I’m starting to think that J.D. Davis might be my new favorite player. Not only is he a lovable goof who came out of nowhere to shine at the plate for the Mets last year, but in 2020 he’s continuing to hit line drives everywhere while sparkling on defense at third base.

Last night in New York’s 8-4 win over the Marlins, Davis hit a huge opposite field home run in the seventh inning that extended the lead from one run to three. It was a huge relief after the bullpen allowed a comfortable 4-1 advantage to become a 5-4 predicament. Davis also threw out a Miami batter from shallow left field on a ground ball. Clutch opposite field home runs and ridiculous throws from third base? Those are the things that David Wright is known for.

Calling Davis the next Wright is jumping the gun by more than a little bit, but I can’t stop myself getting exciting while watching him play this past week. If this keeps up, the trade that brought Davis to the Mets from Houston will probably go down as the only good move of the Brodie Van Wagenen era.

At least that will give me something good to remember ole BVW by. This is the same guy who may have ruined the future of the franchise by trading away Jarred Kelenic, the sixth overall pick in the 2018 draft, while saddling New York with Robinson Cano’s huge contract. Plus, the “shutdown” closer acquired in the deal, Edwin Diaz (AKA EdLose Diaz), has been a disaster.

It will be too much to ask Davis to make up for that entire mess, but if he keeps plugging away and delivering clutch hits, maybe I won’t have to curse the day that Van Wagenen took control of baseball operations.

Given that Davis was a consistently excellent hitter throughout his minor league career and that his start to 2020 is similar to the rates he put up in 2019, I feel good about his future on offense in New York. If his defense can stick at third base, a position that has been a revolving door for the Mets since Wright stopped playing, that’s even better.