When discussing the Mets early hot start, a couple of big story lines come to mind.
How good the rotation has been, who should be the starting shortstop, or how bad the offense could be on some nights. One thing that hasn’t come up as much as it should is the hot start HITTING wise of Juan Lagares.
It has been over a month since Mets GM Sandy Alderson gave 2014 Gold Glove winner Juan Lagares a 4-year $23 Million extension starting next year with a $9.5 million team option. Some said that it was too early to give Juan that kind of money. His defense has never been in question as he might be the best defensive outfielder the franchise has ever seen.
The offense is what people have questioned early in his career. His first year in the majors he only hit .246. Another question was where to hit him in the lineup. He has the speed to be a leadoff hitter but only has 20 career stolen bases. He also strikes out a ton and is known as a free swinger with few walks.
With all the questions of his hitting coming into the year Lagares currently leads the Mets in batting average and hits. Juan is hitting .311 and is in the top five in the National League with 33 hits. The defense is still there with so many remarkable catches most times he makes the extraordinary look ordinary.
Throughout Sandy’s tenure as GM he has always been very conservative for a variety of reasons but the 4-year extension to Juan Lagares on April 2 of this year looks to be a smart aggressive move, even though it is still very early.
