Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports

Although the New York Mets dished out a four-year, $40 million contract to catcher James McCann this offseason, it is his backup Tomas Nido, who is out-playing him in the early part of the season. And once again, Nido shined on Tuesday night with the go-ahead two-run home run in the sixth inning.

The blast ultimately proved to be the deciding factor in the Mets 3-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies.

“Puerto Rican catchers, they hit later in their career,” Nido joked after the game.

Nido has slugged two home runs, while driving in six RBIs in his last seven games. His batting average has climbed up to .260, to go along with an impressive .835 OPS.

Due to the absence of Pete Alonso, J.D. Davis, Brandon Nimmo, Michael Conforto and Jeff McNeil, it is Nido who has been the Mets best hitter lately with Francisco Lindor, Dominic Smith and McCann all struggling.

Injuries on the roster, along with a red-hot bat have helped Nido receive regular playing time for the first time in his career and he is taking advantage of the opportunity.

“If my name is in the lineup, I’m ready to go,” said Nido. “So I’m trying to build a consistent routine.”

“I put in a lot of work this offseason and the previous offseason, so I’m ready for whatever role they throw at me,” said Nido.

With all the injuries to the Mets’ lineup, McCann has been seeing time at first base for the first time in his big league career, with Nido getting the bulk of the catching duties. But even before Alonso hit the injured list last Friday, Mets manager Luis Rojas said the team needs to ride the hot hand behind the plate and that means giving more playing time to Nido.

When asked if Nido would continue to get the majority of the playing time over McCann upon Alonso’s return, Rojas said it was too early to commit to that given the uncertainty of Alonso’s status.

For now, Rojas is pleased with how both of his catchers are performing. McCann hit a big home run on Monday night and is starting to swing the bat a little better over the course of the last few games. But if Nido keeps hitting like this, it will be hard to keep him out of the lineup moving forward, even as the Mets get some reinforcements back.