Mets’ ‘Other Guys’ hitting too

Ever see the Will Ferrell movie The Other Guys? In the movie, a mousy Ferrell and a misunderstood Mark Wahlberg play a couple of overlooked police detectives while living in the shadow of ‘super cops’ portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.

I don’t want to spoil the movie if you haven’t seen it, but are you sensing a parallel theme here when it comes it comes to the Mets? Well, substitute Jackson and ‘The Rock’ with Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran and you will see where this is headed.

Anomalies of all anomalies are transforming the usually meek New York Mets’ lineup into the second coming of the ‘Big Red Machine’ or ‘Murderer’s Row.’

The once punch-less Mets have recently ambushed American League pitching and have scored an astounding 52 runs (a club record in a four game stretch) on 69 hits in their last four contests at Texas and Detroit. Where is this offensive splurge coming from?

Well, for one you know it starts with Reyes. This shouldn’t surprise anyone. Reyes is just on an incredible tear, and there are hardly any superlatives left to describe the sensational season he is having.

In the last four games, Reyes is 12 for 21 with nine runs, four stolen bases and two triples.

Of course, a good run producing streak would not be possible without the Mets’ most consistent slugger in Beltran. Beltran is eight for 20 in the last four games to go along with one home run, nine RBI’s and seven runs.

And slowly but surely Jason Bay is getting out of his funk. In his last four games, Bay is five for 16 with six RBI’s, while also ending the Mets notorious grand slam drought on Tuesday night.

But, you know what you are getting with Reyes and Beltran. And when it comes to Bay, you know, this is what the Mets paid for. So, it’s not like his production is some sort of aberration.

However, lost in the shuffle is just how outstanding a couple of ‘other guys’ have been.

A few in particular that have really stood out are Daniel Murphy, Ronny Paulino and Angel Pagan.

I have already lauded the importance of Pagan before, but he is just raking at the moment while also being a terror on the basepaths. Pagan is eight for 17 with five RBI’s, seven runs and two stolen bases in his last four games.

Murphy’s maturation at the plate has to be commended too. Murphy is hitting lefties almost just as good as righties now, and is taking his game to a new level delivering clutch hit after clutch hit.

Murphy is eight for 21 in his last four games to go with nine RBI’s and six runs.

Meanwhile, Paulino is just a flat-out terror on lefties, while also showing he’s no liability against righties. In his last four games, Paulino is 10 for 19 with four doubles and seven runs. Paulino even hit in the cleanup spot on Wednesday night and looked as comfortable as he’s ever been.

Let’s also not forget the contributions that fringe players such as Lucas Duda, Scott Hairston, Willie Harris and Ruben Tejada have provided the team.

Duda was marvelous on Saturday with a 4-5 day at the plate with three doubles and four RBI’s.

Hairston has been a sparkplug in interleague play too. Hairston got things going in Detroit on Wednesday with a three-run triple. Even Harris is getting in the action. Harris is five for his last 12 with two RBI’s and four runs.

And while we marvel at Tejada’s presence in the field, he has been no slouch at the plate either going five for 13 with three RBI’s in is last four games.

Obviously the Mets will not sustain this type of offensive production, but it sure is fun to watch in the meantime. With the Mets facing Justin Verlander today and with the Subway Series on tap this weekend, it sure is a great pick me-up for the Mets to be two games over .500 and showing signs of life on offense.

The juggernaut that has been the Mets offense has also been a welcome relief to a pitching staff that has, for too long, kept this team afloat. It’s good to see both the pitching and offense come together in June, a month that has seen the Mets go 16-10.

So, while we praise the like of Reyes and Beltran and politic their way to get on the All-Star team, don’t forget the ‘other guys.’