Early Mets Slumps: Which three are cause for some concern?

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 07: Michael Conforto #30 of the New York Mets bats against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on April 7, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Mets 8-2. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

We can’t hit the panic button on the 2021 New York Mets quite yet. No. Absolutely not. Get your finger away from there. No matter how bad things may feel after each loss, it’s early April. This is a 162-game schedule. Even the best teams lose 60+ times.

As sports fans, it can be hard to look at things realistically. In the moment, every strikeout feels like the end of the world. A hitless game from the cleanup hitter suggests it’s time to demote him. One bad play in the field and the guy should go to the bench.

Part of being a fan is being fanatical. Early season slumps can be some cause for concern. And these three Mets slumping early in 2021 are beginning to make me worried.

Mets slumper Michael Conforto has had a more productive elbow than bat

The annual Michael Conforto slump may have arrived earlier than expected in 2021. Through five games, he’s hitting .143/.250/.190. He leads the team with eight strikeouts and has managed to draw a single walk.

Conforto is one of the streakier Mets on the team. From day-to-day, we never seem to know what we’ll get. In many ways, he’s the box of chocolates on this team.

The big question you may be wondering is why there should be concern for Conforto this early in the season. Well, there are two major reasons. His contract could certainly be a distraction. For the first time in his professional career, he’s playing for a lot of money.

Secondly, and more importantly, perhaps last year’s success in several categories was a fluke. Conforto came into this season as a lifetime .259/.358/.484 hitter. He was much better in the shortened 2020 campaign in just about every way possible. He hit over .300 for the first time and reached base at a clip of over .400.

Expecting a repeat of this from Conforto in 2021 set the bar a little too high. While we should still count on him to perform at least near his career numbers, an early concern could be that this might be one of those seasons where his career totals take a dip.

Mar 26, 2021; Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA; New York Mets catcher James McCann (33) singles in a run in the 2nd inning of the spring training game against the Washington Nationals at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

Mets catcher James McCann might not be such an excellent hitter

Over the last two seasons, James McCann has blossomed into an excellent hitting catcher. He slashed .276/.334/.474 with the Chicago White Sox while clobbering 25 home runs in 587 plate appearances.

When the Mets inked him to a deal this offense, there was a lot of excitement about his overall game. His defense was the primary focus. Many were also eager to see what he could do to help out the offense.

Thus far, McCann has been much closer to his early Detroit Tigers days where he hit .240/.288/.366. Could it be that the last two seasons in Chicago were an outlier of what lies ahead?

It’s hard to pinpoint a particular reason as to why McCann might struggle with the Mets. I can’t say the change of scenery hurts him. His best full campaign came after going from Detroit to Chicago. So, to use an adjustment year as an excuse doesn’t make much sense.

I have never thought McCann was destined to be one of the better offensive players on the 2021 Mets. Late bloomers do exist, however, the beating a catcher can take behind the plate can contribute to them being a different animal.

McCann has never played in more than 118 games in a season which means we’ll either see him set a new personal record in 2021 or have the treat of more Tomas Nido than I think many would prefer to see.

McCann has struck out often throughout his career and doesn’t have a shiny enough resume for me to at least not consider this might be a lost season on offense.

Apr 5, 2021; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Trevor May (65) reacts after being taken out of the game in the eighth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports /

Will Trevor May be the shutdown reliever we need?

Relief pitchers can see their numbers fluctuate drastically with one bad outing. Unfortunately for newcomer Trevor May, his debut with the 2021 Mets has already put him in an early hole.

There’s a lot of time to lower the ERA, win the trust of New Yorkers, and make it obvious to everyone that getting outs late in games is more important than streaming on Twitch. Frankly, I’m not sure which is more important to him.

Any mistrust I have in May comes from the same reasons I have concern over McCann. May hasn’t been a brilliant pitcher for more than a handful of years. In fact, he has one very good year as a reliever pitcher with more than 30 innings pitched. This was in 2019 when he tossed 64.1 frames and posted a 2.94 ERA.

May has been a master at striking out batters throughout his career. But this doesn’t always translate into success. Even when Edwin Diaz was struggling he could strike guys out.

Most alarming of all from May’s early stats is the fact that he has two wild pitches already. I don’t think it’s a trend that will necessarily continue. The man isn’t going to average one per inning this year.

May is a bigger question mark than I think many people realized when he was signed. A quick glance at his career numbers and he looks like a guy trending in the right direction. His successful years with the Minnesota Twins were quite limited and quite possibly a poor preview of what he can offer the Mets in 2021.

Having yet to toss a one-two-three inning in his first three games, I’m hopeful we get to see some less dramatic frames from May in the near future.

Next. Most frustrating Mets for the 2021 season

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Lots of Mets are slumping early on this season. It happens in baseball. I’m not ringing the alarm bells quite yet on anyone. A week into the 2021 season, I’m only at the teeth-gritting phase of worry.

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