Game Recap

Mets Turning Things Completely Around

This should have been a great game that got you more excited about this team. It was the fourth win in a row. Instead of the wins coming against the lowly Braves, this win came against the reigning World Series Champion Chicago Cubs. (It’s still weird to type that). 

This win started with Jacob deGrom, who must’ve fixed whatever mechanical flaw he had because he was dominant. He would become the fourth straight Mets starter that pitched into the seventh inning and the third straight to pitch seven innings. 

Actually, deGrom was better than that pitching a complete game. This made him the first Met to pitch a complete game since deGrom did it last July against the Phillies. His final line was nine innings, five hits, one run, one earned, four walks, and five strikeouts. 

In the game, the only Cub to get to him was Addison Russell who hit an opposite field home run in the seventh. Other than Russell, no Cub reached third base against deGrom. A big reason for that was the Mets turning four double plays behind deGrom. 

That wasn’t the only support deGrom received from his middle infield. Asdrubal Cabrera hit two homers off Cubs starter John Lackey:

https://twitter.com/therendermlb/status/874421307454181376

The other two Mets runs would come off a Jay Bruce two run homer in the third. Bruce would double in the sixth putting him on a pace for 84 extra base hits, which would be a Mets single season record. 

In the bottom of the eighth, the Mets tacked on two runs against the Cubs bullpen. The inning started with a Bruce single off Brian Duensing, and he moved to second when Cabrera tried to bunt his way on with one out. 

Joe Maddon brought in Felix Pena who couldn’t navigate the Cubs out of the inning. He first allowed a Travis d’Arnaud RBI double and then a Reyes RBI single. With that, the Mets were up 6-1 giving deGrom a huge margin in the ninth. 
Overall, despite Terry Collins inane decision to start Jose Reyes over Wilmer Flores, it was a great game for the Mets. 

That is except for the injuries. Michael Conforto missed the game with what was described as a stiff back due to the flight from Atlanta. Considering the Mets recent history with back injuries, we should all wait with baited breath until he is reinserted into the lineup. 

Conforto was the lesser of the two injuries. Yoenis Cespedes left the game in the sixth with that was described as a left heel injury. It should be noted Cespedes just came off the Disabled List with a left quad issue, and he said he was still not 100%. 

These injury issues put a damper on an otherwise terrific win. Still, as long as the Mets starters keep pitching this way, the Mets are going to win a lot of games. 

Game Notes: Paul Sewald was warming in the bullpen should deGrom get in trouble in the ninth. This was deGrom’s second career complete game. 

Cespedes Grand And Pitching Goes Deep In Sweep

Well, this was exactly how the Mets drew it up. Dominant starting pitching and an offense to match. They only thing missing was the players capable of doing it. 

Now that Yoenis Cespedes and Steven Matz are back, the Mets are in position to once again dominate lesser opponents like the Braves. 

But either Cespedes or Matz had an impact in this double header, Robert Gsellman made his latest case as to why the Mets should keep him in the rotation. 

Gsellman flat out dominated the Braves over 6.1 innings allowing just three hits and two walks while striking out four. It was his latest big start after he had been temporarily moved to the bullpen due to his early season struggles. 

The Mets needed that start too. They needed it because the Mets bullpen has been a mess. They needed it because of the double header. They needed it because Sean Newcomb was dealing for the Braves. 

The Mets were only able to scratch one run against him in the second with the assistance of a throwing error from Newcomb. T.J. Rivera hit a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0. Mets had to wait until the eighth to get another real threat going. 

The Mets had second and third with no outs against Luke Jackson after he hit Michael Conforto with a pitch, Cespedes singled, and Jackson threw a wild pitch. Ender Inciarte took what was a sure extra base hit and turned it into a Wilmer Flores sacrifice fly. 

The Mets had Jackson and the Braves on the ropes, but they left him off the hook. Then Fernando Salas allowed an eighth inning homer to Brandon Phillips, and he needed to get bailed out by Addison Reed, who was coming on for the five out save partially because Terry Collins ripped through his bullpen yet again. 

The ominous tone of the game, and perhaps the season changed with one swing of the bat:

Just like that, it was 6-1, but it was more than that.  The Mets were rejuvenated. They won the first game, and then they went out and dominated the second game. 

Like the first game of the double header, it all began with the starter. Matz pitched seven innings allowing just one run. That one run was in the seventh, but by that time, the game was already over. 

Jay Bruce hit a three run homer in the fifth off Matt Wisler. Somehow in the sixth, Flores hit a triple, and he scored on a Travis d’Arnaud sacrifice fly making it 4-0. 
T.J. Rivera provided insurance with an eighth inning two run homer. In the ninth, Juan Lagares hit a two run double making it 8-1. That’s a lead not even Neil Ramirez or Tyler Pill could blow. 
That’s how different things are with Cespedes back in the fold. The Mets are scoring insurance runs, and their bullpen doesn’t blow leads. 

Overall, it was a double header sweep where the Mets dominated the Braves. The Mets looked like the team many thought they would be to start the year. Both starters pitched into the seventh. There was a different vibe around this team. At least for one day, you believed this team still has some life. 

Game Notes: Neil Walker returned from the stiff knee and played in both games starting the second. Cespedes was the 26th man. Rivera and Pill were sent down after the game to accommodate Matz and Seth Lugo being activated from the disabled list. Flores, Jose Reyes, and Conforto were the only players to start both games. Asdrubal Cabrera committed two errors. 

Ironically Mets Beat By Dynamic Young SS 

With the Braves sending Julio Teheran to the mound, the Mets needed Matt Harvey to be good tonight. 

Harvey was good enough. For just the third time in his 12 starts, he didn’t allow a homer. More than that, for the first time this season he had an outing where he didn’t allow a run. 

Still, it wasn’t smooth sailing. The only 1-2-3 inning he had was the fifth, which was also his final inning as he needed 104 pitches.

Most of those pitches came in a 27 pitch second inning. The Braves loaded the bases with one out with Teheran coming to the plate. He hit a chopper to Wilmer Flores, who came home with it. His throw barely beat Matt Adams

For what it’s worth, it may not have beat Adams. That play was close as it gets, and shockingly, the Braves didn’t challenge. It was probably lucky they didn’t. It was emblematic of the luck Harvey continues to have with runners in scoring position. 

The Braves were 0-5 with RISP against Harvey leaving six runners on base. It fueled a good start for Harvey whose final line was five innings, four hits, no runs, no earned, two walks, and three strikeouts. It was enough for Harvey to leave with the win. 

And it was barely enough. Teheran was his usual terrific self, and the Braves were flashing the leather. 

In the third, Dansby Swanson made a diving catch on a sinking Michael Conforto line drive, and turned it into a double play. It was the second time Swanson made a play to get Conforto out. 

In the fifth, Ender Inciarte robbed Travis d’Arnaud of an extra base hit that probably would’ve scored Curtis Granderson

While he wouldn’t score there, Granderson did get the Mets on the board with a solo shot in the third. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. 

Paul Sewald was double switched into the game in the sixth, and he was immediately in trouble after Matt Kemp‘s lead-off double. Sewald was so close to working around it. With two outs in the inning, the Mets had an option: pitch to Danny Santana or Swanson.

The Mets chose Swanson, and intentionally walked Santana putting the go-ahead run on base. The Mets would rue the the decision as Swanson hit a two RBI double to give the Braves a 2-1 lead. 

In the seventh, the Braves brought on Jason Motte to pitch to d’Arnaud, and d’Arnaud tied the game at 2-2 with a solo home run. 

In the eighth, d’Arnaud would also help the Mets by completing a strike ’em out – throw ’em out double play. 

That only stayed the inevitable. In Fernando Salas‘ second inning of work, he allowed a one out hit to Swanson. Swanson got on his horse, and he took advantage of Granderson’s poor arm for the hustle double. It didn’t hurt that Granderson was deep playing no doubles, and he didn’t go full speed getting to that ball. 

Terry Collins went to Josh Edgin to pitch to Rio Ruiz. Ruiz hit Edgin’s first pitch past a diving Asdrubal Cabrera. With Conforto unable to get the ball out of his glove, there would be no play at home. 
The Mets lost a game they should’ve won further pushing them closer to selling. If only this team had a SS prospect who could’ve had an impact on this game like Swanson. 

Game Notes: Neil Walker missed his second straight game with a knee issue, and T.J. Rivera was given the start. Yoenis Cespedes will come off the Disabled List tomorrow as the 26th man. 

Collins Decision Has Blevins Vulturing Wheeler

Tonight, it was a battle of the aces. For the Rangers, it was Yu Darvish who is having another fine season. For the Mets, it was Zack Wheeler. Yes, Zack Wheeler. 

While we watch Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom struggle, and with Noah Syndergaard gone for most of the year, it has been Wheeler. He’s been the most consistent starter, and he’s getting better as the season progresses. 

Tonight’s start was a microcosm of Wheeler’s season. In the first, the Rangers loaded the bases with no outs, but they only came away with one run on a Nomar Mazara RBI groundout. It was initially ruled a double play, but upon replay, he was ruled safe. It didn’t matter much, as Wheeler got out of the inning by inducing Robinson Chirinos to hit into the inning ending double play. 

From there, Wheeler was brilliant. He mowed down the Rangers, and he pitched into the seventh.  The Rangers put Wheeler on the ropes with runners on first and second with two out, and Delino DeShields coming to the plate. At that point in the game, DeShields was 2-2 with a run and a walk.  Despite this, Wheeler dug deep, and on his 108th pitch of the night, he got DeShields to fly out to right. 

The 108 pitches matched a season high for Wheeler. His final line on the night was seven innings, six hits, one run, one earned, three walks, and five strikeouts. Simply put, he was terrific. 

On the opposite side, Darvish probably had better stuff. He was perfect through three, and the Mets didn’t look like they had much of a chance on the night. Things changed in the fourth. 

Michael Conforto got hit by a pitch in the dirt thereby ending the perfect game. He then scored on what was initially a Jay Bruce triple. Upon replay, it was ruled Bruce hit a two run homer:
https://twitter.com/mlbreplays/status/872642909006430208

Darvish would not make another mistake until Bruce came up again in the sixth. Bruce took a slider off the plate, and he drove it opposite field for a solo home run making it 3-1. 

Overall, Darvish was nearly unhittable over his 7.1 innings pitched. In fact, other than Bruce, Juan Lagares was the only Met to get a hit off Darvish. That hit chased Darvish. Former Met Dario Alvarez would walk Conforto before getting Asdrubal Cabrera to hit into the inning ending double play. 

The Mets would rue failing to tack on runs there. Jerry Blevins got the first two out before allowing a Mazara single. That’s where Terry Collins poor managing reared its ugly head. 

Despite Blevins having a terrific year with a 1.42 ERA, he has struggled against righties. On the season, righties are hitting .364/.481/.591 off of him. The batter, Chirinos, the Rangers version of Wilmer Flores, is hitting .353/.389/.529 off lefties. Chirinos struggles against righties hitting just .210/.310/.460 off them. Looking at the splits, it was an obvious spot for Addison Reed to go with the four out save with the Mets having a day off tomorrow. 

If not Reed, at least Fernando Salas, who was warming in the bullpen. Instead of Salas, Collins stuck with Blevins, who hung one to Chirinos. Tie game. 

For the second straight night, the Mets would make Matt Bush in the ninth. Lucas Duda hit a one out double, and Curtis Granderson worked out a two out walk to put the game in Jose Reyes‘ hands. 

Reyes hit a bouncer to Rougned Odor who spiked the throw to Elvis Andrus. Andrus could not come up with the throw, and on the throw, Matt Reynolds, who came on to pinch run for Duda, never stopped and scored from second on the play. 

With the Rangers failing to make the play, and with Reynolds’ hustle, the Mets reclaimed the lead at 4-3. Reed came on in the ninth, and he pitched a rare 1-2-3 save for him.

If nothing else, this win shows this team has heart. They blew a game yesterday.  They had their stomach punched on the Chirinos homer. And yet, they pulled this one out. Maybe, just maybe, there’s still room for hope. 

Game Notes: Reyes got the start with Neil Walker out of the lineup. While Collins said it was a routine day off, reports indicated Walker may have a knee injury. 

Depressing: Gee Outpitched deGrom

Here’s the best way to synopsize both this game and the 2017 season ➡️ Dillon Gee allowed half the amount of runs in this game than Jacob deGrom did. And no, Gee was not good tonight. 

The former Met allowed four runs over 3.1 innings allowing solo homers to Juan LagaresAsdrubal Cabrera, and Neil Walker. The most impressive of these was Lagares, not just because he hit one, but because it went opposite field:

It was almost four homers, but Jay Bruce got robbed by Jared Hoying:

The other run came in the first and was set up when Michael Conforto led off the game with a double. He later scored on a two out RBI single by the red hot Lucas Duda

For his part, Lagares was uncharacteristicly good at the plate going 4-5 with a homer. 

It wouldn’t matter as deGrom couldn’t hold any lead. He just couldn’t protect a 1-0, 2-1, or a 4-3 lead. He allowed runs in every inning he pitched. 

It started when deGrom couldn’t get his footwork right in the first inning. Adrian Beltre grounded into what should’ve been an inning ending 3-6-1 double play, but deGrom was searching for the bag with his feet instead of stretching for the throw. Instead of getting out of the inning unscathed, deGrom allowed the tying run to score. 

In the second, deGrom lost a 2-1 lead. Rougned Odor hit a double after a Jonathan Lucroy single to set up runners at second and third and no out. Hoying hit an RBI ground out, and Delino DeShields followed with a sac fly to make it 3-2. 

The Mets took the lead, and deGrom gave it back in the third on a Joey Gallo two run homer. On the play, Bruce had a NL opportunity to return the favor to the Rangers by stealing a homer himself, but he fell just short:

https://twitter.com/therendermlb/status/872265476822401024

It all came crashing down in the fourth for deGrom. With runners on second and third with no outs, deGrom threw a wild pitch while walking Shin-Soo Choo to make it 6-4. The seventh run scored when Elvis Andrus hit into a double play. Unfortunately, deGrom still couldn’t get out of the inning before allowing a solo homer to Nomar Mazara

It was a tough night for deGrom.  His final line was four innings, 10 hits, eight runs, eight earned, one walk, and just two strikeouts. Not too long ago, he seemed to turn the corner. This is now his second poor start, and his ERA has ballooned to 4.75. 

The best thing you could say scour the night was deGrom seems more devastated by his struggles than Mets fans are. 


From there, the Mets had little choice but to bring in Josh Smoker and his 7.43 ERA into the game. Things could’ve gone worse, but he still allowed two runs over his two innings pitched raising his ERA to 7.56. If you really want to be depressed, consider Neil Ramirez was the Mets best pitcher on the night. 

The Mets bats went mostly silent after the third with the team scoring just one run in the 10-5 loss. The team was 2-13 with RISP, and they were only able to score one run when they had bases loaded and one out in the eighth. They were one big hit away from getting back in the game. Instead, they made three quick outs. 

However, the bats reawoke in the ninth. After a Flores lead-off single, Curtis Granderson and Travis d’Arnaud went back-to-back to get within 10-8. After a Lagares single and a Conforo walk, the Mets were really in business. Asdrubal Cabrera struck out, and then Bruce hit into a game ending double play. 

The Mets need to get going soon because the Nationals aren’t slowing down anytime soon. 

Game Notes: Duda (2-5, HR) and Wilmer Flores (3-5) continued to hit. Travis d’Arnaud played poorly going 0-4 leaving five runners on base. DeShields also stole two bases off of him. 

Why Bother Watching?

It was a Sunday game, and no offense to him, but the Mets were starting Tyler Pill. With Addison Reed likely unavailable with his pitching two innings last night, you’d be hard pressed to argue the pitching would sufficiently line up to give the Mets a chance. 

Hopefully, you didn’t try to argue the Mets could win this one because they lost a non-competitive 11-1 game. The Mets were probably luck it was that close especially considering both Josh Smoker and Neil Ramirez brought there 7.00+ ERAs to the mound today. 

About the only player who showed up ready to play was the scorching hot Wilmer Flores, who stayed hot going 2-4. Other than that, you’re really stretching to find another positive. 

This season is falling apart fast. In fact, it may have already. Only one team since the 1930s entered June .500 and won the World Series (2003 Marlins). With the Mets not willing to fire their manager and without a Miguel Cabrera to call-up, it’s hard to argue the Mets can repeat that feat. 

It’s next to impossible when you consider the Mets do have uber prospect Amed Rosario, and they still won’t call him up. If we’re being honest, if the Mets do eventually call him up, it’ll probably be too late to salvage this season. 

Game Notes: The Mets scored their only run of the game in the second inning when a run scored on a Travis d’Arnaud GIDP. 

Mets Bullpen Holds This One

If you like a traditional offense of get ’em on, get ’em over, and get ’em in, this was not the game for you. The Mets were 1-5 with RISP making them much better than a Pirates team that was 1-12.

That one hit wasn’t much of a hit either. In the fourth, Elias Diaz followed a one out Jordy Mercer double with an “infield single.”  It really should have been an error as Wilmer Flores charged the ball and had it go underneath his glove. With that being the one hit, you already know the Pirates did not capitalize on the opportunity. 

In fact, they let Robert Gsellman off the hook. After a 1-2-3 first, Gsellman allowed base runners in all six innings he appeared. 

The only rally they cashed in on was a third inning rally where the Pirates started the inning with back-to-back singled to set up first and third. Gregory Polanco hit an RBI groundout to plate a run. 

The only other run the Pirates would score off Gsellman was a Josh Bell second inning homer. 

The Pirates did have a golden opportunity in the sixth. Despite his having thrown 96 pitches heading into the sixth, Terry Collins went with Gsellman to start the inning. The Pirates put runners on first and second with one out, and Gsellman was up to 109 pitches. Collins then went to Fernando Salas

Salas came on and struck out yesterday’s hero Elias Diaz, and got Jose Osuna to fly out to end the inning and preserve the Mets 4-2 lead. 

With the Mets similarly struggling with runners in scoring position, they had to turn to the home run to win this game. 

The Mets got an early 2-0 lead as Neil Walker hit a two run first inning home run off Pirates starter Tyler Glasnow. After the Pirates tied the score at 2-2, Jay Bruce hit a solo homer to make it 3-2 Mets in the third. Wilmer Flores then hit a fourth inning homer to make it 4-2. That’s where the score stayed besides both teams having a number of chances. 

In the sixth, the Mets had first and third no outs off Pirates reliever Johnny Barbato. Flores and Rene Rivera strikeouts book ended. Curtis Granderson popping out to center. 

In the sixth, seventh, and eighth, the Pirates hand two on, and they would not score a runner. Jerry Blevins and Addison Reed made the pitches they needed, and they preserved the lead.

For his part, Reed was double switched into the game in the eighth and was entasked with the six out save. Prior to this, he had never recorded a four out save. 

Reed buckled  down and did it. It wasn’t uneasy, but he got the job done. The Mets did as well.  It was a good win, and the Mets needed to build off of this win. 

Game Notes: Asdrubal Cabrera made his eighth error of the season thereby surpassing his error total from last year. Jose Reyes took over for him in the eighth when Reed was double switched into the game. 

Elias With Previously Unheard Of Stats

There was a time Gerrit Cole against Matt Harvey would be an anticipated pitcher’s duel. Not tonight. Maybe not ever again. Instead, it was a facing off of sluggers. Lucas Duda for the Mets, and Elias Diaz for the Pirates?

Because Francisco Cervelli was sick, he was removed from the lineup, and Diaz was put into the starting lineup. Diaz had only played in nine games over three years, so naturally, he was 2-3 with a double, homer, and six RBI. He absolutely killed the Mets. 

Still, this was a ballgame at one point.  A slugfest, but a ballgame nevertheless. 

In the first, Harvey loaded the bases with no outs. He somehow wriggled out of it allowing just the one run. While he was unable to put anyone away, he reached back and was able to strike out both Josh Bell and Andrew McCutchen to get out of the inning. 

From there, it appeared Harvey had settled in a bit. For a while, it even looked like he’d get the victory in this game. 

This was mostly thanks to Duda who launched two huge homers. The first shot in the second inning nearly took down the Shea Bridge and gave the Mets a 2-1 lead:

Harvey then ran into trouble in the fourth. Once again, he would load the bases with no outs. This time, he wasn’t so lucky. Diaz would hit a pitch over the middle of the plate for a bases loaded triple. This snapped an 0-26 steak opponents had against Harvey with runners in scoring position. 

Despite these struggles, Harvey would be in position to win this game. 

After Harvey failed to get down his second sacrifice bunt of the night, Michael Conforto hit an opposite field homer to tie the score at 4-4. 

After a Jay Bruce walk, Gregory Polanco played a Neil Walker hit into an RBI triple. Walker then scored on a Duda home run that went way up the Pepsi Porch capping off a five run inning and giving the Mets a 7-4 lead. 

At this point, the Mets offense was rolling, and it appeared the game was in-hand. Harvey made quick work of the Pirates in the fifth, and he took the mound in the sixth. That’s where the game changed. 

Bell led off the inning with a home run, and McCutchen followed with a walk. Terry Collins then double switched Paul Sewald into the game. Coming into the game, Sewald was arguably the Mets best reliever with a 2.21 ERA. He’d leave the game with a 4.35 ERA. 

The Pirates just went to work on Sewald. Diaz hit a three run homer off of him. After getting tattooed left and right, he eventually reloaded the bases and walked in a run. Before Collins went it to get him, he faced eight batters get to g just one out. His final line in the loss was 0.1 innings, five hits, five runs, five earned, one walk, and one strikeout. 

Sewald was bailed out by Neil Ramirez, who was probably the Mets best pitcher of the night. He worked 2.2 innings allowing just a home run to Josh Harrison to make it 12-7. 

In addition to Diaz, Harrison killed the Mets. He was 3-4 with two runs, a double, homer, and two RBI. He also made a nice diving catch robbing Conforto of a single. 

Really, the key difference in this game was when the managers pulled their starters. Harvey went too long, and it led to the Pirates game winning rally. The Pirates pulled Cole, and he got the victory despite allowing seven runs in five innings. 

This was just the latest in inexplicably and inexcusable losses for this team. 

Game Recap: Curtis Granderson recorded his 1,600 hit with a second inning single. Travis d’Arnaud was 2-3 with a walk. He’s now 6-12 this year against the Pirates. Wilmer Flores has supplanted Jose Reyes as the starting third baseman. 

Caramel M&Ms And Baseball Cards

Jacob deGrom started the game issuing a lead-off walk to Eric Sogard, and then he allowed a two run home run to Eric Thames. That start was a good indication as to where this game was headed. 

This was arguably the worst start of deGrom’s career. He needed 105 pitches to get through four innings. His final line was four innings, eight hits, seven runs, seven earned, five walks, and six strikeouts. He probably wasn’t even that good. 

On the other side, Junior Guerra was dealing. About the only good that Mets position players were able to do was some nice diving catches by Michael Conforto and Lucas Duda:

The real highlight of the game for the Mets was Josh Edgin. He came on in the fifth, and he saved the bullpen pitching three scoreless innings.  It’s the type of outing that really gets overlooked during the course of the season, especially with Gary, Keith, and Ron talking Caramel M&Ms with Keith throwing the M&Ms to the camera crew. Still, Edgin’s outing is an important one. 

It was also important because it gave the Mets a chance. They’d load the bases in the seventh with one out. Jay Bruce then grounded into the inning ending 4-6-3 double play. It was a close play at first worthy of a challenge except Terry Collins ran out of time thus ending the Mets only chance to get back into the game.  

The shut out was broken up after Conforto followed a Juan Lagares hit a two out infield single with a Conforto RBI double. 

From there, the Mets brought in Neil Ramirez, and the guys in the booth broke out the baseball cards. Honestly, there’s not much else you can expect in a 7-1 loss. It was even too much for Mr. Met to take:

https://twitter.com/adelucia35/status/870092668084375552

Game Notes: Curtis Granderson was 2-3 which finally brings his batting average over the Mendoza Line at .201. Mets pitching walked eight batters. The Mets are now 3-11 when they walk six plus batters. 

Mets Win A Pill Of A Game

In the Matrix, Morpheus said to Neo, “You take the blue pill, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.” 

Apparently, Tyler Pill is the blue pill because there were a number of strange things that happened at Citi Field that only the most ardent Mets fans could believe:

Jose Reyes started over a red hot Wilmer Flores. More than that, Zack Davies appeared to strike him out looking. Instead, the home plate umpire called it a call leading to a Reyes bases loaded walk. 
Travis d’Arnaud threw out last year’s stolen base leader Jonathan Villar:

Jerry Blevins allowed an inherited runner to score. 
Fernando Salas not only got an at-bat, but he also got a hit. 

More than that, Pill only allowed one run over 5.1 innings. 

Despite Pill having a minor league 1.60 ERA this year, his peripherals indicated his ERA should be over 4.00.  Long story short, Pill has been extremely lucky this year. While that luck escaped him in his major league debut, he brought it with him today. 

Starting with his warm-ups, Pill was in trouble all night. He hit Keon Broxton, who was the very first batter he faced. He’d be the only one to score against Pill after a Travis Shaw double. 

From there, Pill had no 1-2-3 innings. He somehow stranded seven batters including Eric Thames, who tripled to lead-off the fifth thanks to some poor Jay Bruce defense (that was believable). 

Through of all this, the Mets had a 4-1 lead scoring twice in the fifth and sixth innings. In the fifth, Curtis Granderson and Asdrubal Cabrera hit a pair of doubles to tie the game at one. The Mets would then load the bases, and Reyes drew the aforementioned bases loaded walk.

Neil Walker hit a lead-off double off Brewers reliever Eric Sogard, and he would score on a Lucas Duda homer:

This left Pill on the long side on a night despite allowing six hits, three walks, and a hit batter over 5.1 innings. Despite all of this, he wouldn’t get the win. 

He didn’t get the win because in the seventh inning the unthinkable happened. Yes, it was easy to believe Salas would walk two to help load the bases with one out. It’s easier to believe that happened when you consider he was running the bases in the top half of the inning.

Blevins came on, and it appeared he did what he had to do. He struck out Shaw looking. While he did issue a bases loaded walk to Domingo Santana to make it 4-2, he did get Jett Bandy to pop up to short. 

That’s when the unthinkable happened. The sure-handed Cabrera Luis Castilloed it:

https://twitter.com/therendermlb/status/869733991867445248

Thankfully, Santana was not hustling like Mark Teixeira did meaning the Brewers merely tied the score on the play instead of potentially going up 5-4. 

The bullpen did its job. Josh Edgin and Addison Reed each pitched a scoreless inning, and Josh Smoker pitched three scoreless. Smoker got into a jam, but he got a huge strikeout to get out of the 10th.  We then saw one of his signature celebrations:

What’s interesting is Terry Collins had the opportunity to double switch both Reed and Smoker into the game to possibly get an extra inning out of them. He passed both times. 

Finally, the Mets got something started in the 12th. T.J. Rivera led off with a pinch hit single off Wily Peralta, and Conforo walked. After Reyes couldn’t get a bunt down, he hit a fielder’s choice with Thames getting Conforto at second. The Mets finally won it with a Bruce single against the drawn-in shifted infield. 

A long bizarre game finally came to an end with the Mets winning a game they have typically lost all year. The final score indicates Mets fans really took the blue pill. 

Game Notes: Walker’s two doubles on the night gave him 1,000 hits for his career. Mets are 3-10 when they walked six or more. They walked eight.