Adeiny Hechavarria

Smith Bloop, Alonso Blast, Mets Completely Blow Big Lead

One of the truly fascinating and heart warming parts of the Mets season has been the friendship which has developed between Pete Alonso and Dominic Smith. What makes it so special is they are two young players vying for playing time at the same position. Seeing them so far this year, you wondered what could happen if they were in the lineup together.

With all the injuries to the Mets outfielders and Walker Buehler starting for the Dodgers, Smith would get the start in left and bat second. The decision would pay immediate dividends as Alonso followed a Smith one out single with a homer:

The duo would combine to do it again in the fifth inning with the two celebrating in the dugout.

Combined with an Adeiny Hechavarria second inning double scoring Todd Frazier, and the Mets had a 5-3 lead.

All the runs were in support of Noah Syndergaard who despite still struggling with his stuff had an admirable effort against the best offense in the National League.

It seemed as if the Dodgers had him on the ropes in the second and third as he was getting BABIPed a bit and giving up more solid contact than he usually does.

In the second, Corey Seager, Matt Beaty, and Alex Verdugo hit consecutive doubles to then tie the game at 2-2. On the Verdugo double, Smith did have trouble playing it in the gap, but it ultimately did not hurt the Mets.

In fact, the Dodgers would hit five doubles off Syndergaard. The fourth was a leadoff double by Max Muncy to start the third. He’d come home to score on a Justin Turner RBI single.

The fifth, well, that was a bit of hometown scoring. With two outs in the bottom of the fifth, Seager hit a ball to the center field wall. It was a ball Carlos Gomez absolutely should have had. Instead, he fumbled it.

However, he would make up for it by unleashing a great throw to third. As good as that throw was, Frazier’s tag was even better.

Frazier followed up that fine play with a double off Pedro Baez to start the sixth. After a Gomez bunt, Frazier scored on an Hechavarria RBI single. This was part of a very good game for Frazier. In addition to the defense, he was 2-for-4 with two runs and a double.

Through the struggles, Syndergaard threw a season high 116 pitches in a quality start. It may not have looked good, but he allowed just the three earned off seven hits. Mostly, he gave the Mets needed length to help preserve an already tired Mets bullpen the day before a Jason Vargas start.

After he was lifted, Amed Rosario and Dominic Smith would open the seventh with back-to-back homers off Julio Urias.

After the homers, the Mets offense continued to go to work with an Alonso single and Michael Conforto double setting up second and third with no outs. At the time, it was 8-3 Mets, and it looked like the Mets were going to blow it completely open.

They didn’t, and worse yet, the game would tighten a bit. In the seventh, Joc Pederson doubled off Robert Gsellman, and he’s score on a two out RBI single from Turner. In the eighth, Seager homered off Jeurys Familia to make it 8-5. Fortunately, Familia got out of the inning allowing no further runs and keeping the save chance alive for Edwin Diaz.

Because this is the Mets, it can’t be easy. Pederson and Muncy homered off Diaz to lead off the ninth to pull the Dodgers to within 8-7. Turner then doubled bringing Cody Bellinger up as the winning run. He’d just double to tie the game.

Things got much worse. Seager was intentionally walked. As if things weren’t bad enough, Beaty hit a soft roller up the middle which Rosario fielded, but he could not find the bag.

With the bases loaded and no outs, Juan Lagares came in to give the Mets a five man infield. It didn’t matter as Verdugo hit a sacrifice fly.

This was about as bad a loss as the Mets have had all year. They got a tough start from Syndergaard. They also got production from almost their entire lineup. They had their closer who they gave up the world to acquire on the mound with a chance to get back over .500. Instead, they blew it and looked like a terrible team in the ninth in the process.

Game Notes: As noted by MMO‘s Mathew Brownstein, Frazier has three straight multiple hit games.

page top

20/20 Hindsight: Finally Back To .500

With the Mets taking 2/3 from the Tigers, the team is finally back to .500 effectively letting them hit the reset button and start anew:

1. The Mets should have swept the Tigers, but it’s hard to complain about winning two out of three and eight of nine, especially after being swept by the Marlins.

2. It won’t last, but with a pair of three run homers in the series, Adeiny Hechavarria is looking like the slugging second baseman Robinson Cano was supposed to be.

3. Wilson Ramos‘ power has returned exactly when the Mets needed. He hit three homers in the series and had four extra base hits against the Tigers after entering the series with just two homers and five extra base hits.

4. On Saturday, Ramos joined with Tomas Nido to hit three homers to carry the Mets offense in the 13 inning win. So far, Nido has been fine as a defensive minded back-up.

5. Todd Frazier is also stepping up. His bunt to beat the shift was almost as amazing as the diving stop he made to save a run. Over his last eight games, he’s hitting .321/.424/.429.

6. The Mets have completely mismanaged their outfield situation.

7. Brandon Nimmo was very hurt, and the Mets response was to drop him in the lineup, not get him checked out.

8. It’s fair to say Keon Broxton didn’t earn playing time, but the team had the chance to get him playing time and reap the rewards the Orioles are. To make it worse, the $500,000 bonus pool money was a nothing return as it needs to be spent by June 15 and any player deserving of the amount has been long signed.

9. That’s not to see there still aren’t players who could surprise. For example, not too long ago, the Mets signed Gerson Molina, who is impressing after not having played baseball in nearly three years.

10. Carlos Gomez is hitting .133. Aaron Altherr followed a homer in his first at-bat as a Met by going 0-for-5 and is now 2-for-36 on the season. Rajai Davis was designated for assignment.

11. As Sandy Alderson and Alejandro De Aza showed, and we’re seeing it again, you can’t completely overreact to the struggles of bench players for almost the sole purpose of throwing some red meat to your fans.

12. As great as it is to see Michael Conforto back, let’s hope he’s actually ready. Given what happened with Ryan Church, Mets fans should be holding their breath with the team flying to Los Angeles.

13. It didn’t work, but bringing in Edwin Diaz in the eighth was absolutely the correct move. It should also be noted with him needing 13 pitches to get that last out, pulling him after the inning was also the correct move.

14. Mickey Callaway pulled all the right strings in the Mets 13 inning victory, and he’s been much better recently.

15. Drew Gagnon deserves a pass for his tough outing. That said, it’s fair to question if he’s ready for that late inning set-up role.

16. Jason Vargas has only gone five innings against the five worst offenses in baseball. This is what an effective long man looks like, not a fifth starter. That’s still better than what Noah Syndergaard did.

17. Syndergaard has been quite mercurial this year, and it might be because of the new ball. He’s talked about having difficulty getting a grip, and if you track it, pitchers who use a slider instead of a curve seem to be disproportionately affected by the new ball.

18. Give Zack Wheeler credit for his ability to put a tough inning or start behind him and still go deep in a game. If he can just find a way to get into a groove the first time through the lineup, he’d be Cy Young material.

19. Seeing Pete Alonso and Dominic Smith play, the Mets should not be 100% convinced Alonso is the guy, especially as Alonso continues to regress.

20. You should take the time to read Nick Francona’s interview with Paul Lukas on Uni Watch, especially today.

page top

Mets Catchers Beat The Tigers

With the Tigers having a bottom five offense, you knew Jason Vargas was good for five. Seriously, the only teams Vargas has gone five innings has been against the five worst offenses in baseball (Reds, Marlins, Tigers). As with the typical Vargas start, the question is how would the Mets get enough innings from their relievers to get through the game. The reason that was an issue today was this game went 13.

One reason it went 13 was Wilson Ramos carried the Mets offense today.

His second inning homer tied the score at 1-1. His fourth inning RBI single gave the Mets a 2-1 lead. After Tyler Bashlor surrendered a two run homer to Brandon Dixon, Ramos responded with his second homer of the game:

After having just two homers entering this series, Ramos has three homers over his last two games. He now looks like the catcher the Mets believe they were signing, and with the injuries the team had sustained, it couldn’t have come at a better time.

It also seemed like today was the perfect time to use Edwin Diaz for four outs.

Robert Gsellman was in his second inning of work, and he was in trouble. After hitting a double earlier in the inning, Josh Harrison was on third with two outs. Mickey Callaway went to Diaz.

Because the Mets are making JaCoby Jones look like Al Kaline (recycled joke), he got the game tying RBI single.

Not only did this mean, Diaz would blow his first save as a Met, but with him throwing 13 pitches, it meant the Mets would need relievers to step up big starting in the ninth.

Those relievers did step up big, and it looked all the bigger considering they got themselves into trouble.

Wilmer Font pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth and tenth. In the tenth, the Tigers had two on and one out. Font struck out Grayson Greiner and Jones to end the jam.

Daniel Zamora took the ball in the eleventh. He’d allow two hits in the inning, but no real threat would mount as Ramos picked Gordon Beckham off first on what was supposed to be a bunt play:

For a moment, it looked like the Mets would take that momentum into the bottom of the inning and win the game.

After Tomas Nido flew out to begin the inning, Ramos walked. With his backup catcher already in the game and the Mets looking to pull out the win, Callaway pinch ran Steven Matz.

As is the Mets luck, Dominic Smith and Todd Frazier followed with bloop hits, but Matz couldn’t score. Matz’s inability to score looked fatal because Aaron Altherr struck out, Adeiny Hechavarria popped out to end the inning, and the Tigers had the bases loaded with one out against Hector Santiago in the 12th.

Santiago stepped up striking out Jones on three pitches (after walking two of his last three batters) and getting John Hicks to fly out to end the jam. Santiago then breezed through the top of the 13th, and with him due up second in the bottom of the inning, you wondered if Callaway was going to stick with him.

On Buck Farmer‘s third pitch to Nido, it would become a moot point:

The homer gave the Mets a 5-4 victory and once again pulled the Mets to within a game of .500. With Nido hitting the homer, it was once again an unsung hero. With Nido homering, it was the Mets catchers with all the offense.

Consider this, Ramos and Nido combined to go 4-for-6 with three homers and all five RBI. The rest of the lineup was 3-for-38. When you take out Todd Frazier, who made a nice play in the field to save a run earlier in the game, going 2-for-5, this means the Mets lineup was 1-for-33 with that hit coming from Dominic Smith, who entered the game in the ninth.

Looking at it, Callaway might have had his best game as a manager. He made the right calls (even if they didn’t work out), and he put all of his players in a position to succeed. His bullpen did, and eventually so did Nido.

Game Notes: In typical Mets fashion, Brandon Nimmo‘s injury was worse than the Mets led us to believe. He has a bulged disc in his neck with whiplash.

page top

Five Homers Not Enough For Thor Or Gagnon

The Mets offense got home runs from Amed Rosario, Adeiny Hechavarria, Pete Alonso, Aaron Altherr, and Wilson Ramos resulting in eight runs scored. In essence, even though the lineup has been decimated by injuries, they did their job against Gregory Soto and the Tigers pitching staff.

This should have been the Tigers tenth straight loss. It wasn’t because Noah Syndergaard and Drew Gagnon were bad.

The Tigers went up 2-0 in the first before Syndergaard recorded an out. Actually, that’s not technically correct as the second run scored on a Miguel Cabrera sacrifice fly.

That lead grew to 4-0 in the second when JaCoby Jones, a career .195/.297/.335 career hitter who looked like Al Kaline tonight, hit a two run homer.

For a second, it looked like Syndergaard calmed down, and the Mets would rally to give him a 5-4 lead. He’d lose that lead surrendering a solo homer to Cabrera in the fifth.

The Mets handed him back the lead after the inning, and he’d hand it right back in the sixth leading to his having to be bailed out by Tyler Bashlor.

On the one hand, with Syndergaard due up in the bottom of the inning, you understand Mickey Callaway sticking with him, especially on a night where Edwin Diaz was unavailable. However, this is the same Callaway who loves double switching.

Despite it all, the Mets went to the top of the seventh with a 7-6 lead. Unfortunately, Gagnon just didn’t have it tonight.

There was a brief instant when you thought he’d get out of it. After a John Hick‘s double, the Tigers had runners at second and third with one out. Todd Frazier made a nice play on a Josh Harrison grounder keeping the runner at third and getting the out at first.

There was no bailing out Gagnon when Jones hit an RBI double after that giving the Tigers an 8-7 lead. After a Brandon Dixon RBI single, it was 9-7 Tigers.

In the bottom of that inning, it looked like the Mets were primed to come back again, but a Frazier double play killed that rally.

Ramos homered in the eighth, and later in the inning, Dominic Smith came up with Hechavarria at second with two outs. He’d strike out against Joe Jimenez to end the inning.

With that, the Mets would lose this game 9-8. They lost the game to a team who lost nine straight and were 11 games under .500. They lost the opportunity to get back to .500.

Game Notes: In addition to Altherr, Hector Santiago made his Mets debut. He pitched scoreless ninth. Like Altherr did tonight, former Met Keon Broxton hit a homer in his first at-bat with his new team.

page top

Mets Once Again Destroy Nationals Bullpen To Pull Off The Sweep

Well, if you missed yesterday’s game against the Nationals, you were lucky because apparently today was the matinee of that game. While not quite Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, Steven Matz and Stephen Strasburg proved to be capable understudies.

For the most part, Strasburg kept what was a woeful Mets lineup at bay. He’d keep the Mets off the board completely through four, but the Mets would get to him in the fifth. Carlos Gomez hit a leadoff single, and he’d steal second and move to third with no outs as Yan Gomes, who had a nightmare of a game, threw the ball into center.

The play was made all the more fun by Gomez’s shoe coming off between second and third. To his credit Strasburg limited the damage to just one run which came off a Juan Lagares sacrifice fly.

Again, it was Gomes who hurt Strasburg in the sixth. After J.D. Davis  singled and Strasburg hit Todd Frazier with a pitch, Strasburg would throw one in the dirt. While it was ruled a wild pitch, it was one Gomes should have had. This meant instead of having the double play in order with one out, the sudden ground ball hitting specialist Wilson Ramos would have an RBI chance.

Ramos would deliver with an RBI single scoring Davis, and Pete Alonso would make it 3-0 on a sacrifice fly. After the inning, Strasburg was done having struck out five Mets with only two of the three runs allowed being earned.

With the way Matz was cruising, you would think that was a sufficient enough lead. Certainly, it seemed that way with how Matz’s curveball was unhittable and his Houdini act. He was in trouble in the first and second with first and third with out one. Both times, he induced an inning ending double play. First, it was Howie Kendrick. Then, it was Gomes, who again, had a horrible day.

In the third, the Nationals had the bases loaded, but they couldn’t score as Anthony Rendon struck out looking at a curveball. It was one of a career high 27 curveballs Matz would throw with 16 of them being called strikes. Matz would not have one 1-2-3 inning all day, but it seemed like it wouldn’t matter as the Nationals kept shooting themselves in the foot and Matz would unleash a curve when needed.

That was until the sixth. Juan Soto hit a lead-off double, and he would score on what was a Brian Dozier infield single. On the play, Adeiny Hechavarria would throw the ball away. Dozier got greedy trying to go first to third on the play as he sought to take advantage on what he thought was Matz not paying attention to him at second. This led to an easy 1-5 put out.

With the way this game was going and how the Nationals season has been going, you sensed a team at its boiling point. We’d see them unleash their fury in the top of the eighth when Kendrick was called on a check swing Home Plate Umpire Bruce Dreckman called himself. Kendrick complained and was tossed. Then Nationals manager Dave Martinez had himself an old fashioned ejection:

The narrative will be this fired the Nationals up. Seeing them tee off on Robert Gsellman, maybe that’s true. For example, it did seem to wake up Gomes. He came up with runners at the corners with two out. Gomes’ double pulled the Nationals within one and put runners at second and third.

Now, it should be mentioned yesterday, the Mets have changed their stance. Mickey Callaway can now use Edwin Diaz for more than three outs. Callaway said Diaz being dry humped yesterday and pitched the previous two days. It should also be noted with all the injuries Ryan O’Rourke was called up. That meant the Mets had three lefties in the pen at their disposal. Instead, Callaway stuck with Gsellman, who admittedly has good numbers against left-handed batters.

The decision cost the Mets as Gerardo Parra hit a two RBI single giving the Nationals a 4-3 lead. Typically, you would believe this to be a back breaking hit which would have sent the Mets into a loss. Then again, this is the Nationals bullpen, who would need to significantly improve to be classified as terrible.

Wander Suero would come on to hold the lead, and right off the bat, it looked like history was going to repeat itself when Dominic Smith led off the inning with a pinch hit double. For a second, it seemed he would be stranded there as Alonso and Frazier would strike out back-to-back. For some reason, the Nationals would then decide to put the g0-ahead run on base to face Gomez. That would prove to be a huge mistake:

After that homer, the Mets were up 6-4, and finally, we would see Diaz for the save. After a 1-2-3 ninth with two strikeouts and Rendon doing his best Robinson Cano impersonation, the Mets had a four game sweep, and they are now within a game of .500. This also means the Mets are now within one game of being taken seriously again.

Game Notes: During the game it was announced the Mets claimed Aaron Altherr off waivers. To make room for him on the roster, the Mets designated Tim Peterson.

page top

Lagares And Rajai Power Mets To Win . . . Seriously

With Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer starting tonight, you suspected you were getting the pitcher’s fuel you’d normally suspect this to be, especially with how the respective offenses are performing. Both pitchers would deliver.

Between the two aces, the only run allowed was a solo homer by Adam Eaton, who the second batter of the game. Both aces went six innings with deGrom striking out eight to Scherzer’s nine. After six, Scherzer was in line for the win.

But he wouldn’t get it. The win would go to Drew Gagnon because he pitched a scoreless eighth and because the Nationals bullpen is hysterically bad.

In the eighth, Adeiny Hechavarria would start a rally with a one out double off Kyle Barraclough. Hechavarria was only in the game because Robinson Cano left the game with a tight quad after actually running out a third inning ground out. [Insert your own joke here].

Todd Frazier continued the rally with a two out walk. This walk led to the Nationals going to their closer, Sean Doolittle, to get the four out save. He instead imploded.

On his second pitch, he plunked Carlos Gomez to load the bases. Two pitches after that Juan Lagares hit a bases clearing double to give the Mets a 3-0 lead.

As unexpected as that was, after an intentional walk to Wilson Ramos, Rajai Davis hit a pinch hit three run homer in his first at-bat as a Met. To put it in perspective how unlikely this homer was, Davis arrived at the ballpark after the game started. The Mets are sure glad he got there in time.

After a scoreless ninth from Tyler Bashlor, the Mets had a 6-1 victory in a game that once seemed destined for heartbreak. Instead, it was the extremely unlikely pair of Lagares and Davis with all six of the team’s RBI just like the team drew it up.

Game Notes: Brandon Nimmo was placed on the IL with a neck injury. Paul Sewald was designated for assignment to make room for Davis on the roster. Amed Rosario had a strong game in the field.

page top

McNeil Does All He Can Do To Beat You

Maybe it is a function of being a 12th round draft pick and coming from a school, Cal State Long Beach, which is not exactly a baseball hotbed. Perhaps, this is the result of being a player who has dealt with his share of injuries. Certainly, 26 year old rookies usually have a little extra to prove. It’s always possible this was instilled in him as a child, and he continues to play the game this way.

No matter what the explanation, Jeff McNeil never takes a play off, and he does all the things he can do to beat you.

At the plate, McNeil makes contact with nearly everything. He doesn’t get fooled making contact on nearly 90 percent of the pitches he swings at, and he has only struck out 10.6 percent of the time, which is the sixth lowest rate in the majors. He has improved his walk rates, and he is hitting the ball harder than he did last year.

In the field, he has not just been versatile, but he’s been good wherever he’s been put. So far this year, he has a positive DRS at second, third, and left field. This is partially due to his having good speed. It’s also the result of his hard work and dedication to getting better.

If you break it down, McNeil has been Ichiro Suzuki like at the plate, and he has been a better version of Ben Zobrist in the field. Given his hard nose mentality, his moving around the field, and his ability, it would not be a stretch to say McNeil is reminiscent of Pete Rose, you know, without the gambling and being a complete jerk.

With McNeil, it’s not just how he comes to beat you at the plate or in the field. He does the little things well too which mostly go under the radar. We saw that last night on Amed Rosario‘s game winning RBI single:

There’s a couple of things to remember here. First, McNeil didn’t have to move an inch on the play. With their being two outs, and Adeiny Hechavarria being on third base, his lone job was not to do something stupid and make an out. Taking that into account re-watch McNeil on that play.

The entire time he is facing Trea Turner. His eyes are fixed on Turner’s eyes, and he is shifting down the line. At the last moment he slides into Turner’s throwing path. Turner’s throw was a little high, and Rosario, who as David Sadler of MLB.com points out, was running at a speed equivalent to Billy Hamilton or Byron Buxton. Rosario deserves all the credit in the world, and if not for his hustle, there’s zero chance he’s safe.

That said, you can’t help but wonder what impact McNeil had on the play. Rosario beat out that throw by a hair, which means event he slightest hesitation by Turner could have led to his being safe. You could argue McNeil’s dancing around created that split second.

And maybe it didn’t. It doesn’t change the fact McNeil didn’t take that play off. Just like he does at the plate and in the field, he found a way to try to impact the game and give his team the best chance to win. In that moment, we saw just what a special player he is and just how lucky the Mets are to have him.

page top

20/20 Hindsight: Did The Mets Even Show Up In Miami?

The New York Mets were swept/embarassed by the Miami Marlins, a team who is rivaling the 1962 Mets in futility. There doesn’t need to be anything else said, but here it is anyway:

1. Managers get fired for the way the Mets played this weekend, but if we are being honest, this has nothing to do with Mickey Callaway. This is all on the team Brodie Van Wagenen built.

2. Van Wagenen fled Miami before the series was over and was not present to answer one question about the team he built or their play. That’s absolute cowardice.

3. Joel Sherman of the NY Post wrote an article finally directing the blame towards Van Wagenen. We also saw Mike Puma of the NY Post say attention will eventually need to turn to to Van Wagenen, but first, the media wants Callaway gone first. Where were these articles in March when Van Wagenen was mortgaging the future to build what projections had as a fourth place team?

4. We all knew Robinson Cano didn’t hustle. With his PED suspension, we knew there was a chance he would be a chance he regressed,especially with him turning 36 years old. Van Wagenen was the only person who dismissed this.

5. Too often, we make the mistake of confusing players struggling with them not caring. The Mets players are probably embarrassed and still trying hard. They’re just not good right now for a multitude of reasons.

6. Then again, it’s hard to make that claim with Cano when he just blatantly did not run. There’s not hustling, and then there’s what he did. While we thought he had his defenses, it turned out they were lies, at least the scoreboard one.

7. Justin Dunn and Jarred Kelenic were tow of the biggest risers on MLB Pipeline‘s updated Top 100. Also, Edwin Diaz hasn’t had a save opportunity in well over a week. It’s almost like trading two top 100 prospects and taking on a $100 million commitment for a closer is a terrible idea. Who knew?

8. It’s telling how respected Callaway is in the clubhouse with Noah Syndergaard and Todd Frazier being so vocal in their support of Callaway. What would be better than those words is playing well.

9. To be fair to Frazier, he has been the Mets player during this five game losing streak. On the converse, it speaks volumes about this team that Frazier has been their best player during this losing streak.

10. The Mets trotted out a lineup on Sunday where the bottom four hitters were Adeiny Hechavarria–Juan Lagares–Tomas Nido–Noah Syndergaard. We’re really killing the manager for a lineup that noncompetitive lineup not scoring? That’s four straight 8/9 hitters!

11. The Mets have completely bought into Chili Davis, a man fired by the Red Sox and Cubs because of this philosophy. This is what happens when you make terrible hiring decisions.

12. Syndergaard deserves credit for how he pitched on Sunday. There is no reason whatsoever why he lost that game. In addition to that, the bullpen deserves a lot of credit for continuing to pitch well through all of this. This group is one of the few who deserves credit for actually showing up and performing anywhere close to expectations.

13. With is injury history and how abdominal injuries tend to linger, it’s great to see Jeff McNeil was able to play. Hopefully, we should not see any drop off from his level of play. The Mets can’t afford it.

14. Carlos Gomez was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, and he airmailed a ball on Friday. That throw not only let the one run score easily, but it also put the batter into scoring position. Seeing Gomez play so far, he’s actually worse than what Keon Broxton was forever hammering home the point things can always be worse with the Mets.

15. So far, the Mets have held Broxton, a fifth outfielder, and Travis d’Arnaud, a back-up catcher, accountable for the team’s poor play. That’s obvious scapegoating, and it had no effect because things don’t change when you get rid of a fifth outfielder and back-up catcher to try to send a message to the everyday players you, as an organization, outright refuse to make accountable.

16. If Mike Francesa is going to genuflect when he has Jeff Wilpon in studio, he can’t suddenly rail on the Mets. Well, he can if he wants; it’s his show. Just know that when he does that, he exposes himself to be a fraud, and it helps Michael Kay catch up.

17. The Mets were completely dominated by the Miami Marlins. The Marlins.

18. Through all of this, don’t be confused. There are plenty of reasons to fire Callaway. Just don’t for a second believe firing him is the thing that is doing to turn this team around. It’s not.

19. When the Mets play tonight, Boo, don’t boo, who cares? If you’re in the park spending money, the Wilpons don’t care. They got what they want out of you. That’s not to say it’s the fans fault. The point is the Wilpons don’t care about contending. They only care about creating the appearance of it to generate revenues.

20. Through all of it, we can say a lot of things, but the most succinct thing to say here is the Mets suck.

page top

deGrom Stumbles And Callaway Fumbles

You know things are going south fast with the Mets when Jacob deGrom gets battered by the Marlins. In five innings, he allowed seven runs (six earned) on nine hits.

Sure, deGrom was abandoned by his defense. Misplays by the team’s two best defensive players, Juan Lagares and Todd Frazier, led to runs. Carlos Gomez threw a ball away allowing a run to score and move a runner into scoring position. However, it wasn’t either one of them who allowed a Jorge Alfaro bomb.

Paul Sewald, who was called up today, would eat up two innings to help save the bullpen. When he left the game, it seemed like the team was just going through the motions.

Up until the seventh, the Mets only run was a Pete Alonso second inning solo shot. A J.D. Davis two run shot in the seventh pulled the Mets to within 7-3, and things began to get interesting.

Brandon Nimmo singled, and Amed Rosario walked in front of Robinson Cano. Instead of delivering the key hit, he’d ground into an inning ending 1-6-3 double play. Although he’s done it his whole career, he certainly chose an awkward spot to not even bother running it out.

For what it’s worth, Cano said the scoreboard said there were two outs.

Still, the Mets had another rally in them even after Sewald allowed a run in the bottom of the seventh.

For some reason, Don Mattingly thought it was a good idea to bring in Adam Conley to start an inning which Alonso was leading off. Alonso made Mattingly pay by hitting a homer which sparked, not killed, rally.

The Mets would load the bases with no outs, and Mattingly brought in Sergio Romo to get the six out save.

The decision briefly looked like it’d haunt Mattingly when Lagares hit an RBI single. However, the rally stifled from there. After a Davis pop out, Nimmo hit a sacrifice fly. That’s when Mickey Callaway made a game altering decision.

Amed Rosario, who has been one of the Mets better hitters of late, was due up. Romo was a tough matchup for him, and you could understand the inclination to hit for him, especially when the guy you’re bringing in was Jeff McNeil. However, that overlooks McNeil not only left yesterday’s game with an abdominal injury, but he also wouldn’t start tonight because of it.

McNeil didn’t look quite like McNeil striking out against Romo. As bad as that was, things would get worse in the ninth.

After two quick outs, Wilson Ramos hit a double to keep the Mets hopes alive. Because of Callaway’s decision in the eighth, that meant the game was Adeiny Hechavarria‘s hands. He predictably struck out and the Mets lost 8-6.

There was plenty of blame to go around. The defense abandoned deGrom, who didn’t pitch well. Cano didn’t run it out and/or didn’t know how many outs there were. Callaway set a series of dominos into effect which led to Hechavarria striking out to end the game.

This is what a bad baseball team looks like.

Game Notes: Michael Conforto was placed on the seven day concussion IL. Keon Broxton was designated for assignment to make room for Gomez on the roster. Gomez is wearing 91. Frazier was 2-for-3 with a walk and a triple.

page top

Not Quite Time To Make The Switch From Broxton To Gomez

Much like the Mets were forced to make a decision with Adeiny Hechavarria when he exercised is opt out, the team is going to have to make a decision on Carlos Gomez on June 1st. That is the date Gomez can opt out of his deal and become a free agent.

With the way Gomez has been playing, he’s sure to opt out. Over his last 13 games, Gomez is hitting .373/.431/.686 with four doubles, four homers, and 15 RBI. One of the benefits of this being Syracuse and not Las Vegas is the results are more reliable. With this recent streak, you could see Gomez being the All Star caliber player who almost came back to the Mets in exchange for Zack Wheeler and Wilmer Flores.

The issue for Gomez is whether he can actually be that player at the Major League level.

Since that 2015 season, Gomez has been a .232/.312/.394 (90 wRC+) hitter. In the field, he has not been the Gold Glover he once was. Over the last three seasons, he has a -9 DRS in center over 1,594.1 innings. Still, Gomez did prove himself to be quite a capable outfielder. With him seeing more time in the corners, he had a 7 DRS over 825.2 innings for the Rays last year.

Looking at Gomez, this is a player who is a good corner outfielder who can fill-in capably in center. He has speed on the basepaths, and he still has some power in the bat. As a bench player, he could have real value.

There are some impediments there. Gomez has been an injury prone player landing on the disabled list in each of the past four years. In 77 career pinch hitting appearances, Gomez has hit .188/.240/.304. More than that, the Rays transitioned Gomez to more of a part-time role last year, and he struggled.

Still, when it comes to Gomez, the question is whether he is better suited to the bench right now than Keon Broxton. Looking at how Broxton has been playing, the answer is a definitive yes.

Broxton has been terrible so far this year. He has a 15 wRC+ partially fueled by a a 42.0 percent strike out rate and a complete absence of power. He has not been the fielder he was advertised to be posting a -1 DRS in 106.1 innings between all three outfield positions. That’s a far cry from his 13 DRS last year which was mostly fueled by an 11 DRS as a center fielder.

Ultimately, the question the Mets have before them is whether Broxton is broken beyond repair. After all, this is a player who had a 1.6 WAR as a bench player for the Brewers last year. As a pinch hitter, he has hit .216/.310/.541 in 42 plate appearances. According to Baseball Savant, Broxton is one of the fastest players in the game. If the Mets can get through to him and get him to turn things around, Broxton could well prove to be the outfield depth they envisioned him to be when they made the trade.

With Broxton being a year away from arbitration and still being under team control through the 2022 season, the Mets have every reason to make this work. There’s all the more incentive when you consider Juan Lagares is a pending free agent, and the Mets have no center field depth on the horizon. Looking at the offseaon, there isn’t going to be a center field free agent available.

So, right now, the Mets are invested in getting Broxton to be the player they believe him to be. However, at a certain point, that has to end. With the June 1 on the horizon, it seems like Broxton has two weeks. In those two weeks, he has to show the Mets something while simultaneously hoping Gomez cools off considerably.

If at the time things are status quo on June 1, the Mets need to make the switch. But as for right now, the Mets need to let this play out because in 17 days, the Mets are likely going to lose Broxton or Gomez, and if that is the case, they need to be 100 percent right in that decision.

page top