Ok, I have to start this out by saying I have an irrational love for Dilson Herrera, I mean, that’s my frakkin dude. The Columbian born utility player has seen his fair share of ups and downs throughout his journey in professional baseball.

On August, 27th, 2013, the Mets traded for Herrera alongside relief pitcher Vic Black from the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Marlon Byrd, catcher John Buck, and some cash.

Herrera made his Mets debut in 2014 at the young age of 20, due to him already being on the 40-man roster prior the trade with the Pirates. He played in 18 games while hitting .220/ .303/ .407/ .710 with a 103 OPS+. He also hit 1 triple, 3 home runs, while driving in 11 RBI’s and scoring 6 runs.

He didn’t have much better luck his next year in his age 21 season in 2015, he appeared in 31 games hitting .211/ .311/ .367/ .677 with 3 doubles, 1 triple, and 3 homer runs. He also drove in 6 RBI’s while scoring 7 runs and stealing 2 bases, his sophomore season was probably less than expected, especially in a day where a player’s prime comes much sooner in age.

In an unexpected move, the Mets traded away Herrera and pitcher Max Wotell to the Cincinnati Reds for outfielder Jay Bruce. Everyone has their opinions, in my opinion, that trade didn’t go as expected, considering we let Daniel Murphy walk because of Herrera’s potential. The Mets signed him back as a free agent on November 28th, 2018.

If you dabble on his MiLB career over 2797 at-bats, it was nothing short of pretty damn good. Dilson hit .293/ .358/ .463/ .821 with 172 doubles, 26 triples, 84 home runs, 399 RBI’s, and 494 runs scored.

Corné’s informed me that Dilson has played left field with the Reds and to be totally honest, I’d love to see players like Dilson Herrera and even Amed Rosario man down some center field. If a player is seeking longevity in his career, then it’s simple, learn to play multiple positions.

This season, Herrera is hitting .256/ .353/ .537/ .890 with 10 doubles, 8 home runs, 19 runs scored and 21 RBI’s with 8 stolen bases. In his last 10 games, he has a .925 OPS and a .341 OBP with 3 home runs, 5 runs scored, and 8 RBI’s.

In a perfect scenario for the Mets, Herrera would find himself being the split to Jeff McNeil. As Corné has reminded me, you would get two different players depending on the opposing pitcher. Dilson won’t provide the incredible batting average and on-base percentage “The Flying Squirrel” does, but he’ll make up for it in slugging percentage as well as defensively, which I’ll take.

Corné’s Cut:

Like Gem, I love Dilson Herrera as well. I have been a huge fan since 2014. Herrera was my future all star second baseman and I hated the Mets traded him instead of Nimmo. I turned out to be wrong with that, but Herrera is still an intriguing player to me.

The young utility player has shown a return of power. Sporting a high ISO, OBP and Slugging.

With the Reds Herrera has played second, third, outfield and first. I can see him getting a look if the Mets needed a bench role. Maybe not this year? Maybe the Mets can retain him as depth next year.

Dilson is back to his prospect form! He just needs a change