Carson Benge entered Wednesday’s series finale against the Padres in a bit of a dry spell at the plate. He had gone just 1-for-10 in his previous three games after his 18-game on-base streak was snapped. The young outfielder snapped out of that little slump, though, going 2-for-4 and hitting a home run, furthering his candidacy for National League Rookie of the Year.

Benge’s day began with a groundout to second base in his first at-bat. In his second at-bat, Benge worked a full count against Michael King, then drove a sinker over the wall in left field for a two-run homer, giving the Mets a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning. It was Benge’s 15th homer of the year, making him just the second Mets rookie to reach 15 homers and 15 steals in a season, joining Darryl Strawberry in 1983. Benge collected his second hit of the day in the seventh inning when he legged out an infield single on a grounder to Sung-Mun Song.

Wednesday’s performance pushed Benge’s OPS back up to .752 – and his .280 xBA, .341 xwOBA and .439 xSLG all exceeded his actual marks, which suggest there is still room for him to grow. He currently sits second among National League rookies in fWAR at 2.9, trailing only JJ Wetherholt, who has a 4.4. When looking at other Rookie of the Year candidates, Sal Stewart leads the field in terms of counting stats, as he has clubbed 27 homers and driven in a major league-leading 94 runs. Wetherholt leads the pack in defensive metrics, boasting an impressive 22 OAA. However, Wetherholt’s bat has lagged behind, posting just a .677 OPS since May 1. Benge, meanwhile, has recovered nicely from a horrific start to the year, batting .295/.353/.455 with 14 homers since April 23. Stewart, who got off to a red-hot start to the year, has posted a solid .768 OPS since May 1, though he has also hit 18 homers and driven in 65 runs over that time frame. Like Benge, Stewart grades out as an average defender by OAA, though Benge’s arm ranks in the 99th percentile in both arm value (5) and arm strength (96 mph).

On the surface, Wetherholt leads the pack in overall value, and Stewart’s counting stats will certainly win him some votes. However, Benge has been more consistent over the last four months, which is allowing him to narrow the gap between him and the other candidates. If Benge continues to perform this way down the stretch, it will be difficult for voters to deny him the hardware.