Lucas Duda
It seems like a Mets starter hasn’t recorded an out in the seventh inning since Noah Syndergaard pitched seven innings in the Wild Card Game. It hasn’t been quite that long. It was actually that long. It was “just” 18 games.
It seemed tonight that streak just did not want to die. With a 1-1 count to Andrelton Simmons, Jacob deGrom had a finger issue. He continued pitching, and he allowed a double. This led to Terry Collins coming out of the dugout with Ray Ramirez to check on deGrom, who stayed in the game.
He then walked C.J. Cron and hit Martin Maldonado with a pitch to load the bases with no outs. As Dan Warthen visited the mound, Rob Darling was saying the Mets needed to pull him. Instead, the Mets stuck with deGrom. It was the right decision.
deGrom fought back by striking out Danny Espinosa. Then, a Mets pitcher finally got some help from a Mets shortstop as Jose Reyes made a nifty catch.
Here's that Jose Reyes run-saving juggle to help Jacob deGrom escape a bases-loaded jam in the seventh. #Mets pic.twitter.com/AxdHW0E2Nj
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) May 20, 2017
Entering tonight, Mets shortstops have posted a -9 DRS, the worst in the majors. It was about time they helped their starters. A Cameron Maybin fly out, and deGrom escaped a bases loaded no put jam.
It was the perfect cap to what was a terrific night by the man all fans overlook when naming an ace. This was a big start when the Mets needed it most. He pitched seven scoreless innings allowing just four hits and three walks with nine strikeouts. He would be the first Mets starter to get to three wins.
As good as deGrom was going, former Marlin Ricky Nolasco was nearly as good. Still, the Mets got to him just enough times.
In the first, it was a big two out RBI ground rule double by the suddenly resurgent Curtis Granderson scoring Michael Conforto.
Neil Walker started the next rally with a lead-off single to start the sixth. He smartly moved up when Wilmer Flores flew out to the warning track for the second out. Forgetting that Rene Rivera has suddenly become Gary Carter, the Angels intentionally walked Lucas Duda to face him. Rivera made them pay hitting an RBI single to extend his hitting streak to 10 games.
The Mets capped off their scoring when Conforto hit an opposite field solo homer in the seventh to extend the lead to 3-0. This gave the Mets bullpen a comfortable lead to protect and just six outs to get.
With two left-handed batters bracketing Mike Trout, Jerry Blevins started the eighth. This was Blevins’ 25th appearance making him the first Mets pitcher to made 25 appearances in the Mets first 40 games of the season.
Blevins did his job recording two strikeouts around a Trout single. Collins then went to Paul Sewald for his first ever hold opportunity in the majors. He locked it down striking out Cron to end the inning.
Addison Reed came on to close out the game recording his fifth save of the year. It was the type of 3-0 win you expected to see all year. This was the first of its kind this year. With that said, if the Mets starters step up like deGrom did today, we could be seeing more of these again.
Game Notes: T.J. Rivera snapped an 0-10 streak with a eighth inning pinch hit single. deGrom entered the game with the highest batting average in the Mets lineup. The win snapped the Mets seven game losing streak.
No matter how bad the Mets are, I am in front of the TV, or I have the radio on to see how the game is going. Heck, even on the day I was married, I tipped the limo driver extra to give me score updates. Jon Niese was starting that day, and Carlos Beltran wasn’t playing due to his pre-season knee surgery, so I had to tip a little extra. I use that as the context for my going to sleep last night.
The Mets are not just playing bad baseball right now, they’re playing depressing baseball right now. It was the same thing yesterday.
To start the game, the Mets had Zack Greinke on the ropes. After Curtis Granderson earned a bases loaded walk, the Mets rally ended. Sure, it is unreasonable to expect Tommy Milone to deliver an RBI in that spot. And yes, it is hard to get on Michael Conforto for striking out in that spot considering how good he has been to start the season. The Mets offense has also been humming of late, so again, you can’t get on the offense too much. Still, it was demoralizing because with Milone on the mound, you knew the Mets needed more than just that one run.
And they did. Gregor Blanco hit a two RBI single to give the Diamondbacks a 2-1 lead. After Paul Goldschmidt was intentionally walked, Chris Owings hit an RBI single to make it 3-1. At that point, you figured things can’t possibly get any worse. It did. Owings would break for second, and Rene Rivera would have nailed him if Owings didn’t get caught in a run-down. While this is happening, Lucas Duda notices Goldschmidt break for home, and of course, he makes a terrible throw home allowing Goldschmidt to score.
As a Mets fan, you were disgusted. Right now, the team is finding different ways to make watching them more painful. Duda reminding you of the Eric Hosmer play took the cake.
I didn’t go to bed immediately. The anger had to subside. I got to see the Granderson homer. No, I wasn’t fooled into thinking they would win the game. I feel asleep not to long after that. I didn’t even try to fight it. I subsequently missed the Rivera two run homer, and the Paul Sewald appearance.
Overall, it doesn’t matter. It’s hard to watch this team right now, and it is harder to watch them when games start at 9:30 at night. Thankfully, today’s game starts at 3:40. As a result, you will only lose sleep over them going over what transpired during the game as opposed to watching those things transpire.
Game Notes: Asdrubal Cabrera finally hit the disabled list, and the Mets added Neil Ramirez and his 8.71 ERA to help the bullpen.
The Mets are a team with a number of issues right now. The pitching staff as a whole has the worst ERA in all of baseball. The starters haven’t been going deep into games, and the bullpen is just now starting to crack. While the position players are hitting, the team defense is unacceptably poor. While there may not be any causation, there is certainly a correlation between the Mets poor pitching, and their poor defense.
With Noah Syndergaard and Jeurys Familia going down, it is hard to believe the pitching staff is going to get any better. Right now, the Mets can pin their hopes on Steven Matz and Seth Lugo, but who knows when they can come back? And when Matz comes back, how long is he going to be healthy? Same goes for Lugo who has a torn UCL in his pitching elbow. With the Mets unlikely to significantly upgrade the pitching staff in any way, the team is going to have to upgrade their defense.
There are some minor tweaks that can be made. Juan Lagares can start in center field over Curtis Granderson. Typically, you do not want to start Lagares due to his offense, but with Granderson hitting .144/.206/.272 on the season, it’s hard to argue Lagares can be any worse. Unfortunately, a switch from Granderson to Lagares is likely insufficient to address the defensive issues. That goes double with the Mets statistically having the worst middle infield in the major leagues.
Right now, the easiest position to upgrade is shortstop. Asdrubal Cabrera has a torn ligament in his thumb leading the Mets to consider putting him on the disabled list. In addition to his thumb, we have also seen Cabrera struggle for the second straight year with some leg issues. If he were to go on the disabled list, the natural option to replace him would be Jose Reyes.
For his part, Reyes just isn’t hitting. For the season, Reyes is hitting .189/.286/.315. Those numbers have been boosted by his numbers in May. In May, he is hitting .220/.283/.341. As a result of his poor hitting, Reyes is eminently replaceable. In fact, he has been replaced. When Lucas Duda returned from the disabled list on Friday, Reyes moved to the bench, and T.J. Rivera was moved to third base.
Overall, the Mets need a shortstop. As it so happens, they have on in Triple-A with Amed Rosario.
Depending on whichever source you rely, Rosario is either a top 10 prospect or the best prospect in all of baseball. One of the main reasons for this is he is succeeding in Triple-A. Through his first 36 games, Rosario is hitting .359/.401/.493 with 11 doubles, a triple, two homes, and 22 RBI. This isn’t even him padding his numbers at Cashman Field. In fact, he has hit better on the road.
Now, Rosario has cooled off in May hitting .283/.339/.472. However, if those numbers are indicative of what a slump looks like for Rosario now, that’s extremely encouraging. Even with a potential regression if he were to be called up to the major leagues right now, Rosario’s offense would certainly play in the majors. One of the reasons why is Rosario is a good defender.
Look past his nine errors this season. This is a player widely regarded as one of the top defensive prospects in baseball. Overall, it is his defense that is needed right now. His range at shortstop is far and above what either Cabrera or Reyes can provide at the moment. Those ground ball hits pitchers give up could be turned into outs. If those hits become outs, rallies end, or maybe rallies don’t start in the first place. The starting pitchers now have to throw less pitches, and they could go deeper into games. In turn, this could take some of the burden off of the bullpen.
Is this an oversimplification? Perhaps. But there is no denying the Mets need a better glove at shortstop. A shortstop with more range would permit help abate the range issues Neil Walker has at second and Rivera has at third. Even if this all is an oversimplification, it’s at least worth a shot.
Right now, the Mets are not really going anywhere as currently constituted. There are few areas in which the team can look to upgrade internally. With Cabrera’s injuries and Reyes’ ineffectiveness, shortstop is one of those areas. If the Mets are serious about winning in 2017, now is the time to call-up Rosario.
Was it too much rest? Was it Julian Edelman? Maybe it’s just that Matt Harvey still isn’t quite right. Whatever the case, this was another disappointing start for Harvey.
Through the first five innings, he was fighting it. He needed 97 pitches to get through those innings. His mechanics weren’t sharp. He was laboring. He was walking batters. He was getting hit hard. He didn’t have a 1-2-3 inning until the fifth.
In the second, he allowed a leadoff walk to Domingo Santana who then scored on a Jett Bandy double. On the play, Curtis Granderson had trouble both tracking it down and picking the ball up. Ultimately, it didn’t matter, but it was an ugly play.
Hernan Perez homered to start the third giving the Brewers a 2-0 lead. To be honest, the score probably should have been worse than that. They were really lucky to still be in the game.
They initially took advantage. Neil Walker brought the Mets within one with a fourth inning home run. The Mets then put together a two out rally in the sixth after Michael Conforto just missed hitting one out to deep center.
Asdrubal Cabrera doubled and moved to third on a wild pitch. Jay Bruce walked. Cabrera would score on an ensuing Walker RBI single. The rally ended when the Brewers put on a pickoff play, and Bandy caught Bruce sleeping. The play prevented the Mets from potentially taking the lead. They wouldn’t get close again.
Coming off a strong fifth, Terry Collins decided to stick with Harvey to start the sixth. What was a decent start Harvey could possibly build off of turned into a nightmare.
Eric Sogard and Orlando Arcia would hit back-to-back homers giving the Brewers a 5-2 lead. With that, a Harvey who was probably done after five innings was officially removed from the game.
It’s hard to tell why Harvey was still out there. It’s possible Collins thought Harvey found something and thought Harvey had another inning in him. Perhaps, he was trying to save his pen with Jeurys Familia going on the DL after his surgery today to repair the aneurysm in his throwing shoulder.
Whatever the case, Harvey struggled, and he got tagged with the loss. Brewers starter, Matt Garza, who was able to pitch the sixth, got the win.
The Mets bullpen behind Harvey would struggle. Josh Edgin allowed a double to Jonathan Villar. After a walk to Perez, there were runners at the corners with one out. Edgin would strike out Travis Shaw on a 3-2 pitch. Perez ran on the pitch, and he forced a run down allowing Villar to score.
Rafael Montero came on to pitch the seventh. While he looked pretty good, he still allowed a home run to Bandy to make it 7-2.
It wasn’t until Paul Sewald came on in the eighth that the Mets bullpen didn’t allow a run. The Mets could’ve used a little better effort from their bullpen as their offense came alive in the ninth.
Walker continued his terrific night leading off the ninth with a single. Overall, he was 3-3 with two runs, a walk, a homer, and two RBI. He’d move to third on a Granderson double, and he’d score on a T.J. Rivera RBI single. Granderson would score on a wild pitch to make it 7-4.
That would be the final score. You can’t win when the opposing team had as many home runs as you have runs scored. It was a night that had some promise, but it all fell apart in the bottom of the sixth.
Game Notes: Lucas Duda returned from the DL, and he was 1-4 with a double. With Duda being activated and Cabrera ready to play, Jose Reyes sat, and Rivera played. Rivera was 1-3 with an RBI and a walk.
It started early for the Mets. Steven Matz was injured before Opening Day, and the Mets again wondering what is really wrong with him. Seth Lugo pitched in the World Baseball Classic, partially tore his UCL, and he is going to try to rehab it rather than having Tommy John surgery. Indirectly, this led to Rafael Montero pitching like, well, Montero. It also led to a less than inspiring performance by Adam Wilk.
Noah Syndergaard is gone for an extended period of time with a torn lat. Matt Harvey has been suspended three games for failing to show up at the ballpark. Yoenis Cespedes and Lucas Duda have not played in a few weeks, and there are just rumors that they are soon to return. Travis d’Arnaud is yet again on the disabled list himself, and as usual we are unaware when he can return. Once again, Asdrubal Cabrera has been hobbled in the early part of the season leading everyone to wonder when the Mets finally put him on the disabled list.
Jeurys Familia was suspended for the first few weeks of the season, and he was not sharp immediately upon his return. Addison Reed struggled in his adaption to closer and again in his transition to the eighth inning reliever. Fernando Salas just struggled, and Josh Smoker has probably struggled more than Reed and Salas combined.
Jose Reyes was hitting .095 midway through April. Curtis Granderson entered the month hitting just .128. Neil Walker is under the Mendoza Line against right-handed pitching, and he entered the month of May hitting just .195. Wilmer Flores cannot his right-handed pitching. Juan Lagares can’t hit any pitching.
The end result was the Mets losing six in a row and 10 of 11. Already, people were starting to wonder if this team was similar to the 1992 or the 2009 Mets teams. Despite all of this, the Mets are back at .500 and second place in the National League East. How did it happen?
Well, for starters young and under utilized players have stepped up. Michael Conforto went from the bench to one of the best hitters in baseball. For the second straight season, T.J. Rivera has taken complete advantage of an unexpected opportunity being given to him. Josh Edgin has become a dominant LOOGY in the bullpen. We have even seen Paul Sewald step up pitching terrifically after some initial hiccups.
Then there are the veterans who have had career best seasons so far. Jay Bruce is on base to put up career best numbers in every offensive category. Jerry Blevins has been used almost every game, and he is putting up better numbers than he did last year’s career best season for him. Rene Rivera is hitting over .300. Hansel Robles is 4-0 with a 1.56 ERA in 16 appearances.
More than there, the Mets have exhibited some professional pride. Reyes is hitting .282/.341/.564 with three doubles, a triple, two homers, nine RBI and a stolen base over his last 10 games. Granderson has hit .250/.368/.625 with three doubles, a homer, and four RBI over his last five games. Walker has hit .276/.364/.414 with four doubles and four RBI in the month of May.
In addition, the bullpen has been much better of late. Familia has had five straight scoreless outings. Reed has allowed just two hits with no runs in the month of May. Terry Collins has been more judicious in his use of Salas, and Salas has not allowed any runs in his last five appearances. With Blevins, Edgin, and Robles continuing their outstanding seasons, this has become the dominant bullpen everyone envisioned it would be to start the year.
With the combination of the resurgent veterans and the outstanding young player, the Mets are winning again. In the month of May, the Mets lead the majors in runs scored. They are fifth in the National League in homers. However, unlike last year, the Mets do not need homers to score runs. The Mets .320 team batting average and .517 slugging with runners in scoring position is second best in the majors, and its .419 OBP with runners in scoring position is the best in baseball.
Despite all the noise around the Mets, this team is playing its best baseball of the season. Once their pitching gets relatively healthy, and their current pitchers pitch close to their true talent levels, this team will once again be one of the best teams in all of baseball. Until then, this current group of Mets will make sure the Washington Nationals will be within shouting distance allowing the Mets to compete for the division.
In honor of it being May the Fourth, i.e. Star Wars Day, here is a list of Mets players re-imagined as Star Wars characters:
Rey – Michael Conforto
Both were abandoned in the desert despite having great skills. Now, their opportunity has unexpectedly arrived, they are ready to be great like everyone once expected them to be.
Jyn Erso – David Wright
They have both sacrificed everything to be a part of this and to lead everyone to victory. It’s heartbreaking what happened to them. It’s incumbent on everyone to succeed and be victorious to honor their legacy.
Han Solo – Curtis Granderson
They were once great, but now they are older and are barely holding on at this point. As we know, it ends badly for both of them.
Luke Skywalker – Zack Wheeler
We thought both had disappeared and were never to be heard from again. Despite all odds, they have been re-discovered, but they may be here for the end of something (Jedi, Five Aces) than contributing to it.
Snoke – Ray Ramirez
They are both trying to oversee the destruction of everything, and we don’t know why they want to do it.
Jar Jar Binks – Rafael Montero
The question isn’t just why they are still here, the question is why did they exist in the first place.
K-2SO – Matt Harvey
While it may have been the opposite years ago, they are now the ones taking the bullets for everyone. It’s only a matter of time before they break down.
C3PO – Steven Matz
Both are constantly broken down, and we still do not know what is going on with their arms.
Jabba the Hut – Bartolo Colon
Both are massive, and both are now the enemy.
Saw Gerrera – Noah Syndergaard
Literally, no one thought what they were doing or how they were going about things was a good idea. Yet, they did them anyway, and now they are gone leaving others to scramble to do the job we once they were best suited.
Poe Dameron – Seth Lugo
Both played extremely important roles in the beginning of the saga (Poe – new trilogy, Lugo – aces getting injured). We are now just awaiting Lugo to return when he is needed again just like Poe did.
Finn – Jay Bruce
They were both told to do things a certain way, and it just wasn’t working for them. Now, the are in much better situtations, with people who realize who they really are, and they are thriving.
Galen Erso – Sandy Alderson
They were the ones with the grand plan, and they put all the pieces in place. However, they are now watching as things are falling apart all around them. Both need a miracle. Galen got his. We’ll see about Sandy.
Wickett – Wilmer Flores
Both are considered cute and cuddly, but they are warriors that will tear you to shreds . . . especially if you are a left-handed pitcher.
Death Star – Fernando Salas
Both were thought to be completely indestructible, and yet every time we see them they are getting blown up by the opposition.
General Leia Organa – Jose Reyes
They’re both back looking to recapture past glory. Sadly, we don’t think things are going to work out for them like we once thought it would.
Yoda – Yoenis Cespedes
Believe it or not, Cespedes is smaller than everyone, and yet, like Yoda he is the most powerful. Also, with his constant leg issues, he hobbles around like Yoda does.
Maz Kanata – Dan Warthen
Wedge Antilles – Lucas Duda
Time and again, their contributions are overlooked. Wedge took part in blowing up both Death Stars. Duda was the first base man for the pennant winner and one the Mets cannot adequately replace when he’s not on the field. Despite all of that, no one seems to want to give them credit for their contributions.
Obi-Wan Kenobi – Jacob deGrom
Princess Leia said it best when she said, “Help me Jacob deGrom, you’re my only hope.”
May the Force Be with You and Lets Go Mets!
With voting opening, Michael Conforto‘s name does not appear on the All Star Game ballot. His name doesn’t appear because a team only has three outfielders listed, and the Mets Opening Day outfield of Yoenis Cespedes–Curtis Granderson–Jay Bruce is on there. Still, that doesn’t mean you still can’t vote for Conforto. In fact, you can and should write his name in.
To date, Conforto has had an outstanding year. Through his first 23 games this season, the newly minted leadoff hitter has hit .344/.421/.688 with seven homers and 16 RBI. He’s gone from a player the Mets needed to try to find playing time for to a player they cannot afford to take out of the lineup. He’s been one of the best outfielders in all of baseball.
Among National League outfielders with at least 70 at-bats, he is one of the top ranked players. His batting average, on base percentage. and slugging are second only to Bryce Harper. Again, his 183 wRC+ is second only to Harper. Same goes for his 189 OPS+. It should then come as no surprise that his 1.1 fWAR and 1.1 bWAR are also second to Harper. No matter what state you cite, the only rationale conclusion you can reach is Conforto is the second best outfielder in the National League.
Last year, he had suffered from the proverbial ‘Sophomore Slump” due to a wrist injury, benchings, and the struggles that typically ensue from both of these circumstances. Despite proving himself in Triple-A, the Mets still wouldn’t trust him over injured and struggling players. Rather than give him the opportunity to be the player he was, the Mets traded for Bruce. The failure to move Bruce in the offseason led to Conforto starting the year on the bench. Despite this, Conforto was ready to to step in when the Mets needed him most.
He’s played all three outfield positions, and he has played them well. With Granderson’s and Jose Reyes‘ struggles, he has provided the team with a lead-off hitter. With the injuries to Cespedes and Lucas Duda, he has provided his team with a great bat – a bat that is the second best in the National League. Conforto has been everything the Mets have needed and more.
In reality, the question shouldn’t be whether Conforto should be in the All Star Game, the question is when does everyone start inserting his name into MVP discussions. Yes, it is too soon for MVP discussions, and so at this point, we should focus on his being an All Star. With his name not being on the ballot, Mets fans need to step up and write-in his name.
So without Yoenis Cespedes and with Max Scherzer in the mound, the Mets really had no chance to beat the Nationals, right? Well, at least for one night, it was no Yo no problem.
With Cespedes out, someone had to replace him as the spark plug in the Mets offense. Tonight, Travis d’Arnaud was d’Man. In the second inning, his no doubt blast gave the Mets their first lead in over nine games:
Intersting enough, do you remember the last time the Mets had a lead in a game?
https://twitter.com/studi_metsimus/status/858101051030990852
Unfortunately, that lead was short lived. In the bottom of the second, Jacob deGrom first allowed a solo home run to Ryan Zimmerman and then a two run homer to Matt Wieters. The Mets short lived 2-0 lead became a 3-2 deficit. From, there it was all Mets.
deGrom settled in and started mowing down the Nationals. He didn’t allow another run in the final five innings he pitched. He was terrific striking out 12 while allowing those three runs. For the first time in nine games, he was a Mets pitcher that recorded a win. He was the first Mets starter to record a win since Zack Wheeler got the win on April 12th.
He got the win because his battery mate made sure he had enough run support:
A look at Travis d'Arnaud's two home-run swings tonight. #Mets pic.twitter.com/ybrIWMIcrY
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) April 29, 2017
It was d’Arnaud’s first five RBI game of his career. He once again showed his offensive potential on a night reminiscent of Mike Piazza. He even had a 445 foot blast like Piazza used to do.
The Mets then got to the Nationals bullpen in the eighth. It was a refreshing change after a terrible Nationals bullpen dominated the Mets batters at Citi Field.
Jose Reyes led off the inning with a double off Jacob Turner. He moved to third on a fielder’s choice by T.J. Rivera. With Zimmerman coming off the bag, the Mets had runners at the corners with no outs. The Mets would then load the bases when d’Arnaud worked out a walk.
Kevin Plawecki then pinch hit for deGrom and hit an RBI single through the drawn in infield. Yes, it did really happen. Michael Conforto made it 7-3 when he worked out a bases loaded walk.
The damage would be limited there as Asdrubal Cabrera hit into the 3-2-4 double play, and Jay Bruce grounded out. Still, the Mets got two insurance runs. It turns out they needed them.
Jerry Blevins came on to start the eighth, and he allowed a one out single to Trea Turner. After he struck out Bryce Harper, Collins turned to Addison Reed to get out of the inning.
Reed was greeted by Zimmerman’s second homer of the game. Things got tense when Daniel Murphy ripped a single, and Reyes made an error allowing Anthony Rendon to reach. Reed was struggling, but bore down and got a huge strikeout of Jayson Werth to get out of the jam.
This set the stage for Jeurys Familia to record his first save of the season.
It wasn’t easy as the Nationals immediately loaded the bases off Familia with three straight singles to lead off the inning. The last one was an Adam Eaton infield single Reyes should’ve played but let go to Cabrera. While Reyes had a good night at the plate going 2-4 with two runs, a walk, double, and a stolen base, he was poor in the field again.
With Eaton coming up lame on the play, Dusty Baker had to use three pinch runners in the inning. Believe it or not, that wasn’t the panic move of the game.
After Familia struck out Turner, Terry Collins went to Josh Edgin to pitch to Harper. Somehow it worked with Edgin getting Harper to hit into the 1-2-3 double play. On a night where the Mets got an improbable win, why not Edgin recording the save there?
Game Notes: With the Cespedes injury, Bruce returned to his familiar RF. The plan is to go with Rivera at first until Lucas Duda, who just began his rehab assignment, is ready to come off the DL. Reyes is heating up going six for his last 14 with a HR. Granderson is in a 1-22 funk and now has a lower batting average than Reyes.
When a team is riddled with injuries like the Mets have been, what most people focus on is how it negatively impacts the lineup. The converse of that is an injury creates an opportunity for another player. With Lucas Duda and Wilmer Flores on the disabled list and Yoenis Cespedes unable to play the field, it forced the Mets to play Jay Bruce at first base and put Juan Lagares in center field. This was Lagares’ opportunity to fight for a bigger role on the Mets.
And there was one there. It’s no secret Curtis Granderson has been struggling to begin the season. Through 18 games, he is hitting just .149/.205/.254 with one homer and six RBI. With the Mets being unable to trade Bruce, Granderson is miscast as a center fielder. His -1 DRS ranks him 16th among players with at least 90 innings in center field this year. His -23.0 UZR/150 ranks 23rd among center fielders with at least 90 innings. Long story short, it has not been a good start to the season for Granderson. With him being 36 years old, there have been more than whispers if he’s not the same player anymore.
While it may be only slightly ajar, the door was open for someone to stake a claim for a spot in the outfield. We saw Michael Conforto do just that. On the season, he is hitting .361/.432/.722 with four homers and eight RBI. He’s also made a series of outstanding defensive plays in left and center field. With Granderson and Jose Reyes‘ struggling, Conforto may just have cemented himself as the team’s lead-off hitter.
Lagares did not make a similar push. While it is inarguable that Lagares is by far the team’s best defensive player, he still does not do enough to play every day. In his 2014 breakout season, Lagares had a 102 OPS+. Given his glove, you could keep a player like Lagares in the lineup everyday with league average bat like his. The problem is he’s regressed every season since. Since that 2014 season, Lagares is merely a .250/.289/.356 hitter with a 77 OPS+. There’s really no amount of defense that can keep a bat like that in the lineup. Certainly, not with a National League team.
Yet, we have seen glimpses of Lagares being a competent hitter. We saw it in 2014. We saw it again in the 2015 postseason. In that postseason, Lagares hit .348/.375/.435 with two doubles and two stolen bases. That may not be his true talent level, but it shows you he’s capable of being at least a decent hitter.
Unfortuantely, he hasn’t to begin the year. So far this season, he is 1-18 with his lone hit being a single to break up Gio Gonzalez‘s no-hitter on Saturday. Again, Lagares seems to be regressing, which means once Cespedes returns, Lagares will once again be limited to being a defensive replacement late in games and getting starts against left-handed pitching. Given the comments made post-game, that will happen on Tuesday.
There was an opportunity for Lagares to be more than that. He had an opportunity to show the Mets he could be an everyday player. As an everyday player, he could live on highlight reels and win additional Gold Gloves. That won’t be happening because rather than take advantage of the opporutnity, Lagares reinforced the notion that he isn’t an everyday player.
If we’re being honest, this isn’t the greatest Mets lineup even when the team is healthy. It’s full of guys who certainly can all hit the ball out of the ballpark, but it’s also full of players with poor on base percentages. When you lose Lucas Duda and Yoenis Cespedes to injury the problems become even more exacerbated.
Now, the Mets have the pitching to win games no matter who is in the lineup. We saw that in 2015 as the pitching and Curtis Granderson kept the team afloat playing near .500 ball until reinforcements arrived.
In those games the Mets did win, they needed their pitcher’s to be great. At the state the Mets offense is now, the 2017 Mets are back to that point. Yesterday, Jacob deGrom was good.
He was mowing the Nationals down for the first three innings until his wildness caught up to him in the fourth. A Daniel Murphy single was bracketed by walks to Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon loading the bases.
The Mets got a bit lucky as the Nationals third base coach sent Murphy on the ensuing RBI single by Matt Wieters.
In the fifth, the Nationals got to deGrom again. Adam Eaton and Trea Turner hit back-to-back one out doubles to make it 2-0. After Harper was just told to go to first base (essentially what the new intentional walk rule is), Ryan Zimmerman hit an RBI single to make it 3-0.
The Nationals wouldn’t score again in the sixth thanks in large part to Granderson:
Great grab by @cgrand3. #Mets pic.twitter.com/lwstvIwSKe
— New York Mets (@Mets) April 22, 2017
After getting the first two out, deGrom got in trouble again issuing yet another walk, this time to Eaton, and then allowing a single to Turner. At this point, Terry Collins turned to Josh Edgin to get the Mets out of the jam. Somewhat surprisingly, he did by striking out Harper.
Overall, it was a tough day for deGrom who issued a career high six walks. He was obviously ramped up early getting it up to 98 MPH and recording a lot of strikeouts. The early adrenaline wore off, and deGrom was left throwing 94 MPH and missing his spots. This was an uncharacteristic start for deGrom. His final line was 5.2 innings, eight hits, three runs, three earned, six walks, and 10 strikeouts.
Given the current state of the Mets offense, 3-0 might as well have been 30-0. This game was no different.
For the second time this season, the Mets offense was no-hit through five innings. This time, it was done by Gio Gonzalez. Though the Mets offense looked overmatched and lifeless, they would break through in the sixth.
Jose Reyes pinch hit for Edgin and worked a one out walk. Then, Juan Lagares broke up the no-hitter with a single. More than that, the Mets had a rally going.
Michael Conforto didn’t help the narrative he can’t hit left-handed pitching by striking out and going hitless on the day. Where Conforto didn’t come through, a hobbled Asdrubal Cabrera did hitting an RBI single to make it 3-1. That was as close as the Mets would get.
Jay Bruce and Neil Walker had back-to-back strikeouts ending the Mets only rally of the game. The offense then made a struggling Nationals bullpen look like the 1990 Nasty Boys.
Blake Treinen, Enny Romero, and Koda Glover did their best Norm Charlton–Rob Dibble–Randy Myers impersonation to slam the door shut on the 3-1 victory.
With that, the Mets are 8-10 and are in fourth place 4.5 back. They’re having trouble beating the Phillies and can’t even hit a poor Nationals bullpen. It’s still April, so it’s still early, but things do not look good right now.
Game Notes: Cabrera tried to leg out an infield single in the fourth. He was noticeably hobbled, and he came out to take his position right before the first pitch of the fifth inning. For the second day in a row, an injured Yoenis Cespedes informed the team he was too injured to pinch hit. Once again, Travis d’Arnaud was limited to pinch hitting duty. T.J. Rivera got the start at third base over a healthy Reyes. He was 0-3.