A Proposed 2019 Mets Starting Lineup

If you haven't viewed it yet, a website worth visiting is Roster Resource. On its Mets page is its projected 2019 starting lineup for the team. Hopefully, that won't be the one we see on opening day.

Today, we'll look at the hitters Roster Resource projects in the top-third of the lineup.

In the first spot is RF Brandon Nimmo. He might not be the league's best lead-off hitter, but in 2018 leading off he hit .266 with an OBP of .387. Baseball Reference predicts that in 2019 he will hit .262. 

Surprisingly in 2018, he was #1 in MLB in HBP, getting hit 22 times. That stat reminded me of Ron Hunt, an ex-Met on the team from 1963-1966. During that time he was hit by a pitch 41 times; then, after he was traded, while playing for Montreal (1971) he was hit by a pitch 50 times, which helped to boost his OBP to .402 even though his BA was only .279.

In the second slot is 3B Todd Frazier. In the past three seasons, Frazier hit .225, .213, and .213. In 2018, he batted second in 10 games and hit .214 with 17 SO and 1 BB in 43 PA. In his eight seasons in MLB he hit above .234 only three times. In the other seasons his average ranged from .213 to .234.

Baseball Reference predicts Frazier will hit .219 in 2019. Since he has not hit above .225 since 2015, his stats should qualify him for a place in the lower half of the lineup, maybe the sixth or seventh spot, not the #2 position.

In the third spot is 2B Robinson Cano, at 36 the oldest player in the starting lineup, and the only newcomer to the team in the Roster Resource lineup. Baseball Reference predicts that in 2019 he will hit .275, his lowest BA since 2008 when he hit .271 for the Yankees. 

I disagree with that prediction. In 2018, Cano played from March 29 until May 13 when he was suspended for 80 games for testing positive for the diuretic furosemide. Before the suspension, he was hitting .287/.385/.441. He returned to play on August 14. At season's end, he had increased his batting average to .303 and his slugging percentage to .471; however, his OBP dropped to .374. Because of that second half performance and the fact that from 2015-2017 he hit .287, .298, and .280 I think it is more likely in 2019 that he will hit about .290.

Next, the middle of the lineup.