The New York Mets reunited with Carlos Gomez, who was also a New York Met in 2007 with Jason Vargas. While the reunion was not successful, Gomez still supplied some memorable moments for the Mets.
Carlos Gomez is the Cardi B of baseball. (And I love it).#Mets pic.twitter.com/e30Jim1GbN
— Brad ?? (@celeBRADtion) May 24, 2019
Gomez signed a minor league contract before spring training and was hitting .270 with six home runs in triple-A before the Mets called him up. The Mets called Gomez up after designating Keon Broxton for assignment. Gomez is known as one of the brighter personalities across baseball, and his “YE YE YE” became infections in the clubhouse.
Not the Same Gomez
The Mets hoped Gomez would return to his 2015 form when he almost became a Met. Unfortunately, he was not an upgrade from Broxton. He was 17-for-86 (.198) with three home runs and 10 RBIs. Since 2015, his average has been at .255 or lower as he hit a quick decline in talent. Gomez was still a threat on the bases as he had four in five attempts.
No one has more fun playing baseball than Carlos Gomez exhibit 5,000pic.twitter.com/fzo0dWEbkt
— Céspedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) May 23, 2019
He fit with the theme of average to below-average defense in the Mets outfield. At age 33, it was hard to expect him to play the same defense from his gold glove days but still was an excellent veteran presence on the field. His time as a Met was cut short when he was on July 3. In his last 39 at-bats, he had seven hits, and his final days with the team were spent as a defensive replacement or pinch-runner.
A significant regression and Gomez being 34 next season will probably force him to latch on to another minor league contract for 2020. It was a good story to have him back in Queens, but unfortunately never lived up to the hype.
Grades:
Hitting For Average: F, .198, not much else to say
Hitting For Power: D-, Three home runs, but one saved him from getting an F
Fielding: C, Does not move as well as he used to but still has a cannon
Speed/Baserunning: B-, One of the rare guys who had speed this season. Probably would have had more stolen bases if he played more
Intangibles: A+, YE, YE, YE
Overall: D-, If he were signed to a major league contract it would be an F, but the expectations were meager