Surprises and disappointments five games into the Mets’ season

The hardest columns for me to write are the ones that happen in the first week to 10 days of the season. It’s difficult to come up with a new angle or a different take than what everyone else is writing at this point. With that as the backdrop, here are my surprises and disappointments in the young season. And for the love of God, don’t be Captain Obvious and say how these are small samples. Of course they F!@#$%g are – only five games have been played.

Surprises/Good Things
All around strong play for Eduardo Escobar – feel confident when a ball is hit to him.
A 19.0 BB% for Francisco Lindor. There’s no need for him to try to be the hero in every PA.
The hits falling in for Jeff McNeil. The guy who it was probably most important to get off to a good start.
The hits really falling in for Mark Canha.
Starling Marte looking very comfortable in RF despite never playing it before in the majors.
The absolute dominance of the SP, even with Jacob deGrom on the shelf. Thru five games, the starters have a 1.46 ERA with a 14.5 K/BB rate.

Disappointments
Ten PA and no XBH for Dominic Smith
James McCann with just a 12.5 pull% which has led to a .444 OPS. Sell out for power already, it’s the best way for him to be offensively useful.
Pete Alonso’s running. Hire a real running coach from the track and field space and overhaul his stride because he runs like a doofus.
A 0.17 BB/K ratio for Brandon Nimmo.
Robinson Cano with more PA than either J.D. Davis or Smith.
Four relivers with at least a 6.75 ERA, including both guys who throw with their left hand.

*****

One additional mention that’s not a surprise, is definitely not a good thing and too predictable to be a disappointment. The hits are falling in for Cano, who has a .375 BABIP. But despite that elevated mark, he has just a .606 OPS because he’s continued to flounder when it comes to hitting for power. He’s hit some balls hard, so it’s not a complete failure. But the trend since the second half of the 2020 season is not good. Counting his last 216 PA in games in MLB, Winter League play and Spring Training, Cano has 11 XBH. Usually old guys retain power, if not add in that department, but that’s not what we’re seeing here. Cano really needs to start hitting some doubles and/or homers to justify continued playing time. Davis had 211 PA last year and had 17 XBH. And that was while dealing with hand injuries, which are known to sap power. Jose Peraza had 154 PA last year and 13 XBH and the Mets never gave a second thought to bringing him back.