Luis Robert Jr. — once the 'next Mike Trout' — just trying to get to 'pretty good' with struggling Mets

Luis Robert Jr. and the Mets will always have March 28, 2026.

The team’s new center fielder hit his first “Amazins” home run in his new home ballpark that night, and it was a big one — a two-run walk-off golfed out to left against Pirates lefty Hunter Barco in the 11th inning.

Citi Field exploded with joy. Robert circled the bases as a team of stars — Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, Bo Bichette, Freddy Peralta — prepared to mob him at home plate. The Mets, a team with World Series aspirations, were 2-0. After nine years in the White Sox organization, the last few a certain kind of purgatory, Robert seemed to have found baseball heaven.

Great trade, Mets.

How could you let him go, Sox?

“His talent is unlimited,” Mets television analyst Ron Darling gushed that night.

But then … oof.

A 4-2 loss to the Cubs on Saturday at Wrigley Field was the 10th in a row for the Mets, their longest losing streak since 2004. At 7-14, they’re even worse off than Robert’s old team, the Sox, who are busy trying to avoid a fourth straight 100-loss season.

As for Robert’s performance, the nicest way to put it is that he has been among the more productive hitters in an injury-depleted lineup that, as of late, couldn’t swing its way out of a wet paper bag with a spicy salami. In truth, Robert has been unremarkable at the plate — hitting .258 with two homers and seven RBI — except for his team-high 12 walks, which the Mets attribute to their insistence that the 28-year-old be more selective than he ever was with the South Siders.

Where has Robert’s All-Star talent gone? The Mets haven’t really seen it yet, much as the Sox didn’t really see it after his 38-homer season in 2023.

That could be why Robert blew off a couple of ink-stained Chicagoans a day after indicating he’d make time for an interview on Saturday, the middle game of this series.

At least he looks healthy, as anyone who watched him bust it down the first-base line in the sixth and eighth innings would have noticed. Given the painful history of his right hip and hamstrings, with which Sox fans are all too familiar, that’s saying something.

“Luis has been great from the moment we acquired him,” Mets president of baseball operations David Stears told the Sun-Times. “He’s really bought into what we’re about. He’s worked very well with our performance staff, our medical staff, our coaching staff, and now it’s about getting him to be a consistently healthy and productive player. We’ve seen stretches over the course of his career where he’s done that.

“Our goal is keeping him on the field for the entire 162. We feel like if we can do that, he’s going to be pretty good and contribute to a good team.”

“Pretty good” isn’t exactly “the next Mike Trout,” which is how ex-Sox teammate Eloy Jimenez famously described Robert before the latter player’s rookie season.

Some still are wowed by Robert’s physical tools. The Mets’ prized rookie left fielder, Carson Benge, is one of them.

“He’s just different in all aspects of the game,” Benge said. “He can affect it on the bases, hitting a home run, making a diving play to save some runs. He’s just one of the best players I’ve ever been around.”

Reminded three weeks later of his "unlimited" comment, Darling wasn’t ready to make any revisions.

“I think he’s been great,” Darling said. “He’s played really hard. His defensive play has been impeccable. He’s been one of the best hitters the Mets have had. I know he was hurt a lot with you guys and there was a lot of criticism, but I see all the boxes are checked so far.”

Stearns, though, is measured on the subject of Robert. With good reason.

“I think sometimes expectations for young players can get out of hand and at times can even do them a disservice,” he said. “I think in Luis’ case, he’s got a tremendous set of skills, he’s a very talented athlete, and sometimes it just takes time to put all of that together.”

Robert has been a Gold Glove winner, a rookie of the year runner-up, an All-Star. For a while there, he made the Sox look quite good for giving him a $26 million signing bonus in 2017, the second-highest figure for an international amateur at the time. He certainly has the upside to make the Mets look pretty good eventually.

These days, they’re hitting so little and losing so much that the folks at Citi Field won’t have much use for any of the Mets, Robert included. The boos there upon the team’s return from this disaster of a road trip could really be something to behold.

The way Darling figures it, even boos are better than what Robert tended to hear at Rate Field. Silence. Apathy. Echos off empty seats. You get the idea.

“Booing or cheering, it feels good because you’re excited to be at the ballpark,” Darling said.

After a hitless streak spanning 17 at-bats, Robert lined a double to left in his final at-bat on Friday. His first two times up Saturday, he doubled and singled off Cubs starter Jameson Taillon, hitting the ball with authority both times.

Maybe he’s beginning to heat up?

If not, it could be another very long year.