I do not understand the group of Mets fans who do not like Carlos Beltran. I could even take that one step further and say that I do not understand the group of Mets fans who do not call Beltran one of their favorites, but I’ll refrain from that as I technically cannot tell you who your favorite players should be.

But Beltran should be one, especially if you are going by everything he achieved while with the Mets. In 149 games, he hit .280/.369/.500. He ranks sixth on the Mets’ all-time list in home runs (149), RBI (559), extra-base hits (374), on-base percentage (.369) and slugging percentage (.500).

Let’s not forget to mention the four All-Star games he appeared in, two Gold Gloves he won, two Fielding Bible Awards, and his two Silver Sluggers. Plus, his Mets home run record (tied with Todd Hundley) stood up until this year, when Pete Alonso broke it.

His mechanics both out in the field and at the plate (well, most of the time) were to be admired. In 2006, when he won his first Gold Glove Award, he made only two errors in 372 chances, giving him a .995 fielding percentage. This also included making six double plays and thirteen outfield assists.

Yet that’s not enough for some. Unfortunately, too many solely remember him for striking out looking against the Cardinals in Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS. The three home runs he hit in the NLCS are forgotten. Not one of his finest moments, but that doesn’t overshadow all of the above.. and then some.

It also should not be a reason to not want him as the new Mets manager. I understand those of you who are hesitant because he does not have prior managerial experience. However, solely not wanting him because of this grudge? No thank you.

There is no denying Beltran’s success as a Met. Now he has the opportunity to bring that success to the Mets as a manager. I have already written about some of the perks of hiring a former player as the next manager, so I won’t get into that again.

But I will say, I am pretty pumped to see how Beltran tackles this. Does he start by going out there and just playing centerfield himself since the Mets currently do not have a centerfielder? Not the worst plan. Can he pitch? Well, he has thrown out the first pitch before so there’s that tad bit of experience.

For all Mets fans who have a bad taste in their mouth from Beltran, I hope that his time as manager proves that otherwise. For all of us fans who call Beltran one of their favorite Mets, I hope he becomes one of our favorite managers as well. There is one thing that should not be an argument though, and that is how much Beltran brought to the team as a player.