MetsMerized Player Of The Week! 7/19-7/26

An article by Satish Ram    12 Comments

So the Mets return home tonight after winning back-to-back games in Houston, and I have to say, it was in pretty impressive fashion. And those two games created a sort of dilemma for me when I was trying to choose this week’s Player of the Week, because the Mets actually put up hits, runs and HRs, and had pretty good pitching the last two games of the week. It’s amazing what one win(or two) can do for a team, isn’t it? So on to this week’s award!

My choice for MetsMerized Player of the week is…Jeff Francoeur! (And I couldn’t be happier to be able to choose him.)

Jeff Francoeur has been amazing since becoming a Met as he’s been tearing it up at the plate. He seemed to put it all together last week, as his offensive stats are among the team leaders across the board.

Jeff batted .375 (9-24) while posting a robust slugging percentage of .667 with 1 2B and 2 HRs. Frenchy’s 9 hits were tied for the team lead with Luis Castillo, and his 2 HRs were tied with Omir Santos for the team lead over the span of the week. Frenchy had 9 RBI and 16 TB, both team leading and impressive numbers over a six-game span.

Jeff did not draw a walk this week, and that has understandably been his knock from all his doubters in the Mets universe. Again I ask that people just accept and respect Jeff Francoeur, because he’s really not bad at all. He K’d only twice this week, putting his K/BB ratio for the week at 2/0. He’s putting the ball in play, and if he’s not walking, that’s the least he can do. He was scored to have a perfect week on defense, and while that’s a little questionable, history shows he can hold his own out there. In any case, Kudos to Jeff Francoeur!

Honorable Mentions:

Angel Pagan : .308 (8-26), 2 RBI, 13 TB, 8 R, .500 SLG (1 2B, 2 3B)

Luis Castillo : .450 (9-20), .600 SLG (1 2B, 1 3B), 12 TB, 3 BB/0 K.

Jon Niese : 1 GS, 1.29 ERA, 1 QS (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 3 K).

Past Award Winners :

One Hit Wonders : Luis Castillo, Ryan Church, Daniel Murphy, Johan Santana, Jeff Francoeur

Of Note 7/19-7/26

Angel Pagan has now made the honorable mentions list two weeks in a row. He has been a godsend for the Mets as he’s providing offense with great defense in CF. For more on how great he’s been, check out Ed Leyro’s “Angel Pagan Is Earning His Wings”. (http://metsmerizedonline.com/2009/07/angel-pagan-is-earning-his-wings.html)

Another reason Jeff Francoeur won this week’s award, or at least a contributing factor, is this quote he gave to reporters. “We’ve got a shot, we’ve got 65 games left, and I guarantee you every person on this team will fight their butts off to the end.” That’s the kind of guy I want on my team. For more on how great he’s been, check out Joe D’s “Jeff Francoeur Is Just What The Mets Needed”. (http://metsmerizedonline.com/2009/07/jeff-francoeur-is-just-what-the-mets-needed.html)

Jon Niese spun a gem on Saturday and i’m curious to see how his next start ends up. On the topic of pitching, Livan Hernandez won both his starts this week posting a 3.21 ERA.

Mark Buehrle threw a perfect game. Kudos to him!

The Mets had 5 HRs this week (Francoeur 2, Santos 2, Wright.) To my knowledge, this was Wright’s first HR in July.

Looking ahead to the future, The Mets return home for a 4-game series with the Rockies and this could very well determine the future endeavors of this time.

For the record –> YOU STILL GOTTA BELIEVE!