Dan Hamilton – USATODAY Sports
There are plenty of places for the New York Mets to point fingers for their current five-game losing streak, not to mention overall inconsistency over the past two months. But one area that has hurt them all season and has started to rear its ugly head out more and more lately is the team’s poor defense, which is turning potential wins into losses.
A team like the Mets that’s battling injuries and can’t count on scoring a lot of runs on a day-to-day basis needs to make up for it in different ways, and that means playing good defense. At this point, most of the games the Mets win are going to be by a one or two-run margin, leaving them little room for error. Thus, defensive errors or miscues, no matter how innocent or inconsequential they may seem at the time, can be the difference between winning and losing.
Right now, New York ranks in the bottom third in the majors in errors, which is obviously an issue. But it’s also the defensive miscues that aren’t errors that are hurting the Mets. They have made mental errors in the field that are unacceptable at this level, have failed time and time again to turn double plays that simply have to be turned at the major league level. While not officially errors, not turning a double play that’s seemingly a routine play is akin to an error, as it gives the opposing team an additional out to work with in the inning. Giving major league teams additional outs is like playing with fire, no matter how good New York’s pitching is, and the Mets have been badly burned on far too many occasions.
Obviously, the Mets are not built for defense. Despite having a gold-glove centerfielder in Juan Lagares, he is flanked by two aging veterans in Michael Cuddyer and Curtis Granderson, who are both somewhat limited in range and arm strength. In the infield, Wilmer Flores is exposed at times for a lack of range and foot speed at shortstop, and with Ruben Tejada filling in at third base, both players on the left side of the infield are playing somewhere other than their strongest defensive position.
Dilson Herrera has provided an upgrade defensively at second base, but with his offensive struggles and Daniel Murphy set to return from the DL within the next week, the Mets may soon have to make a decision between defense and offense. Murphy would be an offensive upgrade at second base, but he may not necessarily help them at second base defensively as much as Herrera. Ideally, the Mets could insert Murphy at third base to await the return of David Wright, but that may not be possible if Herrera continues to be overmatched at the plate.
The Mets knew heading into the season they wouldn’t be a great defensive team, but they believed they’d be strong enough offensively to make up for it. However, somehow they’re getting neither consistent offense nor reliable defense in support of their outstanding pitching staff, which may showcase a flaw in how their roster was built and has been a primary factor in the team’s inconsistency over the past two months.
The bottom line is that the Mets have to do more to support their pitching staff. If more consistent run production isn’t realistic for New York due to injuries and disappointing performances from veterans, then more focus, more attention, and better execution on defense is an absolute necessity. The Mets’ pitching can carry them a long way this season, but not if the staff is asked day after day to get more than 27 outs.
Bryan Zarpentine is a New York Mets writer at www.RantSports.com. Like him on Facebook, follow him on twitter @BZarp and add him on Google.
