Yesterday, we compared this current, injury-ravaged version of the Mets to the movie Major League because it includes a rag-tag group of has-beens, never-will-be's and lovable castoffs who are playing with a ton of heart.
Within that band of misfits, there's been one especially endearing sub-culture that's carried the team lately, in the most unexpected and unsung way:
Call them The Mult-vitamins.
They're the (mostly bearded or long-haired) long relievers for the Mets who tend to go 2-3 innings per game, shutting down opposing lineups with seemingly-automatic efficiency, and somehow making up for the fact that the Mets have maybe 2-3 healthy starting pitchers at a time.
Why are they Multi-vitamins? Because they go multiple innings and pump the team with nutrients and energy. (Work with us, here.)
Any discussion of this gang must start with Sean Reid-Foley, a tattooed, mustachioed, squatting biker-lookalike who came over in the Steven Matz deal with little fanfare. Now he's kept the team in several games, with two scoreless three-inning stretches, pitching to a microscopic 0.96 ERA and 0.54 WHIP.
He's joined by Tommy Hunter, maybe the most fun of all. Hunter failed to make the roster out of spring training and only returned to the club when no one else wanted him and the Mets needed fresh arms. Now? He can’t stop gushing about his first major league hit, and regularly puts up zeros, easily going two frames per outing. Hunter hasn’t allowed a run in four appearances, striking out six batters along the way. Of the balls hitters have managed to put in play, only 18.2% have been hard hit.
Drew Smith is the latest member of the group, a hard-throwing righty and only remnant of the young arms the Mets brought over in trades when they sold at the deadline in 2017 (coming over from Boston for Lucas Duda). Smith has always shown promise while healthy, and after finally emerging from the IL in recent weeks, has been a solid opener and middle guy. It’s only three outings, but Smith has struck out 1/3 of the batters he has faced, and escaped a key jam on Wednesday. Plus he’s got long hair.
Speaking of which, there's also Robert Gsellman, almost left for dead by Mets fans this offseason, after a few consecutive years of mediocrity. But he's found his way this season, and has been reliable so far in the multi-vitamin role. He has provided more volume than his fellow long relievers, making ten appearances already, and has allowed only five runs—the product of keeping the ball in the ballpark better than he has in any season since 2016.
Being a middle reliever has never been considered sexy. But this hirsute group has kept this team in first place at a time when it could have fallen way into oblivion. With injuries to Noah Syndergaard, Carlos Carrasco, and Seth Lugo before the season, there was already little margin for error with the team's pitching depth. Add to that medical problems for Jacob deGrom and Taijuan Walker, and Joey Lucchesi's struggles, and the Mets basically needed a miracle.
By consistently shutting down opposing lineups during “bullpen games” and early exits for starters, that’s pretty much what the Multi-vitamins have delivered.