Carson Benge has hit the ground running to begin his MLB career with the New York Mets.
What he’s accomplished in his first four games has only been done twice before in franchise history.
The feat: hitting at least one home run and stealing at least two bases in a player’s first four games with the Mets.
Lenny Dykstra did that to begin his major league career with the Mets. The much less heralded Matt den Dekker did it too.
And now Benge has joined them, according to MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo.
It’s exactly the kind of difference-making start the Mets hoped to see from Benge when they kept him on their Opening Day roster. He earned that starting right field job, and he’s making the most of it.
Benge homered on Opening Day, then got his running game going to show the dual-threat player he can be.
What makes this even more intriguing is Benge’s background. He was actually a two-way player at Oklahoma State, also a high-quality pitcher before focusing on hitting.
Now he’s an outfielder with power and speed – a combination that’s paying dividends early on.
There’s obviously a lot of season left, but Benge looks equipped to be a quality big leaguer for a long time. The early returns suggest the Mets made the right call giving him this opportunity.
