Paging Donnie Stevenson (or a raccoon)
Making sense of a rough weekend in Tampa
Good Morning,
The Mets’ trip to Tampa was unpleasant on several fronts: they lost all three games in their series against the Rays — and received concerning health news regarding Jeff McNeil, Michael Conforto, and Brandon Nimmo, in addition to the rash of already-existing medical issues they’re dealing with.
We’ll discuss all that, and preview the upcoming series in Atlanta. But first, let’s recap yesterday’s action and get you caught up on the news.
⚾️ IN SHORT: Marcus Stroman had an uncharacteristically shaky outing, surrendering three long-balls, and McNeil and Conforto both left the game after trying to run out ground balls in the first. The 7-1 loss obscured the lone bright spot of the day: the legendary Patrick Mazeika got his first Major League hit, a majestic home-run to right-field off Diego Castillo. [Box Score]
🔑 KEY MOMENT: In a game where the Mets mustered just two hits, while also allowing seven runs, it’s hard to pinpoint one pivotal moment — but the game turned very ominous when Conforto pulled up limp after grounding into a double-play in the first, with cameras catching him angrily throwing his helmet in the dugout, as he walked off into the tunnel. Conforto would be replaced in right-field by new call-up Jake Hager, who had never played the position in his professional career.
3 TAKEAWAYS
❶ SCARED HITLESS: The Mets once again made opposing pitchers look like Cy Young candidates, this time appearing baffled against the Rays’ Josh Fleming, who looked sharp in his ninth Major League start. They would muster just one hit (the Mazeika home-run) over four innings against the Tampa Bay bullpen, failing to connect against relievers like Ryan Thompson and old friend Collin McHugh.
❷ EVERYBODY HURTS: How bad is the Mets’ injury situation? Due to medical issues with Nimmo, Conforto, McNeil (who plays outfield when needed), and JD Davis (who kind-of plays in a pinch), the Mets were forced to put Hager, an infielder playing his second big-league game, in right-field to replace Conforto. Meanwhile, the immortal Mazeika became the DH when McNeil went down.
❸ “JUST DIDN’T HAVE IT”: While Stroman was able to give the team decent length, going six innings without his best stuff, he fell victim to the long ball yesterday, with three of the six hits he allowed leaving the yard. Perpetuating the legend that he cannot perform in non-save situations, Edwin Diaz surrendered two runs in a mostly meaningless eighth inning appearance.
🎭 MUST-SEE TV: Patrick Mazeika became the first Met to hit a home run for his first career hit since pitcher Jeremy Hefner in 2012, and the first position player to do it since Jordany Valdespin, also in 2012.
⏭ NEXT UP: The Mets flew to Atlanta to take on their NL East rivals, who currently sit at 19-21, good enough for third-place in a division no one seems to want to win. They are currently without all-world outfielder Ronald Acuña, Jr., but just took two of three from the Brewers at home, after getting swept in three games in Toronto earlier in the week. Yesterday, they suffered a heart-breaking 10-9 loss, after a late-inning nine-run rally fell just short. This series will be a three-game set.
MATCHUP: The Mets will send the so-far steady RHP Taijuan Walker (3-1, 2.20 ERA) to the mound against former Braves ace LHP Max Fried (1-1, 6.55 ERA). Fried has battled injuries this season, but looked strong in his last two outings after problems with command in the early going. Walker ranks seventh in baseball in opponents’ batting average (.170) and 11th in ERA (2.20).
It might be more appropriate to name this section “injury notes.” Let’s get you caught up on the latest from the medical ward…
🦵 HAMSTRUNG: Both Jeff McNeil and Michael Conforto traveled with the Mets to Atlanta last night and will have MRIs on Monday to reveal the seriousness of their hamstring injuries. It appears Conforto’s injury is more serious than McNeil’s.
TIGHTNESS: After the game McNeil characterized his injury as “nothing too major,” and said it was related to the “body cramps” that previously kept him out of the lineup. “It’s just kind of some tightness, I didn’t really feel a pull,” McNeil said of Sunday’s injury.
👆 STILL HURTING: Meanwhile, Brandon Nimmo is still experiencing pain in his bruised finger and was forced to skip his rehab starts with Triple-A Syracuse this weekend. The Mets decided to bring him back with the team while they continue treatment and monitor his progress.
🤞 FINGERS CROSSED: Jacob deGrom (side tightness) will probably throw a bullpen session on Tuesday to determine his next course of action. Depending on how things go, the Mets might have deGrom pitch a rehab game in the minor leagues before returning to the rotation. However, he also could find himself back with the team and ready to pitch on Friday.
TUESDAY: The Mets still haven’t revealed who will pitch in deGrom’s place on Tuesday against Atlanta. Manager Luis Rojas mentioned right-hander Jordan Yamamoto and left-hander Thomas Szapucki as potential options. However, Yamamoto just pitched for Syracuse, so he would be starting on three days rest. Rojas also kept the door open for another bullpen game (we hear your collective groans in thinking about Joey Lucchesi back on the mound).
⏎ REHAB PLAN: J.D. Davis (bruised left hand) will begin a rehab assignment with Syracuse on Tuesday. If things go well, he could be on his way back. Seth Lugo (loose body in his right elbow) is also slated to start a rehab assignment with Syracuse this week. And it sounds like Noah Syndergaard will find his way to Syracuse in the not-so-distant future (his bullpen sessions have been in the five-inning range).
⏳ STILL WAITING: Carlos Carrasco (elbow soreness/hamstring) remains “week-to-week” after being transferred to the 60-Day IL. And Luis Guillorme (strained right oblique) still isn’t swinging a bat.
☎️ CALL-UPS: Over the weekend, RHP Trevor Hildenberger was designated for assignment, and the aforementioned infielder Jake Hager (a first-round draft pick of the Rays in 2011) was promoted to make his big-league debut (and unexpectedly try his hand at RF).
Syracuse’s Johneshwy Fargas has been rumored as a potential candidate to be promoted to provide some outfield help in case Conforto goes on the IL. He is not on the 40-man roster, so a spot would need to be filled. The recently demoted Khalil Lee is another possibility. Here’s a taste of Fargas’s play in the field:
In other news…
😄 ON THE BRIGHT SIDE: The 18-16 Mets somehow remain in sole possession of first-place after the second-place Phillies (21-20) lost their second straight.
🥉 GET TO THREE: The Amazins are 17-5 in games in which they score at least three runs, but 1-11 in games they do not.
🔝PERFORMANCE: Mets prospect Ronny Mauricio had himself a day on Sunday. He went 3-for-5 at the plate, including a game-tying, three-run home run in the top of the ninth for Brooklyn. Mauricio has hit safely in all nine games he has played this season, resulting in an impressive .341 average with 4 home runs and a .732 slugging percentage.
From the weekend…
❶❺ SATURDAY: Drew Smith started the bullpen game, and looked sharp, allowing one unearned run over two innings — as the Mets jumped to a 4-1 lead on homers from Jose Peraza and Pete Alonso. But it was short-lived, as Joey Lucchesi and Sean Reid-Foley combined to surrender five runs in the 4th, and Jacob Barnes and Jeurys Familia coughed up a collective six in the 8th, for a 16-5 Tampa win.
❶❹ FRIDAY: The Mets wasted a gem from David Peterson, who held his own against Rays ace Tyler Glasnow, before running into trouble in the 8th. Aaron Loup gave up the game-winning hit with two outs in the 9th for a heart-breaking 3-2 loss.
A see-saw ride for Mets fans
🧓 by Jeffrey Bellone
If someone told you back in February the Mets would have ten players on the injured list by mid-May, Francisco Lindor would start the season in a horrific slump that would see him go hitless for 26 at-bats, James McCann would revert to his soft-hitting self, and the entire lineup would turn into Rey-Ordoñez-level hitters for weeks at a time with runners in scoring position, you would have probably guessed the team would find themselves in last place.
And yet, after losing two more starters to injury and being swept by the Rays over the weekend, the Mets are somehow in first place.
A big part of that is the mediocrity of the National League East — only the Marlins (of all teams) have a positive run differential — but it’s also a testament to New York’s strengths: pitching and depth.
This week they will test both of those strengths as they take on the Atlanta Braves (who have had their own share of unfortunate injuries). Depending on MRI results and the progression of a few players, the Amazins could field a lineup of players better suited for Syracuse than the big leagues. We still don’t know who will take the mound as the starter on Tuesday.
It feels as if the Mets are living on a seesaw that could either lift them toward running away with the division or drop them to the bottom of the standings.
While they have suffered plenty of injuries, most of them have been minor. By later this week, McNeil, Nimmo, Davis, and deGrom could all be back in the lineup, with reinforcements on the way. We have been dreaming of what this rotation will look like fully healthy. And even if 2021 turns into a down season for several of their everyday players at the plate, a player like Lindor isn’t going to hit .190 all season long.
With everyone healthy and regressing to the mean with their performance, this is a really good Mets team.
But would we be surprised if it turned the other way? Are all of these players really close to returning, or will we find out (in typical Mets fashion) that some have experienced a setback or a “slower recovery?” And who might get hurt next? Given his full history, we wouldn’t be totally surprised if McCann only nominally improved upon his early season slump. And no matter how good the bullpen has been, you never know when it will suddenly falter. The difference between the Mets staying above water versus drowning has been the swimming ability of their starters and the life preserver provided by the bullpen.
Following a baseball team throughout the season is a lot like tracking the stock market: sometimes it’s up, sometimes it’s down, and there are often market corrections that swing it back like a pendulum. Only time will tell where it will ultimately land. The Mets won seven in a row, and immediately lost three in a row. They are still in first place, despite a rash of injuries. It’s easy to panic when things aren’t going well (or grow overly confident during a win streak), which is why it’s important to step back and view the season as the marathon it is. The Mets have a lot of talent and depth, which means it may be a good time to buy stock, if others are looking to sell.
⚾️ Angels Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani are apparently good at hitting baseballs. Trout broke an 0-for-18 skid with a 2-out single in the top of the 9th, to keep the Angels alive against the Red Sox. Ohtani hit the next pitch just inside Pesky’s Pole to put the Angels up 6-5 for good.
⚾️ Reigning AL MVP Jose Abreu gave the White Sox a unique walk-off win against the Royals, scoring the winning run on a wild pitch that bounced just a few feet from home plate. Video appeared to show Royals catcher Cam Gallagher make a diving tag of Abreu, but the call was not overturned and the White Sox won 4-3.
⚾️ With a quarter of the season in the books, the Giants (surprisingly) have the best record in the National League (24-16) — ahead of both the Dodgers and Padres.
🔗 The Mets got swept, the Mets are injured, the Mets are actually fine, by Andy Martino, SNY: “Here’s a few reminders of the larger context: This isn’t happening in a vacuum. … The Mets’ pro scouting department did an excellent job adding depth players this offseason while the GM position was in flux. … The Mets’ bullpen is good. … The team has a good manager, who might be developing into a great one. … The Mets won seven games in a row before this weekend. … The Mets are good. Stop worrying. And don’t make too many plans for October.”
🔗 Each team's most pleasant surprise, METS: Taijuan Walker, by MLB.com: “Walker has proven to be a stable option in the rotation. His 0.7 WAR is fourth on the team behind only Jacob deGrom, Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo. After deGrom, Walker is the second-best pitcher on the Mets. He's tied for the team lead in wins and opponents are hitting just .170 against him.”
🔗 Mets unrecognizable amid troubling ‘casualties’, by Joel Sherman, NY Post: “Fittingly, the Mets were in Florida. Because by the third inning, they were offering a Grapefruit League road lineup, the kind that annoys an opponent that feels you didn’t bring the required number of starters.”
And…we leave you with these words of encouragement from some fan on Twitter:
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Thanks for "telling it like it is" - perfect summary