4 Mets who proved their spring training was a fluke

To say that this New York Mets season has been surprising is true on a number of levels. The team has fallen far short of expectations, frustrating fans who entered the year with a "World Series or bust" mentality. Some players who seemed poised to break out in spring training have fallen flat, while others who looked terrible have been among the league's best at their positions.

Part of what has made this season so frustrating is that there are good pieces in place. The season hasn't been a total dumpster fire, which is why optimistic fans such as myself are still hopeful that things can turn around. One thing that has been clear, though, is that what we saw from many players in spring training, both good and bad, is not what we've gotten this season. Here are two Mets that have fallen off and two Mets that have stepped up, proving that maybe we shouldn't read too much into spring training after all.

Tomas Nido looked great for the Mets in spring training, but he has been unplayable since then.

No Mets fan expected Tomas Nido to light the world on fire, even after he hit .359 with three homers in spring training, but he was at least expected to be able to keep the backup catcher's seat warm behind Omar Narvaez until Francisco Alvarez was ready.

When Narvaez suffered an injury in the season's opening week, Nido's role became all the more important, but the veteran catcher has done nothing with the opportunity. Blame it on the dry eye syndrome that landed him on the DL, or blame it on Nido standing on the tracks as the Francisco Alvarez train was coming through. Either way, Nido was arguably the worst hitter in baseball before being sent down to AAA.

If you're sensitive to graphic images, do not go look at Nido's slash line for the season. His .125 average is truly horrific, but his .278 OPS is incomprehensible. I feel like Ron Burgundy when he discovered that Baxter ate the whole wheel of cheese and pooped in the refrigerator. I'm not even mad, that's amazing.

Max Scherzer's 1.53 ERA in spring training seems like a distant memory.

Max Scherzer ended last season on a sour note, failing to step up when the Mets needed him most. No amount of quality innings in spring training could ever erase that feeling heading into this season, but it was encouraging that Scherzer posted a 25:2 strikeout to walk ratio while giving up only three runs and one home run in 17.2 innings.

Scherzer has been unable to find any level of consistency since the season began, pinballing between quality outings and starts where he gets chased early. Tuesday's game against the Yankees was emblematic of the lack of faith Mets fans have with Mad Max at this point, as the erstwhile ace blew a 5-1 lead by giving up five runs in the fourth inning.

Mets fans can't afford to give up on Scherzer just yet. He's shown signs that he can recapture his vintage form, such as when he allowed only three runs in four starts against the Nationals, Guardians, Rockies, and Phillies. His last two starts have triggered the Flushing faithful's PTSD, though, as the Braves and Yankees have made him look past his prime, ballooning his ERA back to an unsightly 4.45.

Francisco Alvarez started slow before becoming one of the best hitters on the Mets.

It seems impossible that Francisco Alvarez was once overwhelmed by major league pitching, but through spring training and early April, he seemed like a guy that just wasn't ready for his close-up yet. This was a real disappointment for Mets fans that have anxiously awaited his arrival as one of the top prospects in baseball.

Alvarez hit only .107 with no extra base hits in spring training, then floundered when he was called up from AAA after Omar Narvaez went down. Since bashing two homers against the Reds on May 9th, though, the young catcher has turned into the second coming of Mike Piazza.

Alvarez has cemented himself as the Mets starting catcher of the future and present, crushing 12 home runs while trailing only Pete Alonso for the team lead in OPS. Along with his fellow bash brother, Alvarez has been the best thing about this season for Mets fans, giving them a reason to tune in even as the team has dropped in the NL East standings. He's even gotten at-bats at DH on days when he's free of catching duties, a sign that Buck Showalter trusts him over the Mets' other options.