3 UP

1. Conforto Is Healthy

After back issues and a bone bruise, Michael Conforto was activated from the disabled list. Despite some reports of Conforto having issues, he looked good in Sunday’s game collecting one of the Mets three hits on the afternoon.

Overall, Conforto has been the biggest bright spot on the Mets this season hitting .284/.403/.542 with 14 homers and 41 RBI. His 2.5 WAR rates him as the top position player on the team.

As a result, Conforto is poised to play in his first All Star Game. It should be the first of many.

2. T.J. Keeps Proving Them Wrong

Like Conforto, T.J. Rivera has gone from opening the season as a bench player to earning a starting spot. On the season, he’s hitting .299/.340/.443 with 11 doubles, a triple, four homers, and 21 RBI.

Rivera has started in nine of the Mets past 10 games, and he’s doing all he can to make sure he stays in the lineup for the rest of the season. In the last nine games, he’s hitting .394/.429/.667 with three doubles, two homers, and seven RBI.

3. The First Half Is Over

The Mets enter the break eight games under .500 and in fourth place in the National League East. They’re 12 games behind the Nationals, and they’re 10.5 games behind the Rockies for the second Wild Card.

It’s been as difficult and disappointing a first half as the Mets have had in years. The good news is it’s over. Hopefully, the Mets can press the reset button and be a better team in the second half.

3 DOWN

1.  Mets Can’t Beat Anyone Good

Against teams over .500, the Mets are 5-21. Coincidentally, those teams are the teams who are currently in playoff position in the National League. When you can’t beat good teams, you can’t consider yourself one of them.

If you want some glimmer of hope, the Mets are 19-18 against the teams they have to jump over for the second Wild Card, and they open the second half against the Rockies.

2. [FILL IN NAME] Has To Get Going

With Yoenis Cespedes stuck in a 6-45 stretch with no extra base hits, Terry Collins muttered his common refrain, “We got to get him going.”

In a season full of injuries and under-performances, we have constantly heard Collins utter this phrase or some variation thereof. This phrase is getting as tired and aggravating as when Art Howe tried to paint a rosy picture saying, “We battled.”

3. Matz Needed To Be Better

Since coming off the disabled list, Steven Matz had been nothing short of terrific. In five starts, he was 2-1 with a 2.12 ERA and a 1.029 WHIP. In all five starts he pitched at least six innings, and in four of those starts, he pitched seven innings. With that stretch, the Mets had to like their chances to take the series against the Cardinals.

It was the wrong time for a dud from Matz. He lasted only 4.2 innings while allowing seven hits, five earned runs and one walk while striking out just one. The Mets needed this game, and Matz imploded.

After the All Star festivities, the Mets open the second half at home against the Rockies. In what has become a more than redundant statement, if the Mets want to make a third straight postseason, they need to get on a run. The Rockies would be a good start.