Palladino: Mets' Walker Turning Murphy Into An Afterthought
By Ernie Palladino
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At this point in the Mets' 2015 season, Matt Harvey was taking steps back in his first year off Tommy John surgery.
Noah Syndergaard was still throwing his 98 mph fastball in Triple-A Las Vegas, there to stay until May 12. Steven Matz wouldn't be up until late June.
Jacob deGrom was forging his reputation as an ace who won despite a lineup that offered zero run support until Yoenis Cespedes arrived at the end of July.
And Neil Walker spent his game days in Pittsburgh.
The fact that all those players appear on the Mets' roster now is a definite plus. But one of the biggest assets is Walker, Sandy Alderson's first move of an offseason that ended with the signing of the slugging Cespedes.
All Walker has done so far is smack eight homers and drive in 14 runs, both team highs.
Two nights ago, he rescued Syndergaard with a two-run, seventh-inning blast to right that broke a 3-3 tie.
Forget that Walker appears to be leading a contagious power surge that had seen the Mets hit 26 homers in their last 10 games heading into Tuesday's 0-for-4 outing in the 4-3 win over the Reds. Forget that he's doing it in the field with a welcome regularity.
He's making Alderson look like a genius. And considering the GM's rep before 2015, that's saying something.
For one struggling left-hander in Jon Niese, Alderson grabbed himself a second baseman who quickly is making everyone forget Daniel Murphy. The Mets' former second baseman hasn't done badly himself with his new team in Washington, hitting an MLB-high .397. But Walker has more than filled his shoes quite nicely.
Better than nice, actually. Even before Monday's homer gave his new team a 5-3 lead a half-inning after Syndergaard's nine-strikeout dominance turned shaky, Citi Field resounded with Walker's name.
If that's not a precursor to officially becoming a home crowd favorite, then what is?
Considering Cespedes missed a second straight start Tuesday after doctors drained his bruised right knee -- he did hit a pinch-hit, three-run homer to tie the score in the seventh -- and Travis d'Arnaud went on the DL with a rotator cuff strain, Walker has not-so-suddenly become the Mets' best experienced hope for consistent power.
Michael Conforto is off to a nice start, too, especially since moving into the No. 3 spot. But his three homers pale in comparison to Walker's eight in 18 games, making this the most homer-filled month of an eight-year career.
Walker is pulling the ball, making what the baseball people call "hard contact," and getting it in the air more consistently than at any time in his career.
As far as fielding, the comparison between Walker and Murphy stops at the positional identity they share. Walker has shown himself a far better fielder. In fact, he followed his homer Monday with a great play on Devin Mesoraco's eighth-inning liner, driving the crowd into another frenzied chant. And that went right along with the April 9 backhand flip to Asdrubal Cabrera that started a double play against the Phillies.
MORE: Kallet: Once An Afterthought, Mets' Cabrera Quietly Getting Job Done
Walker started another Tuesday that got eventual winner Logan Verrett out of sixth-inning trouble.
One more homer between now and Saturday and he'll have the April franchise record.
Walker has turned Murphy into an afterthought.
He has helped turn Alderson into a genius.
Nice way to make a first impression.
Follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino
