It’s September and the New York Mets are playing winning baseball!
So far this year the Mets have put all the pieces of the puzzle together and are winning ballgames on a nightly basis. The Amazins have been firing on all cylinders and the results have been encouraging, Both offensively and defensively the Mets are producing. With all the callups and acquisitions made the Mets organization has given fans hope, and something to cheer for. They have proven why they are and will continue to be a force to be reckoned with in the National League.
The Pitching has been outstanding since the all-star break. Since the break the Mets pitchers have put up solid numbers which have really helped boost the Mets playoff hopes and confidence.
- Jacob deGrom 3-1 2.74 era
- Matt Harvey 3-1 1.11 era
- Noah Syndergaard 4-2 3.56 era
- Jonathan Niese 3-2 5.26 era
- Bartolo Colon 3-4 4.34 era
The Mets as a club have an era of 3.33 which is one of the best in the big leagues. The pitching has kept the Mets in ballgames this year and it has reflected in their record. Besides the Starters the Mets have good relief pitching. Jeurys Familia an all-star snub is having a terrific year recording 36 saves thus far. The acquisitions of Tyler Clippard and Addison Reed have also helped the bullpen tremendously. After losing Jenry Mejia for the year Clippard has been excellent in filling the void. Addison Reed has yet to impact the Mets, but has added depth to the pen for the Mets.
Hansel Robles and Sean Gilmartin have been nice surprises for the Mets in 2015, both have put up solid numbers and have helped the bullpen tremendously. If Bobby Parnell and Carlos Torres could figure it out the Mets bullpen would be rock solid. A solid bullpen increases the Mets chances at the playoffs, and brings the opportunity to go deep in the playoffs.
The offense was awful early on in 2015. Pre all-star break the Mets had a team average of .233. Since the break the Mets have boosted that number to .262. The Mets have also increased their OBP from .298 to .329. Offensively the Mets have been significantly better since acquiring Uribe, Johnson and Cespdes. The call up of Michael Conforto and the returns of Travid d’Arnaud, Michael Cuddyer and David Wright all contributed to the boost in offensive production.
The Amazins have scored 231 runs since the break which ranks second in the league behind the Toronto Blue Jays. Another big aspect of the improvement of the offense is getting contributions from different players on a nightly basis. Fortunately, the Mets have numerous players that can drive in runs consistently. Each night someone else becomes a hero, one night it can be Wilmer Flores, the next Lucas Duda and the following Daniel Murphy and so on a so forth. The surge of offense needs to continue if the Mets want to make the playoffs and succeed in October.
Terry Collins has also played a role in the success of the Mets. With all the new players acquired Terry is able to plug in and play players based on the matchups on a particular night, giving him the flexibility to rest and start players if needed. Collins has been ridiculed in the past for making bonehead decisions regarding who to bring out of the pen or when to pull a pitcher, but one thing is for sure without Collins the Mets would not be where they are now.
Sandy Alderson is finally seeing his five year plan take shape. Alderson is the Mastermind behind the scenes that put together the 2015 squad. In his tenure Alderson’s decisions have all payed off in a positive way. Trading R.A. Dickey for Syndergaard and d’Arnaud, letting Jose Reyes go, trading Carlos Beltran for Zack Wheeler, drafting Harvey and Conforto and trading for Cespedes are all moves made by Sandy that have made the Mets what they are today. Alderson put all the pieces of the puzzle together and rebuilt the Mets into one of the brightest franchises in baseball.
Citi field has been electric as of late. When your club is winning and making moves to improve the team the fans come out, and have an impact on the game. Many people believe that fans can not impact the game, however I personally do believe that fans play a role and a big role at that. When you have thousands of screaming fans in the seats it effects both the home and away teams. Mets fans are some of the best at providing a true home field advantage.
The Mets own a 6.5 game lead in the east over the Nationals and look to finish out the season on top and make the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
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