Mets: End of April awards for the best and worst of the first month

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 25: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Michael Conforto #30 and Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets celebrate after defeating the Washington Nationals at Citi Field on April 25, 2021 in New York City. The Mets defeated the Nationals 4-0. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 25: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Michael Conforto #30 and Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets celebrate after defeating the Washington Nationals at Citi Field on April 25, 2021 in New York City. The Mets defeated the Nationals 4-0. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 25: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Pete Alonso #20 and Edwin Diaz #39 of the New York Mets celebrate after defeating the Washington Nationals at Citi Field on April 25, 2021 in New York City. The Mets defeated the Nationals 4-0. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 25: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Pete Alonso #20 and Edwin Diaz #39 of the New York Mets celebrate after defeating the Washington Nationals at Citi Field on April 25, 2021 in New York City. The Mets defeated the Nationals 4-0. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

With the first month of the season in the books, the New York Mets currently sit with a record of 9-11, good enough for 4th place in the NL East, but only 2 games out of first place.

Now that April is over, it’s time to give out the Mets end-of-month team awards.

This past April was one of the more memorable ones in recent memory, as the New York Mets had a very hectic first month of the season to say the least.

The team missing their first 3 games against the Nationals, on top of missing several other games due to poor weather conditions, resulting in playing multiple double headers.

Through it all, the Mets have overcome quite a lot of adversity in terms of weather and inconsistent play, and despite finishing the month on a 3 game losing streak, they look to enter the month of May in a decent spot.

The Mets were limited to just 20 games in April and finished the month with a record of 9-11.  While they are 2 games under .500, the division is very tight, and a winning the next few series would easily get them into first place.

Baseball is of course a team effort and through out April, a few players really managed to stand out from the pack and helped to lead the Mets to several wins early on in the year.

However, there are a few players who have gotten off to a slow start to begin the year, and the Mets will need them to rebound if they want to take a serious run at the postseason.

Without further delay, here are the Mets’ “End of the Month” awards for April:

Aug 28, 2018; Chicago, IL, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Jacob DeGrom (48) pitches during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 28, 2018; Chicago, IL, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Jacob DeGrom (48) pitches during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports /

Mets’ MVP: Jacob deGrom

Arguably the best pitcher in the MLB today, Jacob deGrom was the top performer for the Mets in the month of April and set several major league records in the process.

Through 5 starts in April, deGrom threw a total of 35 innings while logging a 0.51 ERA, which is the best in the National League, and second overall in the MLB.

On his April 23rd start against the Nationals, Jacob had arguably the best start of his career, throwing a 2 hit complete game shut out against the Washington Nationals, striking out 15 batters, which is the most he has ever logged in a game.

Beyond that, he has recorded 59 K’s to begin the season, tying Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan’s record for the most strikeouts through a pitcher’s first 5 starts.

In addition to his stellar performances on the mound, deGrom has also come through at the plate as well. In 13 at-bats, he’s recorded 6 hits with one double, good enough for a batting average of .462, while driving in 2 RBI and scoring 3 times.

Needless to say, Jacob deGrom has been performing on another level through the first month of the 2021 season, and if he continues to perform this well through the rest of the year, he could very easily win his third Cy Young Award.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 14: Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets celebrates after scoring a run in the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on September 14, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 14: Brandon Nimmo #9 of the New York Mets celebrates after scoring a run in the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on September 14, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

Mets’ Best Hitter: Brandon Nimmo

While Jacob deGrom has been the Mets’ best pitcher, center fielder Brandon Nimmo has been the best hitter on the team through the month of April.

The Mets lineup came into the season with high expectations, and while many of them are off to a slow start, Nimmo has managed to really come out of the gate hot, with stats amongst the best in the MLB.

The primary lead-off man for the Mets, Nimmo has gotten off to a hot start for New York, hitting .339 to begin the year along, which is the 9th best in the MLB, along with a .453 OBP in 19 games.

Nimmo’s OBP is the most impressive part of his game to begin the 2021 season, as he currently has the best in the National League and ranks as 4th overall in the MLB.

Along with his great average and OBP, Nimmo has slugged 1 HR while driving in 8 RBI and scoring 7 runs.

While most of the Mets’ bats have been quiet to begin the year, Brandon Nimmo really has been one of the few bright spots, and if his stellar performance continues as the season goes on, he very well could be representing the Mets in the All-Star game in 2021.

Mar 4, 2020; Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman (0) delivers a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals during the third inning at First Data Field. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 4, 2020; Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman (0) delivers a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals during the third inning at First Data Field. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports /

Mets’ Biggest Surprise: Marcus Stroman and J.D Davis

Picking the biggest surprise performance for April was a toss up between Marcus Stroman and J.D. Davis, and seeing as it’s tough to compare pitchers and hitters, I’ll go ahead and give it to them both.

After sitting out the 2020 season and rejoining the Mets after accepting their qualifying offer, Stroman was coming into the 2021 season as a big question mark, but he has over delivered to begin the year and then some.

With 5 starts under his belt to begin the year, the Long Island native has pitched a total of 29 innings, logging a 1.86 ERA, striking out 23 batters.

His 1.86 ERA in particular is good enough for 8th best in the National League, and far and way out performs his career average of 3.72.

Stroman has really outperformed all expectations Mets fans had for him coming into the season, and if he keeps up these numbers, he could command a very hefty price tag on the free agent market this off-season.

As for JD Davis, after slumping a bit at the plate in 2020 and following an offseason of trade rumors and speculation if the Mets were going to try and replace him at third base, Davis has been one of the top hitters on the team to begin the year.

Davis missed a few games early in the season due to a hand injury, so he has only played in 14 of the Mets’ 20 games. However, when he has played, he has delivered. In 38 at-bats, Davis has hit .395 with a .489 OBP, hitting 2 HR while driving in 6 RBI.

Like Stroman, he has really outperformed  any and all expectations fans had for him coming into 2021, and if he continues to hit this way, despite only being an average defensive player, he’ll likely be a fixture in the Mets lineup going forwards.

Apr 27, 2021; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) throws to first base for an out to end the top of the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 27, 2021; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) throws to first base for an out to end the top of the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports /

Mets’ Needs Most Improvement: Francisco Lindor

To anyone who has watched the Mets this past April, it obvious that many of the players expected to be the top hitters on the team have struggled to begin the 2021 season.

While it has only been 20 games and the team has had an inconsistent schedule to being play, the offense really needs to step it up as the season progresses, as they have lost many close games despite stellar pitching, and are finishing April dead last in runs scored

The most notable players off to a slow start in April and the one who the Mets need the most improvement going forward is shortstop Francisco Lindor. Despite playing some great defense in the field, he has really struggled at the plate to begin the year.

Francisco joined the Mets this past offseason as a part of a trade with the Cleveland Indians. With only one year left on his contract, the Mets signed him to a 10-year extension in the largest contract offer in team history.

However, starting off his career in Queens,  Lindor is hitting below the Mendoza Line in his first 20 games, hitting just .189 with a .299 OBP with 1 HR and 3 RBI.

He may not be the only member of the Mets lineup off to a slow start, but he is currently posting the lowest numbers of all the Mets starters despite being expected as the team’s top hitters.

I have no doubt that his play will improve as the season progresses. After all, 20 games is only a small sample size compared to the 162 games in the regular season. Whether or not it is to the same level he played at in Cleveland is another question entirely.

One things is for sure however, that if Lindor and the rest of the lineup to not improve soon, the team may dig themselves into a early hole and make their post season aspirations much harder to reach.

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With April now in the books, let’s all hope the Mets’ fortunes will improve in the month of May

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