The end of the regular season was fully intended to be the end of the Met of the. Month series for the 2024 season. While a postseason berth was a pleasant surprise for this season, especially after the turmoil of the first two months of the year, doing a Met of the Month would have been pointless if the Mets had been bounced after a handful of games.
That didn't happen, however, as the Mets advanced all the way to the NLCS and came within two wins of the World Series. A deep postseason run doesn't happen without strong contributions throughout the roster, which the Mets got offensively from guys like Jesse Winker (who hit .318 with a homer and four RBI in the postseason), Pete Alonso (.273/4/10), Francisco Lindor (.275/2/8) and Starling Marte (.277 with nine RBI). The pitching side also saw some solid efforts from starters like Luis Severino (1-1, 3.24 ERA in 16.2 innings pitched), Jose Quintana (3.14 ERA in three starts) and David Peterson (2.92 ERA in 12.1 innings split between a start and bullpen work). The bullpen also got strong work from Edwin Diaz (2 saves and a 3.12 ERA with 13 strikeouts in 8.2 innings pitched) and Ryne Stanek (3.38 ERA in 8 innings pitched), but the unquestioned Met of the Month for October has to be third baseman Mark Vientos.
Despite entering the postseason in a slump, Vientos quickly established himself as the most dangerous hitter in the Mets' lineup. Vientos led the team in batting average (.327), home runs (5) and RBI (14) over the course of the playoffs, with the latter figure setting a franchise record for most RBI in a single postseason. Vientos was the Mets' most consistent threat in the National League Championship Series as well, homering three times against the Los Angeles Dodgers, including a pivotal second-inning grand slam in their Game 2 victory.
The Mets have to feel very good about the performance they got from Vientos this season, who established himself as an integral part of their lineup going forward. It remains to be seen if Vientos will stick at third base or if the Mets ask him to go the Giancarlo Stanton route and permanently DH, but 2024 showed that Vientos' bat will play in both the regular season and the playoffs.
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