5 NY Mets players holding the team back from becoming relevant in June

June has been a very average month for the New York Mets. They’re winning almost as much as they’re losing. You’d never know it because their necks have been craning while looking up at the rest of the National League.

Bo Bichette has turned on the jets. Juan Soto has entered the MVP conversation. Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing remain a joy to watch. Even as players like Mark Vientos lose playing time, there are others who’ve continued to participate and hold the team back from becoming irrelevant.

These three Mets are holding the Mets back most

1) Kodai Senga

If not for rain over Queens, Tuesday morning could’ve been a day of reckoning or redemption for Kodai Senga. Such a consistent ability to allow a run per inning this year, now sitting with a 9.00 ERA that doesn’t seem like much of a fluke, Senga’s fall off is one of the biggest reasons for why the Mets are where they are.

The perception that he needs the added day of rest to be competent isn’t all his doing as the Mets have forcefully created a situation where they need to cater to him. There isn’t enough of a sample of Senga pitching on regular rest to know how he’d actually perform. Nevertheless, going from a Cy Young contender in 2023 to whatever it is he is now was the biggest failed buy-in the Mets made with any returning player.

2) David Peterson

The situation with David Peterson isn’t all that different from Senga. The Mets bent over backwards to make him a bulk reliever while regularly using an opener in place of him starting. Even when it worked, the side effect was they wouldn’t have a guy like Huascar Brazoban available the following day to pitch in a high-leverage or late situation.

Now with a 6.09 ERA that only fans in Central Jersey and down the shore can appreciate because it mimics their area code, a bad season seems inescapable. He’s definitely not a starter. To keep him as a bulk guy is almost unfair to everyone else.

3) Brett Baty

Brett Baty is hitting .157 this month while serving as the team’s primary third baseman. They haven’t had many alternative options. With Francisco Lindor sidelined, they’ve resorted to using Bo Bichette at shortstop and handing Baty the keys to the hot corner. If you’re angry about all of the Zack Short appearances recently, blame it on Baty.

Vientos has been atrocious at times this year, but the power still comes out once in a while. He can serve a purpose. Baty, meanwhile, is just a utility player who only plays one position really well (third base) and is best used at the plate with the bases loaded and nobody out. In those times, at least he can ground into a double play that’ll score a run.

4) Marcus Semien

Marcus Semien has been clutch for the Mets this year. It’s still inexcusable for how few rallies he has actually created. He is tied for the second-most home runs this month with Juan Soto at 4. However, it comes with only a .194 batting average.

Poor defense has been maybe the most frustrating part of watching Semien play. Worth -2 OAA, he has been far behind his Gold Glove reputation. While some defensive numbers have rated well, his 4 errors have already doubled the astonishingly low 2 he made all of last season with the Texas Rangers. There’s no way to spin a .219 batting average and .627 OPS into something positive.

5) Freddy Peralta

On the misery index, Freddy Peralta isn’t close to the worst player who has suited up for the Mets this year. However, he has probably been the most disappointing. His four June starts have resulted in a 2-2 record and 8.24 ERA. When the Mets have needed a stopper in the rotation, Peralta hasn’t been the solution.

Last year’s career-year lifted Peralta expectations higher than they ever should have been. Non-ace-like outings have made him feel less than mediocre this year. He’s holding the Mets back less than some others, but also more so because he was meant to fix last year’s biggest issue: the starting pitching. Going down the rabbit hole of “who else could the Mets have had instead” doesn’t matter much at this point because this is the only card they have to play.

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