Eduardo Escobar Heating Up When New York Mets Need Him Most
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“One day, I’m going to give them a reason to cheer for me.”
Mets infielder Eduardo Escobar said this at the end of June.
It hasn’t been a picture perfect start to Escobar’s Mets career, though fans were certainly cheering this weekend as the third baseman launched home runs in three consecutive games against the Texas Rangers. The first of which was a key three-run shot that propelled the Mets to victory on Friday night, and the third, a two-run blast, giving his team additional breathing room in a series win on Sunday.
Overall on the season, Escobar has shown glimpses of the player he can be, like when he hit for the cycle last month in San Diego as well as muscling up on nine home runs this year, but big picture, he has underperformed.
In 71 games for New York thus far, Escobar is hitting a meager .228/.286/.408 with a 95 wRC+ and .297 wOBA.
"Honestly, there aren’t any excuses,” Escobar said via translator last month. “I come here every day, I come to work early, but at the same time the results just haven’t been there so far. I’m going to continue to work hard, I’m going to continue to have faith, and it’s still early so I’m expecting to wake up and show everybody the type of player that I really am.”
Just one year ago, Escobar was an All-Star for the Arizona Diamondbacks, before being flipped to the Milwaukee Brewers for their playoff push.
Although Escobar hasn't lived up to expectations, this past weekend could be the inciting incident he was talking about that will get him going.
Having Escobar’s bat wake up would be a huge boon to an offense that has largely been starved of power outside of Pete Alonso.
Earlier in the season, Escobar was getting on base more than ever and it looked like he had turned a corner in that area. While that has subsided, if he can give the Mets a boost of power it will make up for the lower on-base rate.
In his last five seasons, Escobar has clobbered 20+ home runs four times, including 28 last year between Arizona and Milwaukee.
While the Mets will likely be active buyers at the trade deadline next month with the Atlanta Braves breathing down their neck in second place, having an in-house offensive option performing would be significant. The Mets' offense has struggled as of late, which led to losing six out of 10 games heading into Sunday. But Escobar's bat, like Friday, was there when his team needed him the most.
Escobar himself feels like that could be true, as he said Sunday he feels “hot.”
“You work, you work, you work, and the results show right there,” Escobar said. “For me, it’s more important when we win. I feel really good right now. I feel hot.”
In the first three games of July, Escobar is batting .364 with three homers, six RBI and a 1.182 OPS. While there is still work to be done, this weekend was a positive step in the right direction for the veteran infielder.
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