Joey Lucchesi

20/20 Hindsight: Mets Successfully Transverse Rocky Path

The New York Mets kept getting injured, but they keep winning games, especially at home. They just won three out of four from the Colorado Rockies, and they remain in first place:

1. The Mets are so injured right now their injured players are getting injured.

2. Noah Syndergaard and Carlos Carrasco each having difficulty with their rehab assignments and with their probably not being back until August if at all, it’s a reminder you should never part with pitching. Pitching is fragile, and you never have enough of it during the course of a season.

3. The more fans inanely boo Francisco Lindor the more great plays he makes in the field.

4. At some point, we may move past discussing how Tomas Nido claimed the starting job over James McCann to talking about how Nido should be an All-Star.

5. McCann is taking a bad situation, and he is making the most of it by stepping up and playing a pretty good first base. We are also hopefully seeing some signs of life at the plate with his having a a double and homer in this series. At least that’s the hope.

6. Cameron Maybin setting a Mets record for hitless plate appearances to start his Mets career shows you just can’t but a hit for $1.

7. Billy McKinney had quite the Mets debut with some very good defense in the field and doing well at the plate. It was just one game, but it at least appears like McKinney could be part of the equation even with everyone is healthy.

8. While you hope moves like McKinney work, we are getting increasingly to the point where the Mets may have to do something drastic. In the short-term, taking a look at Carlos Cortes makes a lot of sense. If the injuries to J.D. Davis and Jeff McNeil are that bad, it may be time to consider calling up Mark Vientos who is scorching hot in Binghamton.

9. We are not talking enough about the job Jose Peraza is doing for the Mets. Yes, he’s below average at the plate and at second, but he is at least a credible presence on what is moving towards a Double-A roster. It also helps that when he gets his hits it seems to be big like his game winning homer in the first end of the doubleheader.

10. Marcus Stroman is defensively what Jacob deGrom is as a pitcher. Stroman is also a very good pitcher in his own right.

11. This is just a different team with deGrom. Yes, we know the frustration with the lack of run support. That said, he gives this team a swagger, and he eats up a lot of innings allowing the bullpen to rest and be great when needed.

12 People can complain all they want about replay, but when deGrom and Jonathan Villar were called out the primary objective of replay was achieved – it got the call right. Now, there is an easy fix where fielders should not be rewarded for pushing runners off the base. Hopefully, that is something which will be taken up this offseason.

13. It seems the adjustments Joey Lucchesi has made are working. That said, this is a pitcher who should not be relied upon for more than three innings. If utilized properly, that means Lucchesi could have an immense amount of value to this team.

14. At some point, you have to wonder if this is doing more harm than good to David Peterson‘s development. In all honesty, it’s difficult to see in which area of his game he is progressing.

15. The Mets are messing with Thomas Szapucki like they once did with Chris Flexen and Corey Oswalt. They need to let him pitch, especially when they are just going to wind up going with bullpen games anyway. His not stepping on the mound harms his development and may set him up for injury. Next thing you know, you hear the he can’t be good nonsense.

16. The Mets scored a total of 10 runs in a four game series and still managed to win three out of four. There are two reasons for this. First and foremost, the Rockies are bad. The second and perhaps more important reason is teams win games with good pitching and defense. Despite the injuries, the Mets still have that.

17. Even with all the injuries and people wondering why things aren’t as good as we thought they might be, the Mets are still on an 88 win pace. Just imagine where they will be when everyone is heatlhy and performing.

18. Brodie Van Wagenen has a lot of gall showing up at Citi Field for a game even with Edwin Diaz having a great year and finally fulfilling his promise.

19. It is good Luis Rojas is finally being recognized for the job he is doing. It should be noted he is essentially doing all the same things he was doing when he wasn’t popular. It’s just that people now recognize how the other things he does so well are so important when you have no one to play.

20. The Mets are getting back Taijuan Walker just in time. This is yet another big early series against the Braves, and the Mets really need to create more separation between the two teams as the Mets continue to navigate their injuries and head towards June, which is always a nightmare.

Game Recaps

At Least James McCann Was Good

Mets Get a Nido Win

Marcus Stroman Out-Pitches and Fields German Marquez

The Billy McKinney Game on Jose Peraza Day

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The Billy McKinney Game On Jose Peraza Day

In the first half of the doubleheader, we had two good starters going head-to-head. In the second half, well, it was more readily apparent these are two poor hitting teams.

Case-in–point was the first inning. Joey Lucchesi walked the first two batters, and with two outs, the Colorado Rockies pulled off a double steal. Still, the Rockies wouldn’t score. Part of that was Billy McKinney making a running catch down the line taking away an extra base hit from Brendan Rodgers:

In the bottom of the first, Jonathan Villar drew a lead-off walk and went first to third on a Francisco Lindor single. McKinney came up, and he’d hit into a double play. Villar scored on the play.

It seemed like this would be another 1-0 game. After that first, Lucchesi settled in for a bit, and he actually no-hit the Rockies through three.

Of course, this would be another lesson in a pitcher is dealing until he’s not. The Rockies immediately jumped on Lucchesi in the fourth.

After Ryan McMahon led off the inning with a single and was picked off/caught stealing, C.J. Cron singled. A wild pitch moved Cron to second, and Lucchesi would walk Yonathan Daza to put runners on first and second with two outs.

Even with the threat of Charlie Blackmon coming in to pinch hit, Luis Rojas brought in Drew Smith. Surprisingly, the Rockies stuck with Connor Joe. It proved to be the right move as Joe hit a game tying RBI single.

The Rockies threatened to take the lead on what appeared to be an Elias Diaz hit, but Diaz was robbed on a sliding catch by McKinney to get out of the inning.

McKinney made the big catch, and then in the bottom of the fourth he hit a one out double off Rockies starter Antonio Senzatela. From there, the Mets loaded the bases with two outs, and Jose Peraza delivered the go-ahead RBI single giving the Mets a 2-1 lead.

That wasn’t the last rally featuring McKinney and Peraza.

McKinney led off the sixth with a walk against Jordan Sheffield. After a James McCann double and Patrick Mazeika hit by pitch, the Mets had the bases loaded with one out. Peraza would drive home another run by drawing a four pitch walk.

Then, we saw Cameron Maybin is the unluckiest man alive. He was robbed of a hit in the third by Trevor Story. Even with Story out of the game due to injury, the shortstop would again rob him of a hit.

Maybin smoked a ball off the drawn-in infield. The ball would deflect off the diving third baseman McMahon to the shortstop Rodgers. Rodgers then threw home getting McCann on the force out.

Brandon Drury pinch hit for Jeurys Familia, who pitched a scoreless sixth, and in a tough at-bat, he drew a bases loaded walk to increase the Mets lead to 4-1. It was also the Mets first RBI of the day by someone other than Peraza.

The Rockies pulled Sheffield, and Yency Almonte struck out Villar to end the jam. That meant it was a 4-1 game meaning it was still a save situation. Before the rally, it appeared Familia was going to go for the sixth out save.

Rojas was forced to pivot. With Edwin Diaz getting the save in the first half, Robert Gsellman got the save opportunity. He didn’t get it.

Blackmon was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a defensive indifference, and then scored on a Raimel Tapia two out RBI single pulling the Rockies to with 4-2. Rojas then brought in Jacob Barnes. Barnes retired McMahon to pick up the save.

With that, the Mets swept the doubleheader and took three out of four from the Rockies. Sure, the Rockies are bad, but this injury depleted team did what it needed to do.

Game Notes: Maybin tied a record with by starting his Mets career by going 0-for-26. The Mets have drawn nine bases loaded walks this season by nine different players.

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20/20 Hindsight: Mets Get Marlins Slip Through Their Grasp

The New York Mets had a chance to put further distance between themselves and the rest of the NL East. Instead, they lost a tough series:

1. Of course, Jordan Yamamoto got hurt because there can’t be a Mets game without an injury.

2. The same fans who wanted Joey Lucchesi pitch the fifth are the same ones who wanted everyone warming when David Peterson last pitched.

3. Johneshwy Fargas belongs.

4. If you wanted proof Baseball is a cruel sport, look no further than Jake Hager being designated for assignment the day after celebrating his first MLB hit.

5. Marcus Stroman cheering on Miguel Castro after Castro blew Stroman’s win speaks volumes about Stroman as a person and teammate.

6. At this rate, and after his strong rehab start, Noah Syndergaard may be the first person back from the IL. Okay, it’s really going to be Jacob deGrom, but you get the point.

7. Tomas Nido gave an inch in this series with the dropped ball, but James McCann again showed no reason why he should play over Nido right now.

8. The Mets are really banged up, but there has to be better options available than Brandon Drury and Cameron Maybin . . . right?

9. Jonathan Villar has been abysmal of late.

10. There’s literally no point in complaining about the lineups right now because there are zero good choices to put out there.

11. Dominic Smith really is a terrific defensive first baseman. Hopefully, his getting time where he’s most comfortable can get him swinging better.

12. Well, except for clutch situations. He’s as good as gold in those situations right now.

13. With Robert Gsellman and Sean Reid-Foley, the Mets have been getting phenomenal performances from the long men in the bullpen.

14. Really, the bullpen has been great from top to bottom. You just have to wonder how much longer they can withstand this usage rate.

15. Luis Rojas and Jeremy Hefner aren’t getting nearly enough credit.

16. Mets need more from Francisco Lindor. They’ll get it eventually. Until that time, just enjoy the great defense and the hugs.

17. The game winning hit was fun and all, but Khalil Lee is completely and utterly overmatched at the plate right now.

18. It’s awesome to see MSG rocking for Knicks playoff basketball. It’s been so desperately missed.

19. The last time the Knicks and Mets made the playoffs in the same year was 2000 when the Mets lost the World Series, and the Knicks lost to the Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

20. The Colorado Rockies are coming to Citi Field at a time the Mets weakened roster needs a truly putrid team they can beat.

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Mets Fought To The End

An undermanned New York Mets lineup became all the more so when Jose Peraza was unavailable. Suffice it to say, this lineup had more trouble scoring than usual.

Fortunately for the Mets, the pitching and defense were again terrific.

Joey Lucchesi was great through the four scoreless innings allowing just hit while striking out eight. While Ron Darling and many fans were perplexed, given Lucchesi’s year and his career numbers, the Mets went to the bullpen.

Sean Reid-Foley was again terrific. Through his first two innings, he didn’t allow a run while striking out three. Unfortunately, the Miami Marlins got to him with consecutive one out singles putting runners at the corners.

Aaron Loup came into the game to get the left-handed Corey Dickerson out to maybe induce a ground ball double play. Instead, Dickerson hit a fly to medium left.

Cameron Maybin made a terrific throw, and at first glance, it looked like he nailed Brian Anderson at the plate. Just as the home plate umpire was about to ring him up, Tomas Nido dropped the ball. It was 1-0 Marlins, and it looked like the Mets would need a near miracle to tie.

Well, they got it.

The Mets had very limited opportunities in this game, and they squandered them all. That began in the first when Wildredo Tovar struck out with the bases loaded.

In the fourth, Johneshwy Fargas hit a two out double, and he’d be stranded. The Mets would’ve have another base runner until the eighth, and that was courtesy of Anthony Bass.

Bass lost the strike zone issuing a lead-off walk to the pinch hitter Peraza. He’d then issue a one out walk to Francisco Lindor. After Maybin struck out, Don Mattingly brought in Richard Bleier to get out Dominic Smith.

For a split second, it appeared Bleier did his job. However, home plate umpire Alfonso Marquez called what should’ve been strike three a ball. Smith took advantage of the new life hitting the next pitch for an RBI single tying the score.

Wayne Randazzo, who was filling in for Gary Cohen, would not shut up about the blown call. What was odd about his chirping was Marquez was very inconsistent on the low and away pitches all game. It was not at all a surprise he missed that pitch.

From there, the Mets defense did all they could do to help the Mets win. The first great play was in the eighth Smith diving in the hole to get Miguel Rojas.

The next came in the bottom of the ninth. Jesus Aguilar hit what should’ve been a lead-off double. Instead, Fargas make a diving snow cone catch to turn it into an out.

Unfortunately, the Mets magic ran out. With two outs, Anderson hit a ball Smith couldn’t get to with his dive. Then, Drew Smith would wind up taking the loss when Garrett Cooper hit a walk-off two run homer giving the Marlins a 3-2 win.

It was a tough loss for the Mets, but when you’re this injured, it’s going to be difficult to win games like these. Despite all that, the Mets remain in first place.

Game Notes: Brandon Nimmo said he’s dealing with a nerve issue in his finger. Smith is 9 for his last 14 with RISP.

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20/20 Hindsight: Mets Swept Up In Rays

The New York Mets went to Tampa Bay flying high, and now, their winning streak is over, and they over wounded . . . literally. It was about as bad a weekend as they’ve had all season:

1. For all the talk of depth, it is very difficult to overcome the loss of Michael Conforto, Jeff McNeil, and Brandon Nimmo. Those are arguably your three best hitters.

2. The Mets “Bench Mob” has done their job, but you do wonder how long they can hold on as the regulars are injured and don’t appear set to get back to their healthy forms soon.

3. In terms of injuries, Marcus Stroman hasn’t been the same since his hamstring issues.

4. With Joey Lucchesi struggling in his current role, the Mets have to question what exactly he is. Is he a starter which gives you maybe four innings? Is he a long reliever? Seriously, what is he?

5. You really do have to question why Lucchesi is constantly allowed to fail when the Mets could just call-up Jordan Yamamoto. Seriously, he can’t be any worse.

6. Again, the Mets trading Steven Matz has come back to bite them. They simply didn’t have the rotation depth to just part with a legitimate starter.

7. David Peterson had a great start just when he needed to have a great start. That said, he needs to get through the bottom third of that Rays lineup unscathed.

8. This isn’t the postseason. You simply cannot have relievers warming up all the time. Teams need to navigate a 162 game schedule, and that is made all the more complicated by last year’s shortened season.

9. Not every loss is Luis Rojas‘ fault, and that loss was certainly not on Rojas. The Mets ran into Tyler Glasnow, they didn’t hit with runners in scoring position, and then their bullpen didn’t perform up to standards.

10. Just like Peterson had to get through the bottom of that lineup, Trevor May has to get out Manuel Margot in that spot. Margot is terrible against right-handed pitching, and he is terrible with two outs and runners in scoring position.

11. With Jacob deGrom going down, the Mets are in danger of running through their bullpen depth by the end of May.

12. At some point, James McCann is going to have to do something. His offense hasn’t come along, and even worse, his framing numbers have been terrible. Maybe, this is his year of adjustment, or maybe, he needs more rest than he’s getting. Whatever it is, with all the Mets injuries, the team needs him to figure it out now.

13. While he’s played a flashy third base, Jonathan Villar has been predictably poor over there. So far, he has a -2 DRS and a -1 OAA. It’s hard to see how he keeps playing everyday when J.D. Davis is ready to return.

14. Who knows how long he can keep it up, but Patrick Mazeika is becoming the fell good story of the season. When he finally gets his first hit, it’s a homer.

15. Fair or not, the Mets need more from Pete Alonso, Dominic Smith, and Francisco Lindor. They’re good enough to carry this offense with the other injuries.

16. Alonso has hit a lot of special homers in his young career, but homering in his hometown had to mean a little bit more to him. Hopefully, that homer sparks a hot streak at the plate which this team so desperately needs.

17. It’s insane to think Jose Peraza has been this good so far. Right now, the Mets have no other option than to just see how long he rides this wave.

18. The Mets are fortunate the NL East can’t get out of their own way right now. They get swept by the Rays, and they still stay in first place.

19. For all the criticism over Lindor and the ratcoon joke, Joe Girardi outright refused to answer questions about his issues with Jean Segura. While some may want to think that’s the better way of handling it, it’s hard to see how that helps brings the team together and fire up the fanbase like the ratcoon joke did.

20. Injured or not, the Mets begin an important stretch with series on the road against the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins. Fortunately, they’re going to put their best foot forward with Taijuan Walker on the mound.

 

Game Recaps

Mets Lost Due to Glasnow and Clutch Rays Hitting

Joey Lucchesi Beings Bullpen Game Implosion

Mets Banged Up

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Joey Lucchesi Begins Bullpen Game Implosion

With Joey Lucchesi proving he can’t be a Major League starter, the Mets have been forced to go with bullpen days when his turn comes up in the rotation. The problem is the Mets can only hide him for so long.

After Drew Smith allowed an unearned run in his first two innings as the opener, the ball would be given to Lucchesi. All the Mets would need from him is a solid outing because they had a lead.

In advance of Lucchesi entering the game, the Mets hit two homers against Shane McLanahan. The first was a three run shot by Jose Peraza in the second.

The second was Pete Alonso in the third. That one must’ve been really special as it came in his hometown.

Lucchesi pitched a clean third, but he’d get into trouble immediately in the fourth issuing a leadoff walk to Yandy Diaz. Joey Wendle doubled, Manuel Margot singled, and Willy Adames doubled. With that, the 4-1 lead was gone.

After two outs, Sean Reid-Foley “relieved” Lucchesi. Austin Meadows doubled, and Randy Arozarena singled. With that, the Rays put up a five run inning. The Mets would be chasing the rest of the game.

After having a three strikeout game, Francisco Lindor got the Mets closer with a solo homer in the top of the eighth. That’s as close as the Mets would get.

The problem with bullpen games like these is everything needs to work. If there’s one hiccup, the wheels come off. That’s what happened with Lucchesi, and it happened again when Jacob Barnes loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth.

Luis Rojas brought in Jeurys Familia to get the Mets out of the jam. Instead, Diaz and Wendle would slam the ball into the turf for doubles clearing the bases and putting the game out of reach.

When all was said and done, the Rays had a six run inning, and they cruised to a 12-5 win. After winning seven in a row, the Mets lost two straight, and their bullpen is showing some signs of weakness.

Game Notes: Jake Hager made his big league debut against the team who once drafted him in the first round. Khalil Lee was sent down. J.D. Davis will begin a rehab stint.

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The Rat And Raccoon Lead Mets To Victory

One day, you are a struggling baseball team under media scrutiny over a raccoon/rat story. The next, you’re just a good baseball team winning games.

Front and center both times was the Mets middle infield. We saw them both in action in the third inning. First, it was a Jeff McNeil two run homer giving the Mets a 2-0 lead.

Francisco Lindor was up next, and he singled off Diamondbacks starter Merrill Kelly. He’d then take off for second for a stolen base. After Carson Kelly‘s throw deflected into the outfield, Lindor went all the way around the diamond to score.

That was good enough for the Mets pitching. Over the first five innings, Tommy Hunter (2.0) and Joey Lucchesi (3.0) kept the Diamondbacks hitless. The way things were going the best way for anyone to reach base was by catcher’s interference, which Josh Rojas did in his first two plate appearances.

The Mets got a little greedy pushing Lucchesi to a fourth inning. Rojas would finally swing for the ball instead of James McCann‘s mitt, and he’d single.

He’d go to third on a Christian Walker single, and he’d score on a David Peralta fielder’s choice. At that point, Jeurys Familia came in and bailed him out.

Familia pitched the seventh, and things got very interesting. He’d get two quick outs, but then things went haywire.

Pavin Smith hit a ball against the shift which Lindor couldn’t field cleanly. Kelly blooped one into center. Rojas had a weak hit against the shift which Lindor chased down to prevent Smith from scoring.

Things got all the more dire when Familia fell down 3-0 to Walker, but Familia battled back into the at-bat. Walker then hit it to Lindor who was bailed out by Pete Alonso‘s fancy footwork at first.

In the bottom of that inning, McNeil reached via fielder’s choice. McNeil then stole second and scored on a Lindor RBI single.

The Diamondbacks rallied in the eighth against Aaron Loup.

Old friend Asdrubal Cabrera hit a one out single, and he moved to second on a Nick Ahmed walk. He’d then score on Stephen Vogt pinch hit RBI single. Smith would then ground out to end the jam.

Trevor May came on in the ninth to earn his first save as a Met and the eight of his career. With this 4-2 win, the Mets are now two games over .500, and they’re on the verge of putting together a big run.

Game Notes: Kevin Pillar made two diving catches in center. This was the first time all season Loup allowed an earned run.

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Mets Front Office Hurts Mets Chances To Win

Honestly, the New York Mets lost this game when the front office made a baffling decision. The St. Louis Cardinals are dangerous against left-handed pitching, and they relatively struggle against right-handed pitching.

Knowing that, the Mets decided to call-up Joey Lucchesi to make the start. Not Jordan Yamamoto, who has good numbers against the Cardinals. They didn’t even look to pitch Robert Gsellman or Sean Reid-Foley.

No, they went with Lucchesi, and it backfired spectacularly. Keep in mind, the Mets offense handed Lucchesi a 5-2 lead heading into the third.

In the second, Adam Wainwright got wild. With runners on first and second and one out, Mike Shildt made the odd choice to intentionally walk Jonathan Villar to load the bases.

That decision backfired as Wainwright plunked Tomas Nido to force in a run. After striking out Lucchesi, Wainwright walked Jeff McNeil to force home a second run.

The rally ended there as Francisco Lindor struck out to end the inning. Again, Lindor’s struggles at the plate continue. However, his defense remains as magnificent as ever:

The Mets would get back at it in the third starting with a Michael Conforto lead-off walk. After Pete Alonso hit his second double of the game, Dominic Smith drove home a run with an RBI groundout. Kevin Pillar followed with his second homer in as many days:

With a 5-2 lead, Lucchesi retired the first two batters he faced in the third. He then completely fell apart.

After allowing back-to-back singles to Dylan Carlson and Paul Goldschmidt, Lucchesi would surrender a game tying three run homer to Nolan Arenado. For some odd reason, Luis Rojas didn’t have anyone ready to relieve him.

Paul DeJong would continue being a Mets killer hitting a double. He’d then score on a Tyler O’Neill RBI double. With that, the 5-2 lead became a 6-5 deficit, and Lucchesi would be out of the game.

The real shame is Gsellman (2.1 IP) and Reid-Foley were terrific (2.0) over 4.1 scoreless innings. They’d combine to allow just two hits while walking none and striking out four.

When you throw in Jacob Barnes, the bullpen pitched 5.1 scoreless. Converse that with Lucchesi who allowed at least one run over each of the first three innings.

Both bullpens did their job not allowing any runs after that third inning. Of course, that meant the decision to start Lucchesi was the big factor which cost the Mets this game.

It’s a shame because the Mets scored five runs, played good defense, and pitched well in the pen. Someone should be accountable for that, but instead, Rojas will have to face the criticism for it.

Game Notes: J.D. Davis was put on the 10 day IL. Stephen Tarpley was called up to take his place.

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20/20 Hindsight: Mets Swept In Embarrassing Fashion By Cubs

The New York Mets came to Chicago looking to beat up on a reeling Cubs team. Instead, they got beat up and are reeling themselves.

1. J.D. Davis needs to be on the bench period. He continues to prove he can’t field, and that really hurt the team in this series.

2. In the three game set Taijuan Walker, David Peterson, and Joey Lucchesi failed to go four innings let along five.

3. Walker and Peterson were really hurt by Davis’ defense. Walker would also be hurt by walks as would Lucchesi.

4. The more you see Lucchesi, the more you realize he’s not a starter, but he might be a great reliever.

5. One bright spot of this series was maybe discovering Sean Reid-Foley could be a real piece. He kept his walks down for a night. If he can do it for many nights, watch out.

6. Speaking of watch out, Pete Alonso is heating up. He hit some big homers, one of which left the ballpark.

7. Michael Conforto almost hit one out, and he at least appears to be working towards being his normal self.

8. After all the nonsense and hand wringing over Francisco Lindor, he hit his first homer and had his first three hit game.

9. Jeff McNeil just can’t seem to get going this year. It’s really difficult to pinpoint the problem too.

10. While the Mets are struggling at the plate, it’s too early to derive conclusions. That said, they’re following the same patterns as other Chili Davis coached teams with climbing ground ball rates.

11. James McCann is just so good mechanically, and he gets the ball out so quickly, he gives his middle infielders a real chance to get down the tag.

12. The one issue with McCann is he hasn’t been great receiving throws. Then again, the throws to him at home have been terrible.

13. The Mets defense on Wednesday set the sport back. It was just that bad, inexcusably so.

14. Davis can be terrible all he wants, but he has no one to blame but himself. He sure can’t blame Alonso.

15. The state of umpiring in the game is really bad. We’ve seen Mets pitchers get really squeezed. Walker was ejected AFTER he was removed from the game. Kris Bryant still hasn’t touched first.

16. Luis Guillorme is the epitome of a grinder. Down 12 with two outs in the ninth, and he battles in an at-bat and gets a hit.

17. If Brandon Nimmo has an issue, the Mets should just get him on the IL. Get him the rest to allow him to come back as their best offensive player.

18. If Kevin Pillar is struggling this much, the Mets should at least throw Albert Almora at least one start.

19. Edwin Diaz has great stuff, and he can be absolutely dominating and unhittable. That said, it’s really difficult to trust him when he implodes like he did in the 10th inning.

20. It’s hard to take people seriously when they support runners on second in extra innings and seven inning doubleheaders, but they get bent out of shape about uniform colors.

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Luis Rojas Luck Ran Out In Mets Loss

New York Mets manager Luis Rojas rolled the dice a number of times in the game against the Chicago Cubs, and he kept getting lucky. Really, it was a number of just interesting, weird, and outright wrong decisions.

With J.D. Davis incapable of playing third, the Mets finally relented and put him on the bench. The Mets also sat Jeff McNeil. That led to Luis Guillorme at third and Jonathan Villar at second, instead of the reverse, which would’ve been the better defensive alignment.

So, naturally, right off the bat, Rojas’ (or front offices’) decision looked genius when Guillorme robbed Ian Happ:

This helped Joey Lucchesi get through the first two innings unscathed. Unfortunately, the Cubs would get to him in the third.

After walking two with one out, Lucchesi was on the verge of escaping the inning unscathed after a Happ flyout. Lucchesi had some bad luck with he got hit by a Willson Contreras comebacker driving in a run.

Kris Bryant then hit a two run double giving the Cubs an early 3-0 lead. That would prove to be it for Lucchesi as he would be lifted in the fourth for a pinch hitter.

The Mets responded in the fourth immediately. Dominic Smith doubled, and then Pete Alonso followed with yet another homer to pull the Mets to within 3-2.

The Mets would have a chance to build on this but couldn’t. Michael Conforto would double, and Villar drew a walk. That was it as neither Kevin Pillar nor Nimmo, who pinch hit for Lucchesi, could drive home the tying run.

At the time, Lucchesi had only thrown 60 pitches, and the Mets bullpen had been worked hard the past few nights. Rather than err on the side of caution, Rojas went to recently called up Sean Reid-Foley.

Reid-Foley was phenomenal pitching three scoreless. A pitcher who has struggled all of his career with control walked none and struck out four.

In the seventh, Rojas got lucky again. With one out and one on, Rojas tapped Davis to pinch hit over McNeil against Ryan Terpera. It worked as Davis hit a game tying RBI double, which should’ve been a triple as the ball got away from Jake Marisnick.

After a scoreless seventh by Trevor May, Rojas made the very curious decision of having Aaron Loup start the inning with the first Cubs LHP due up sixth.

The decision looked like an immediate disaster with Marisnick hitting a lead-off triple. Loup bore down getting Austin Romine to pop out, and Happ to strike out.

Rojas then went to Miguel Castro. Why Castro didn’t start the inning is anyone’s guess. Castro came up big striking out Contreras to end the inning.

Rojas then made yet another curious move. He only used Castro for the one batter. He would wind up double switching Edwin Diaz into the game which was setting the stage for Diaz to pitch two innings.

Notably, Diaz is not accustomed to two innings, and he’s not great with runners on base. With his being set up to pitch the 10th, and there being the ridiculous runner on second rule, that’s an important consideration.

The Mets got to the 10th partially because James McCann threw out another runner. On the play, Bryant had the bag stolen, but he came off the bag for a nanosecond. McNeil, who was double switched into the game with Diaz, kept the tag on leading to Bryant being called out.

In the 10th, Villar started the inning on second because Rob Manfred hates baseball. He’d quickly be on third due to a wild pitch. After McNeil struck out, Guillorme and Francisco Lindor walked loading the bases with one out.

Dominic Smith had the chance to deliver a huge hit. He hit the ball hard, but right at the second baseman David Bote, who started the inning ending 4-6-3 double play.

The Mets would not get another opportunity as Rojas’ luck finally ran out.

Diaz started the 10th, which meant a runner on second. His first pitch of the inning hit Matt Duffy. Bote would lay down the sacrifice. On the bunt, Alonso had a play at third, but he’d slip leaving only the out at first.

Rojas ordered the intentional walk to load the bases, and Jason Heyward came up as a pinch hitter. Diaz would throw one down the middle, and Heyward ripped a game winning single.

With that, the Mets suffered their first sweep of the season. They lost to a bad Cubs team and really looked bad in the process. At least, they are still .500 and in first place.

Game Notes: Trevor Hildenberger was sent down to make room for Reid-Foley. Mets were 1-for-8 with RISP stranding seven.

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