The New York Mets are facing yet another disappointing season, falling short of their preseason expectations as they sit 10 games below .500 with over a third of the season played. Despite their struggles, the team has been quick to address underperforming players.
When Adrian Houser faced difficulties, he was moved to the bullpen, while Joey Wendle and Omar Narváez were designated for assignment due to their underwhelming performances. Recently, Brett Baty was sent down to Triple-A Syracuse amidst a slump.
Now, another notable player finds himself out of the lineup once again.
Jeff McNeil, a former batting champion, has been sidelined for the third consecutive day. His struggles continued through May, where he posted a meager slash line of .202/.262/.303 with only two home runs and seven RBIs. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza expressed the organization’s desire for McNeil to return to his line-drive hitting approach.
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Mendoza noted that McNeil has been lifting the ball more frequently, deviating from his successful batting title-winning strategy of hitting line drives from foul line to foul line. McNeil’s current flyball rate matches his career high, while his line-drive percentage has declined compared to previous seasons.
Whether McNeil can reverse this trend remains to be seen, but his resurgence will be crucial for the Mets if they hope to salvage their playoff aspirations.
