New York Mets: Jay Bruce Will Be The X-Factor This Season

I am aware that it is still early in the MLB season. However, in the first few weeks of the year, Jay Bruce seems to be coming out of the gate strong. He has four homers, nine runs batted in, and has a batting average of .271. For a guy who New York Mets fans wanted to run out of town this past offseason, he is proving so far that he is going to be a force to be reckoned with.

You can make the argument that Yoenis Cespedes is the best hitter in the New York Mets lineup. While his average is a bit below Jay Bruce at .250, Cespedes has six homers and has driven in ten runs so far. I see Bruce as being the x-factor over guys like Cespedes, Curtis Granderson, and Michael Conforto. Unless he is injured or just needs a breather, I hope that Terry Collins doesn’t take him out of the lineup. It is worth noting that the Mets are tied for the most homers and runs batted in thus far in the young season.

[Jon]

If he continues to play at the level that he is playing, he could be looking at close to a 25 homer season and close to eighty runs batted in. It is also worth noting that in this lineup, that will go very far because it means that the pressure for runs doesn’t need to come from one specific person like Cespedes, Lucas Duda, and others.

It seems that for some people playing in New York requires you to be on the verge of being run out of town before you start playing well. Just ask New York Giants’ Quarterback Eli Manning, who was almost being run out of town back in 2006. He ended up leading the Giants to a win in the 2007 Super Bowl against the New England Patriots.

The New York Mets have wrapped up their series against the Miami Marlins over the Easter weekend. Their off day is Monday before they begin a three-game set against the Phillies on Tuesday.