I am obviously, for the purposes of this comparison, ignoring the possible players acquired via free agency/trades and working exclusively from the crop of prospects and players each team currently has within their organization. I also didn’t compare their bullpens because I am too lazy.

Nationals

Starting Rotation

Stephen Strasburg

Gio Gonzalez

Jordan Zimmerman

Ross Detwiler

Lucas Giolito**

Lineup

Brian Goodwin**

Ian Desmond

Bryce Harper

Ryan Zimmerman

Jayson Werth

Anthony Rendon**

Danny Espinosa

Sandy Leon

Mets

Starting Rotation

Zach Wheeler*

Matt Harvey

Jon Niese

Dillon Gee

Noah Syndergaard**

Lineup

Cesar Puello**

Ruben Tejada

David Wright

Ike Davis

Travis d’Arnaud*

Lucas Duda

Wilmer Flores*

Brandon Nimmo**

*have not played in the majors yet

**Projected rookie in 2015

Honestly, while doing this comparison it was a little disheartening to see just how solid the Nationals are going to be for the better part of this decade. However, I really enjoyed being able to write all of those Mets together in a lineup and starting rotation. Clearly the Nationals will have more experience on their roster in 2015 but it looks like the Mets will finally be catching up in terms of talent. So here goes it…. I’ll do a position-by-position projected comparison, and I’ll try not to be too biased.

Starting Pitching:

I think the Nationals do still have the better rotation, but with Wheeler and Syndergaard in the fray, the Mets finally have the talent to compete, I sure am glad that Alex Meyer was traded though.

Catcher: d’Arnaud vs. Leon

Dr. No and the Mets get the nod here, especially due to the possibility of Kevin Plawecki coming up as d’Arnaud’s backup by then. I am sure the Nats will acquire another backstop to replace Suzuki besides Leon, but since I can’t predict who that will be the Mets win this one handily.

First Base: Davis vs. Zimmerman

This one gets a little dicey. I took the liberty of moving Zimmerman across the diamond to make room for Rendon at third. Who knows if this will happen but whatever, "I do what I want!" I should probably be giving the edge to Zimmerman here because Ike has not given an accurate representation of himself so far in his career, but since I am assuming all sorts of stuff already, I am going to assume that Ike’s bat will come around. So for know I will call this one a wash.

Second Base: Flores vs. Espinosa

Espinosa will have the better glove, but Wilmer will have the better bat. Espinosa strikes out way too much for a second baseman, even with the HR numbers he puts up. I will give the edge to the Mets on the hopes that Wilmer’s bat develops enough to cover up his defensive deficiencies.

Third Base: Wright vs. Rendon

This would be a much better comparison if I didn’t put Zimmerman across the diamond, but since I did…Mets get the nod.

Shortstop: Tejada vs. Desmond

I think Tejada’s bat will continue to develop, but not enough to top Desmond’s. Nats get the nod.

Left Field: Duda vs. Harper

By 2015 I believe Harper will be a legitimate MVP candidate, and Duda will not be. Nats by a landslide.

Center Field: Nimmo vs. Goodwin

This is a very interesting comparison. They are both toolsy prospects with very bright futures ahead of them. I am going to give the edge to Goodwin since he will likely still be more developed than Nimmo at this point in their careers, but it will be interesting to see who has a better career.

Right Field: Puello vs. Werth

I hope Puello is not the Mets starting right fielder in 2015, or if he is I hope he starts showing a lot more production over the next two years. The Nats get the edge here.

So overall I give the Nationals the win still, but it will be nice to see some of the Mets more talented prospects together at the big club in the future.