Coming off a breakout season, Travis d'Arnaud was the presumptive starter going into 2016, with Kevin Plawecki as his backup. Unfortunately, d'Arnaud missed more than half the season due to injury and struggled at the plate in his limited appearances, putting up a .629 OPS, almost 200 points below his 2015 mark.
At the same time, Plawecki's offense was worse, as he found himself back in the minors. Rene Rivera, on a minor league deal, proved to be a serviceable alternative, though his batting lingered well behind his strong defense.
The Mets absolutely need better production at this position next year if they plan to contend for the postseason.