What does Brandon Nimmo need to do to be an All-Star?

Plus, the Mets were down to their last strike but came back to beat the Pirates on Sunday afternoon

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What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️

• The Mets outlasted the Pirates to win the third game of their series in Pittsburgh by the score of 3-2 (Box)

• Sean Manaea started for New York and was excellent, firing six scoreless innings while scattering two hits, issuing three walks, and striking out six hitters

• With a 1-0 lead in the 8th with two outs and two on, Edwin Diaz issued a walk and allowed a two-run single, allowing both of the runners he inherited from Dedniel Nunez to score

• Brandon Nimmo collected his team leading 53rd RBI

• Down a run and facing Aroldis Chapman in the 9th, the Mets got huge at-bats from Francisco Alvarez, Harrison Bader, and Jose Iglesias to set the stage for Francisco Lindor to deliver a two-run hit to regain the lead

• After blowing the save in the 8th, Edwin Diaz went back out in the 9th and retired the Pirates in order to secure the victory

• MLB released the full All-Star Game rosters on Sunday evening, and (at least right now) Pete Alonso will be the Mets lone representative

• Alonso also announced on Sunday that he will be participating in his fourth Home Run Derby

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Who’s Hot 🔥

• Since May 1st, a span of 59 games, Francisco Lindor is hitting .287 with 10 homers, 34 RBI, and 22 doubles, 67 hits overall and 43 runs scored

• Over his last 60 games, Brandon Nimmo is hitting .274/.372/.493 with 14 doubles, a triple, 11 home runs, and 38 RBI with 61 hits and 42 runs scored

• Since being recalled from the minors on May 15, Mark Vientos is hitting .282/.337/.537 with eight doubles, ten home runs, and 27 RBI with 42 hits and 26 runs scored

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Down on the Farm 🌾

All Mets minor league affiliates were off on Sunday.

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Today’s Game 🗓

Match-up: Mets (44-44) at Pirates (42-47)

Where: PNC Park — Pittsburgh, PA

Starters: RHP Christian Scott (0-2, 4.32 ERA) vs. RHP Mitch Keller (9-5, 3.48 ERA)

When: 12:35 PM EDT

Where to Watch: SNY

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What does Brandon Nimmo have to do to go to an All-Star Game? ✍️

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On Sunday evening, Major League Baseball revealed the full All-Star Game rosters for both leagues, and the first thing I noticed when they came out was one glaring omission.

Well, maybe two but I am here to talk about one today.

In what has truly been an up and down, rollercoaster season in Queens, we all knew the National League roster for the Midsummer Classic was not going to be loaded with Mets. I think we’d all, in fact, accepted the fact that the team may well only have one representative. That is exactly how it played out, when it was publicly announced that Pete Alonso would be the lone Met heading to Arlington.

First things first, nothing against Alonso. I am as big a Pete Alonso fan as anyone and will be first and line pounding the table for the club to retain him as a free agent at years’ end. But I’m sorry, here in 2024 Alonso is just not the most deserving Met of an All-Star Game appearance.

And he’s honestly not even second either.

Thus far this season, Alonso is slashing .243/.325/.464 with 18 homers, 48 RBI, and 21 doubles. He’s not (at least to date) been able to deliver the monster contract year he had in mind heading into the campaign, and while he’ll almost certainly again participate in the home run derby, he’ll be the first to tell you he didn’t deserve the nod over some of his teammates.

Mind you, Alonso has had a consistent year by his standards. His power numbers are down slightly although he has already matched his total for doubles in 2024 than he did in 2023. Aside from that, this is basically a typical season for Alonso which - to be fair - has garnered him what is now a fourth All-Star selection in his first six seasons. So, congratulations to him, of course.

Having said that, the Met most everyone associated with the organization would have liked to see get an opportunity on the All-Star stage is Brandon Nimmo.

For the last several years, Nimmo has served as an elite on base machine in the leadoff spot for the team. This year, though, manager Carlos Mendoza reconfigured the lineup when the team was struggling, and inserted Nimmo into more of an RBI role—where he’s thrived.

The 31-year-old is well on his way to a career year in the power department, as he’s already crushed 13 long balls. His 53 RBI lead the team, he’s contributed 17 doubles, and his eight stolen bases are already one shy of a new career high. Nimmo’s batting average is currently lower than you’d expect, but his OBP is still higher than it was in both ‘23 and ‘22—two other seasons where he honestly could’ve been selected for the All-Star team.

Nimmo has more homers, RBI, and doubles than both Jackson Merrill and Heliot Ramos, and it’s a worthwhile question to ask why they were selected over him.

Here are the fWAR leaders among NL outfielders heading into play on Sunday, the day the All-Star rosters were announced:

• Jurickson Profar - 2.7 (All-Star)

• Jackson Merrill - 2.6 (All-Star)

• Fernando Tatís Jr. - 2.5 (All-Star)

• Brandon Nimmo - 2.5 (NOT an All-Star)

• Christian Yelich - 2.4 (All-Star)

• Heliot Ramos - 2.4 (All-Star)

Then there’s Francisco Lindor, who even with a disastrous April has been one of the best players in baseball this season.

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He’s slashing .250/.316/.447, is on pace to deliver a second consecutive 30/30 season, and has been the steady driving force behind the Mets recent resurgence.

None of Trea Turner, Elly De La Cruz, or C.J. Abrams are having emphatically better years, and the fact that three shortstops were selected over Lindor is just comical.

Here are the fWAR leaders among NL shortstops heading into play on Sunday, the day the All-Star rosters were announced:

• Elly De la Cruz - 4.1 (All-Star)

• Francisco Lindor - 3.3 (NOT an All-Star)

• Mookie Betts - 2.9 (All-Star)

• Willy Adames - 2.9 (NOT an All-Star)

• Ha-Seong Kim - 2.6 (NOT an All-Star)

• Trea Turner - 2.2 (All-Star)

• CJ Abrams - 2.2 (All-Star)

Now, with players like Mookie Betts and Fernando Tatis Jr. unable to participate in the game because of injury, it’s certainly possible Nimmo and Lindor are selected as an injury replacements. But the bottom line is that it’s hard to justify the league’s decision to exclude especially Nimmo in the first place.

Also - not everyone can make it, each team needs at least one representative at the event, there are positional needs and issues and all sorts of stuff that goes on behind the scenes we don’t know about. The combination of all of that goes into the roster decision making process.

The focus for every player on the Mets right now should be the team’s attempt to claim one of the final Wild Card spots in the NL coming down the stretch. But an All-Star Game appearance is a nice carrot in any player’s hat, and one I really think Nimmo deserved.

It would also be a better representation of the game’s best at the All-Star Game, that which is currently not the case with statistical proof.

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Around the League 🚩

• Willson Contreras homered and drove in three runs in the Cardinals 8-3 win in D.C.

• Matt Olson, Jarred Kelenic and Adam Duvall all homered for the Braves in a five run 2nd inning that propelled Atlanta to a rubber game win over the Phillies

• Tigers ace Tarik Skubal struck out 13 Reds hitters in seven innings en route to his 10th victory of the season

• Jake Burger crushed a walk-off three run homer against his former team to propel the Marlins to a 7-4 win over the White Sox

• Rangers rookie Wyatt Langford collected four hits in the team’s 13-2 thrashing of the Rays