Albert Almora Jr. is another center fielder who is reportedly on the New York Mets’ radar. The former Chicago Cub is coming off two poor offensive seasons while his first three were decent. Almora is low on the list of free-agent center field options but is certainly worth looking at if George Springer is out of the picture.
Albert Almora's incredible catch yesterday was just named MLB's Play of the Week, which is a thing! pic.twitter.com/M3yNmJeBDX
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) July 27, 2020
Almora’s slashed .289/.326/.412 and had 11 defensive runs saved over his first three seasons as a center fielder. He is hitting just .230/.270/.366 with -5 defensive runs saved in his two most recent seasons. Almora hit a career-high 12 home runs in that period, but the added power forced his average to suffer.
Worth A Shot?
When taking the rest of Almora’s defensive stats into perspective, the DFS is an outlier. His outfield reactions and bursts were similar to his best defensive year in 2018. The only regression came in his ability to go back on the ball, but it leveled out during 2020. Almora is only 27 on opening day, and all signs point to his defensive returning as a strong part of his game.
The offensive side of his game is a much bigger question. Almora has multiple years of being at the bottom of the league in hard-hit rates, among other key offensive analytics. The only way the Mets should consider him if multiple free agents like Springer, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Kevin Pillar are no longer available. If the Mets stayed within the organization, Guillermo Heredia could play at the same level as Almora.