Travis d’Arnaud
With Travis d’Arnaud missing time with a shoulder injury and struggling at the plate all season, the Mets were all but forced to inquire about Jonathan Lucroy.
The Mets interest in Lucroy was understandable as the team needed another bat in the lineup with Lucas Duda and David Wright being gone for the season, Yoenis Cespedes being hobbled with a quad injury, and Curtis Granderson, Michael Conforto, and yes, d’Arnaud having down seasons. The Mets needed another bat, and Lucroy seemed to be the answer with him hitting .299/.359/.482 with 17 doubles, three triples, 13 homers, and 50 RBI. That was the type of production the Mets were hoping to add at the trade deadline.
For whatever reason, the Mets were not able to swing a trade for Lucroy at the trade deadline. However, they were able to get Lucroy’s production.
Since the trade deadline passed, d’Arnaud is hitting .311/.354/.444 with two homers and three RBI. It is exactly what the Mets were hoping to get from him after a season in which d’Arnaud hit .268/.340/.485 with 14 doubles, one triple, 12 homers, and 41 RBI in 67 games last year. It seems that d’Arnaud has turned his season around.
It could be that his shoulder is feeling better. It could be a mechanical adjustment he has made at the plate. It could also be that he is able to just relax and go out there and hit now that the trade deadline has passed. Whatever the case may be, the important thing from the Mets perspective is they seem to have d’Arnaud back.
Editor’s Note: this was also published on Mets Merized Online
For the first time in quite a while, I was legitimately excited to watch a Mets game as we were guaranteed a great pitching matchup with Jacob deGrom and Madison Bumgarner. Admittedly, when I saw a lineup with Ty Kelly and Justin Ruggiano, I was less excited. Still, whenever deGrom takes the mound, the Mets have a legitimate chance to win.
I didn’t even make it to the fourth inning. I missed Ruggiano giving the Mets false hope with the grand slam. I missed deGrom and Bumgarner failing to hold up their ends of the bargain in the pitching duel. I missed the Mets show some fight in the sixth by them trying to crawl their way back into the game with a Kelly triple scoring Ruggiano and Travis d’Arnaud to make it 8-7.
I did manage to wake up in the eighth inning. I tried to keep my eyes open for as long as I could. As I watched Addison Reed give up a two run RBI double to Buster Posey, I asked myself why I was bothering. If the Giants are lighting up Reed, there really is no chance for a comeback. With that, I went back to sleep. While I missed the ninth, I was pretty certain the Mets were going to lose by a score of at least 10-7. As it turns out, that was the final score.
The Mets are back to a game under .500, and they fell to 4.5 games behind the idle Cardinals. The hope is that Yoenis Cespedes and Asdrubal Cabrera coming back will help spark this team, but I’m not holding my breath, especially now with the Mets having to skip Steven Matz in the rotation with bone spurs – no wait, they have to skip him now due to bone spurs and a shoulder injury.
Sooner or later this bad dream has to end, right?
Somewhere, someone is giving Terry Collins and his rant yesterday credit for helping inject this lifeless Mets team with some fight. Those people are mistaken.
The game started ugly. Logan Verrett immediately loaded the bases by allowing a hit and issuing two walks. Then Dan Warthen made a mound visit and for some reason or other told Verrett to throw the grand slam pitch to Ryan Schimpf. Verrett obliged. Then for good measure he gave up a homer to Jabari Blash.
Before there was an out in the game the Mets were down 5-0.
Travis d’Arnaud tried to start the comeback by hitting a two run homer in the bottom of the second. Overall, d’Arnaud had a great night going 3-4 with two runs, two RBI, abd a homer. and throwing out a baserunner. Still, pointing out d’Arnaud had a great night is like saying the Hindenburg was a nice looking Zepplin.
Verrett made sure d’Arnaud’s effort went to waste immediately surrendering three runs in the third off another Schimpf homer and a Christian Bethancourt solo shot. 8-2 Padres.
Why Collins allowed Verrett to continue pitching is stupefying. The Mets demoted Michael Conforto to recall the long man Seth Lugo. The explanation was yesterday’s hero, Jon Niese, had a bum knee. However, you can’t discount the Mets punishing Conforto for having the audacity to have a tough year with an injured wrist and a manager giving him inconsistent playing time.
In any event, Collins allowed Verrett to effectively put the game out if reach before turning to Lugo. Verrett’s final line was 2.2 innings, six hits, eight runs, eight earned, three walks, and four strikeouts.
The Mets mustered a rally in the sixth. A Matt Reynolds RBI double, Ty Kelly RBI single, and a Wilmer Flores RBI groundout pulled the Mets to 8-6. Before the Flores groundout, Curtis Granderson had a chance to tie the game with a homer and struck out. With two outs, Neil Walker was in the same situation, and he geounded out to end the inning and the rally.
It’s the last time the Mets mounted much of an fight. It also marked the end of the days of the Mets being .500 or better.
Do you wish Terry Collins will become a better manager?
Do you wish Jay Bruce will start hitting like he was hitting for the Reds this year?
Do you wish Asdrubal Cabrera, Yoenis Cespedes, Jim Henderson, Juan Lagares, Jose Reyes, Justin Ruggiano and/or Zack Wheeler can get off the disabled list soon?
Do you wish Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz will return to their pre-bone spur form?
Do you wish Curtis Granderson can return to his 2015 form?
Do you wish Michael Conforto and Travis d’Arnaud will stop regressing and start fulfilling their promise?
Do you wish Neil Walker can stay this hot for the rest of the season?
Well for all those that wish for all that and much more like a postseason berth, Grandpa Gustafson has a message for you:
It was more of the same for a Mets team that hasn’t won back-to-back games in more than a month.
Steven Matz couldn’t hold up the razor thin 1-0 lead the woeful Mets offense gave him. Worse yet, despite his balky elbow, Terry Collins pushed him to a career high 120 pitches over six grueling innings. For what it’s worth, Matz tied his career high with nine strikeouts. Matz departed in the short side after allowing two solo homers.
This wasn’t Collins only curious decision. In the fifth, Collins ordered a hit-and-run with Matt Reynolds at first and Matz at the plate. Of course it didn’t work. Reynolds was caught stealing, and then Matz would strike out later in the at bat.
Also, none of the Mets pitchers could hold on a runner leaving Travis d’Arnaud looking bad back there – not that his throws were that good anyway. On the night, the Diamondbacks were five for five stealing bases.
Still, heading into the seventh, the Mets had a 3-2 lead because Neil Walker continued his insanely hot hitting. He hit his 20th home run of the year scoring Curtis Granderson, who has led off the inning with the doubles.
Walker’s 20 homers out him in company with Jeff Kent and Edgardo Alfonzo:
Neil Walker: 3rd different @Mets player, whose primary position was 2B, with a 20-HR season
Jeff Kent & Edgardo Alfonzo (twice each)
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 10, 2016
Then the unexpected happened. The bullpen faltered – Hansel Robles specifically. Runners were on second and third, after a double steal of course, and there were two outs after Robles struck out Jean Segura. Robles then allowed Michael Bourn to hit a bases clearing triple. Collins would eventually remove Robles, but not before he allowed Paul Goldschmidt to hit an RBI single to give the Diamondbacks a 5-3 lead.
Josh Edgin came on and got the Mets out if the jam, but it was too little too late.
The Mets would not threaten over the final three innings as they found another way to fail to win back-to-back games. Why would they score off an absolutely atrocious Diamondbacks bullpen:
https://twitter.com/brianpmangan/status/762864074182922240
Of course, Collins pinch hit Ty Kelly for d’Arnaud with two outs in the ninth as Collins is really trying to convince Sandy he should be fired.
The Mets next chance to win back-to-back games will be Thursday, August 11th. The way things have been going, don’t hold your breath.
Game Notes: It was Zack Greinke‘s first start since coming off the DL, and fist start against the Mets since The Murphy Game. James Loney had an RBI ground out in the first scoring Walker. Walker is going all he can going 3-4 with two runs, two RBI, and a homer. This was Edgin’s second appearance since getting called-up.
Pennant Race: Nationals lost 3-2 to the Indians. Marlins lead the Giants 2-0 through eight. The Cardinals and Reds are tied at three through five.