20/20 Hindsight: Mets Fans Left Rooting For Phillies And Reds

The Mets went into Cincinnati looking for a sweep, but they didn’t get it. It was close, but they didn’t get there. As a result, their chances of grabbing a Wild Card became all the more difficult:

1. The Pittsburgh Pirates are an absolute embarrassment. It’s one thing to get swept like they did, it’s another thing to not even present even a minor impediment to the Brewers. Between this, Felipe Vazquez, Jung Ho Kang, all of their beanball nonsense, and the litany of other things, they are an absolute embarrassment.

2. The Pirates have all but given the Brewers one of the two Wild Card spots putting the Mets in an even more difficult situation in their attempts to make the postseason.

3. Of course, the Mets are in this position because of their first half and their loss on Saturday.

4. Todd Frazier had a difficult first inning on Saturday making an error and playing a ball which was foul leading to two first inning runs. Of course, it is difficult to completely get on him for that loss as he was the only one who actually hit the ball that day.

5. That is what makes this Mets team and offense so maddening. They can explode for eight runs in a blink on Friday night, and they can barely muster three hits the next day. That’s fine in June, but they can’t afford to be doing this right now.

6. Lost in that loss was just how great Zack Wheeler was. He had yet again another seven inning outing allowing just one earned. To be doing this with everything on the line, we are really learning something about him. If the Mets were smart, they’d be doing all they could do to lock him up because it is very doubtful they can replace him in the rotation next year.

7. Wheeler and Jacob deGrom dominating in the late season is reminiscent of what happened last year when deGrom won the Cy Young. After his pitching seven scoreless innings against the Reds, deGrom has put himself in a position to win his second straight one.

8. The Mets decision to flip Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz in the rotation was an inspired one. This puts Matz in a position to start at home where he is great. Even with Stroman being sick, he gave the Mets a tough effort allowing them to win that game.

9. In that Stroman start, he was bailed out out a bases loaded jam by Brad Brach in the fifth. Suddenly, this Mets bullpen is suddenly looking like it’s more than just Seth Lugo and Justin Wilson. That’s all the more the case with Edwin Diaz somehow having two good outings in pressure spots.

10. Christian Colon getting an RBI single off of a Lugo curveball which might’ve ended the season was just cruel when you consider this was the same Colon who got the hit in Game 5 of the 2015 World Series.

11. Michael Conforto appears to be snapping out of his September slump. He got two walks on Friday before hitting an RBI single in the ninth, and he hit a three run homer on Sunday. He appears to be heating up at just the right time because the Mets need everything they can get.

12. With Conforto hitting his 31st homer, he and Pete Alonso have hit a combined 81 homers which surpasses the record for homers by a pair of Mets in a single season when Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado combined to hit 79 homers in 2006.

13. Alonso’s 50 homers is the single season record for a player’s first season. It is surpasses Mark McGwire‘s rookie record for homers by a first baseman. It puts him two homers behind Aaron Judge for the all-time rookie record.

14. With Alonso also having 30 doubles and two triples, his 82 extra base hits surpasses the team single season record held by Beltran (2006) and Howard Johnson (1989). No matter how high you were on him, he has far exceeded everyone’s realistic expectations. It has simply been a joy to watch him do it.

15. It’s also been a joy to watch Brandon Nimmo play the way he has. He’s showing last year was no fluke, and he has shown that the bulging disc in his neck will have no impact on his ability to play.

16. It’s just the Mets luck that when Robinson Cano hits a double to get him out of a funk that he gets hit on the foot. Even with the x-rays being negative, it is questionable how much he can contribute the rest of the year. In that sense, he is just like Cano has been all season long, or how Jed Lowrie has been since he signed with the Mets.

17. The Mets through Andy Martino can try to push any narratives they want. However, let’s be honest, after decimating the farm system and destroying future payroll flexibility, the Mets not making the postseason would make this year a complete disaster.

18. If they sweep them, they MAY have a chance the final weekend of the season, and they will play a Braves team who officially has nothing to play for that weekend.

19. If the Mets go 7-0, they need the Nationals to 4-5 over their last nine. This makes us all Phillies fans hoping to watch Bryce Harper stick it to his old team. We could also hope the Reds and Rockies play the Brewers as hard as they played the Mets and that the Brewers having played the Pirates gave them a false sense of security.

20. No matter what happens, the Mets are in a position to capitalize on one of the teams ahead of them slipping up. If that should happen, they will have deGrom lined up to start a tie-breaker or Wild Card Game. Considering where things were at the break, that’s a better position than we had anticipated.

Eli Manning Era Officially Over

Even with Geno Smith inexplicably starting a game over Eli Manning in December 2017, with the fan uproar and front office cowering, it was clear the Eli Manning Era was not over for the Giants. While there is much debate and hand-wringing over that decision, the Giants allowed a legend to essentially go out on his own terms (or close to it), which is an ending befitting legends.

When Daniel Jones gets the start later today, Eli Manning is officially the back-up now and a former Giant after the season. Sure, there may be an injury or other situation which could press Eli back into action this year, but make no mistake, we’ve seen the last of him as the Giants top quarterback.

With Eli Manning, the Giants have received not one but two epic Super Bowl victories. There have been countless other big moments not just in those runs but in other seasons as well.We all know the biggest moment will forever be Super Bowl XLII, but there were others.

There was also the pass to Manningham, and there were all of the come from behind victories. There were Giants wins and division titles. Through it all, Eli made good on the promise he had when the Giants traded to get him after he was selected first overall by the San Diego Chargers with the top pick in the 2004 NFL Draft.

This is the end of an era for the future Hall of Famer, and yes with his winning two Super Bowl MVPs, he is a Hall of Famer. As a Giants fans, we all know it is time to move on from him to enter into the new era focused upon Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley. Still, that does not mean there isn’t an element of melancholy and sadness to see one of the greats in team and NFL history have his career effectively ended.

Soon enough, the melancholy will turn into excitement for Jones, and it will turn to warm memories of a great career which delivered two Super Bowls. At the end of the day, all that is left to say is, “Thank you, Eli.”

Christian Colon Again

For every Chipper Jones, there are guys like Willie Harris. The Harrises of the world bother you most because they shouldn’t be Mets killers. They shouldn’t bother anyone other than their own team.

The official worst of that group is Christian Colon.

His RBI single in the 12th inning of Game 5 proved to be the series clincher. He came to the Mets in 2018, and he did nothing for them as he stayed in Triple-A all year.

In pure evil fashion, the Reds called him up for this series. He would deliver the go-ahead RBI single in the eighth . . . off a Seth Lugo curve to boot.

We can point to many other things today. The Todd Frazier error. Only two runs of support for Zack Wheeler. Pick whatever you want.

After you get through all that, you once again have Christian Colon effectively ending the Mets World Series dreams. How is that possible?

Mets Wild Card Scenarios

Following up on yesterday’s post about what needs to happen for the Mets to claim a Wild Card spot, and yesterday’s game, the current Wild Card standings are as follows:

Team Record GB
Nationals  84-68 +1.0
Brewers  84-70 0.0
Cubs  82-72 2.0
Mets  80-73 3.5
Phillies  78-74 5.0

With nine games remaining in the season, the Mets need to go on a hot streak while hoping two of the other teams fall back to the back while the Mets stay ahead of the Phillies. Putting the Phillies aside, here is what needs to happen for the Mets to catch each of the teams ahead of them.

Mets Nationals Brewers Cubs
10-0 6-5 6-3 7-2
9-1 5-6 5-4 6-3
8-2 4-7 4-5 5-4
7-3 3-8 3-6 4-5
6-4 2-9 2-7 3-6
5-5 1-10 1-8 2-7
4-5 0-11 0-9 1-8
3-6 Eliminated

Keeping in mind the Mets need for two of those events to happen. That’s how it looks in numbers. Given the schedules and the injuries, anything less than 8-2 is a non-starter for the Mets, and if we are being honest the anything less than 9-1 eliminates the Mets.

Yan Gomes Matt Adams Brian Dozier Trea Turner Anthony Rendon Juan Soto Victor Robles Adam Eaton Howie Kendrick Kurt Suzuki Gerardo Parra Ryan Zimmerman Wilmer Difo Asdrubal Cabrera Michael A. Taylor Andrew Stevenson Adrian Sanchez Raudy Read Tres Barrera Stephen Strasburg Patrick Corbin Max Scherzer Anibal Sanchez  Sean Doolittle Wander Suero Tanner Rainey Joe Ross Javy Guerra Jeremy Hellickson Austin Voth Fernando Rodney Daniel Hudson Hunter Strickland Roenis Elias Aaron Barrett Wilson Ramos Pete Alonso Robinson Cano Amed Rosario Todd Frazier J.D. Davis Brandon Nimmo Michael Conforto Jeff McNeil Tomas Nido Joe Panik Luis Guillorme Rajai Davis Rene Rivera Jed Lowrie Sam Haggerty Jacob deGrom Noah Syndergaard Zack Wheeler Steven Matz Edwin Diaz Seth Lugo Jeurys Familia Justin Wilson Marcus Stroman Luis Avilan Drew Gagnon Walker Lockett Tyler Bashlor Paul Sewald Chris Mazza Brad Brach Donnie Hart Daniel Zamora Willson Contreras Anthony Rizzo Addison Russell Javier Baez Kyle Schwarber Albert Almora Jason Heyward Victor Caratini Nicholas Castellanos Daniel Descalso Ben Zobrist Ian Happ Tony Kemp Jonathan Lucroy Nico Hoerner Kyle Hendricks Yu Darvish Jon Lester Jose Quintana Cole Hamels Craig Kimbrel Steve Cishek Kyle Ryan Brandon Kintzler Pedro Strop Tyler Chatwood Rowan Wick Alec Mills David Phelps Derek Holland Dillon Maples Brad Wieck James Norwood Danny Hultzen Duane Underwood Jr. Yasmani Grandal Eric Thames Keston Hiura Orlando Arcia Mike Moustakas Ryan Braun Lorenzo Cain Christian Yelich Ben Gamel Travis Shaw Hernan Perez Manny Pina Trent Grisham Cory Spangenberg Tyler Austin David Freitas Jacob Nottingham Tyrone Taylor Zach Davies Chase Anderson Brandon Woodruff Gio Gonzalez Jordan Lyles Josh Hader Junior Guerra Alex Claudio Adrian Houser Freddy Peralta Corbin Burnes Jay Jackson Drew Pomeranz Jimmy Nelson Taylor Williams Brent Suter Ray Black Jake Faria Devin Williams

deGrom With Run Support Is Unbeatable

The anticipated pitchers’ duel that was Jacob deGrom and Luis Castillo didn’t disappoint with there being a combined six hits against the two pitchers.

For deGrom, he further cemented his Cy Young case. Over 7.0 innings, he limited the Reds to just four singles. He walked none while striking out nine. The best way to sum it up was he was deGrom on that mound.

As good as deGrom was, Castillo was nearly his equal. He was getting the Mets to pound the ball into the ground. As a result, over his first 5.1 innings, he allowed just one hit. On a night where he needed to be perfect to beat deGrom, he was nearly perfect.

Nearly.

As noted by Keith Hernandez during the broadcast, Castillo made just two mistakes on the night. The first came with one out in the sixth:

That Jeff McNeil homer gave the Mets a 1-0 lead. It was his 16th homer in the second half as he’s focused more on power than contact much like he did in Binghamton last year.

At the time, most thought that was all the run support deGrom would get. After all, the Mets offense has been dormant for well over a year when deGrom pitches. On top of that, Castillo was great.

As great as he was, he’d make his second mistake in the seventh. Like McNeil, Amed Rosario would make him pay.

That two run homer gave the Mets a 3-0 lead. That’s two more runs than deGrom needed.

What was interesting was after the seventh, it appeared Mickey Callaway was set to pull deGrom even though he only threw 96 pitches. While we don’t know if deGrom said something or Brodie texted something, with what’s on the line, it was a surprise move.

Fortunately, the Reds went to their bullpen in the eighth, and Pete Alonso would take advantage hitting his 50th homer of the season.

50!

The list of players who have hit 50 in their rookie year stands at Alonso and Aaron Judge. With two more games in this ballpark and the Mets playing the Marlins next, you almost have to believe Alonso’s going to break Judge’s rookie record of 52.

On another note, the 50 homers passes Mark McGwire for the rookie first base record. It was also Alonso’s 81st extra bass hit surpassing the single season record held by Carlos Beltran (2006) and Howard Johnson.

With respect to the game and the Mets Wild Card hopes, the homer gave the Mets a 5-0 lead. That made it a whole lot easier to go to the bullpen allowing deGrom to save his bullets for his final two (or maybe three) starts.

In the eighth, Brad Brach allowed a two out single before getting lifted for Luis Avilan with Joey Votto due up. After Avilan walked Votto, things were on the verge of getting dicey with Eugenio Suarez due up. Given his home run propensity and Diaz having hit 48 homers this year, Edwin Diaz was a very curious choice even if a homer only makes it 5-3.

Diaz responded to the challenge by striking out Suarez.

With the Mets into their bullpen, even with a 5-0 lead, insurance runs couldn’t hurt. They got that when Brandon Nimmo scores from first on a McNeil double increasing the Mets lead to 6-0.

McNeil went to third on the throw. After an intentional walk to Alonso and a defensive indifference, Juan Lagares singled home McNeil to make it 7-0. Michael Conforto, who had been taking better at-bats in the game walking twice, snapped an 0-for-21 stretch with an RBI single to make it 8-0.

After Jeurys Familia allowed a monster shot to Aristides Aquino, the Mets won 8-1. That’s three wins in a row with a favorable schedule. The only issue is if this run can continue, and if so, will it be enough.

Game Notes: Cubs lost to the Cardinals in the afternoon, and the Mets now trail them by 1.0 games, but they’re still three games in the loss column behind the Brewers.

What Needs To Happen For The Mets To Get The Wild Card

The New York Mets are somehow just three games out of the loss column for the second Wild Card. For that matter, they are four games out of the top Wild Card spot. With 10 games remaining in the season, that gives the Mets a viable albeit an outside chance to get the Wild Card.

What helps the Mets is the remaining schedules.

Starting tonight, the Mets play a three game set against the Cincinnati Reds. Now, the Reds have proved feisty of late having taken four out of six from the Diamondbacks and Cubs to deliver real damage to their respective Wild Card hopes. They also have ace starter Luis Castillo lined up for this series.

What mitigates against Castillo is the fact he’s facing Jacob deGrom. In fact, it is the Mets rotation which really sets them up for success in this series with Zack Wheeler and Steven Matz to pitch after him. It should also help the Mets that their bullpen is fairly well rested and pitching well of late.

After the Reds, the Mets have a four game set against the Marlins who have been terrible in the second half. That has been the case of late with them losing 10 of their past 13. They’re a bad team, and the Mets should absolutely sweep them. This means at a minimum, the Mets should go 6-1 over this stretch of seven games heading into the final weekend. If the Mets really have designs on claiming a Wild Card spot, they should really go 7-0.

While the Mets are hopefully taking advantage of this opportunity, the Cubs are going to first be playing a four game set against the Cardinals. As we saw last night, that didn’t go so well for them. The Mets need to hope for more of that as the Cubs have the Pirates next, and as we have seen, the Pirates are an unmitigated disaster being almost the equivalent of a forfeit victory right now. Of course, after the Pirates, it is right back to the Cardinals, which puts the Cubs on the brink.

The other NL Central team the Mets are chasing are the Milwaukee Brewers. Even with Christian Yelich done for the year and Lorenzo Cain dealing with an ankle injury, the Brewers schedule is far too easy with their final nine games coming against the Reds, Pirates, and Rockies. Even with the Reds playing well and the Rockies looking game right now, it is hard to imagine they fall back with that schedule.

That brings up the Nationals. They have lost four out of their last six to come back to the pack a bit. However, they have the opportunity to get back on track with a three game set in Miami. After that, things get more difficult.

While they have handled the Phillies well all year, the Phillies are still fighting for a Wild Card spot, and they are sure to give the Nationals all they have. After that, the Nationals finish the season with the Cleveland Indians, who are in a dog fight for one of the two AL Wild Card spots. The way things are shaking up that final series of the season can prove to be an elimination series for one of these two teams.

With respect to Mets, they need to enter the final series of the season putting themselves in a position to capitalize if one of the aforementioned teams should falter, and it’s possible they will.

The Cubs have six remaining against the Cardinals. The Brewers are without their two best players. The Nationals have the Phillies and Indians.

As for the Mets, they really just need to keep out of their own way entering the final series of the season against the Atlanta Braves. Should they do that, the Mets may very well be in a position to claim a Wild Card by beating the Braves. Based upon the season series and past history, Mets fans have reason to shudder and be pessimistic.

Then again, the Braves will have nothing to play for, and the Mets have overcome far worse than a three game set against the Braves. With the Mets having Matz, Marcus Stroman, and Noah Syndergaard (hopefully with Tomas Nido or Rene Rivera), you have to like the Mets chances.

Trivia Friday: National Leaguers With 50 Home Run Seasons

Pete Alonso and Eugenio Suarez are each on the cusp of 50 homers with Cody Bellinger having an outside chance to potentially join them in the 50 home run club. Considering this is a feat that has been accomplished only 20 times in the entire 143 year history of the National League.

Can you name the other 20 times it has happened? Good luck!


Hack Wilson Ralph Kiner Johnny Mize Willie Mays George Foster Greg Vaughn Sammy Sosa Barry Bonds Mark McGwire Prince Fielder Andruw Jones Giancarlo Stanton Luis Gonzalez

20/20 Hindsight: Mets Somehow Still Alive

Somehow, the Mets were able to pull off a minor miracle by not just pulling out a victory but somehow also pulling to withing three games of the Cubs and Brewers for the second Wild Card with 10 games remaining in the season:

1. Mickey Callaway not pinch hitting any one of Luis Guillorme, Joe Panik, J.D. Davis, or Wilson Ramos for Rene Rivera with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the sixth was easily the worst decision of his tenure as the Mets manager. There is zero plausible explanation for it, and if the Mets lost that game, he would have merited the Willie Randolph treatment. It was that bad.

2. As it turned out, Ramos and Davis did get their chance to pinch hit, and they delivered by setting up runners at the corners for Brandon Nimmo to deliver the game tying base-hit. It was easily the biggest hit of Nimmo’s career, and it was another indication just how special a player he is.

3. After Jeff McNeil had a great at-bat to draw a walk, you could see Joe Harvey wanted no part of Pete Alonso walking him on four pitches. With Alonso hitting his 49th homer earlier in the game tying Mark McGwire‘s first base rookie home run record, you could understand why. In any event, it gave the Mets a 5-4 lead in a game the Mets won 7-4.

4. Seth Lugo delivering an RBI single in that ninth inning was the most passive aggressive way to show the Mets he should be in the starting rotation. How could you not help but love the guy?

5. No, Syndergaard was not good yesterday, but to pass judgment on one start in Coors Field is absurd. After all, are we going to say Max Scherzer isn’t any good and the Nationals need to trade him because he has a 5.88 career ERA at Coors.

6. On the topic of Scherzer, his getting roughed up by the Cardinals only strengthens Jacob deGrom‘s Cy Young case.

7. There is far too much evidence in the pitcher heat maps and the framing abilities of the Mets three catchers where we know Rivera and Tomas Nido make a real difference behind the plate. One start in the most difficult place to pitch in all of baseball doesn’t undo that.

8. On the topic of baseless narratives, the Mets didn’t cave to Syndergaard. It was a day game after a night game. The Mets would’ve sat Mike Piazza or Gary Carter.

9. We finally got a glimpse of how good a pitcher Marcus Stroman is. His seven shutout innings showed not just the reason why the Mets added him at the trade deadline, but it also showed just how much of a big game pitcher he is. His next two starts should be something special.

10. Steven Matz finally had that meltdown inning he had avoided all second half. That six run inning cost the Mets a chance of winning that game. Overall, we should not read too much into it as it is Coors Field, and he has been just that good of late.

11. In July and August, when the Mets saved their season going from 10 games under to the thick of the Wild Card race, Michael Conforto was their best player (1.6 fWAR highest among Mets position players). In September, he has completely fallen apart hitting .150/.239/.283. The team desperately needs him to get back on track.

12. When Todd Frazier was hit on the hand, it appeared his Mets career was effectively over. Fortunately, he has been able to play after a few days off, and he has contributed going 2-for-6 with an RBI and two walks in addition to his good defense over the last two games.

13. To the shock of everyone, Jeurys Familia came into the game yesterday, and with runners on second and third, he struck out Ryan McMahon to keep the game at 4-2 allowing the Mets to make that comeback.

14. If the Mets are going to pull this off, they are going to need relievers like Familia to step up because the team cannot only rely on Lugo and Justin Wilson. On that front, the Mets bullpen did acquit itself well in this series allowing just five runs over 11.1 innings (3.97 ERA).

15. The Mets designated Eric Hanhold, a promising young reliever, for assignment, and he was claimed by the Baltimore Orioles. Instead of keeping him, the Mets replaced him on the 40 man roster with Donnie Hart, who has yet to pitch in September, and they kept Chris Mazza, who has a 6.43 ERA and has pitched just once this month. That’s an example of just how incompetent Brodie Van Wagenen is.

16. Jed Lowrie finally got on base drawing a walk making him 0-3 with a walk this year.

17. Perhaps the Mets player who came up biggest in this series was Amed Rosario. He was 2-for-4 in the first two games, and he hit the key homer on Tuesday giving the Mets life. Overall, this was just the latest example on how he is figuring things out, and he is going to be a big part of the Mets going forward.

18. Say what you will about the Rockies, but that team can play defense. In fact, between their being great defensively, and the Mets not being good defensively, the Rockies almost pulled out this series. That would have been a disaster.

19. The Mets owe a debt of gratitude to the Padres and Reds for pulling out those wins last night. It is still an uphill climb, but three back in 10 games is possible.

20. The Mets still being alive this late in the season is a miracle. They may still have to run the table, and they have the schedule to do it. However, that still may not be enough. That makes this all just a fascinating end to this season. We should all continue to enjoy the ride.

Mets Rally To Save Season

This was shaping up to be one of those games that not only gets everyone fired. It was also a game which would lead to fans looking to tar and feather everyone. It was going to be that maddening a loss.

Noah Syndergaard struggled in his first start ever at Coors Field, and he made matters worse not holding on base runners. For reasons beyond explanation, Mickey Callaway allowed Rene Rivera to bat with bases loaded and two outs in the sixth with the Mets down 3-2.

The Mets offense had been shut down by Jeff Hoffman, a pitcher with a career 6.21 ERA and a 7.03 ERA this year. This was part of the them of how the bad Rockies pitching inexplicably shut down the Mets offense in a hitter’s paradise.

As the Mets entered the ninth down 4-3, you wondered if Callaway would get the same treatment Willie Randolph once did. Well, it’s not happening because the Mets had a rally to save their season and perhaps more than that.

After getting the Rockies out of an eighth inning jam, Bud Black opted to stick with Jairo Diaz to close out the game.

Wilson Ramos, who wasn’t used as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning, led off the inning with a pinch hit walk before getting lifted for Juan Lagares. J.D. Davis, another player who wasn’t used in the sixth, had a pinch hit single putting runners at the corners with no outs. That was the situation for Brandon Nimmo, who delivered the biggest hit of the year:

Jeff McNeil then had a great at-bat. He battled from down 0-2 to draw a walk in a nine pitch at-bat. That would be it for Diaz as the Rockies brought Joe Harvey to get them out of this jam.

Problem is Harvey wanted no part of Pete Alonso, who had hit his 49th homer of the year earlier in the game. Harvey walked Alonso on four pitches, none of which we particularly close giving the Mets a 5-4 lead.

The Rockies caught a bit of a break with Robinson Cano hitting into a 6-4-3 double play, but it should be noted a run scored on the play increasing the Mets lead to 6-4.

At that point, it appeared the inning should be over. After all, Seth Lugo was due up, and with the state of the Mets bullpen, there was a less than zero chance he was coming out of the game. Well, as it turned out, there was no need to pinch hit for him:

The Mets were once on the verge of complete collapse with multiple heads about to roll. Instead, they’d win this game 7-4 in the most improbable fashion. Even better, with the Brewers losing, they gained a game on them in the Wild Card standings.

Game Notes: Alonso’s homer tied Mark McGwire for the most homers by a rookie first baseman, and it set the new Mets team season record. Lugo became the first Mets reliever to have a win and an RBI hit in a game since Nelson Figueroa.

Noah Syndergaard’s Time To Remind Everyone How Great He Is

This has not been the year anyone expected from Noah Syndergaard. This was supposed to be the year he took off, but he has a career worst ERA, FIP, ERA+, BB/9, and K/9. However, when you peel things back, he has shown flashes of being the pitcher he was in 2016.

There have been a number of issues Syndergaard has faced including the new ball, but the biggest has been Wilson Ramos. Ramos’ inability to frame the low pitch has really hindered Syndergaard’s ability to do what he does best. With Ramos has been behind the plate, he hasn’t been able to utilize that slider he debuted against the Royals in 2016. Instead, he’s been using his four seamer more, and he’s had to pitch up in the zone.

That has led to Syndergaard not being the great pitcher he has been in his career. With Ramos behind the plate, he has a 5.20 ERA. With Tomas Nido and Rene Rivera, it has been a completely different story. With Nido and Rivera, he has a 2.22 ERA.

In essence, with Ramos behind the plate, Syndergaard has pitched like Walker Lockett or Corey Oswalt. With Nido and Rivera, he has pitched like Jacob deGrom. No, that’s not a stretch. With catchers whose framing actually complement Syndergaard’s skill-set, he has pitched like a Cy Young caliber pitcher.

After all their pigheadedness, the Mets have opted it is better to help a pitcher succeed than to prop up one of the signature signings of the offseason. They have finally allowed Syndergaard to have what he needs to be successful. Of course, it Mets fashion, they finally relent when it’s Coors Field, and their relenting just so happens to coincide with a day game after a night game. Still, Rivera is going to catch Syndergaard.

The only time that has happened this year, Syndergaard pitched seven scoreless innings allowing just three hits and striking out 10 against a loaded Nationals lineup featuring Trea Turner, Anthony Rendon, and Juan Soto. The last time Rivera caught Syndergaard in a big game, Syndergaard matched zeros with Madison Bumgarner for seven innings in the 2016 National League Wild Card Game.

This is the Syndergaard the Mets need. For that matter, Syndergaard needs to be that pitcher for himself to prove to the team he is still great, and they need to invest in him going forward. However, before the offseason, the Mets need to win today to keep their Wild Card hopes alive. The Mets and Syndergaard have exactly what they need for that to happen.