Jacob deGrom

Mets Return The Favor

If you thought blowing a 6-0 lead entering the bottom of the eighth was bad, Taijuan Walker only lasted one-third of an inning. In that one-third, he allowed SIX runs.

The key moment of the inning was a Kevin Newman hit ball Walker tried to touch foul. Instead, the umps called it fair. While Walker argued, and J.D. Davis aimlessly walked towards the third base coaches box not even pretending to care to make a play, the Pirates scored three runs to take a commanding 6-0 first inning lead.

Luis Rojas argued the play as vociferously as we’ve ever seen him argue with an umpire. Between that and a bump, he’d get tossed.

Walker departed as well. He’d be replaced by Drew Smith. Over 2.2 scoreless innings, Smith gave the bullpen some much needed length, and he kept the Mets in position to get back into the game.

The Mets would do that. First, it was a Dominic Smith two out RBI single making it 6-1. In the ensuing inning, Travis Blankenhorn came up to pinch hit for Smith, and he hit his first Major League homer.

Suddenly, it was 6-4 in the fourth. That meant the Mets were back in the game. They’d stay in the game because the bullpen was phenomenal.

After Smith, Miguel Castro threw a scoreless inning, and Aaron Loup followed with two more scoreless. With Smith hitting an RBI double scoring Jeff McNeil from first in the sixth.

Just like that, it was a one run game. After Jeurys Familia pitched an adventurous yet scoreless eighth, the Mets had a chance. Those chances improved when Smith hit a lead-off single. Then, Michael Conforto had his biggest hit of the year.

Conforto has been heating up of late, and we’ve seen him hit for power again. When he hits like this, no deficit is insurmountable, even a 6-0 first inning one.

After Edwin Diaz threw so many pitches in his blown save the previous night, Trevor May got the chance. Despite issuing a lead-off walk, he earned his second save of the year.

This was a game where we saw how special and resilient this Mets team is. They responded to a 6-0 first inning deficit with 8.1 scoreless. Wins like these makes you believe they can win the World Series.

Game Notes: Jacob deGrom has been put on the IL and shut down. Dave Jauss replaced Rojas as manager after the ejection.

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Seth Lugo And Edwin Diaz Implode Turning Laugher Into Misery

The Pittsburgh Pirates have been looking like the first place team, and the New York Mets have looked like the second division club. With Tylor Megill on the mound, that changed.

Megill never should’ve been in the majors this year, and yet, due to injuries, he’s suddenly a key part of the rotation. He very much looked like that in this start.

He allowed no runs while pitching a career best six innings. He’d allow just six hits while striking out two. Perhaps, the more astonishing part was his walking none.

He battled through some tricky spots. That began with Adam Frazier doubling on a pop up by J.D. Davis to lead off the first. Later in the game, Pete Alonso made an error to start some trouble for Megill.

There were multiple situations with a runner in scoring position, but Megill showed poise getting out of the jams. Of course, it didn’t hurt Luis Guillorme was playing Gold Glove caliber defense in Francisco Lindor‘s absence.

Guillorme helped abate Lindor landing on the IL. In addition to the great defense, he was 1-for-3 with a run, double, and a walk. He scored that run in the sixth when Travis Blankenhorn had his first career RBI hitting a pinch hit double in the seventh which just missed going out.

It was a night the Mets offense came back to life scoring six runs. Michael Conforto‘s bat started to come alive with two doubles. Jeff McNeil had an RBI. Of the Mets 11 hits, eight were for extra bases including three homers.

Entering the bottom of the eighth, the Mets had a 6-0 lead. It was a good thing too because Seth Lugo had a rare implosion. After allowing just five runs all year, the Pirates scored five runs in two-thirds of an inning off Lugo capped off by a Wilmer Difo pinch hit three run homer.

Suddenly, a 6-0 laugher was a tight 6-5 game. Aaron Loup came in to relieve Lugo to face Frazier. Frazier hit a hard grounder down the line, but Alonso made a diving stop to rob Frazier of an extra base hit.

The Mets got one of those runs back in the top of the ninth courtesy of Brandon Nimmo, who hit a solo homer to straight center increasing the Mets lead to 7-5.

The Mets appeared to need that extra cushion with Edwin Diaz struggling in the ninth. His first pitch hit Ke’Bryan Hayes, and then he walked Bryan Reynolds on five pitches.

After Ben Gamel chased a pitch in the dirt to strike out, Diaz hung an 0-2 slider which John Nogowski smoked towards third. Jonathan Villar, in for defense, knocked down the short hop keeping it in the infield. It saved a run, but it loaded the bases.

What ensued was a great battle between Diaz and Gregory Polanco. At the end of the nine pitch at-bat, Diaz froze Polanco with a 3-2 slider on the corner to strike him out.

But, it didn’t matter. On Diaz’s next pitch, Jacob Stallings took a pitch off the inside corner and hit a walk-off grand slam. Kevin Pillar did all he could in left diving into the stands, but it was all for naught.

The Mets blew a 6-0 lead and lost 9-7. There’s no other way to put it other than admitting it’s time to panic.

Game Notes: Jacob deGrom reportedly dealt with right forearm issues in his bullpen session.

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Jacob deGrom Avoided All-Star COVID Exposure

New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom has skipped the All-Star Game due to his nagging injuries and to spend time with his family. It was the right decision in more ways than one.

The first game out of the All-Star Break for Major League Baseball was supposed to be between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. That game and a subsequent game was suspended due to COVID.

There were three Yankee players who tested positive for COVID with three more pending cases. One of those with a pending case was All-Star Aaron Judge.

Judge’s pending case led to the recommendation the five Red Sox All-Stars undertake social distancing measures. Rafael Devers advised he could not participate in media availability and needed to take a COVID test.

As of this moment, it would appear the positive cases are restricted to the Yankees and the concern is limited to the Yankees and Red Sox. However, that is just based on what is being reported.

Really, we don’t know how many players have been exposed or will test positive. Part of the reason is we don’t know the level of social interaction between the players during the festivities.

To a certain extent, there should be some concern about Taijuan Walker who pitched in the game. The same could be said for Pete Alonso and Dave Jauss, who participated in the Home Run Derby.

The only thing we know for certain is deGrom was not exposed to anything at the All-Star Game because he wasn’t there. Hopefully, his teammates were similarly not exposed. That’s of increased importance given how the Mets are one of the least vaccinated teams in baseball.

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Mets 2021 Uniforms: Back in Black

After the years of waiting, the New York Mets are finally bringing back the black jerseys on July 30, and they’ll be worn for all the ensuing Friday games.

These are the jerseys Mike Piazza and Edgardo Alfonzo wore the last time the Mets captured the pennant at home. They’re the jerseys David Wright and Carlos Beltran wore the last time the Mets clinched a division at home, and they wore them again to open Citi Field.

Now, we’re going to see current Mets greats carry on the tradition. Certainly, we should expect to see Jacob deGrom, Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo, and Pete Alonso accomplish similar feats to those Mets teams.

Friday nights are the perfect time for these jerseys. By limiting it, it prevents the issue fans previously had where the regular jerseys were almost entirely phased out for the black.

Of course, there’s also hope the Mets still embrace the blue alternates. It would be great to see Mr. Met return to the sleeve and have them worn on Family Sundays at Citi Field.

Overall, it’s great to see the Mets bringing back a fan favorite jerseys and treating them like a special event. Hopefully, it is something which stays well past this season.

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Alonso Is Re-Pete Home Run Derby Champion

Each of the Home Run Derby contestants wore the number 44 in honor of the late Hank Aaron. Much like Aaron once before him, Pete Alonso once again established himself as the real home run king.

First, Alonso knocked off Salvador Perez. Then, he squared off against Juan Soto. Alonso did so well that round, he actually used his time out solely for the purpose of hyping the crowd.

Finally, Alonso faced Trey Mancini in the finals. The cancer survivor was a crowd favorite, and really everyone on that planet, except Mets fans, were rooting for him.

Mancini had a great round hitting 22 homers. That just so happened to be the same amount Vlad Guerrero Jr. hit two years ago. Once again, Alonso beat that number.

In total, Alonso hit a very nice 69 total homers. If not for his going second in his matchups against Soto and Mancini, he very likely would’ve hit more. Those homers traveled a combined 26 miles.

With that, Alonso joins Ken Griffey, Jr. and Yoenis Cespedes as the only players to successfully defend their title. There’s every chance Alonso can and will go for the three peat, sorry three Pete, next year in Los Angeles.

There have been many great at this event, but Alonso could be the best ever at this. Really, he’s to the Home Run Derby what Jacob deGrom is to pitching.

Speaking of deGrom, he won the Cy Young in 2019 when Alonso won the Home Run Derby. It looks like that feat will be repeated this year. Certainly, we can also expect the Mets to have a big second half much like they had that year as well.

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20/20 Hindsight: Mets Walk The Plank

The New York Mets had a golden opportunity with seven straight games against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Somehow, they started the stretch with a split:

1. Blowing a five run first inning lead to the Pirates is completely unacceptable.

2. Part of blowing that game was bullpenning. As correctly noted by Zack Braziller, if you’re the Mets, you do that you should choose a seven inning game and not the nine inning game.

3. That game was exactly why they waited so long on calling the Jacob deGrom start.

4. Luis Rojas has been really good, but in these bullpen games he just gets too greedy pushing relievers an extra inning. Pushing Miguel Castro, who was been bad lately, is a classic example of that.

5. It’s odd that Rojas and the Mets don’t trust Drew Smith. For the most part, when he’s been called upon, he performs.

6. Simply put, while they shouldn’t have been All-Stars, Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo are currently playing and at MVP level.

7. . Taijuan Walker was a very deserving All-Star, and it will be great to see him pitch on Tuesday. It’s still shocking to believe the Mets were his only offer.

8. You’re going to get game like that from Tylor Megill. It’s why he’s a fifth starter. It’s also why the Mets really need Carlos Carrasco back to ensure Megill is the fifth starter.

9. That homer from Michael Conforto was much needed. The Mets really need him to have a big turnaround on his season much like Dominic Smith has.

10. With the draft last night, and Kumar Rocker fortunately falling to the Mets, its interesting to note with Smith, Nimmo, and Conforto, the Mets starting outfield is all first round picks.

11. This is just another reminder of how just impossibly good the Mets are at drafting. They really don’t pay those guys enough money.

12. With Jonathan Villar homering from both sides of the plate, you see a player not willing to give up his third base job to J.D. Davis.

13. On that note, it’s interesting to hear Rojas say he’s not giving Davis the job back. It’ll also be interesting to see what exactly the Mets do with the position at the trade deadline.

14. Seeing the series against the Pirates, the Mets main need at the deadline seems to be the bullpen. Too many of their guys are tired and have been pushed too much.

15. If Adam Frazier wants to come to the Mets, he sure made a good impression. Still, there are some real question marks about the wisdom of adding him.

16. The Mets offense has shown they can be clutch, and they’ve shown the propensity for the big inning, but we’re not seeing them be able to sustain an onslaught throughout a game.

17. Luis Guillorme continues to be clutch and a good pinch hitter.

18. Heading into the break. deGrom is the Mets best pitcher, and Lindor is the best position player. For all the hysteria, that’s what you ultimately expected.

19. For all the disappointment and consternation over this split, the Mets are still in first place heading into the break.

20. Again, if you haven’t already, take the time to help Howard Johnson‘s grandson who suffered an injury in a regrettable accident.

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Kumar Is Going To Shake Shack

Sure, the New York Mets inexplicably blew a 5-0 first inning lead to the lousy Pittsburgh Pirates, but it’s still a great day for the organization. The reason? They drafted Kumar Rocker!

Before the year, Rocker was expected to be the first overall pick. For various reasons, including perceived signability as well as a late year dip in velocity, Rocket moved down the draft board. Still, with there were rumors it could happen, no one really expected him to fall to 10 where the Mets were drafting.

Still, that didn’t stop the Mets from doing their due diligence. Tommy Tanous, Marc Tramuta, and other Mets scouts went to see Rocker pitch. They saw a pitcher they thought had elite stuff and an elite makeup. They saw someone they didn’t expect to be available.

Despite everyone passing, they weren’t fooled, and they made the best pick possible. It’s what they did when they grabbed Brandon Nimmo, Dominic Smith, Michael Conforto, David Peterson, Jared Kelenic, and others.

Simply put, the Mets know how to draft. They’ve become great at it, and on a day like today, when a player unexpectedly falls to them, they know exactly what to do.

That was to grab an exceptionally talented pitcher. As noted by MLB Pipeline, he had quite the repertoire with a developing change and more:

He usually operates at 93-96 mph with his heater, which can reach 99 and features some run and sink but also can get flat at times, though his velocity sat in the low 90s for three weeks early in the season. He notched all 19 of his whiffs in his no-hitter with his slider, a mid-80s beast with power and depth that grades as plus-plus, and he also has a low-80s curveball with more vertical break. 

What Rocker will be is anyone’s guess. That said, he has ace potential, and he’s with a Mets organization which develops pitching quite well. Just ask Jacob deGrom and Seth Lugo.

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Mets Hang 10 In Sixth

For a moment, it appeared like the Mets were going to be in an unexpectedly tight game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Through five-and-a-half, the game was knotted at 2-2.

At that point, Taijuan Walker was done after allowing two runs over five. It wasn’t his best outing by any stretch, but he did keep the Mets in the game.

Finally, in the sixth, the Mets offense exploded against JT Brubaker and the Prates bullpen:

https://twitter.com/mets/status/1413673454545645570?s=21

https://twitter.com/mets/status/1413673454545645570?s=21

With that 10 run rally, the game was blown open, and the Mets were well on their way to a 13-4 victory. Aaron Loup was the winning pitcher after pitching a scoreless sixth.

What’s incredible to think about is even with the Mets scoring 13 runs, Nimmo, McCann, and Villar were the only players with multi-hit games. In terms of Villar, both hits were homers:

Even though this was a laugher, the end was annoying. Nick Tropeano and Yennsy Diaz couldn’t find the zone and both allowed runs. There was also a roughly 40 minute rain delay.

Even with that nuisance, this was a good win for a team now assured of entering the All-Star Break in first place. They can further cement that spot during this seven game stretch against the Pirates.

Game Notes: Walker was officially named an All-Star after the game. Jacob deGrom is opting out of the game.

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Taijuan Walker Didn’t Give Up Grand Slam To Rookie Reliever

Before the game between the San Diego Padres and Washington Nationals, the Nationals social media team put forth their case for Max Scherzer to be named an All-Star. Basically, they tried to say Scherzer is better than Padres All-Star Yu Darvish:

Well, things didn’t go well for Scherzer after this. The Nationals ace blew an 8-0 lead. The worst of it was when Padres ROOKIE RELIEVER Daniel Camarena hit a grand slam.

Lets repeat that: A rookie reliever hit a grand slam off of Scherzer. That just doesn’t happen.

Well, it did, and as a result, the case for Taijuan Walker being an All-Star is now all the stronger. Of course, this has nothing to do with the first place Mets not having an All-Star when Jacob deGrom will not be in attendance in Colorado.

After last night’s Scherzer debacle, Walker’s FIP lead over Scherzer is 3.07 to 3.32. His ERA lead is 2.44 to 2.66. His ERA+ lead is 158 to 140. His not giving up homers to rookie relievers lead is 0 to 1.

Overall, Walker should’ve been an All-Star the first go-around, and his case is all the stronger today. Hopefully, the right decision is made with Walker being added to the All-Star team.

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20/20 Hindsight: Mets Brewing Something Special

The NL Central leading Milwaukee Brewers came to Citi Field with their pitching lined up. It was the Mets who took two out of three:

1. While the consternation of the split doubleheader seven inning games is justified, the larger issue is the fact seven inning doubleheaders exist.

2. The extremely long rain delay at Citi Field was the first of the Steve Cohen era, but when you’re trying to get an extra Jacob deGrom start, you do it.

3. Recently, deGrom has gone from super-human to merely being just the best pitcher in baseball.

4. deGrom is correct. With his sitting out the All-Star Game, Taijuan Walker absolutely should take his place.

5. You hate to overreact to things, but it was incredibly frustrating watching Francisco Lindor, Dominic Smith, and Pete Alonso strike out with the bases loaded in a 3-0 game.

6. It should be noted they’ve all been so good lately (and for the last few years) we shouldn’t blow it out of proportions. That goes double when you see how they combined to win Monday’s game.

7. Jose Peraza homering off Josh Hader was another indication this team is special and well built for October.

8. Speaking of that moment, Luis Rojas had an excellent series and was pushing all the right buttons. For example, one under the Radar move was pinch running Billy McKinney for Alonso in the late innings, which permitted him to get the faster runner and reset the defense.

9. One thing which is becoming increasingly obvious is Brandon Nimmo is the most important hitter on this team.

10. Jeff McNeil is turning a corner (i.e. getting some luck), and his game winning hit was a huge moment for him and the team.

11. That doubleheader really was a tale of the bases loaded. In the first game, McNeil delivered the walk-off hit. In the second, they literally struck out.

12. We don’t know if it’s the early usage, the lack of substances, or something else, but Miguel Castro looks done.

13. James McCann had a great AB in the first game of the doubleheader fighting for that walk to load the bases. It’s indicative of just how good he’s been lately, and how he’s outplaying J.T. Realmuto (h/t Brian Mangan).

14. Great job by Robert Stock to give the Mets a credible start in the second game of the doubleheader.

15. Giving him 89 is the continuation of a dumb practice of forcing Major Leaguers to try to prove they deserve a real number.

16. Tylor Megill is having a 2006 John Maine impact on this team. If he continues, and it looks like he will, they won’t need to add a pitcher at the trade deadline.

17. If the Mets won’t move McNeil to third, third base is their biggest hole and most important area to attack at the trade deadline. Josh Donaldson would make a lot of sense.

18. Of course Adam Fox is a Mets and Rangers fan. It’s because he’s awesome.

19. Win or lose, this Mets team has no quit. That makes them a very special group, and the Mets may not want to tinker too much with the clubhouse.

20. The Mets have seven straight against the Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s time to make a big run.

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