NY Mets Roster: 3 players I’m ready to drive to the airport

Kevin PIllar

Kevin Pillar is a warrior and a great teammate but I believe his time as a great baseball player is over. He was brought in on a two-year $6.5 million dollar deal this past offseason to be a good depth piece in the outfield. Due to the injuries to Brandon Nimmo and Michael Conforto, Pillar is tied for fourth on the Mets roster in games played which is not how the Mets drew things up.

Pillar has slashed .226/.274/.411 with 15 home runs and 45 RBI. The 15 home runs are fourth on the Mets.

It’s safe to say his hitting has been subpar. His OPS+ of 86 would agree with that statement. He has always been a below-average hitter but the one thing he did well offensively was hit left-handed pitching. This season, however, he has put up a .678 OPS against lefties, almost 100 points lower than his career mark of .772.

Pillar’s calling card has been his defense. His nickname “Superman” came from his outstanding plays in the outfield. His defense has been declining for a while and this season, he was in the 40th percentile in Outs Above Average according to baseball savant and posted a negative DRS in center field and right field this season.

So, Pillar is not a good hitter and is below average in the field. The 32-year-old should not be on the roster of a team trying to contend and Steve Cohen should be willing to eat the remaining money of his deal in order to upgrade the position. He can do that from within with someone like Khalil Lee, or sign a defensive-minded fourth outfielder for cheap.

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The Mets seem to love Pillar so I assume he will be on the roster next season but if it were up to me, he would not be.