Fans should celebrate the 2022 Mets All-Stars in a "Bachelorette" twist

Pete Alonso is the “Met that is here for the right reasons.” 

Alonso is perhaps the Mets’ most popular position player, and he played like it on his way to his second All Star team. Alonso leads the major leagues with 70 RBI’s and is the one true home run threat for opposing pitchers in the Mets lineup.  

As a team that isn’t getting as much production from the long ball as they normally do, they needed a big first half from Alonso, and has been money in big spots. 10 of his 23 home runs have come with runners in scoring position, which is four more than anyone else in the National League.  

And now Alonso becomes the second Mets first baseman to be named to multiple All-Star teams, joining Keith Hernandez. Alonso’s legacy continues to grow as a result. 

The “Can I Steal You For A Second” pitch from other teams pertaining to Jeff McNeil did not work this winter, and the Mets were rewarded for keeping him. 

Jeff McNeil was the subject of some trade rumors during the offseason, following a disappointing 2021 season where he barely hit over .250 after three straight seasons of batting .310 or higher. The additions of Mark Canha and Eduardo Escobar led to such speculations, but the Mets chose to keep him, and he has reverted to an indispensable piece to the Mets offense that got him to the All-Star Game three years ago. McNeil is batting .311 and has 82 hits, including a team-high 19 doubles.  

Edwin Diaz’s Mets journey leading into his 2022 All Star berth can be deemed “The Most Dramatic Career in Mets History.” 

For all the controversies and questions surrounding the ill-fated trade that sent Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz from the Mariners to the Mets and Jarred Kelenic and several others the other way, the Mets have appeared to gain an edge because of Diaz’s status among baseball’s relievers. But it wasn’t all roses for Diaz, with the ridiculous number of home runs he gave up in his first season as a Met, and fans calling for Brodie Van Wagenen to be fired right away. 

But Diaz has settled in to New York nicely after that, and one could imply from comments earlier this week that he is falling in love with New York. His 100 mph fastball and unhittable 90 mph slider is aging like fine wine and is so much fun to watch. It is evidenced by his 50.3 percent strikeout rate and 1.78 ERA among other reasons why he is arguably baseball’s best closer; these are stats you’d see in baseball’s fantasy suites. 

Starling Marte most likely got his All-Star nod in a “2-on-1". 

It was a difficult choice for the final outfield reserve spot on the National League, and it was probably between Starling Marte and Brandon Nimmo. Nimmo has been excellent for the Mets all season in getting on base and playing great defense in center field, but Marte’s offense was just a tad better than Nimmo’s in the first half, leaving Nimmo rose-less (Nimmo could be named as an injury replacement at some point). 

Marte is the only one of the Mets’ All Stars that was new to the team this year. In fact, Marte is the first Met since Francisco Rodriguez in 2009 to make the All-Star team in his first season with the Mets after signing as a free agent. Marte has been just about everything the Mets could have asked from him in the first year of his four-year pact. He leads the team with 87 hits, 50 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases, while hitting .291 for the season with nine homers.  

Brandon Nimmo, Taijuan Walker, and Francisco Lindor were “sent home” at the “rose ceremony” as All Star snubs. 

You could have made an All-Star case for as many as seven Mets players this year. That’s why this Mets team has been so fun to watch because of all the different players having great seasons. 

The thing that probably held Nimmo back from the original All-Star team was there were several outfielders with better offensive production than him. It is something we can totally understand given that guys like Mookie Betts and Ronald Acuna, Jr. are in the National League, while Kyle Schwarber just will not stop hitting home runs for the Phillies.  

After watching Taijuan Walker twirl seven scoreless innings on Sunday, matching zeroes with potential All Star Game starter Sandy Alcantara, I thought for sure Walker was making his second straight All-Star team with the Mets, which was unlikely when he signed his two-year contract before last season. Walker has a 7-2 record with a 2.63 ERA on the season, and being the steady presence for the Mets’ injury-riddled rotation was a case that would have sent him to Dodger Stadium next week. But they only picked seven starters instead of the usual nine or ten. 

Francisco Lindor had a good All-Star case this year, as he is second among National League shortstops with 15 home runs and 60 RBI’s, the latter of which would put Lindor on pace for a career high in. Similar to Alonso, Lindor played a role in a lot of the key Mets hitting moments of the season. But Trea Turner of the Dodgers and Dansby Swanson of the Braves had far superior first half performances to him when you look at the averages and production. 

So until next year in Seattle, if you did not receive a rose, please take a moment and say your goodbyes.