Fanduel
Log In
The Duel

3 Stats That Prove the Mets Are Legitimate World Series Contenders

By michael obermuller

Francisco Lindor is a New York Met, and this team has become a legitimate World Series contender.
Francisco Lindor is a New York Met, and this team has become a legitimate World Series contender. / Mark Brown/Getty Images
facebooktwitterreddit

Ever since hedge-fund billionaire Steve Cohen purchased the New York Mets, the talk surrounding the team has been different than in years past. After all, on paper the Mets are now the richest franchise in all of baseball, a sport where money talks.

Whether it's based on hype or an excellent offseason, the Amazin's are now tied for fifth-best odds to win the World Series in 2021 at +1000, on FanDuel Sportsbook. The team they are tied with is even more interesting, their long-time division rival, the Atlanta Braves.

So is this type of praise legitimate when the Mets have consistently fallen short of their projections in recent years? Here are three stats that explain why these odds are justified.

3. .459 Slugging Percentage

Pete Alonso, Dominic Smith, Andres Gimenez, Michael Conforto
The Mets young core of sluggers is one of the best in baseball. / Steven Ryan/Getty Images

It might come to some as a surprise that the Mets had the fourth best slugging percentage in the MLB last season at .459. Only the Los Angeles Dodgers, Braves and San Diego Padres were better in this regard, and that was after a down year by first baseman Pete Alonso. This lineup has plenty of pop that is entering its prime, led by Michael Conforto, Dom Smith, Jeff McNeil and J.D. Davis. Don't forget that they also added Francisco Lindor and James McCann this offseason, making one of the most powerful one-through-eight lineups in all of baseball.

2. 10.06 Strikeouts per Nine Innings

Jacob deGrom
Look no further than Jacob deGrom when discussing the Mets and their strikeout ratio. / G Fiume/Getty Images

The Mets pitching staff was one of the best in terms of striking out batters in 2020, with 10.06 K/9. The only teams with a better K/9 ratio were the Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Indians. Since then, the staff has improved dramatically, adding Carlos Carrasco (10.8 K/9 the last three seasons), Trevor May (14.7 K/9 in 2020) and Taijuan Walker (8.4 K/9 in 2020) among others. Flamethrower Noah Syndergaard is also expected to return at some point this season. If opposing teams cannot make contact, it's impossible to get hits, making strikeouts per nine a nice stat to excel at.

1. .348 On-Base Percentage

Lead-off hitter Brandon Nimmo held an on-base percentage of .404 last year.
Lead-off hitter Brandon Nimmo held an on-base percentage of .404 last year. / Mitchell Layton/Getty Images

This Mets lineup has not changed all too much since 2020, outside of the major upgrades at shortstop and at catcher. The bench depth has also improved dramatically with bats like Jonathan Villar, Kevin Pillar and Jose Martinez coming aboard. Before all those changes, NYM had the second-best on-base percentage (OBP) in all of baseball in 2020 (one percentage point behind the Braves). The problem was getting those runners home for New York, but with Lindor and McCann joining the fold you have to expect that will change in 2021.

Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook today and get your first bet risk free for up to $1,000!

Michael Obermuller is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Michael Obermuller also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username king_mizzard. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Home/Buzz - deleted