Carson Benge\u2019s right arm might be the most exciting tool on the Mets roster this season.<\/p>\n
That arm unloaded twice in the first inning Monday, setting the tone for the night: Two Padres were thrown out at the plate. Run prevention was also in full force an inning later when A.J. Ewing nailed a runner at the plate.<\/p>\n
The defensive push led to a 2-1 victory, the Mets\u2019 10th in their past 13 games.<\/p>\n
Before his third straight impressive performance defensively in right field, Benge was asked by The Post if he thought base runners might stop testing him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope not,\u201d Benge said. \u201cThat is one of the parts of my game that I am prouder about is being able to show off whenever I can. It\u2019s real fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benge nailed Jake Cronenworth at the plate on Ty France\u2019s one-out single in the first. The ensuing batter, Jackson Merrill, singled in front of Benge, who unleashed another gem and threw out Manny Machado at the plate. It marked the first time in franchise history an outfielder threw out two runners at the plate in the same inning.<\/p>\n
The display gave Benge four outfield assists over the past three games and nine this season (which ranks first among National League right fielders).<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first one was pretty cool, but the inning wasn\u2019t over yet,\u201d Benge said. \u201cSo being able to nail him for the third out was pretty special.\u201d<\/p>\n
Such throws have likely placed the 23-year-old Benge in the Gold Glove conversation in right field. Benge also figures to receive consideration in NL Rookie of the Year balloting, bolstered by a .750 OPS.<\/p>\n
Mets pitcher Nolan McLean throws a pitch during the second inning against the San Diego Padres on Monday, August 17, 2026, at Citi Field in Queens, NY. Robert Sabo for NY Post<\/p>\n
Benge\u2019s 2.4 bWAR entering Monday ranked third among NL rookies, behind JJ Wetherholt and TJ Rumfield. On the defensive level, Benge rates as average in range (at zero outs above average, according to Statcast). But his arm value and arm strength rank in MLB\u2019s 95th and 98th percentiles, respectively.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s put himself at the forefront of the Gold Glove conversation and the Rookie of the Year,\u201d said Mets bench coach Kai Correa, who oversees the team\u2019s defense. \u201cIf he\u2019s not in either of those, I am not sure what we are doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benge\u2019s defensive highlights over the weekend included racing down Dylan Crews\u2019 shot to right field Sunday \u2014 he collided with the fence after the catch. Benge had a sliding catch on Daylen Lile\u2019s fly to right later in the game. On Saturday, he nailed Crews attempting to score from third on a fly to right. A day later, Brady House got thrown out by Benge attempting to race from first to third.<\/p>\n
Correa noted that that Benge, who progressed through the minors mostly in center field, has moved around the outfield this season to accommodate other players, but it hasn\u2019t appeared to stunt his growth in right.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe second thing is, everyone can say it and talk about arm strength,\u201d Correa said. \u201cBut to have the consistency and quick release and be accurate \u2014 he is making 98 mph throws on the bag, on the plate, long hops on the fly. So, the consistency of accuracy at that arm strength is a pretty special weapon, and then the athleticism to complete plays: dive, slide and jump. He is really the total package out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benge admitted to receiving a thrill watching the replays of his best throws.<\/p>\n
Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (4) tags out San Diego Padres shortstop Xander Bogaerts (2) trying to score at home during the second inning when the New York Mets played the San Diego Padres Monday, August 17, 2026. Robert Sabo for NY Post<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of them, they get up there that I throw pretty hard and they are one-hop strikes and they are pretty fun to watch,\u201d Benge said. \u201cI feel like I have always had it. I feel like I have always been pretty accurate, know when to hit the cutoff man for the most part and know whenever it\u2019s OK to let it fly a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benge\u2019s assessment of his outfield play overall?<\/p>\n
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) is greeted b first baseman Jared Young (29) after he scores on an RBI sac fly center fielder Luis Robert Jr. (88) in the first inning at Citi Field on Monday, August 17, 2026, in Queens, NY. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST<\/p>\n
\u201cI have felt like I\u2019ve gotten better,\u201d he said. \u201cI have felt like there\u2019s easy plays that I haven\u2019t made, and I know I can still get better on reads and different things like that. But overall, I am pretty satisfied with how it\u2019s continued to grow throughout the year.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Mets haven\u2019t had a Gold Glove winner since Juan Lagares won one in 2014. Their best chance to end that drought this season might rest with Benge, especially if runners continue to test his arm.<\/p>\n
Mets right fielder Carson Benge (3) throws out San Diego Padres second baseman Jake Cronenworth (9) at home in the first inning at Citi Field in Queens, NY, on Monday, August 17, 2026. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST<\/p>\n
Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (4) tags out San Diego Padres second baseman Jake Cronenworth (9) trying to score at home on a single by Ty France (25) during the first inning at Citi Field in Queens, NY, Monday, August 17, 2026. Robert Sabo for NY Post<\/p>\n
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\u201cAny kind of recognition in this league for any award would be amazing, no matter what award it might be,\u201d Benge said. \u201cBut Gold Glove or Rookie of the Year, it\u2019s pretty cool to be in those talks.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Carson Benge\u2019s right arm might be the most exciting tool on the Mets roster this season. That arm…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":323836,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[6595,20,9,11,320,10,35582,29911,319],"class_list":["post-323835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-carson-benge","tag-mlb","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-mets","tag-new-york-news","tag-nolan-mclean","tag-san-diego-padres","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323835","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=323835"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323835\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/323836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=323835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=323835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=323835"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}