Although it has appeared to be a lot better as of late, the Mets rank towards the bottom of the league in some key fundamental statistics.

According to Nick Francona on Twitter, the Mets rank worst in the Major Leagues in throwing out runners attempting to steal, bottom three in stolen base percentage, and scoring a runner on third with two outs. They also rank No. 24 in advancing a runner from second to third with no outs.

The Mets have deployed five catchers this season, Travis d’Arnaud, Kevin Plawecki, Tomas Nido, Jose Lobaton and Devin Mesoraco.

The only to throw out double-digit base runners are Mesoraco and Plawecki, who have received most of the playing time.

Only two of the catchers have a dWAR (defensive WAR) of 0.1 or higher, Plawecki and Mesoraco. Collectively, the five catchers have allowed 130 of 162 attempted runners to steal on them.

If the Mets hope to contend in 2019 and beyond, their inability to throw out runners must change. Speaking of stolen bases, New York base runners have also been thrown out 36 times attempting to steal a base.

This number doesn’t sound terrible until you realize how many attempts have been converted: 64. That’s a stolen base conversion rate of 56.25 percent, by far the lowest in baseball.

Only one Met has double-digit stolen bases: Amed Rosario with 21. While the present roster does have a lot more speed, youth and agility than in years past, the inability to steal aside from Rosario is staggering.

The team DRS (defensive runs saved) is currently -82. Yes, they’ve saved -82 runs. We all knew defense would be an issue in 2018, but a team DRS of -82 is inexcusable.

In 2018, the Mets have left an average of three runners in scoring position, which is top 10 in the league. But the inability to drive runners in from third with two outs stands out. The mark of a good, competitive team is their ability to hit in the clutch and in tough situations, and the Mets have been unable to do so.

The Mets have issues and holes to fix in the off season, that should go without saying. But the fact that the Mets rank close to, if not, last in fundamental categories shows that their needs to be a change in players and a change in approach.

New York has a core of good, young talent, but the front office needs to acknowledge some of these numbers and work thoroughly to improve on them for next year.