Paul Articulates – The Professional

During the off-season while Steve Cohen, Billy Eppler, and the Mets’ front office were building the 2022 team, they made several player acquisitions.  Some were a big splash, like the Scherzer contract and the Marte signing.  Others like Mark Canha made people like me say, “Hmmm….”  With 125 games under the belt, I am pretty confident that the decision to bring in Canha was a very good one.

Canha has fielded his position well, mostly playing left field with a few innings in CF, RF, and 3B.   He is also capable of playing first base if needed.  His defensive stats have been solid if not spectacular with a 1.000 fielding percentage, but only a -2 Outs Above Average (OAA).  His OAA stat puts him 12th of 30 MLB starters in left field.

Canha has a great eye for the strike zone.  He is one of the folks in the lineup that helps the Mets put tremendous pressure on opposing pitchers as they have done all year, forcing starters to abbreviated outings of 5 innings or less.  He looks completely calm and confident with two strikes.  This year he has a .315 OBP with two strikes.  The league average with two strikes is .170.  When Canha was brought in, he was touted as a guy that would maintain a high On Base Percentage (OBP).  He has done this; with a NL 4th best .373 OBP.

With solid offensive and defensive statistics, Canha is part of a productive outfield that has helped the Mets succeed this year.  But what stands out to me above the statistics is the way he goes about his business – a true professional.  He is a team player first, accepting the roles that Buck assigns him.  He has the numbers to be an every-day starter, but found himself yielding playing time as Buck’s strategy to keep everyone involved often led to other players stationed in left field, whether it was JD Davis, McNeil when Guillorme played second, or Tyler Naquin when he was acquired.  Canha does not complain, and when called upon he always performs with the same determined approach; working the pitch count, finding a way to get on base, making the plays on defense.

This past Sunday, when Mark hit his clutch 9th inning home run and accompanying bat flip he enjoyed a brief moment in the spotlight.  In the post-game interview, he talked about “A lot of pent-up emotion” that was released with that celebration.  This gave a very small glimpse into what may be his disappointment in giving up playing time in the last month while Buck evaluated Tyler Naquin.  But that is all you will see, because a real professional does not let personal desires get in the way of team success.

So let’s celebrate Mark Canha for his professional approach to helping the New York Mets win.  He’s not flashy and the others grab most of the headlines, but it’s a roster full of guys like this that allow teams to make it through the long grind of a season and come out on top.  I hope he is rewarded with a ring!  Let’s go Mets!