Mets need answers quickly with Brewers, Yankees on deck
Mets pitcher Dedniel Núñez collects himself after giving up a two-run home run to the Pittsburgh Pirates' Oneil Cruz during the seventh inning of a game in Pittsburgh on Sunday. Credit: AP
Here’s a disturbing thought. What if the Mets haven’t hit rock bottom yet?
Maybe that’s hard to imagine after what everyone just witnessed over the weekend by the banks of the Alleghany: a 30-4 pounding during a three-game sweep by the pitiful Pirates, a beating that looks so much uglier when you factor in the caliber of opponent (or that Paul Skenes wasn’t even involved).
But with the Mets in a 1-13 funk, the worst skid of any MLB team since the nightmare began back on June 13, take a glance at the rough road ahead. The upcoming six games, against the Brewers and Yankees, feature starting pitchers with a combined 2.83 ERA, not exactly welcome news for a Mets’ misfiring lineup that ranks in the bottom of most offensive categories during this freefall.
No wonder they welcomed another 24 hours for their battered bullpen to catch their breath, courtesy of Tuesday’s rainout (which the Mets officially postponed shortly after 5 p.m. due to imminent thunderstorms later in the evening). That’s two straight days without a loss, and given the team’s current malaise, consider it a much-needed mental breather.
Because here’s what’s on tap. For Wednesday’s split doubleheader, the Brewers are sending out Freddy Peralta (2.90 ERA) and young gun Jacob Misiorowski (1.13) — for the latter, think the Skenes-type ace the Mets just dodged in Pittsburgh. On Thursday, it’s old pal Jose Quintana, who is a respectable 6-2 with a 3.30 ERA after being very available back in March.
It’s also worth mentioning that the rejuvenated Brewers are the flip side of the scuffling Mets, sporting MLB’s second-best record (22-9) since May 25. They’ve also led the National League in batting average (.271) and on-base percentage (.342) during that stretch while ranking third overall in runs per game (5.5) and fourth in OPS. Also, and this should be particularly irritating to the Mets’ faithful, Milwaukee’s .292 average with runners in scoring position is fourth-best in the majors.
Now the Mets have to cram these three games into 48 hours before hosting the Subway Series, when former Patchogue-Medford star Marcus Stroman (returning to Citi with a chip on his shoulder), Carlos Rodon (2.95 ERA) and Cy Young favorite Max Fried (1.92) are pencilled in to start. It’s not an ideal get-right stretch by any means, and especially troubling given that the Mets felt their swoon serious enough to hold a clubhouse meeting Saturday at PNC Park — then got blown out, 12-1, the next afternoon in the series finale.
That’s not how team meetings are supposed to work. Take last year’s season-saving clubhouse huddle at Citi Field, for instance. But with the Mets already playing that card, they’re out of inspirational speeches. Here in July, it’s put up or shut up time.
“I don’t think anybody’s prepared when it happens this quick,” manager Carlos Mendoza said before Tuesday’s game was postponed. “I think there’s a combination of a lot of things, but I’m not going to sit here and make excuses. We’ve got to continue to find a way to get out of it. And we will, because we’ve got good players. It’s about going out there competing and executing.”
It’s truly baffling why that hasn’t really kicked in for over two weeks. While it’s certainly true that the rotation has been rocked by injuries — the Mets have put six starters on the IL since spring training, including three during this nosedive alone — the offense has stubbornly refused to pick up the slack.
Seeing the pitching staff go from being the majors’ best for 2 1/2 months to the cellar — doubling their ERA (6.41) over the past 16 games, almost a run higher than the runner-up Twins (5.85) — is shocking enough. But there’s no logical explanation for the bats virtually disappearing as well, with the notable exception of Juan Soto.
The Mets’ $765 million slugger put together an epic June, hitting .322 with 11 homers and a 1.196 OPS, and yet the team somehow was three games under .500 (12-15) for the month. Before June 13, the Mets had the fifth-best OPS (.758 OPS) in the majors and were averaging 4.62 runs during those first 69 games. During this 16-game plunge, however, they have the fifth-worst OPS (.660) and scoring just 3.06 runs while mostly getting blown out: eight of their 16 losses have been by five or more runs.
One change Mendoza says he won’t make yet: move Soto back up to his customary No. 2 spot in the lineup, which typically has altered between either Brandon Nimmo or Starling Marte with Soto staying third. You could argue that returning Soto to No. 2 might help revive the slumping Francisco Lindor, who is hitting .143 (8-for-56) with a .469 OPS over his last 14 games. But with Soto finally performing up to his reputation, it’s understandable that Mendoza would be wary of messing with him.
“I like where he’s at,” Mendoza said. If that’s something I’m considering on doing, I got to have really good reasons why I’m doing it. It doesn’t just necessarily affect Juan Soto, but how the lineup is going to look after that. So I just feel like, as of right now, I’m not thinking about it.”
Something has to change with these spiraling Mets, and fast. They’ve already lost 7 1/2 games in the standings since mid-June, falling behind the first-place Phillies by two games as of Tuesday afternoon. With the revenge-minded Brewers seeking payback for last October’s wild-card ouster, and the Yankees always seeking to embarrass their Flushing rivals, the hole could get deeper in a hurry.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
