Mets Player Performance Meter: Position players, July 29-August 4

The Mets went 5-1 this week amid a torrid hot streak against scuffling teams that saw them go from fading away to right in the Wild Card mix. The hitting meter is rather deceptive this week and makes the offense look worse than it has been. It’s a feast or famine meter, where those who are hitting well are hitting very well and those who are hitting poorly—mostly the players with the fewest at-bats—are hitting very poorly.

Robinson Cano was one of the players hitting very well this week until his injury. It’s a gut wrenching injury for Cano, who has dealt with leg issues throughout the season and finally seemed like he was getting it together. He posted a 184 wRC+ over 26 plate appearances before going down with a hamstring strain in yesterday’s game. He was one of just two Mets to have double-digit hits this week and was second only to Jeff McNeil for the team lead in runs scored with seven.

McNeil led the team both in runs scored with nine and wRC+ with a 212 over 28 plate appearances. Five of McNeil’s eight hits went for extra bases and he also belted three home runs this week, which is tied for the team lead. He also walked three times—a high mark for him—and drove in five runs this week.

The only other player on the team besides Cano to collect double-digit hits for the week is Amed Rosario, who has been hitting quite well since the All-Star break. He holds a 149 wRC+ for the week over 27 plate appearances. He scored three runs this week and stole two bases. With the injury to Cano, Rosario has been elevated to second in the batting order. He now carries a .362/.407/.550 slash line in the second half.

I think it’s safe to say that Michael Conforto is out of his slump. He’s had his second good week in a row at the plate, posting a 172 wRC+ in 29 plate appearances. Especially with Alonso slumping since the break, Conforto’s production in the top third of the order has been key to the Mets’ second half success. Conforto collected seven hits this week—four of them for extra bases, including two home runs. He drove in four runs and scored six times. He also walked four times, which leads the team this week.

Speaking of Alonso’s slump, it unfortunately continues. Alonso did not hit a home run this week, which I think may be the first week I can say that this season. It certainly feels that way, at any rate. He collected five hits and three walks in 25 plate appearances this week, good for a 78 wRC+. He scored two runs and drove in only one.

Todd Frazier is another regular who has been slumping lately. He posted a 58 wRC+ over 26 plate appearances this week. He had six hits—two of them extra-base hits—a walk, three runs scored, and four RBIs this week. Frazier is hitting just .207 in the second half.

With Dominic Smith and now Robinson Cano on the injured list, J.D. Davis’ contributions to the offense have been absolutely essential. And he has hit well in his every day role so far, putting up a 126 wRC+ over 24 plate appearances this week. He had five hits—including a home run—three walks, two runs scored, and four RBIs. He now holds a 127 wRC+ for the season.

The Mets’ RBI leader this week by far is Wilson Ramos, who collected six in one game on Saturday and has ten total for the week. Those six RBIs were more than Ramos had the entire month of July. That performance elevated his wRC+ to a 136 for the week. He also walked once and scored one run—his solo homer on Saturday.

The Mets’ bench struggled as a collective this week and has been stretched thin due to injuries. Both Juan Lagares and Adeiny Hechavarria are going to start to see more playing time moving forward and neither had a particularly good week this week. Juan Lagares had one hit, a run scored, and an RBI in five plate appearances this week. Hechavarria had just one hit—a single—and three walks in fourteen plate appearances.

Aaron Altherr, meanwhile, went hitless in his five plate appearances this week, but did score a run as a pinch runner. His infield complement for the foreseeable future will be Luis Guillorme, freshly recalled from Triple-A to take Cano’s roster spot.