Mets Rookie Crop Shines Through

The Mets have a ton of rookies, and though some of them have experience elsewhere, in MLB terms they are rookies.

The current crop is as good as any the club has had in recent memory.

• Hisanori Takahashi--4-1, 2.13 ERA, now in the starting rotation
• Ike Davis--.866 OPS, anchor at 1B, batting cleanup
• Jennry Mejia--3.43 ERA, key setup man
• Jonathan Niese--4.79 ERA, lefthanded starter
  
• Raul Valdes--2.86 ERA, long man +
• Ryota Igarashi--1.38 WHIP, setup man with "8th inning guy" potential and 95 mph fastball
• Chris Carter--.313 Batting Average, primary lefthanded pinch hitter

Of the traditional rookies, Ike Davis has shined brightest, stabilizing both the defense and anchoring the offense with a heady professionalism seen in players a decade his senior.

The pitchers have made the biggest contributions and now comprise 40% of the starting rotation.

Takahashi has been nothing short of spectacular, and Jonathan Niese comes back from injury looking to re-fire what was an excellent start to his season.

The rookies have made the biggest contribution in the bullpen.

Jennry Mejia, the youngest player in the game, is learning on the fly, and he has met the challenge both in pressure and non-pressure situations.

The "older rookies", Ryota Igarashi and Raul Valdes, are big contributors, and both have the experience and the stuff to get hitters out late in the game.

Chris Carter brings fire, passion, and a strong lefthanded bat.  He has come through in key RBI situations and is limited only by his weak defense and the fact that there just aren't that many at-bats for him--yet--in this lineup.

All in all a terrific rookie class that contributes on a nightly basis.

While the Mets didn't make many big splashes in the off-season,  the little splashes are doing just fine.