NFL
By Monte Perez
Get Your Mets Gear Here Just click
The New York Mets head into the All-Star Break in 1st place of the National League East Division.
- Mets: 58-35
- Braves: 56-38
- Phillies:48-43
- Marlins: 43-48
- Nationals: 31-63
Grades for the New York Mets:
Coaching: A
Buck Showalter has this team thriving despite numerous injuries to his pitching staff. Jacob deGrom has been out all season and Max Scherzer spent significant time on the DL. The Mets are sixth in ERA and 1st in strikeouts. New York is averaging 9.67 K’s per 9 innings. This is an offense that has reinvented itself under Showalter’s leadership. That Mets are 17th in home runs but play “small ball.” They are 4th in runs scored and 5th in hits per game. Buck has his team being patient at the plate and forcing opponents to throw a ton of pitches in the first five innings. This team is wearing out starting pitchers and beating up on middle relief.
Defense: A-
The Mets outfield is one of the fastest in the Major Leagues. Brandon Nimmo, Starling Marte, and Mark Canha have all provided defensive sparks. Jeff McNeil has played outfield at times and has contributed nicely. This is a unit that can get to balls in the gap quickly and cover a ton of ground. They have saved several runs with their speed.
New York’s infield could have 2 or 3 Gold Glove winners this year. Francisco Lindor and Luis Guillorme are one of the best double play combinations in the National League. Eduardo Escobar has become a human highlight reel at 3rd base. Pete Alonso has improved drastically playing 1st base. This is a unit that doesn’t make many mistakes. They only made 40 errors on the season, that is 5th in the MLB.
Offense: B-
Alonso leads the National League in RBIs with 78 and Lindor become the 1st switch hitting short stop in major league history to have more than 60 RBIs before the all-star break. He has 16 home runs, 66 RBIs, 10 stolen bases and 33 walks on the season. Nimo, Marte and McNeil have all been productive. The problem with this lineup is 3rd base, Catcher, and their Designated Hitter. Escobar is batting .224, Guillorme has 10 RBIs and J.D Davis is batting .234 with 3 home runs.
Outlook:
The Mets pitching staff, when health, is loaded. No one in the National league wants to face this lineup in the post-season.
Game 1: deGrom
Game 2: Scherzer
Game 3: Taijuan Walker
Game 4: Tylor McGill
Bullpen: Chris Bassitt, Carlos Carrasco, David Petterson, Seth Lugo, Adam Ottavino and the best closer in the Major Leagues right now, Edwin Diaz. Diaz have been sensational. Diaz has struck out 75 batters in 38 innings and has an ERA of .189.
The Mets pitchers can compete with anyone, their offense will not be able to. They must acquire 1 or 2 “big bats” at the trading deadline, so the 6-9 parts of their lineup is not an automatic out.
If New York does this… they can win a World Series… this year.
Follow The Sports Whisperer on Tik Tok MontePerez 231
Follow The Sports Whisperer on Twitter: MonteJp231
Watch The Full Monte Sports Show on YouTube
