Mets first baseman Lucas Duda deserves a spot on the 2015 National League All-Star team

This year's All-Star festivities will take place a little over a month from today on July 14th at Cincinnati's Great American Ballpark, which makes this as good a time as any to update how Mets position players are faring in this year's All-Star balloting. We took a quick peak at the votes and well, it's not so good for them. A grand total of one Mets player is in the top 5 at any position among National League votegetters and that's injured third baseman David Wright, who might not even be off the disabled list by the All-Star game.

Fortunately for our Mets, they have an excellent pitching staff who could see as many as three members make the club. Aces Jacob deGrom and Matt Harvey, and closer Jeurys Familia, all have pitched excellently through the season's first two months and it wouldn't be surprising to see any of them nominated. While the pitching is a clear strength, there is a position player who has seemingly been overlooked by the voters so far and that's first baseman Lucas Duda. It's easy to overlook Duda, given his quiet, #UNCONFIDENT nature but the Mets' slugger has spoken very loudly with his bat.

After taking over the first base job full time in late April 2014, Duda came on strong with 30 home runs and got off to a very quick start in 2015 hitting for a high batting average and on base percentage. The only thing missing for Duda was that he wasn't putting the ball over the fence with regularity, sitting on just three home runs into mid-May. Anybody who was worried about Duda's power would see those worried quelled with an incredible power surge that saw him club six home runs over his final nine games in the month of May.

With that hot streak, Duda is sitting pretty with an excellent .292/.392/.524 line and has simply been not only one of the best first basemen in the National League this season but one of the best position players in the majors. By Fangraphs' measure, Duda's 2.3 WAR is 16th best among MLB position players and tied for 3rd best among first baseman with the Dodgers' Adrian Gonzalez and the Tigers' Miguel Cabrera. His 16 doubles are 3 behind MLB leader Adrian Gonzalez and his .392 on base percentage is in the top 15 in the majors. The numbers for Duda are all there and with both David Wright and Travis d'Arnaud out, he's been a godsend to the struggling Mets offense.

And yet somehow, Lucas Duda finds himself on the outside looking in at the top 5 first basemen in National League All-Star voting. Maybe over the next few weeks that will change, maybe it won't, but it definitely should. For all of his hard work and excellent play, Lucas Duda is absolutely deserving of a spot on this year's National League All-Star team.

Want a chance to cheer on your team’s All-Stars this year? Sign up for the Gillette Shave Club free membership (see rules here for full details on eligibility and alternative entry) for a chance to win a VIP experience at MLB All-Star Weekend in Cincinnati July 12-14 – brought to you by the Gillette Shave Club, Gillette’s razor subscription service that delivers Gillette’s best blades directly to your door. By signing up for the Gillette free membership program, you will be eligible for chances to win major league sports and entertainment tickets as well as free products and you’ll have access to exclusive content, grooming tips, and more.