Key numbers suggest the Mets are a solid team offensively, despite their mediocre scoring output.
Start with an on-base percentage of .350 that ranked second in the major leagues as Thursday’s play began, 117 hits (second in the majors) and .261 batting average (third in the majors).
And yet the Mets were averaging just 3.92 runs per game, placing them 19th in the major leagues. The “big hit” has been missing — which explains the MLB-leading 8.92 runners per game left on base by the Mets.
“You just can’t have it all,” Dominic Smith said.
They will open a three-game series Friday against the Marlins at Citi Field looking for their first sustained scoring run of the season. There was a 10-run game in Atlanta last Friday that was wasted by a bullpen meltdown. Then came a five-game stretch in which the Mets (5-8) exceeded three runs only once.
Losing Robinson Cano, Jeff McNeil and Amed Rosario to injuries in recent days hasn’t helped, but there is also the fact their biggest offensive force, Pete Alonso, owns an anemic .579 OPS and has appeared lost at the plate. And before he opted out from the season on Sunday, Yoenis Cespedes was stuck with a .622 OPS.
Alonso last season established a MLB rookie record with 53 homers, but has gone deep only once this year. In 50 at-bats he has struck out 20 times.
“We’re going to get guys in,” Smith said. “We are going to score runs. Our offense is talented. Pete is a talented player, so he is going to get going, he is going to help us score a ton of runs and we have got some guys banged up, but once they get back in the lineup we are going to play well. Once we get guys back our offense will be fine.”
Cano, sidelined with an abductor strain, won’t be eligible to return for at least another week. McNeil (intercostal strain) and Rosario (quad strain) will be evaluated before Friday’s game, with the hope one or both will be available. Cano was the team’s hottest hitter, with a .412 batting average, before his injury. McNeil is sporting a healthy .429 on-base percentage.
“We have been having good ABs, but we haven’t been getting those big hits,” J.D. Davis said. “It’s going to come, it happened last year. We go on our little spurts where we don’t get big hits, we put up double digits last week, we have just got to take it with a grain of salt and move forward.”
The Mets visited three cities — Boston, Atlanta and Washington — over the past 1 ½ weeks, each time arriving to the team hotel at 3:30 a.m. or later because of transportation mode (they took bus to Boston) or weather issues, so fatigue could be a factor. Thursday’s first day off for the Mets this season might have come at the right moment.
“I will tell you the boys are a little tired,” Davis said. “That’s part of it. I know a lot of guys are banged up, not necessarily injured, but just playing 13 days in a row and lack of sleep, it’s definitely grinding and not only a physical toll but a mental toll.”
The Mets optioned catcher Ali Sanchez to their alternate site camp, leaving the roster at 29 players. That number must be reduced to 28 before Friday’s game.
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