Only the Mets could find a way to get this much worse with runners on base

The New York Mets continue to find ways to add to their fan base’s misery

2020 was supposed to be a different season for the New York Mets. With the weirdness of the calendar year and the expansion of the MLB postseason format, this was the chance for the Metropolitans to finally play fall ball for the first time since 2016.

Of course, the Mets fell flat on their faces this season. The pitching behind Jacob deGrom is far from great, which got even worse after Marcus Stroman opted out of the season. But their hitting is by far even worse that anyone could have expected. To be specific, just look at their batting averages with runners on base this season. Brace yourselves, Mets fans. The numbers are ugly.

New York’s batting is downright anemic

That sound you heard was every Mets fan banging their head against a wall. They’re so used to the team’s lack of success, but they’re still amazed that the organization continues to find ways to top themselves.

The fact that the Mets are batting .208 with runners in scoring position and .132 when runners are ready to score with two outs on the board, is deeply concerning. But, there’s a reason for their ineptitude.

Arguably New York’s best hitter this season was second baseman Robinson Cano, who had a .412 batting average and 1.020 OPS, while recording 14 hits and seven RBI through 11 games. Of course, in typical Mets fashion, Cano went down with a grade 2 abductor strain last week and was subsequently placed on the team’s injured list.

Additionally, first baseman Pete Alonso was expected to provide a spark in the Mets batting order like he did in his rookie season. Instead, Alonso owns a measly .197 batting average and .632 OPS, where he struck out a team-high 24 times. Normally, struggling in the first month of the season is no big deal for a player of Alonso’s magnitude, but this is a 60-game season, which makes his stats that much more important.

Unless New York’s bats come to life, a postseason berth later this year remains out of the question.