The last two games in San Francisco have seen the Mets facing one of the better rotations in the NL. But the Mets pitching hasn’t been far from stellar. Surrendering only three runs over the last two games should be enough to see the Mets win one or both games. Unfortunately, they haven’t been able to score any runs, and have been shutout in both games.
So is adding a bat an issue? If so, where?
Ike Davis sure isn’t hitting. The young first baseman is ice cold, hitting just .182 in his last 15 games. Jeff Francoeur should see his time diminish as Carlos Beltran made his return on Thursday night and Angel Pagan will be seeing more time in right field. But they seems to be the least of their worries.
With Luis Castillo on the DL and Jose Reyes nearly there, the Mets are relying on Alex Cora and Ruben Tejada up the middle. Cora’s OBP is a cool .279 while Tejada just worked his back up to .300. Sure, they’re middle infielders who are bench players taking on a much larger role, but if the Mets are looking to add some pop, this might be the place to do it.
Outside of that, I think the Mets should be looking to get Josh Thole a lot more playing time. Rod Barajas gave the team a nice jolt at the beginning of the year, but he too has been chilly at the plate and hasn’t hit a home run since May. Thole and Henry Blanco should be the tandem behind the plate, trying to find a taker for Barajas. That will allow the Mets to bring in another arm in the bullpen, which can’t hurt.
In short, the Mets need to hope Reyes and Castillo can get healthy and bounce back to form. If not, it might be time to explore a trade for a second baseman.