OF, not Francisco Alvarez, named Mets' 2024 first-half MVP

For a piece published on Thursday morning, Bradford Doolittle of ESPN argued that outfielder Brandon Nimmo and not young catcher Francisco Alvarez should be viewed as the New York Mets' most valuable player for the first half of the 2024 MLB season.

"Nimmo has been a central part of the Mets' charge back into the thick of the crowded [National League] wild-card race," Doolittle explained. "During New York's 18-6 spree through July 2, Nimmo hit .341/.431/.625 with 24 runs and 21 RBIs in the 22 games in which he played. He also posted a 1.371 win probability added during that span, lifting him into the NL lead in that contextual measure."

Much has been made amid the Mets' so-called "Grimace Era" about what Alvarez has meant to both the club's lineup and its pitching staff since he returned on June 11 from the torn ligament in his left thumb that he suffered on April 19.

As for Nimmo, Ben Krimmel of SNY pointed out that the 31-year-old was responsible for a .215 batting average and .708 OPS on the campaign before the halfway point of June.

Nimmo began Thursday with a .248 average and a .818 OPS. Across his first 79 games of the season, he recorded 13 home runs and 52 RBI.

Most recently, Nimmo bounced back from a scary fainting episode to deliver a couple of clutch hits in Tuesday's 7-2 extra-innings win at the Washington Nationals.

"Nimmo hasn't just been putting up numbers -- he's been mashing in spots that have won games," Doolittle continued. "In doing so, Nimmo has erased what was shaping up an abysmal season both for him and the team around him."

The Mets ended June 2 at 24-35 but went into Thursday's matchup against Washington at 42-42. Ahead of that contest, New York was only one-and-a-half games back in the battle for the NL's final wild-card playoff spot.

The Amazins will need Nimmo, Alvarez and other key contributors such as All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso and shortstop Francisco Lindor to continue producing impressive performances so that owner Steve Cohen decides to buy instead of sell ahead of the July 30 trade deadline.