Tuesday night, the Mets got “Tatis’d”. The Mets lost game two of a three-game set with the Padres by a final score of 5-2. Fernando Tatis Jr. hit two home runs off of Zac Thornton, drove in a trio of runs, and robbed a potential game winning grand slam off the bat of Francisco Lindor.
Unfortunately, games like that happen over the course of a 162-game season. Elite players have elite games.
Overall, the Mets offense struggled to find any sort of rhythm, adding only six hits, and going 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. The lone bright spot was Luis Torrens, who continued his absolute scorching tear with another multi-hit game and his seventh home run of the year.
Just how hot has Torrens been at the plate recently? Well, I am glad you asked. Since the trade deadline, here’s where Torrens ranks amongst all MLB hitters with at least 20 plate appearances: 1st in wRC+, 1st in batting average, 1st in OBP, 1st in slugging percentage, 1st in wOBA, and tied for 7th in fWAR. Torrens is slashing a ridiculous .476/.560/1.190 (1.750 OPS) since the trade deadline.
Overall, on the year, his wRC+ is over league average now at 101. When you pair league average offense with elite defense, this makes Torrens a very valuable piece. In fact, this recent hot stretch has actually moved Torrens above Francisco Alvarez on the year for fWAR at the catcher position. For all catchers with at least 200 PA, Torrens’ 2.0 fWAR ranks 10th in the majors, and Alvarez’s 1.6 fWAR ranks 14th.
Well, what exactly does this mean for the Mets? It means two things: First, if Torrens can provide league average offense, it makes his two year 11.5M extension signed back in May a fantastic deal. Second, it gives Andy Green the opportunity to use lineups with Alvarez at DH and Torrens at C. This maximizes offense without minimizing defense due to Alvarez’s struggles at the catcher position. Although Alvarez has been struggling since the deadline, he is still a very productive hitter. Getting more chances to put a bat like his (114 wRC+) in the lineup as much as possible is always a good thing, especially versus left-handed pitching. Torrens being a plus, or even league average bat, unlocks this opportunity.
The catching position is extremely barren in terms of talent. There are very few catchers in the game who play well on both sides of the ball. The Mets having two top 15 catchers and trailing only the Dodgers, in my opinion, for the best catching tandem in baseball should not go unnoticed. Especially when you factor in Alvarez’s injury history, having someone who can play at a serviceable level behind him is very valuable.
With Torrens and Alvarez each under team control for multiple more years gives David Stearns comfort to build the rest of the roster this offseason. And I think we all know there are several holes in the roster that need to be filled.
