Mets shortstop Amed Rosario did nothing to advance his plot positively

New York Mets shortstop Amed Rosario did very little in 2020 to advance the plot of his career in a positive way.

The 2020 MLB season was a throwaway episode for New York Mets shortstop Amed Rosario. If his career was a television show, right in the middle of a major plot point late in the season which should have led up to the finale, the showrunner decided it was best to put in a bad crossover bottle episode focused more on guest appearances and selling a product than actually advancing the plot positively.

To put it another way, Rosario completely wasted his season.

All of those good vibes we felt in regards to Rosario after the 2019 season are gone. The young shortstop managed to raise his batting average and OBP about 30 points from 2018 while adding in some power.

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As we heard all winter long, Rosario had arrived and the 2020 season was going to be his year to silence any doubters that remained.

This isn’t how it played out. Rosario fell back into old habits. He frequently put together bad at-bats. It took him forever to draw a single walk. I don’t suspect he’ll ever become Brandon Nimmo with his eye at the plate. I just want to see him give up less.

Rosario’s 2020 season included a career-worst .643 OPS. This isn’t significantly lower than what he posted in 2017 or even 2018. However, it’s certainly a step in the wrong direction.

What made 2020 especially different for Rosario is that he finally had some shortstop competition. In the past two campaigns, Rosario was out there every day unless Mickey Callaway thought he could use a day off.

Rosario sat a lot more under Luis Rojas this past year. He started only 37 of the team’s 60 games. The club opted to give rookie Andres Gimenez a lot more starts than I think anyone expected.

The Mets weren’t messing around this year. Rosario’s poor bat, poorer defense, and the intrigue of what Gimenez could do piqued their curiosity enough to bench their starter with some regularity.

Most criminal of all based on his own history, Rosario didn’t swipe a single bag. He ended his season without a single stolen base. He only ever attempted to steal once all year when Erik Kratz managed to throw him out in a game versus the New York Yankees.

I know many players that struggled this year should get a pass. Give them all 102 more games to possibly turn things around and many would.

In Rosario’s case, I’m not so sure. It’s possible he’s just one of those players that take 80-100 games to kick it into high gear.

The Mets face a challenging decision in regards to his future. Still hopeful he will reach his potential, I’m not so sure he fits well as a reserve player. He’ll need to learn a few more positions to take on this role. Even then, his bad defense will hold him back further.

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Rosario’s plot did go further in 2020. It just didn’t go in the direction the executives were hoping. Now he’s facing cancellation.