3 reasons the Mets should be taken seriously as World Series contenders

World Series talk in April? It’s like discussing the NFL Draft in December or the Avatar sequels a decade before they are released. Oh, wait. That happens. So please, excuse us for a moment while we wax poetic about how the New York Mets need to be taken seriously as World Series contenders.

1) The Mets star players haven’t even been the best contributors

Francisco Lindor may finally be coming out of his slump if he isn’t already. The highest paid player on the roster and one of the leaders in the clubhouse, the Mets should be failures if he’s not playing well.

Should be.

This hasn’t been the situation. Despite Lindor’s absence at the plate for much of the 2024 season, the Mets are rolling off victories. Brandon Nimmo is off to an atypical start to his year too, driving in a lot more runs than he’s actually scoring. This is in part due to the top and middle of the order’s inability to create runs themselves.

It hasn’t been a complete M.I.A. situation with the stars of the Mets. Pete Alonso is hammering home runs. Starling Marte, who many wrote off, looks like he has fully returned to form. His defense still stinks, but he’s hitting (and with power) plus running as much on the bases as anyone else.

Star power sells tickets. It’s contributions from some of the little guys who lead to a better winning percentage. There isn’t nearly enough time to credit them all. But frequent and regular big hits of late from DJ Stewart, Harrison Bader, and others are helping the Mets to mask the shortcomings of others.

Meanwhile, the bullpen has been as bulletproof as imaginable with Reed Garrett becoming the unsung hero in relief.