Although the Mets have been struggling the last few games, one person that continues to impress me is Kirk Nieuwenhuis, who has done an excellent job with the injuries that the Mets have had to deal with.
Nieuwenhuis tied his career highs with three runs scored and three hits last night. He has the fourth-highest average (.295) among NL rookies, and ranks first with 59 hits, tied for first with 35 runs scored, tied for second with 20 walks, tied for fourth with 20 RBI and ranks fourth with a .359 on-base percentage.
He certainly isn’t perfect, as we’d all like to see him cut his strikeout number down, but Kirk will not be going down to Buffalo any time soon. I think he has forced his way into the line-up, and with the way that Andres Torres is struggling, Nieuwenhuis could very well be the center fielder moving forward.
It’s getting crowded in this outfield with Nieuwenhuis, Lucas Duda, Jason Bay, Andres Torres and Scott Hairston. How would you address this good problem that’s developing for Terry Collins?
Pingback: Blog Roundup: No-Spin Zone