3 Reasons to Believe That the Mets Can Still Contend in the NL East

After the New York Mets lost six consecutive games dating back to the first half of the season, people gave up on the Mets.

Even I said that they were pretenders. However, they can and will contend for a Wild Card spot or even the division title.

David Wright is leading the way for a team that has surprised just about everyone with their play. The Mets are 47-45 and 7.5 games back of the first-place Nationals in the NL East, but all it takes is some good moves at the trade deadline to improve the team and get them back in the playoff hunt.

Here are three reasons to believe that the Mets can still contend for a playoff spot.

Good, Clutch Hitting

Even though the Mets lost five games to open up the second half, the hitting has still been good.

In six second-half games, the Mets have averaged just under five runs per game. David Wright has three home runs in the Mets' last two games, and the Mets combined to hit six home runs in their three-game series against the Nationals.

New York leads the league in two-out RBI, and even though they don't seem to have too much talent on offense, the team has scored more runs than 19 teams. David Wright has knocked in 65 runs and hit 14 homers, and he is among the league leaders with a .353 batting average and a .443 on-base percentage. Wright's patience and ability to hit the ball into the gaps has really helped the Mets.

However, even though a lot of key players have bad stats, the Mets have come through with runners on base. Hits don't really count if the guys who get the hits don't score or knock in a run, and the Mets make sure that hits aren't wasted. 

Against the Nats in the series finale, New York racked up 11 hits and Washington racked up 14. However, the Mets scored nine runs and the Nationals scored five, which is what lifted the Mets to victory. If someone got on base for the Mets, the next hitter rewarded them.

In the first inning, Andres Torres hit a ground ball to second base, and second baseman Steve Lombardozzi didn't charge the ball. Torres hustled and beat out the throw to first, and Wright, the next batter, hit a two-run home run.

Two innings later, Ruben Tejada singled and Andres Torres hit a ground-rule double. Even though Scott Hairston hit into a double-play (after Wright walked), both scored runs. Thanks to this, the Mets were able to blow out the Nats.

And it's not the first time this year that the Mets have done this.

Well-Rounded Pitching Staff

The Mets knew someone in the pitching staff would have to step up and pitch like a Cy Young winner for the team to contend. Luckily, one player has done that.

R.A Dickey is 13-1 with a 2.72 ERA this year, and he threw back-to-back one-hitters in June. In the finale against the Nats, he allowed three earned runs in 7.1 innings. Dickey got into jams, but he made his pitches with runners on base to work out of jams.

Dickey has been known for striking hitters out and getting out of jams. He has a great knuckleball, and even though he rarely throws faster than 85 mph, he mixes up his pitches effectively to keep hitters off-balance. Dickey knows how to jam hitters, so it's very hard to make good contact off of him.

That's why he is among the league leaders with a 1.01 WHIP, and that's why he has only allowed 10 homers this year.

New York has also received production from some other starters. Jonathon Niese and Chris Young have been stellar, although Young can't go too deep into a game (and that's a problem with the Mets' horrible bullpen). Johan Santana is 6-6 with a 3.59 ERA, and even though he is inconsistent, he stitched his name into Mets' lure with the first no-hitter in franchise history.

Star pitching prospects Matt Harvey and Zach Wheeler are in the minors, and they will dominate for years to come. Both could come up at any time (although Harvey would come up if the Mets decided to have one of them start). 

Everyone on the pitching staff has done a nice job. Expect Niese and Young to do well at the bottom of the rotation and expect Dickey to continue to pitch well. I don't think Santana will have a great second half, but the Mets could always call up Harvey to replace him or Miguel Batista.

Sandy Alderson Knows What to Do at the Trade Deadline

The New York Mets have exceeded expectations, but they definitely need to patch up some holes.

Mets fans sweat every time the starting pitcher gives way to the worst bullpen in the majors. The bullpen has a horrific 5.03 (combined) ERA, and the team has the second-most blown saves in the majors. In the three-game series against the Nationals, the Mets bullpen allowed seven runs in 6.2 innings pitched.

Bobby Parnell, the team's "closer," is 2-for-7 on save opportunities with a 3.35 ERA. The Mets can't go on with this bullpen, since it's now costing them games. Luckily for the Mets, there are a lot of relievers on the market.

And GM Sandy Alderson will go after them.

According to SBNation, the Mets could target Grant Balfour or Jonathan Broxton. Both would provide much-needed help to a terrible bullpen, and whoever the Mets brought in would probably close. The Mets could give away a few average prospects and hold on to their best prospects if they traded for one of these two.

New York could go after a right-handed bat as well. They have a good infield, and now that first baseman Ike Davis is finding his stroke, the team has a much better offense. New York is relatively thin in the outfield, but Andres Torres is starting to hit better.

Torres is getting on base and hustling every time he hits the ball, and with him, Jason Bay, Jordany Valdespin, Lucas Duda, Scott Hairston and Kirk Nieuwenhuis in the outfield, the Mets probably won't go after a bat. They have a capable player at every position, although they could use an upgrade at some positions.

The offense is fine, and thanks to clutch hitting, New York is scoring. However, the bullpen has been terrible and the Mets need to do something about it. Alderson knows what the team needs, and he will probably pursue a reliever that comes at a low price.