Who are These Homer-Happy Mets?

The Mets sit atop the standings in the National League East right now. It really is no surprise; after all, they won the division last year. But what is surprising is that the Mets sit on top of everyone in the home run standings. These homer happy Mets are like nothing we’ve ever seen in Flushing.

Going into Monday’s games, the Mets lead all of baseball with 47 home runs. They are averaging 1.57 homers per game. Last year, that figure was 1.12.

Mets fans are not used to such prodigious power. They have never been a home run-hitting franchise. Playing in pitchers parks like Shea Stadium and Citi Field, the Mets were always built around the arms.

The 2006 Mets hit 200 homers, the only time the team reached the double century mark. If the current team keeps up its pace, it will shatter that record, finishing with 254 home runs.

Just how impressive is that? The MLB record is 264, by the 1997 Mariners. If the Mets manage to hit 254, that would be the fifth most all time.

This is a far cry from 1980, when there was a question whether the Mets as a team would eclipse the 61 home runs Roger Maris hit all by himself two decades earlier. I remember the Daily News ran a little chart every day. They finished at exactly 61, with Lee Mazzilli leading the way with 16. Claudell Washington was the only other Met in double figures with 10.

Even more recently, in that first year of Citi Field in 2009, the Mets hit only 95 homers. Daniel Murphy led the team with a paltry 12, while four other players had 10.

So is there something is the water at Citi Field? Let’s hope so, because not only have all of these home runs led to first place, they are also a lot of fun to watch (Bartolo Colon’s stunning blast included!).