Welcome to the Pablo Sanchez era? It’s too early to tell but the Mets had a huge week. Our Metsies are currently riding a 7 game win streak. They swept the Angels at home then swept the San Francisco Giants on the road. Let’s talk about it.

The Good

Back to Winning Ways: Writing about a winning streak is much easier then writing about a disappointing 2-4 week that’s for sure. The Mets won in a variety of ways in the week prior. Come back wins, low scoring grind games and an 8 run offensive output. All this in spite of a lack of contributions by the top of the order. It also meant a return to the top of the NL East standings as the Mets have opened up a 1.5 game lead on the Philadelphia Phillies at the time of writing.

Bullpen Returns to Form: The Mets desperately needed the bullpen to find its footing and it certainly did. Edwin Diaz continued his impressive season (despite some struggles in San Fran). Huascar Brazoban and Reed Garrett have looked much better. And two lefties joined the fold. Old friend Brooks Raley who finally made his much anticipated return threw 2.1 scoreless innings last week. New friend Gregory Soto was solid in his debut.

The Bottom of the Order Comes Alive!: I’ve criticized the bottom of the Mets batting order plenty this season. Well they did much of the heavy lifting last week. Ronny Mauricio came through with a 4 hit Sunday night in San Francisco. Quietly, Mark Vientos is hitting at a .310 clip since July 10th. Marte was 6 for 10 last week. Last but not least Francisco Alvarez was absolutely outstanding. More on that later.

The Bad

I can’t even rationalize this one. How the hell can these guys not figure out hitting with runners on? Soto is still struggling in that department. Lindor and Alsono have been slumping. I still don’t believe this team has reached its full potential.

Highlight of the Week

Francisco Rises to the Occasion: Francisco Alvarez was at a crossroads in his young career. He was sent down to AAA and did what he was supposed to do. Absolutely crush baseballs. He then came back and absolutely lifted this team all week. A game tying homer last Tuesday and a couple of doubles show that Alvy was driving the ball again. Before it seems like he was trying so hard to use all parts of the field. I’ve harped on this a bunch this season but this offense is different with an effective Alvarez. The potential is still there, let him find his way.

The Week Ahead

The Mets play a 3 game series in San Diego before coming home to play San Francisco again. More importantly some might say the trade deadline is Thursday. And truthfully I have no feel for what the Mets will do. I think the team needs a right handed center fielder and Luis Robert fits that bill but, look at the numbers from this season and the one prior, yuck.

He’s hot right now and maybe getting him into a good environment and winning culture will lift his game. But is that a bet David Stearns wants to take? I don’t see a standout starter on the market. The Mets have a lot to deal but not a lot of partners to dance with. As things stand I’m betting it’s a more quiet deadline. I have faith in Stearns to approach this the right way.

*disclaimer* as I write this Brazoban just turned back into a pumpkin. YUCK.

We’ll have continuing coverage throughout the week of the Yankees games and hopefully further new additions at the deadline so stay tuned for that. Mike will have you covered with Mets deadline coverage, while the two of us will also have further previews of the college football season releasing this week. We’re also going to get our NFL up and running soon and even talk some hockey here soon with some new friends on our air. On twitter you can find Mike @Mike_Sheerin, Tyler @TMon_19 and Sean @SeanMartinNFL. Subscribe to the site by hitting the follow button in the bottom right corner and entering your email address. Check out our Instagram feed @thebroadwaybreakdownsports for special gameday and promotional content. Our podcasts are available on Spotify. Visit the Rangers Ed Shop by clicking the link on our homepage. Check out our mailbag page to join the conversation here on the site and on our partners show, The Rangers Ed Podcast! We’ll be back with more soon.