David Wright. Jason Bay. Jeff Francor. Not exactly the names you would expect to hear when discussing the Met players that are hurting the offense right now, but there they are in black and white. The middle of the Mets’ line-up is struggling.
Wright and Francour started off 2010 swinging hot bats. Since hitting two home runs in Colorado however, Wright is 4 for his last 24 with 1 RBI and 11 strikeouts and Francour is 4 for his last 29 with 1 RBI and 3 strikeouts. Bay has struggled most of the year batting .241 with 0 HRs and 3 RBI in the first 15 games of the season, including 5 for his last 23 with 2 RBI and 12 strikeouts.
One of the problems could be that the three righthanded hitters are all bunched in a row, batting in the 3, 4 and 5 spots in the order, thus making them a little susceptible to righthand pitching. Jerry Manuel commented that he plans on breaking the three up the next time they face a righty.
Listen, players have slumps and I don’t think it’s going to be a long term concern that these players are hitting, but to have them all slumping at the same time is rough. Out of the three, the one you might have the most concern for would be Francour, but he has done nothing since he’s come to the Mets but hit, so you have to think he’ll get himself out of this.
The desire to get off to a fast start might also have these guys pressing a little too much. Wright likely wants to erase questions about his power from last year, Bay wants to show his new team he’s a good fit and Francour wants to just continue to impress with the bat like he has since the trade that brought him here. The thing is, the Mets will be hard pressed to score runs without these guys. Jose Reyes is back, Angel Pagan is swinging a hot bat and Ike Davis has arrived, but the middle of the order needs to perform and help the offense click. The pitching for the most part has been much better then anyone would have thought, but it’s time the offense carried its weight.
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