He’s Baa-aack… Or maybe not, but during the Mets 4-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks, there was an actual Lucas Duda sighting at Citi Field
No, not that wind-sucking Lucas Duda we’ve seen over the last two months, but the deluxe version we remember from April and May when he boasted a .989 OPS.
For the first time since June 18, Duda blasted a home run – a three-run shot over the center field wall that would prove to be the difference maker in the game.
Since that last homerun, Duda was hitting just .121 with a .368 OPS and 27 strikeouts in that 18 game span.
He also struck out twice and grounded into a double play, but the home run was good to see and perhaps it’s something the slumping slugger could build on.
“I’m definitely not doing what I’m capable of,” Duda remarked. “I’m not helping the team in the ways that I should. So I’ll play these next two games, take the All-Star break off, kind of take a deep breath and relax a bit, and then get back to work.”
Understanding the importance of getting Duda going, manager Terry Collins sounded hopeful.
“Tonight the two guys we hope to ride in the second half broke out a little bit. If we get Cuddy and Lucas going, it just changes the whole dynamic of the lineup.”
A now clean-shaven Duda still has a long way to go before we can all breathe easy again. But for at least one night, he came through for the Mets and it may be a sign that better days are coming for him and his offense-starved team.
July 10
Lucas Duda continues to struggle mightily at the plate and despite all the mental breaks, games off, extra batting practice, and watching videos with Kevin Long, nothing seems to be working.
“It’s a pretty prolonged stretch for me, just because I’m not doing the things I’m capable of,” Duda told reporters.
Duda, who has just one home run since May 29, produced a .576 OPS in June, and that number has dwindled to a pathetic .267 for the first eight games of July. (New York Post)
“We gave him a mental break and he came back and hasn’t gotten a hit since, but I’m not overly concerned,” said hitting coach Kevin Long. “I think Lucas Duda is a very good hitter and he’s capable of still putting together a very good season.”
The Mets are concerned that Duda has fallen into some old mechanical problems with his swing and that the 29-year old is struggling with his timing at the plate. (Daily News)
“He’s swinging at some fastballs that he is a little bit tardy on, some of the offspeed pitches he is a little out front on, a little in between. That is kind of what happens when you struggle a little bit,” Long said.
”We’re just trying to slow things down. Manage his leg kick a little bit better, see if we can’t get him back on track.”
With the Mets dead last in the majors with a .653 OPS, and second to last in runs scored and on-base, they can ill-afford Lucas Duda carrying this slump over to the second half of the season.
One thing that hasn’t been mentioned is whether Duda’s next contract is adding some additional pressure on him after he reportedly turned down a three year contract extension from the Mets last April.
Duda is batting .175 over his last 100 plate appearances. He’s not making any contact and he looks like a deer in the headlights when he’s up at the plate.
He’s taking first pitch strikes at an alarming rate and once he’s in the hole he’s just chasing pitches out of the zone like we saw a lot of in 2013 before his breakthrough in 2014.
Basically he just looks lost up there and he must find a way to work his way out of this slump if the Mets are to have any chance to make some noise in the second half.
