Michael Conforto has been one of baseball’s best hitters in the second half

With a pair of home runs in the Mets’ win over the Marlins on Wednesday afternoon, Michael Conforto reminded everyone just how good he is at hitting. Having hit an absolute moonshot in the Mets’ dramatic comeback of the second game of the team’s doubleheader against Miami on Monday night, he ended the four-game series with three home runs.

In total, he’s hit nine home runs since the break, which makes him one of five players tied for the third-highest home run total over that span. Only the absurdly-hot Nelson Cruz, who has hit 16 home runs since the break, and four other hitters—one of whom is Mike Trout and all of whom have hit 10—have more. The 26-year-old Conforto has always been a good power hitter, if not a prolific home run hitter, but he’s in a spot that he should surpass his previous career high of 28 home runs, which came last year.

And it’s not just power. In 106 plate appearances since the break, Conforto has hit .315/.406/.641. That line is good for a 176 wRC+, which ranks 13th among 179 qualified hitters in baseball. Conforto being really good isn’t news, of course, but sometimes it’s nice to be reminded of it when things are going exceedingly well.

Conforto has been especially great during the Mets’ incredible 13-1 stretch over their last 14 games. That run began on July 25, and in 58 plate appearances, Conforto has hit .340/.466/.830 with 7 home runs and a 228 wRC+.

Thanks to his recent success, Conforto now ranks 27th in baseball with a 133 wRC+ on the season, joining teammates Jeff McNeil, who ranks 6th with a 153, and Pete Alonso, who ranks 9th with a 149, in the top thirty.

If the Mets pull off the improbable and earn a spot in the postseason, Conforto will have been a big reason why.