The shine has faded. The shadows have grown.
Jeff McNeil, 27, sits atop the Mets lineup, earning an All-Star Game invitation, and leading the National League in batting average, during his first full season. Pete Alonso hits third, an All-Star and Home Run Derby champion, smashing record after record in one of the most memorable rookie seasons in franchise history.
In between hits Michael Conforto, 26, four years removed from his World Series heroics, two years out from his lone All-Star appearance, one swing from still looking like a star.
The streaky outfielder continued his strong second half by homering for the second straight game, with Conforto’s 20th blast sparking a six-run first inning, which enabled the Mets to complete a sweep of the Pirates with an 8-7 win Sunday at Citi Field.
Over the past 12 games, Conforto is batting .313 (15-for-48) with three homers and seven RBIs.
“He’s just on the ball,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “His timing is better, he’s going the other way when the opportunity presents itself, he’s covering in when he needs to.
He’s just swinging the bat better, [with better] timing, rhythm and confidence.”
After McNeil was hit by a pitch to lead off the first, Conforto fouled off a fastball from Chris Archer. Conforto took the next high and outside fastball into the left-field seats, giving the Mets a 2-0 lead which soon snowballed to six, as the team batted around the order.
“I was able to stay on it, and stay through it, and hit it to left field,” Conforto said. “That’s what we’ve been working on, and it’s starting to come out in games.”
Conforto, who went 1-for-4 with a walk, and homered in consecutive games for the fourth time this season, became the 12th player in team history to record at least 20 homers in three straight seasons, most recently accomplished by Curtis Granderson (2014-16).
On pace to best last year’s career-high 28-homer mark, Conforto has needed just 96 games to get to 20 this season. Last year, he didn’t hit his 20th home run until his 127th game (Sept. 2).
