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New York Mets: Amed Rosario gives Mets fans a reason to watch

By Gary DeOliveira

NEW YORK, NY - JULY 13: Amed Rosario #1 of the New York Mets rounds second base on his way to a second inning triple against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field on July 13, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JULY 13: Amed Rosario #1 of the New York Mets rounds second base on his way to a second inning triple against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field on July 13, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /
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As the New York Mets’ brutal 2018 season reaches the dog days of summer, the progress of Amed Rosario will be something to watch for.

2018 has clearly not gone the way the New York Mets and their fans had hoped for.

Their three main acquisitions from the off-season, Jay Bruce, Todd Frazier, and Jason Vargas, have all spent time on the DL and have produced much less than expected when healthy.

The sizzling 11-1 start faded just as quickly as it came and leaves the team sitting 16 games under .500 at the all-star break.

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In fact, the Mets sit in the basement of the NL East. Somehow, they are behind the Marlins, whose front office has formed a team in the hopes that they lose. The Mets are worse than a team that is tanking.

With 68 games left in the season, Mets fans need some reason to tune into SNY every night at 7 p.m.

That reason lies with Shortstop Amed Rosario. Rosario, the former top-five prospect in all of baseball, has struggled for most of this season.

His plate discipline improved minimally from last year with his on-base percentage still hovering below .290.

Yet, things seemed to change for Rosario in this last homestand before the all-star break.

In the last nine games, Rosario hit .281 with an OBP of .324, according to FanGraphs. Most notably, Rosario’s Slugging Percentage jumped to .563, about 184 points higher than his season average.

Rosario tallied 3 doubles and 3 triples over that span, with 2 of the triples coming in the same game.

Coaches have been praising Rosario’s hard work, and it is finally starting to show on the field. Rosario’s promotion to the majors last summer marked the biggest Mets offensive prospect called up since, at least, Michael Conforto in the summer of 2015.

His success is vital to any plan the Mets have to contend in the future. There has been a gaping hole at the shortstop position since Jose Reyes, fresh off a batting title, left for Miami after the 2011 season.

The list of names who have tried to fill that hole includes Ruben Tejada, Omar Quintanilla, Wilmer Flores, and even for a time, Jordany Valdespin.

If Rosario can continue to improve throughout the rest of this season, the Mets rebuild completely changes.

Having a stable shortstop in place will ease the rest of the rebuild. Building a viable major league shortstop through the farm system is one of the hardest things a team can attempt to do.

That position requires so much skill and finesse. Most players are not cut out for it and do better at a corner position.

Next: Give Oswalt reps

Mets fans can have hope over the last 68 games Rosario can continue his newfound success.  This would change the outlook of the Mets rebuild over the next three to five years.

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