The longest active winning streak in baseball belongs to the Mets, and even as New York prepares to go for its eighth win in a row against the Rays on Friday night, Pete Alonso thinks the team has yet to show its full potential.
"I feel like we haven't even hit on all cylinders consistently," Alonso told reporters on Friday. "When we do, it's going to be scary."
Plenty of Alonso's teammates struggled out of the gate, most notably Francisco Lindor, but the offense as a whole has begun to find its stride, scoring 51 runs this month after plating just 58 in all of April. The first month of the season brought a load of postponements, which could had interrupted the lineup's rhythm, but the Mets were also consistently failing with runners in scoring position through the first month of the season, and now, the team seems to be figuring it out.
"We've had a lot of starts and stops and adversity that we've had to face," Alonso said. "It's been great being in the trenches with these guys every single day. It's a special group. Every single day is a blessing to be with these guys. Win or lose, it's such a fun group. We work hard, we play hard and we have fun. To be on a team like this, we're not just really good, we're all pulling in the same direction and all of us care for each other."
After finishing April at the bottom of the league in runs per game, the Mets have plated 34 runs over their winning streak, and finding timely hitting to help win four games by two runs or less on this winning streak.
"I feel like we've been taking our walks and have had a ton of guys on base," Alonso said. "We just need to be gritty and grind guys down by being as stingy as possible with our zone."
It's been a collective effort for the Mets over the last seven games, and Alonso and company will put their winning streak to the test in Alonso's hometown this weekend against the Rays, who should provide a strong barometer for the team's recent success.
"We've had so many guys step up," Alonso said. "We have a lot of momentum going. Every single day we get to test what we've got going."
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch
