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Just as the Mets have made J.D. Davis available in a trade, per ESPN, the third baseman’s rough stretch continues.
In Thursday’s 6-3 loss to the Braves, Davis struck out three times, going 0-for-4 overall. That left him in a 1-for-15 slump with seven strikeouts over his last five games, heading into Friday’s 4 p.m. trade deadline.
Manager Luis Rojas claimed that Davis was frustrated because of his less-than-stellar performances since his return from the injured list on July 16, rather than the frustration being due to the deadline looming above his head.
“There’s nothing bothering J.D. more than the three strikeouts that he had today against pitchers that could probably do damage against,” Rojas said.
Following the game, Rojas spoke to Davis, who, according to Rojas, was “thinking a lot” about his performance.
“This is a guy who figures out sequences really good and I think he had an idea what they were doing and still was missing a lot of pitches,” Rojas added.
Though Davis is still batting .309 for the season and owns an impressive .398 on-base percentage and .916 OPS, his current funk has made him more of a hindrance than a help.
“He’s just running through a little bit of a bad stretch, but he needs to keep his confidence up high and put the work in,” Rojas said.
Davis’ fielding has never been phenomenal, with minus-21 Defensive Runs Saved and minus-10 Outs Above Average across his five MLB seasons. Earlier this season, the 28-year-old made three errors within two games.
The Mets are involved with the Cubs in the Kris Bryant trade derby, but the Mets also have options at third base beyond Davis. Jonathan Villar filled in for him when he was injured, performing well enough that he saw time at third even with Davis healthy. Luis Guillorme has also started 17 games at third base this season.
Both Villar and Guillorme are versatile enough to play shortstop as well — Davis is not — while Francisco Lindor recovers from an oblique strain.
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