Michael Conforto
After a heartbreaking loss, the Mets immediately responded in the first, and it all began with a Brandon Nimmo leadoff walk.
All nine Mets would bat in the top of the first against Brewers starter Brian Anderson, and things were going so well Jose Reyes would draw a bases loaded walk to expand the Mets lead to 3-0.
Of course, that was not nearly a big enough lead for Jason Vargas, who immediately surrendered the lead in the bottom of the first.
In subsequent innings, Nimmo and Michael Conforto would homer to recapture the lead at 5-3. Of course, in the bottom of the third, the Brewers tied the score again.
That would be it for Vargas. He lasted just three innings allowing five earned on six hits. With his performance, he managed to raise his 9.87 ERA to 10.62. So much for pitching well against a bad Marlins team.
After that, the Brewers beat up on Jacob Rhame (1.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 2 K) and AJ Ramos (0.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, BB, K, HR).
Chris Flexen, who has been frozen out for over a week by Mickey Callaway, was finally allowed to pitch 2.1 mop up innings. He’d struggle too allowing seven runs (three earned) on eight hits.
After all was said and done, the Mets lost this game 17-6, and with Flexen, they lost a potential option to start in Monday’s doubleheader.
Remember, the Mets lead this one 3-0 before the Brewers even picked up a bat. This is as bad and inexcusable a loss as you get in a season full of those.
Game Notes: According to Callaway, with Amed Rosario getting the day off, Reyes started over Luis Guillorme because Reyes was the better shortstop. Jerry Blevins pitched well not allowing a hit over 1.1 scoreless innings.
Walks kill.
There’s no better way to describe the game between the Mets and Brewers than saying walks kill.
After the Amed Rosario and Michael Conforto hit a pair of homers of Junior Guerra, the team was against the wall.
For two innings Josh Hader tore through the Mets like a buzzsaw, and Corey Knebel quickly recorded the first two outs to start the ninth.
Conforto then worked out a 3-2 walk, and Devin Mesoraco walked on five pitches. New Mets Jose Bautista came to the plate and delivered an RBI single to tie the score at 3-3.
With that Noah Syndergaard, who wasn’t at his best (again) was off the hook, and it was a brand new game.
Luis Guillorme really battled in his own pinch hitting attempt, and he drew a walk on a very borderline pitch. Unfortunately, Rosario didn’t have another big hit in him, and this game went to the bottom of the ninth and then extras.
With two outs in the tenth, Mickey Callaway made a fateful decision. Rather than letting Robert Gsellman, who has limited left-handed batters to a .178/.296/.422 batting line, he went to Jerry Blevins, who has struggled all season.
Much of what has ailed the Mets was then on display. Blevins allowed Christian Yelich to get around on a pitch and hit it to right. Most believed it was going to be the third out of the inning. Problem was Jay Bruce was nowhere near it.
Instead of being out of the inning, the Brewers had runners at first and second.
Then, instead of having Jeurys Familia at the ready, Callaway went to AJ Ramos. Ramos then proceeded to walk the next two batters giving the Brewers a walk-off wall-off win.
In the record books, Gsellman was tagged with the loss. Really, this was a combination of Callaway, Blevins, Bruce, and Ramos, who earned this one.
Game Notes: Brandon Nimmo‘s eight straight appearances reaching base ended with him going 0-5 with a strikeout. Leading off the ninth, Wilmer Flores was called out for running into his own batted ball, a ball that was clearly foul. That play is not reviewable.
After scoring just four runs in a three game series against the worst pitching staff in the National League, they had to hope playing in a hitter’s park like Miller Park would rejuvenate the offense.
It didn’t work a few weeks back with a road trip to Cincinnati and Philadelphia, but tonight with Zach Davies, who just came off the DL, starting for the Brewers, it worked tonight.
It worked mostly because Brandon Nimmo, who was named as the everyday leadoff hitter by Mickey Callaway, was phenomenal. On the night, he was 4-4 with two runs, two doubles, and a walk. Going back to yesterday’s game, Nimmo reached base safely in eight straight at-bats.
Brandon Nimmo stretches his on-base streak to seven consecutive plate appearances:
1. Walk
2. Home run
3. Single
4. Double
5. Triple
6. Double
7. Walk— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) May 25, 2018
Nimmo really got everything started with a leadoff triple in the third, and he would subsequently score with Wilmer Flores hitting a one out sacrifice fly to deep right.
The Mets “breakout” came in the third, and it started with an Amed Rosario leadoff single, and Nimmo followed with his first double of the night. Needing a big hit, the Mets were fortunate their best hitter this year, Asdrubal Cabrera, came to the plate, and he delivered an RBI double.
This chased Davies, and the Brewers brought in Dan Jennings to limit the damage. He’d get out of the inning, but not before allowing Flores to hit an RBI single expanding the lead to 4-0.
The scoring was capped in the seventh when Michael Conforto scored on a when Devin Mesoraco RBI double.
The five runs the Mets scored were more than enough for Steven Matz, who had his most encouraging start of the year.
It wasn’t encouraging because his six scoreless innings were so dominant. In fact, they really weren’t. He was in trouble all night long.
He had just one 1-2-3 inning, and he had runners in scoring position with less than two outs in the second and third innings.
Both times, Matz executed his pitches and got through the inning. Sure, you could focus on how poorly the Brewers have been against left-handed pitching. However, the Brewers are a good team, and Matz did the job.
Paul Sewald pitched the next two before Jacob Rhame pitched a scoreless ninth securing the 5-0 win.
Game Notes: Yoenis Cespedes and Todd Frazier took batting practice before the game. There is still no timetable for their beginning rehab assignments.
The Mets Fan
Hey there Mets fans, My name is Breanna! Some of you may know me from twitter as @ThatMetsChick. I am 23 years old and I am a diehard Mets fan and a baseball enthusiast. I played 4 years of division 3 college softball. I played center field and was a switch hitter.
My work can be found on MMO and Twitch TV.
How I Became a Mets Fan
I was pretty much born a Mets fan but I really got into the games back in 2003-2004 when Jose Reyes got called up to the majors. I remember my dad had company seats from his job and we used to always go to Shea Stadium for free. I miss those bright orange seats.
Favorite Mets Player
My all-time favorite Mets player was 2006 Jose Reyes. Back then he brought so much energy to the team and was pretty much an automatic run if he got on base. My current favorite Mets player is not 2018 Jose Reyes (sorry buddy). I currently have two favorite (can’t decide who I like more) and they are Yoenis Cespedes and Michael Conforto.
Favorite Moment in Mets History
My favorite Mets moment was Johan Santana’s no hitter back in 2012. I was at the ballpark that day and I remember getting the tickets from my High School for free. During the 7th inning stretch I told my friend “Santana’s going to throw a no hitter today.” An old man behind me got so upset that I potentially jinxed and told me (at the age of 17) to “shut up.” Once the no hitter happened he later apologized.
Message to Mets Fans
If the Mets are stressing you out, go outside and get some fresh air. Take a week off from the Mets because you are going to need it. It’s a long season and anything can happen. Ya gotta believe!
This game was a clear dichotomy of what is going right and what is going wrong for the Mets. First, the wrong –
The first moment was in the fourth inning. Paul Goldschmidt broke out of his funk by hitting a homer off Steven Matz to tie the game at 2-2. Later that inning, Matz went from 1-2 to walking Jarrod Dyson. Matz then seemed to get out of the inning by picking Dyson off first:
https://twitter.com/MLBReplays/status/998020988179595267
Somehow both the umpires and the replay officials miss what everyone watching the game saw – Asdrubal Cabrera got the tag in ahead of the slide.
Well, it was a blown call, which led to a typical Matz letdown. Diamondbacks backup catcher and former Yankee John Ryan Murphy hit a go-ahead two run homer.
With that, you had your typical 2018 Matz start. He didn’t get through five. He allowed two homers. He allowed a big walk, and he had a meltdown.
Still, down 4-2, the Mets were still in this game, and it looked like they were going to break through in the sixth with Patrick Corbin on the ropes. The team didn’t break through.
First, Devin Mesoraco popped out, and after the Diamondbacks put Michael Conforto on first, the inning was in Jose Reyes‘ hands. Now, Reyes presumably got the start because he had good career numbers against Corbin. He wouldn’t get a hit off Corbin, and he was in there to face Jimmie Sherfy.
Reyes fouled out, and Adrian Gonzalez couldn’t get the pinch hit. This left the Mets trailing, but it wouldn’t stay that way because of the things that have gone right for the Mets.
First, Conforto is back. After a 4-4 game, he came up in the second inning, and he delievered a two run homer to give the Mets a 2-1 lead.
After Matz surrendered the lead and couldn’t go five innings, the game was once again on the bullpen. The combination of Seth Lugo, Paul Sewald, and AJ Ramos pitched four scoreless walking none, allowing one hit, and striking out six. Ultimately, they gave the Mets a chance.
The Mets took advantage of that chance. Jay Bruce led off the eighth with a single off Archie Bradley, and he would come home on a Mesoraco blast:
Mesoraco uses the Force! #LGM pic.twitter.com/99N0Tq9Ccj
— New York Mets (@Mets) May 20, 2018
Jeurys Familia pitched a perfect ninth giving the Mets a chance to walk this one off.
Like many rallies this season, it began with Brandon Nimmo, who led off the ninth with a double, and then the most clutch Met on the team this year, Asdrubal Cabrera laid down a bunt single moving Nimmo to third. This put the game in Wilmer Flores‘ hands, and as we know he has his own history with walk-off hits.
While not the dramatic homers we have seen, he did end the game with a fly ball to the outfield. This one was a sacrifice fly scoring Nimmo giving the Mets a 5-4 win.
This was the first time since April 10-11 that the Mets have won consecutive games. They are now in position for their first home sweep of the season. They do that, and things will definitely be more good than bad right now.
Game Notes: With the Mets lack of outfield depth, Dominic Smith started in right field for the Las Vegas 51s. Reyes is now 7-53 on the season.
There aren’t many things which are right with the Mets right now, but a big thing that’s right with this team right now is Jacob deGrom, and with him, we are seeing reports how the team may look to trade him. Of course, the best way to do that is to win as many games as you can between now and the trading deadline. Part of doing that is going out and not wasting deGrom starts.
Part of that is letting deGrom go out there and do his thing, and really he did his thing tonight.
In seven phenomenal innings of work, deGrom tied his career high with 13 strikeouts, and as noted by the great Michael Mayer, he became the 10th pitcher in Mets history to reach the 800 strikeout mark. He also lowered his ERA this season to 1.75.
There are many ways to say how great deGrom was, but perhaps the best way to say it is his final line: 7.0 IP, 6 H, R, ER, 0 BB, 13 K.
He carried into the game and extended his scoreless inning streak to 24.1 innings. It ended in the top of the sixth when Jake Lamb scored Steven Souza from first on a double. On what was a truly bizarre play, Souza ran through the stop sign only to stutter step and then take off from home. After Asdrubal Cabrera missed the relay, Adrian Gonzalez backed him up and nailed Lamb at third.
The Diamondbacks threatened in the seventh again with a Daniel Descalso leadoff double. Being the great pitcher he is, deGrom settled down, and he got the next three out in order.
Fortunately for deGrom, this would be one of the few games where he got real run support, and it began with a first inning rally against Diamondbacks starter Zack Godley, and like with many Mets rallies this season, it all began with a Brandon Nimmo walk.
After Descalso botched what was at a minimum a force out, and quite likely with Cabrera’s speed a double play ball, runners were at the corners with no outs.
Wilmer Flores drove in the first run with a ground out, and then Michael Conforto came through with a big two out RBI single.
Conforto would repeat that feat in the fifth inning. After a Flores two out walk and Jay Bruce walk, the inning was on Conforto, and he delivered with another RBI single. It was part of Conforto’s first three hit night of the season and just the second four hit night of his career. Overall, he was 4-4 with two RBI.
Really, the Mets need more of that from Conforto because he is not just the best hitter in the lineup, he’s the best hitter on the team. When the team is without Yoenis Cespedes and Todd Frazier, Conforto has to carry even more of the load. He did it tonight, and if he continues doing it, like he did last year, this Mets team will be in much better shape.
Things got interesting in the eighth. After a Conforto one out single, Gonzalez dropped a perfect bunt against the shift. After a Jose Reyes pinch hit walk, the bases were loaded with two outs. This led to Amed Rosario popping one out to Descalso, but he then dropped it. Initially, it was ruled a drop leading to two runs scoring. Upon the umpires commiserating, it was ruled an out meaning it was a 3-1 and not a 5-1 lead.
After Robert Gsellman and Jeurys Familia shut the door, deGrom had his fourth win of the season, and the team beat a Diamondbacks team who is having a very similar season to the one the Mets are having. Hopefully, this weekend the Mets will take advantage of a reeling team like other teams have done to them over the last few weeks.
Game Notes: Juan Lagares, who suffered a toe injury in the rain soaked game is likely done for the year leaving the Mets with three healthy outfielders on the 40 man roster. Jerry Blevins was activated from the paternity list, and he took Lagares’ spot on the roster. Paul Goldschmidt had the golden sombrero.
Over in Washington, D.C., even though the Nationals and Yankees were facing even more pressure than the Mets and Blue Jays to get their game in, they postponed the roughly game and a half they had to play. Perhaps both teams were aware they had important players they did not want to see get hurt, and it was better to do this another day.
Not the Mets.
Despite torrential rains, the Mets decided to play. Despite a rain delay which required the grounds crew to empty the coffers of diamond dust to eliminate the standing puddles on the infield, the umpires decided to let these two teams play.
Actually, check that, it was the Blue Jays who played a game. The Mets were there to get drowned.
For Zack Wheeler things started well enough. Sure, he didn’t get an 0-2 pitch quite up and in enough to Justin Smoak, but other than that, Wheeler was good over the first three innings. In that time, he had struck out six while allowing just the one homer.
Then came the inane rain delay precipitated by J.A. Happ not liking how he landed on the mound. The umpires did the right thing delaying the game to get the field in playing condition. It would have been a better thing to call the game because that field was dangerous.
And yes, someone did get hurt. Juan Lagares went back on a ball, and his foot hit the wall causing a sprained toe. Maybe if the ground conditions were better, he gets back to the ball quicker, and doesn’t need to jump. Maybe in better conditions, he’s better able to plant and go up. Or knowing Lagares, maybe he gets hurt anyway.
Fact remains, he got hurt in nearly unplayable playing conditions. That’s not okay, and the Mets and MLB should be forced to answer to that.
They won’t much like how right now Mickey Callaway and Dave Eiland are not yet being taken to task for what is going on with this pitching staff.
Yes, we know there were problems with these pitchers, but they knew the job when they took it on. It would have been unfair to expect 2015 results from each of these pitchers, but it was fair to expect a progression based on what we saw last year. We haven’t.
That includes Wheeler falling apart after that lengthy rain delay. He began the fourth and fifth yielding lead-off walks. He got through the fourth allowing a two run homer to Teoscar Hernandez. He wouldn’t get an out in the fifth leading Callaway to go to his bullpen.
While the Blue Jays, who play their home games in a retractable roof, were not bothered by the conditions, the Mets couldn’t manage.
Considering in his last start Happ allowed seven runs in 3.1 innings, his two hit seven inning effort made the Mets offense all the more embarrassing. It gets worse when you consider one of those two hits was a Luis Guillorme infield single.
Perhaps, that is also a reflection of the 4-9 hitters having all spent time in Las Vegas over the past year. It’s also an indication Michael Conforto is not Conforto anymore. With each passing day, we get closer and closer to asking the question about whether this is shoulder related.
In the end, there were really no positives until there were two outs in the ninth. That’s when Brandon Nimmo battled back from down 0-2 in the count to hit an opposite field home run. Really, this team needs a lot more Nimmo than whatever it is this team has right now.
That was once again clear after this 12-1 loss.
Game Notes: Guillorme became the first Met since Steven Matz to being his MLB career going 3-3.
When the 2019 schedule is released, and the Mets are going to have to make sure Jacob deGrom doesn’t start the game because it will inevitably lead in heartbreak. Last year, it was the inexplicable loss to the Brewers. This year, it was one of those everything goes wrong type of games.
For his one inning of work, deGrom turned into Houdini. After walking the bases loaded to start the game, deGrom had to recalibrate and try to get through the inning by limiting the damage. Well, he would do much more than that.
First, he struck out Rhys Hoskins. Then on a dribbler in front of the plate, deGrom got to the ball, and he nailed Cesar Hernandez at home. Finally, he got Maikel Franco to strike out on a 3-2 pitch. It was downright miraculous.
It also required 45 pitches. With that heavy first inning workload, and with his just coming off the disabled list prior to the game after his hyper-extended elbow issue, Mickey Callaway did the prudent thing and put the game in his bullpen’s hands.
While the bullpen was going to the whip, the Mets offense was getting whipped by Aaron Nola who would allow just one run over six to lower his season ERA to 1.99.
It wasn’t that this Mets offense was dominated. Far from it. It’s that the offense didn’t do anything when they had the opportunities.
After Brandon Nimmo got things started with a bunt against the shift, the Mets loaded the bases with one out. Wilmer Flores then struck out on four pitches, and Michael Conforto hit the second pitch he saw for an inning ending ground out.
In each of the subsequent innings, the Mets would get at least one base runner on against Nola, and they would do nothing. That was until the sixth when Nola didn’t get one in enough to Yoenis Cespedes, who would hit it out to give the Mets a 1-0 lead.
We're on the board.@ynscspds leads off the 6th with a solo home run! We lead 1-0. #LGM pic.twitter.com/P09KmhQ9sc
— New York Mets (@Mets) May 13, 2018
The rally would continue with Adrian Gonzalez and Flores hitting back-to-back singles, and Conforto getting ahead in the count at 2-0. That 2-0 count would turn into an awful at-bat with Conforto striking out, and Devin Mesoraco following with an inning ending double play. Essentially, they did the polar opposite of what they did on Friday night.
Really, this one run gave the Mets bullpen little margin of error. Until the sixth, they were pitching quite well. Robert Gsellman threw three scoreless before the Mets turned to Paul Sewald, who pitched a scoreless fifth. Sewald, who has mostly struggled in May, wouldn’t have it in the sixth.
Santana began the inning with a double, and Scott Kingery walked. Between the rally and this being a bullpen game, Callaway had AJ Ramos and Jerry Blevins warming in the bullpen. They were there when Sewald struck out Jorge Alfaro, and they were there when the left-handed pinch hitter Nick Williams hit a go-ahead three run homer off of Sewald.
Now, there are many ways you could choose to defend the decision. Sewald has been better than Blevins all season long against left-handed pitching. Callaway wanted to get length from as many people as he could muster. However, he had double barrel action going on so he would have Blevins ready for the big at-bat against a left-handed batter, and he didn’t use him.
While you can agree with the decision to go with Sewald, you cannot agree with the thought process of getting your LOOGY warmed up for a big spot and then refusing to use him in that big spot. If you are not using Blevins there, you’re not going to use him in the game.
From there, the Mets had another rally they didn’t fully cash in on. Nimmo drew his first or two walks for the game, and he scored on the ensuing Asdrubal Cabrera double. It was a one run game, and Cespedes strode up to the plate. There was no guessing right this time as Luis Garcia got him to pop out to end the inning.
From there, Jeurys Familia allowed a homer to Santana, and the Phillies didn’t use Hector Neris, so there would be no recreation of Friday’s magic.
Instead of building on the momentum from Friday’s Conforto homer, the Mets once again failed to muster enough offense, and maybe even energy to pull this one out. We were also left wondering about Callaway’s thought process with his failing to use Blevins. All-in-all, a disheartening loss.
Game Notes: Luis Guillorme collected his first MLB hit with a bloop pinch-hit single to center in the second inning. Dominic Smith struck out in his only plate appearance, and he will be sent down to Triple-A with Jay Bruce‘s paternity leave ending. Buddy Baumann was sent down to the minors to make room for deGrom. His Mets experience amounted to little more than his getting a pending one game suspension out of the way.
This was panning out to be another one of those horrible Mets losses we have seen recently. The Mets were not scoring runs at all even though they were in a hitter’s park. And yes, there was even the really embarrassing and inexcusable moment.
After a Devin Mesoraco double play grounder erased a Michael Conforto seventh inning leadoff single, Jose Reyes got his first pinch of the season in 11 attempts. Understandably, with Reyes’ speed, the Mets reeling, and the team down 1-0, Mickey Callaway went for it.
Instead of going with Amed Rosario, Callaway went with Dominic Smith, who was up due to Jay Bruce going on paternity leave, to get that big hit. Smith wouldn’t get that hit because Jake Arrieta picked Reyes off first base. And with that, all hope seemed lost yet again.
Hector Neris came on to get what should have been an easy save, and it certainly seemed as if that was going to be the case when Adrian Gonzalez popped out to start the inning.
Then Wilmer Flores battled back not just from 0-2, but looking over-matched on the first two pitched of the at-bat to rip a single into left. The Mets at least had life, and for a split second, it looked like Conforto was going to give the Mets the lead, but he pulled it foul. Two pitches later, and Conforto wouldn’t pull it foul.
Conforto HOME RUN puts the Mets ahead 2-1!! pic.twitter.com/GaOTKkqImn
— SportsNet New York (@SNYtv) May 12, 2018
Mesoraco followed with a homer on the very next pitch. Suddenly, the Mets 1-0 lead, and the team falling to .500 turned into a 3-1 lead. That became a 3-1 victory after a Jeurys Familia 1-2-3 ninth.
Suddenly, the stories weren’t how Steven Matz walked four while somehow managing to allow just one run over five. It wasn’t about how a combination of Seth Lugo, Paul Sewald, and AJ Ramos had to pick up the slack to keep it close for an offense, which did nothing.
No, the story is now how the Mets had perhaps their best victory of the year, and how they may have turned things around with Noah Syndergaard taking the mound tomorrow.
Game Notes: Mesoraco’s teams are now 1-20 in games he has played this season. In Los Angeles, Matt Harvey made his Reds debut pitching four scoreless while allowing just one hit while striking out two.