The trade deadline has come and gone with the New York Mets just outside the postseason picture. This turnaround would have been unthinkable two months ago, but a resurgent June followed by a 17-10 July has the Mets firmly in the playoff hunt. The offense once again carried the mail as Jeff McNeil posted his strongest performance of the year, hitting .289 with five home runs and 17 RBI, while Mark Vientos (.283/6/17) and Jose Iglesias (.307/3/10) also had excellent months.
The Mets also got some strong work in the rotation from lefties Sean Manaea (2-1, 2.70 ERA in six starts), Jose Quintana (3-1, 2.05 ERA in five starts) and David Peterson (2-1, 3.38 ERA in five starts). The much-maligned bullpen also chipped in with solid efforts from Edwin Diaz (1-0 with six saves and a 1.13 ERA in eight appearances), Jose Butto (3-0 with two saves and a 1.08 ERA in eight appearances), Dedniel Nunez (2.70 ERA in 10 appearances) and newly-acquired Phil Maton (1-0 with a 2.57 ERA in eight appearances). In the end, however, the Met of the Month honor is going to a hitter in shortstop Francisco Lindor.
After shockingly getting left off the National League All-Star Team, Lindor took his snub personally and made the rest of baseball pay. Lindor was one of the best players in baseball during July, hitting .274 while leading the Mets in home runs (9) and RBI (23), chipping in seven stolen bases to boot. The Mets also saw Lindor post an outstanding .941 OPS in 106 at bats, giving them a big lift while some of the team's other big bats struggled throughout July.
Lindor's strong two-month stretch has brought his season totals more in line with his preseason expectations, raising the potential for another down-ballot MVP finish if he can stay hot. If the Mets are going to finish off this remarkable turnaround and reach the postseason after sitting 11 games below .500 on June 2nd, Lindor's performance will be a big key to those efforts.
Previous Mets Of The Month:
April: RP Reed Garrett
May: DH J.D. Martinez
June: OF Brandon Nimmo
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