Losing to the 2018 Mets, for as inept as they may seem sometimes, is really not a big deal. Baseball is weird, and bad teams beat good teams all the time. But if you lose to the 2018 Mets by a score of 16-5, well then it means your team is just bad. And, well, the Orioles aren’t on a pace to lose 114 games because they’re a little unlucky. They’re just really bad.
Last night’s game started out innocently enough. Zack Wheeler looked as bad as he has in a while, struggling to make it through the first two innings while working through tons of traffic on the bases and needing over 50 pitches just to get through the first six outs. He struggled to put guys away and didn’t have much command of his secondaries; ultimately looking a lot like the Zack Wheeler of last season. But because the Orioles are bad, he was able to make it through those two innings with only one run given up.
Wheeler settled down in the third, though, and was able to get through five innings having only allowed the one run. Luckily for him, the Mets were able to build him a 5-1 lead by that point. The team had scored two in the first inning on a Wilmer Flores sac fly and a Todd Frazier single, two more in the fourth on an RBI single by Jose Bautista and a double by Brandon Nimmo, and Frazier added a solo shot in the fifth.
But they were just getting started. The Mets came to bat in the top of the sixth inning. Here’s how that inning went:
Out
Hit by pitch
Double
Triple
Walk
Out
Walk
Double
Walk
Grand Slam
Out.
Nine runs later, the Mets led 14-1. They wound up scoring 16 runs on the night, when Flores cranked a two-run homer in the ninth.
The Orioles are quite bad.
The grand slam was, of course, hit by Kevin Plawecki. He was also the player hit by the pitch earlier in the frame, meaning he was the only Met who actually reached base twice that inning. Now, the entire offensive showing here is far too extensive to give any more of a blow-by-blow, so perhaps we should just highlight these offensive standouts for the night:
Brandon Nimmo: 5-for-5, 3 runs scored, 2 doubles, 3 RBI - He was a home run short of the cycle. After the game, he said he was honored to even have the chance to complete the cycle, because of course he did.
Wilmer Flores: 2-for-5, 1 run scored, HR, 3 RBI, – Wilmer continues to be a steady offensive contributer with consistent playing time. Who the heck would have thunk it?
Todd Frazier: 3-for-6, 2 runs scored, double, HR, 4 RBI – Yeah that’s a nice line and all, but why exactly was he DHing?
Jose Reyes: 2-for-5, 2 runs scored, triple, double – Hey cool sure whatever.
The Orioles are really not a good team.
OTHER NEWS OF THE DAY
David Wright went 0-for-3 with a walk and played seven innings at third base, while Jay Bruce went 2-for-4 in their rehab assignments with Port St. Lucie.
WHAT’S NEXT
The Mets go to the City of Brotherly Love to do battle with the Phillies in what will be a five-game series this weekend, beginning with a straight doubleheader today. Corey Oswalt will get the ball in game one at 4:05, while Steven Matz will toe the rubber in Game 2. The Phillies have not announced their starters for the doubleheader as of yet.
Photo credit: Evan Habeeb – USA Today Sports