The first half was a ride. From an 0-5 start, to 11 games under .500, to a 49-46 finish. With a rally pimp, a glove toss, Grimace, OMG and a dog eating hot dogs in between. The Mets sit in the third Wild Card spot at the break, a game ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks […]
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The first half was a ride. From an 0-5 start, to 11 games under .500, to a 49-46 finish. With a rally pimp, a glove toss, Grimace, OMG and a dog eating hot dogs in between. The Mets sit in the third Wild Card spot at the break, a game ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres with 67 games to go.
Overall, the offense hit. New York was fifth in runs scored in the National League, second in home runs to the Los Angeles Dodgers, third in OPS and tied for sixth in stolen bases. Even during a dreadful May (9-19) those numbers didn’t fall off as much as you would expect. (Sixth in runs, fourth in homers, ninth in OPS and ninth in stolen bases. The pitching was another story that month.)
Grading is more art than science and preseason expectations play a role. If a utility infielder with three home runs and a pop song has a higher grade than, say, a four-time All-Star, well, it’s because more was expected of the All-Star before the season began.
Pete Alonso: B-
His team-high 19 home runs should not be taken for granted and he made the All-Star team for the fourth time, but his .772 OPS would be a career-low by 45 points.
Jeff McNeil: F
McNeil is 141st out of 142 qualified MLB hitters in OPS at .591. (Only Orlando Arcia of Atlanta is worse.) He may have never recovered from being mocked by Rhys Hoskins on Opening Day. His WAR is negative-0.3.
He has been fabulous with the bat and glove, but his biggest contribution may have been calling for a players-only meeting on May 29 after Jorge Lopez tossed his glove to the crowd and the Mets fell to 22-33. New York is 27-13 since then.
Photo by John Jones-USA TODAY Sports
Mark Vientos: A
He has done what the Mets wanted Brett Baty to do: taken the third base job and run with it. Vientos is hitting .291/.347/.549 with 12 homers in 182 at-bats. He is 11th in defensive fWAR among National League third basemen who have played at least 350 innings.
He leads the team in RBIs (68) and, with 16 homers, could break his career high (24). He is 8-for-8 stealing bases.
Harrison Bader: B+
He has been a spark (8 homers, 13 steals), and his .273 batting average would be a career-high. He is sixth in defensive fWAR (4.6) among qualified National League center fielders.
Starling Marte: B-
He struggled in right field, but was enjoying a solid comeback season with the bat (7 homers, 12 steals, .745 OPS), before going down with a bone bruise in his right knee. He last played on June 22 and there is no timetable for his return.
Photo by Rafael Suanes-USA TODAY Sports
Stay healthy, Francisco. The Mets are 31-14 with him in the lineup and 18-32 without him. He’s hitting .296/.365/.479/.844.
J.D. Martinez: B+
A steady veteran presence in the middle of the order with 10 home runs, including his first career walk-off. His knowledge has certainly helped his teammates at the plate, too.
Jose Iglesias: OMG
The only thing better than his glove is his vibes. And voice. Maybe his bat, too. He’s hitting .380/.417/.582/.999 and is 10-for-20 with runners in scoring position.
DJ Stewart: F
Hitting .173/.326/.309, Stewart has not found the stroke he had in the second half of last season.
Inconsistent, but his first-half highlights include a walk-off hit that gave Carlos Mendoza his first career win as a manager and a grand slam off Luis Guillorme.
Luis Torrens: A
He’s caught eight out of 11 runners attempting to steal. In a just world, a game-ending 2-2-3 double play would get more recognition than a purple mascot throwing out the first pitch.
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