Jeff McNeil, INF/OF

Player Data: Age: 27 B/T: L/R
Primary Stats: 133 G (567 PA), .318/.384/.531, 38 2B, 1 3B, 23 HR, 75 RBIs, 75 K, 35 BB
Advanced Stats: 143 wRC+, -2.9 BsR, .384 wOBA, 13.2 K%, 6.2 BB%, .337 BABIP, 4.6 fWAR, 5 bWAR
Defensive Stats: 0 DRS, 0.1 UZR/244.2 at 2B, 3 DRS, 2.4 UZR/154.1 at 3B, 2 DRS, -0.5 UZR/671 in OF

Free Agent: 2025
2019 Salary: $567,714

Grade: A+

2019 Review

Sophomore year in the majors for Jeff McNeil went extremely well. Our secret weapon/super utility, McNeil exceeded expectations and did beyond what was expected of him. Getting in work at four different positions while excelling at all of them, he posted a 5 WAR for the year.

Having never played two out of his four positions in the majors prior to this year, McNeil still found a way to impress his team time and time again. With only 11 errors across four positions, he ended the year with 3 DRS across those four positions.

The first half of the year boded well for McNeil, as he batted .349/.409/.509, just dominating month after month, with his batting average never falling below .270. This feat earned him a spot on the National League All-Star Game roster as an outfielder. McNeil’s first half showcased his slap hitting abilities with 23 of his 38 doubles coming before July, and his only triple coming in the first month of the season.

Shockingly, McNeil’s second half took a turn, not necessarily for the worse, but a turn towards power hitting. His first signs of power came from his home run on July 26, the same day he met and decided to adopt his dog. Ever since that day in July, McNeil’s bat had more pop, which is reflected by his 16 homers in the second half of the season, doubling his total (seven) from the first half.

During the second half of the season, while McNeil hit more for power than contact, he slumped a bit to finish the season. Nonetheless, his .278/.347/.567 batting line with seven homers and five doubles for the month of September aren’t as bad as they seem. But, compared to the rest of the season, it looks low for McNeil especially compared to how well he was doing the rest of the year.

McNeil’s offensive totals for 2019 placed him in the top 10 in a few interesting offensive categories: batting average (.318, 4th), OBP (.384, 8th), doubles (38, 5th), Adjusted OPS+ (144, 6th), Adjusted batting runs (34, 8th), Adjusted batting wins (3.2, 8th) and Offensive win percentage (.697, 7th). Additionally, McNeil was also fifth highest in the MLB in HBP with 21, which was the reason his season ended early.

On September 25, Jeff McNeil left the game early after being plunked on the wrist by a pitch, resulting in a right distal ulnar fracture on his right wrist. This was the last we saw of McNeil in 2019.

2020 Outlook

While there are rumors floating around about the Cleveland Indians having interest in McNeil (who wouldn’t with numbers like that?), it is very unlikely that he will be traded any time soon. Brodie Van Wagenen has made it very clear to the media that Jeff McNeil will play third among other positions for the Mets in 2020.

McNeil’s numbers have only trended upwards since his debut in 2018, and there is no reason to believe he is on any decline in the coming years. This upcoming 2020 season for McNeil will include him in whatever starting role available to him, whether he is filling in for an injured player or just the better of two options at third base. Regardless, he will be in the lineup every day. With numbers like he had in 2019 and coming off an All-Star season, McNeil will be an everyday starter for the Mets.

Given the additions of Jake Marisnick, the possible return of Yoenis Cespedes, Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo starting everyday, and J.D. Davis as an outfield option, the outfield is a bit crowded, so it is likely that we will see more of McNeil in the infield during 2020.

It will be interesting to see how McNeil incorporates his power hitting abilities into his plethora of talents at the plate in 2020 or if he will revert back to his slap hitting ways. McNeil has been crucial to the Mets’ success this last year and a half, and if the team has any plans to compete in the future he needs to just keep doing what he has been.