As Michael Conforto, J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith struck out in the ninth inning Wednesday night — guaranteeing a two-game sweep at the hands of the Boston Red Sox — and 8,051 fans rained boos down upon Citi Field, it became apparent that something within the Mets organization has to change.
Yes, it’s only been a month and yes, hitting is down all across the league, but the Mets are taking it to a whole different level. A lineup that was supposed to be dangerous from spots one through eight is last in the majors in both runs per game, at 2.7, and with runners in scoring position, hitting a mere .187.
Francisco Lindor and Smith are hitting .203, Conforto is at .204 and Jeff McNeil is holding at .219.
You can’t replace the entire lineup, and Luis Rojas’s job doesn’t seem to be in jeopardy, but after the Red Sox series – one in which the Mets allowed only three total runs but scored just one of their own – it appears someone’s job is on the line, and that someone is hitting coach Chili Davis.
Davis took over the post in 2019, presiding over Pete Alonso’s monster rookie season, as well as Davis’s breakout year. As a player, Davis accumulated 2,380 hits and 350 home runs over a 19-year career. He certainly knows a little about hitting.
He’s been a coach in the league since 2012, but wasn’t in-person during 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns. Davis worked from his home in Arizona, and was in constant contact with the team, while assistant hitting coach Tom Slater took care of on-field duties. His return in 2021 was supposed to be beneficial for players that thrived with him there in ’19.
A quick search through Mets Twitter will find that the overwhelming majority of fans have already let Davis go, and while it’s true that a fresh perspective could help the struggling team, the organization may not be in quite as much of a rush as the fanbase is.
A new coach isn’t a magical elixir, hitters still need to take better at bats and perform with men on base. But the frustration is valid; Jacob deGrom has only allowed two total earned runs this year, but the Mets are 2-3 in his starts. The bullpen – a glaring question mark heading into the season — has performed like one of the best in the majors, and yet, the team sits below the .500 mark.
Thanks to subpar play throughout the division however, even at 9-10 on the year the Mets are just .5 games back in the NL East. They have a stretch of 10 consecutive games beginning Friday in Philadelphia. Things have to get better, there’s too much talent on the roster to be this inept.
So, while Davis may well survive to see the second month of the season, if things don’t get turned around in a hurry, he almost certainly won’t be around much longer than that.
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