Mets blanked by Marlins in both games of doubleheader
Mets starting pitcher Rick Porcello reacts during the second inning against the Marlins in an MLB game at Citi Field on Tuesday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Maybe the Mets should have waited one more day to end their coronavirus interlude.
After five days, two positive COVID-19 tests and no games, their season resumed Tuesday with two losses to the Marlins, 4-0 and 3-0, at Citi Field. It was the first time the Mets were shut out in both ends of a doubleheader since 1975.
“It’s always tough having one day off, let alone three or four days off where you’re doing nothing,” Dominic Smith said. “I’m not here to make excuses, but I’m not going to let these two games in one day affect us. I know that we’ll bounce back and we’ll be ready to go in the next couple days.”
The series of unfortunate events started with Rick Porcello’s poor outing — four runs, three innings — getting cut short by a 65-minute rain delay. It ended when Miami’s Jon Berti stole home in the sixth inning of the nightcap — despite stumbling into a bear crawl — after stealing second and stealing third, a feat that manager Luis Rojas said was the result of “negligence on our end.”
In between, Seth Lugo, making his first start in more than two years, tossed three perfect innings to begin the second game, only for Jared Hughes to allow two runs the next frame. The Mets went 0-for-15 with runners in scoring position and stranded 19 men on base on the day. Robinson Cano lined out to shortstop with runners on the corners to end the opener. Luis Guillorme, with the potential tying run on base, lined into a double play in the sixth inning of the back half.
The second game didn’t finish until 12:06 a.m.
The Mets, who are scheduled to play seven games in the next five days before a day off, are 12-16. The Marlins are 14-11.
“None of us are panicking,” Smith said. “Nobody is in the locker room worried.”
The disparity in clutch hitting was obvious. The Mets had 20 hits and walks but zero runs. The Marlins had 11 hits and walks but seven runs.
“Once again, we got away from our approach every time we had runners in scoring position,” Rojas said. “Noticeable, again. We find a way to create situations. Guys take quality at-bats, they put the ball in play, they create traffic. We did in every inning but one. And we didn’t get that big hit.”
The doubleheader came with quirks. Each game was only seven innings, in accordance with MLB’s rule this year. And the Mets batted first in the second game, which was a makeup of a Miami home contest from Thursday. It still counted as a home game for the Mets, however, since it happened in Queens.
A pair of rookie starters held the Mets scoreless. Righthander Dan Castano lasted 4 2/3 innings, working around six hits and three walks. And lefthander Trevor Rogers, making his major-league debut, scattered five walks and one hit in four innings. He struck out six.
Marlins third baseman Brian Anderson burned the Mets with three doubles. The first two each started a rally in the first game. The last drove in two runs against Hughes, giving Miami what turned into a permanent lead.
All of the four runs Porcello allowed came with two outs. His ERA is up to 6.43.
“It’s always frustrating when you’re not going out there and giving your team a chance to win every fifth day consistently,” said Porcello, who last year was last among qualified pitchers with a 5.52 ERA. “I feel like I am doing a lot of good things compared to how I threw the ball last year. Conversely, I’m not getting consistent quality results, and that’s something I have to be better with.”
The Mets did, though, register one unofficial win while they were shut down: They contained their outbreak to just two people, one player and one coach. That it didn’t get any further than that, Rojas said, was a testament to the protocols installed by MLB and the seriousness with which the Mets take it.
Daily COVID-19 testing through Tuesday yielded no additional positives, so the Mets got back to work.
Dominic Smith said the Mets were “just excited that we’re back playing” after the uncertainty of recent days.
“I use the word fortunate and that's the one word we can use now,” Rojas said before the games. “Our job is to keep doing what we've been doing. We're able to contain it, but like I said, we've been very fortunate. It could've been different.”
