That didn’t take long, did it?

Michael Conforto is the best position player on the Mets. 
Conforto was drafted tenth overall in the 2014 draft. He was in Double-A last year. He played in the Future’s Game. The Mets organization swore up and down that he was not ready to make the jump from Double-A to the majors despite trotting the likes of Darrell Ceciliani in the outfield. Finally, the Mets reached a breaking point, and they were forced to call him up. 

As a rookie, Conforto hit .270/.335/.506 with 14 doubles, nine homeruns, and 26 RBI.  That was good for a 132 OPS+ and a 135 wRC+. He was better than advertised defensively with a 7.5 UZR and a 9 DRS.  He had a 2.1 WAR in a little over one-third of a season. He showed off a strong and accurate arm in the outfield. He  went on and had a terrific World Series including hitting two homeruns in Game Four. 

So far this year, he’s even better. Overall, he’s hitting .343/.427/.614 with 10 doubles, three homeruns, and 15 RBI. His OPS+ is 178 and his wRC+ is 175. He’s already at a 1.1 WAR. He’s hitting the ball harder than anyone in the big leagues. Everyone expected him to improve this year, but he’s improving at a much faster rate than anyone realistically could’ve hoped or expected. In fact, he’s playing like a seasoned veteran. 

As Neil Walker told Kevin Kernan of the New York Post:

His mental preparation is that of a seasoned veteran. That is something you rarely see. Days like today, he’s hitting balls off the left-field wall and then catching a changeup out front and hitting it out to right. That is just devastating to pitchers. It’s fun to watch because he’s doing this at 23. The sky is the limit for a guy like that. He’s as humble as they come. 

Very quickly, Conforto has gone from the guy the Mets were too afraid to call up to the gut they’re too afraid to have out of the lineup.  He has already arguably become the best position player on the Mets.