as long as he keeps his average above .275, but we will need him to play stellar defense at second.

3B – David Wright (.305, 36 HRs, 118 RBI, 102 runs, 22 SB)

I don’t think there’s any doubt that Wright is among the elite players in the Majors. There aren’t too many players that have his combination of hitting for average, power, speed, and defense. The one thing he lacks is clutch hitting. Over the last two seasons he has struggled in the fall – when the Mets have needed him most. Funny how that seems to happen to third basemen in New York. He did have a game winning hit in the WBC, so hopefully that will be a sign of things to come.

SS – Jose Reyes (.312, 127 runs, 62 SB, 21 HRs, 20 Triples)

Another of the Mets’ elite young players. Reyes is most known for his blazing speed, but his hitting and defense have improved tremendously with each passing season. There were reports this spring that Manager Jerry Manuel was going to move Reyes to the third spot in the lineup. I still don’t think Jose has the power to hit third, but he definitely has some great pop in his bat. Look for the MLB’s flashiest player to have a lights-out season in ‘09-’10.

LF – Daniel Murphy (.296, 17 HRs, 86 RBI)

Murphy became a fan favorite almost instantly last season. Although last year was his rookie season, he was one of the more disciplined hitters the Mets had. He hits the ball well to the opposite field and, although he doesn’t hit for too much power, he drives the ball to the gaps for extra base hits. Look for Murph to a very productive fifth or sixth hitter in the Mets lineup.

CF – Carlos Beltran (.283, 31 HRs, 108 RBI, 110 runs, 24 SB)

Beltran is easily one of the most under-appreciated players in the MLB. You won’t see him diving for many balls out in center field, but that’s not because he doesn’t hustle. Quite to the contrary, there are very few centerfielders that get a better initial read and jump on a fly ball than Beltran; he simply never has to dive. He has also consistently put up great offensive numbers.

RF – Ryan Church (.278, 21 HRs, 76 RBI)

There’s a lot of talk about Church platooning in right with Nick Evans. I don’t see this happening. Church was having such a great season last year before he suffered a very serious concussion. He’s another player that has the ability to fill up the stat sheet as well as play very solid defense out in right field. I see him bouncing back after a slow end of last season and putting up respectable numbers this year. (Update: the NY Post is reporting that the Mets are looking to sign OF Gary Sheiffeild. This would probably cut into Church’s and Murphey’s playing time. More on that as it develops.)

Bench – Not many changes here. Evans, Castro, Marlon Anderson, and Fernando Tatis are all still there. The Mets also added IF Alex Cora and OF Jeremy Reed. The real problem here is that the Mets may struggle against lefties. Tatis, Evans, and Wright are the only right-handed hitters on the team, while Reyes, Castillo, and Beltran are switch hitters. This is the type of thing that can end up being nothing important, but it could put them at a strategic disadvantage in late game situations.

Pitching

SP – Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, Oliver Perez, Livan Hernandez

I like the Mets top four starters. Santana will have another elite year (20 W, 200+ K’s, sub-3.00 ERA). I don’t expect Pelfrey to have as great a year as he did last year but he won’t drop off too much at all; look for 15+ wins with an ERA around 3.4. Maine has always pitched well as long as he stays healthy (12-15 W, low 4 ERA). Perez is a big question mark. He’s one of the more inconsistent players in the Majors, but when he’s playing well he can be almost unhittable. I see him winning 12+ games, with an ERA around 4.5 and a high WHIP. The fifth spot will be shuffled around a couple of pitchers. Hernandez should hold onto it at least until Tim Redding comes off the DL. Look for Jon Niese to see some time on this staff as well.

RP – Frankie Rodriguez, JJ Putz, Brian Stokes, Sean Green, Pedro Feliciano

The Mets bullpen looks much improved. I say “looks” because you never really know what you’re going to get out of your relief pitching. I’m not the biggest fan of K Rod but there’s no arguing that he’s been a top-tier closer. Putz has also had a pretty solid career and should be a very solid setup man. In his three-year MLB career, Green has put up solid but not over-impressive numbers. Most Mets fans are familiar with Feliciano and should be relieved that he will be regulated to 7th inning duties again this season; a role which he fills very well. Stokes is the surprise here. He was one of the few bright spots in the bullpen during last year’s late-season collapse and has continued to impress the Mets this spring. He’ll provide reliable depth for this bullpen.

And that’s the Mets 2009-10 roster. Good enough to win the World Series? Ha … I’m not even going close to that one. The last two years they have had a good enough team on paper to win the championship, so this year is no different.