12th Inning Filibuster
Morning Dose: Tuesday, May 19
☀️ Good Morning:
This doesn’t feel sustainable but the fact it’s irrational is what makes it unbelievably fun.
Welcome to the 2026 Mets Remix.
Where popped up bunts fall for hits, relievers escape impossible jams, youngsters deliver clutch hits and the rulebook is as mysterious to the umpires as this Mets team is to everyone who has followed them closely since Opening Day.
Can a position player pitch in any situation in the 12th?
Can the Mets dig themselves out of the abyss with half their roster still on the injured list?
🇺🇸 The Amazins staged a filibuster in the nation’s capital by scoring 10 runs (!) in the 12th inning, sending batter after batter to the plate, turning a contentious contest into a blowout. And maybe, just maybe delaying what seemed like an inevitable No Confidence vote on this 2026 season.
Sure, the Nationals helped them out, starting the inning with a tired pitcher who was throwing for the third straight day and placing an infielder on the mound, but the Mets capitalized, something they refused to do for most of the first seven weeks of the season.
Once upon a time, this very same Mets team scored 10 runs COMBINED over a seven-game stretch within a 12-game losing streak. Perhaps plating 10 runs in a single 12th inning is enough to reverse that ugly juju.
An incredible stat noted by The Athletic: After scoring 11 runs after the ninth inning Monday, the Mets have scored 21 runs, or 11 percent of their total on the season in extra innings.
⚾️ EXPECTATIONS: Longtime readers of this newsletter have heard me say this before: the experience of a fan is completely dictated by expectations. When you expect your team to be good and they badly underperform, as Carlos Mendoza’s group did to start the year, there is nothing worse; conversely, when you lose hope and stop believing, and your team surprises you and plays well, there are few things more exhilarating. We find ourselves in the latter scenario right now.
The Mets are fun again!
Brandon Nimmo and Pete Alonso and Luis Robert and Jorge Polanco all died for David Stearns’ sins. Only under incredibly unique circumstances — reshaping the roster with injury-prone players, falling to baseball’s cellar, and losing said players (and more) to the injured list — have we found a group worth staying up late to watch (when Craig Kimbrel recorded the final out last night, it was technically morning where I am writing in Switzerland).
A resurrection is happening. Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing bringing newfound energy, Brett Baty showing why he might still be part of the long-term solution, and Juan Soto being Juan Soto.
🤔 IMAGINE THAT: As a loyal Mets Fixer pointed out in the chat, the Mets wake up this morning 21-26, or the exact same record they were around this date in 2024.
We all know what happened that year. Ya Gotta Believe!
🗓️ UP NEXT: Nolan McLean (2–2, 2.92) will try to extend the winning streak against southpaw Foster Griffin (4–2, 3.53), who was tagged for nine earned runs in his last outing against the Reds.
📰 ABOVE THE FOLD
WHAT A RELIEF
There are so many places I could start, some perhaps more obvious than this topic, but the work of the Mets’ bullpen deserves lead recognition.
When you look at the Snapshot Graphic on MetsFix.com, you find a lot of red with a speck of green towards the bottom. That’s the bullpen’s ERA, which ranks ninth in baseball and has been dominant over the past two weeks.
