Photo by MMO’s Ed Delany

Put it in the books!

The Mets beat the Marlins for their first series victory of the season, three games to one. With 158 games remaining, it’s very premature to draw any sort of conclusions about the year.

However, continuing from spring training, there are still fluctuating perceptions of various players—and those impressions will improve or decline even based on small samples of performance.

With that being said, here are our 3 Up, 3 Down from the Mets’ first series of the season.

3 Up

Honorable Mention: Francisco Lindor‘s defense

Mets fans know by now how valuable Francisco Lindor is as a shortstop. His 12 OAA in 2022 demonstrated that.

However, never has his skill with the glove been more prominently on display than through the first four games of 2023. The most impressive part is that he makes difficult plays look so easy.

Lindor has posted 3 DRS and 1 OAA through 35 innings at short. His defense has popped off the screen and definitely deserves a mention.

3. Omar Narváez

Omar Narváez, the Mets’ newly-acquired catcher, has gotten off to a hot start at the plate. He is 3-for-7 with a walk in nine plate appearances. All three hits are singles, but he’s driven in two runs and scored a run. Through three games, his pitch framing is in the 89th percentile among catchers, per FanGraphs.

2. Starling Marte

Starling Marte’s Opening Day status seemed up in the air in the earlier part of spring training. However, he made it back from offseason core muscle surgery and did not miss a beat. Marte was the Mets’ most consistent batter last season, carrying an average somewhere between .290 and .300 for nearly the entire year.

So far, Marte is 5-for-14 with a double, a walk, and an RBI. He has also stolen two bases (on three attempts) in the early going, and his aggressive mindset brings that element to the Mets with the new rules.

1. The bullpen

One of the Mets’ biggest question marks heading into this season was the bullpen, especially following the loss of Edwin Díaz to a torn patellar tendon.

The early returns have been terrific. In 13.2 innings, the bullpen has allowed four hits, one run, three walks, and 15 strikeouts. The best performance belongs to Dennis Santana, who struck out four of the five batters he faced. Brooks Raley is also perfect through his first two appearances. David Robertson nailed his first save opportunity of the season.

3 Down

3. Tomás Nido

With Narváez off to a hot start, his platoon mate, Tomás Nido, is on the opposite trend. Nido is 0-for-6 at the plate with three strikeouts. He also ranks in the 42nd percentile in pitch framing.

Francisco Lindor could take this spot at the plate in a larger sample size, but the contrast of Nido vs. Narváez is what makes Nido’s slow start more noticeable.

2. Daniel Vogelbach

Daniel Vogelbach has also been sluggish through the first few games. He’s 1-for-6 with a walk and strikeout. His most noteworthy play was going first to third on a single in the opening game after taking a four-pitch walk from Sandy Alcantara.

1. Eduardo Escobar

While the other two spots on this list could’ve been any one of a few batters whose bats started slowly, this ignominious slot is clearly Eduardo Escobar’s. Escobar was already in hot water with many Mets fans who wanted Brett Baty to be the starting third baseman. After five months of subpar play in 2022, starting slowly in 2023 was not the way Escobar envisioned things.

Escobar is 1-for-16 with seven strikeouts and no walks to begin the season. He also has -1 DRS.

With Baty’s early Triple-A statline of 5-for-14 with a double and two homers, including a grand slam, plus several highlight-reel plays defensively, Escobar may soon be in hot water among home fans.