New York Mets Need To Find A Way To Control The Opponents’ Running Game

The New York Mets’ catching situation has been a problem for the team due to injury. While most have been concerned about how much offense the Mets will get from the position with Jose Lobaton and Tomas Nido filling in for the injured Kevin Plawecki, the bigger problem has been defense at the position. More specifically, the group’s unit has had difficulty throwing out base runners at an alarming rate, leading to opportunities for extra runs for the opposition.

The Mets have allowed 21 stolen bases in 22 attempts this year, an unsustainable clip. All of those steals allow the opponents to take extra bases, making it easier to score on singles or sacrifice flies instead of extra base hits. Travis d’Arnaud has always had his issues throwing out base runners, but he won’t be a factor this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Plawecki and Lobaton are better than d’Arnaud, but still not great overall. Nido is the best defender of the group, having thrown out 45% of base runners at AA Binghamton a year ago, but his hitting is not up to snuff for big league pitching just yet so his playing time has been limited.

While the catchers themselves have been an issue, a big part of the problem has been an inability for the pitchers to hold runners on. The Mets’ starting rotation is full of power pitchers who tend to work at deliberate paces, letting runners get larger leads and quicker jumps when attempting steals. Noah Syndergaard is the worst offender, and the Mets realized this a few years ago, putting their better defensive catcher behind the plate when he starts. The rest of the staff isn’t much better, and unless something changes there isn’t a reason more teams would avoid trying to run on the Mets whenever possible.

There are only two real options to improve this problem. The first is to acquire a better catcher, which is something GM Sandy Alderson said is on the table, but it is far too early to expect a trade. The other alternative is for the coaching staff to work with the pitchers to do better at holding on runners. Mickey Callaway and Dave Eiland both have tremendous backgrounds in pitching, and the two of them should have a way to help their starters keep the running game in check. If the Mets can’t, it will allow opponents to keep getting extra bases and score more runs on soft contact singles or sacrifice flies, making it harder for the Mets to win games.