As the Mets continue to struggle this season—they sport a 16-26 record over their last 42 games — it has become even more evident how little production the team has gotten out of their most expensive assets.

And the numbers are stark…

AJ Ramos: $9.32M, 6.41 ERA, 0.0 WARP

Initially viewed at as a savvy midseason addition last year by yours truly, AJ Ramos has turned out to be nothing but in New York. After starting off the year with nine scoreless appearances, everything has gone wrong for the 31-year-old right-hander. Since April 16th, Ramos has allowed 14 earned runs, 16 hits, nine walks, three home runs and an opponent’s slashline of .302/.397/.528 in 13.1 innings pitched. That’s a 9.45 ERA, for those wondering. Now Ramos finds himself as one of 11 Mets players currently on the disabled list, his stint due to tendinitis in his pitching shoulder. Ramos is the fourth-highest paid member of the Mets this season.

Anthony Swarzak: $5.5M, 3.86 ERA, 0.1 WARP

The Mets’ biggest bullpen investment of the offseason came on a two-year contract with Anthony Swarzak. After a breakout season split between the White Sox and Brewers where he posted a 2.33 ERA in 70 appearances, Swarzak appeared as if he’d be slotted into the set-up man role with the Mets. That hasn’t quite worked out. After just two appearances this season, Swarzak landed on the disabled list because of a sore left oblique and is just now beginning a rehab assignment. It’s been 62 days since he last appeared in a major league game.

Jay Bruce: $11M, .659 OPS, -0.1 WARP

After a very productive season with the Mets and Indians in 2017, Jay Bruce elected to make his return to Flushing with a three-year, $39M contract during the offseason. Coming off of a 36-home run season and three consecutive seasons with at least 26 dingers, it’s safe to assume that Sandy Alderson and company were expecting much of the same in the power department. Through 51 games, however, Bruce has batted a startling .230/.305/.354 with just three home runs, 11 doubles and 15 RBI. The month of May was even more unkind to the veteran Bruce, as the left-handed right fielder hit .211/.283/.300 with just one home run and three RBI in that time. Perhaps he’s still dealing with plantar fasciitis in his left foot, an injury that first reared its head in spring training, but as long as he’s still on the roster, he’ll be looked at to produce. And eventually something’s gotta give.

José Reyes: $2M, .406 OPS, -0.7 WARP

While he’s only the 15th-highest paid player on the team, José Reyes is still notable due to the fact that the Mets decided to give $2M in an offseason where players like Adam Lind, Melky Cabrera, José Bautista and Mark Reynolds had to settle for minor league contracts. And not to sound like the Twitter famous “Virus Guy,” but even in a limited role Reyes has been a detriment to this team. In 38 games, the now-34-year-old Reyes is hitting .145/.203/.203 with one home run, one double, three RBI, two stolen bases (one caught stealing), six runs scored and an OPS+ of 16 (league average is 100). In the field, things have not gone much better for Reyes, as he’s committed four errors along with -16 defensive runs saved. It’s the lowest salary of anyone who’s made this list, but it’s also the least production of any of the other mainstays on the Mets 2018 roster.

Jason Vargas: $6M, 8.53 ERA, -0.3 WARP

After compiling the second-worst team ERA in franchise history last season, the Mets’ only major league contract to a starting pitcher in the offseason went to the 35-year-old left-hander Jason Vargas. After missing the majority of April due to a broken right hand, Vargas has provided little comfort for what’s been an ailing rotation over the last season-and-a-half. In his first six starts of the year, Vargas has allowed 24 earned runs, 36 hits and 11 walks in 25.1 innings pitched. His longest start of the year has been five innings, a feat he’s only accomplished twice. One would think that Vargas simply has to pitch better solely due to the fact that his current 8.53 ERA is almost exactly double his career mark. Up until this point, however, that has not been the case. Vargas has been as bad as the numbers suggest, if not worse, and with Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz on the disabled list, his outings have become all-the-more important to this team.

Jerry Blevins: $7M, 5.84 ERA, -0.6 WARP

Once the Mets’ most trustworthy pitcher out of the bullpen, left-handed specialist Jerry Blevins has not lived up to his title to start the 2018 season. Prior to this year, left-handed batters had hit .216/.268/.309 against Blevins during his 12-year career. This season, though, has been a complete role reversal for Blevins, as lefties have hit a stunning .344/.400/.438 with an .838 OPS in 35 plate appearances against him. Since the start of this season, Blevins hasn’t seemed confident in his curveball and the stats show why, as left-handers have hit .308 vs. what was once a lethal pitch in his arsenal. “It’s not for lack of effort,” a frustrated Blevins recently said to reporters. “It’s really hard to contain it sometimes.” Blevins is currently the eighth-highest paid player on the Mets, and the second-highest paid relief pitcher.

Honorable mentions:

Players such as Yoenis Céspedes and Todd Frazier were productive enough to avoid the main list, but deserve to be mentioned as they’ve both been on the disabled list for most of May while earning a combined $37M this season. Travis d’Arnaud and Juan Lagares, both of whom suffered season-ending injuries, are making a combined $9.98M in 2018.

And before anyone says it, David Wright is not applicable for this category as insurance will cover the majority of his $20M salary this season.

Not including the honorable mentions, the Mets are paying a total of $40.8M this season to the group of Ramos, Swarzak, Bruce, Reyes, Vargas and Blevins… who have combined for a negative 1.6 WARP. And for a team that doesn’t spend much money as it is, that is flat out unacceptable.

The Mets have gotten production out of their more affordable players like Brandon Nimmo, Robert Gsellman and Jacob deGrom, but if they don’t start getting contributions from their highest-paid players — and soon — this team may be in a whole world of trouble.

 Photo credit: Aaron Doster – USA Today Sports

The people who really need to share their Brew.

WHAT HAPPENED, A BIG PITCHING PROBLEM:

After showing real signs of life, the Mets have now dropped five of their last seven — 8-15 if you extend the window to the month of May. From a pitching perspective, Saturday and Sunday were much different ballgames. Zack Wheeler did not pitch anywhere near as bad as Jason Vargas, surrendering one less run in twice the innings. Sure, he labored through those six innings, but he provided a solid start for considering what his role on the team is.
It’d be nice to have the fourth or fifth man in your rotation hold opponents to just a couple of runs, but that isn’t realistic to expect at this point. Following Saturday, and with a doubleheader looming on Monday, all the Mets needed Wheeler to do was work deep into the game. Of course the outcomes matter, but six innings of four-run ball should be enough to at least keep the Mets in the game. Considering how well this offense can perform, it should be more than enough. Alas, while Sunday might’ve differed from Saturday, one similar theme rang true: the Mets have a bullpen problem to address.
It feels like ages, but just last Tuesday a Derek Dietrich two-run home run ended a 14-inning scoreless streak the Mets bullpen amassed over four games. It might not have been some mammoth streak, but it was impressive. However, when you consider their victims — the Arizona Diamondbacks and (for one game) the Miami Marlins — it becomes much less impressive. They dominated the Arizona Diamondbacks, but who hasn’t? The Dbacks have spent May in a near freefall. As for the Marlins, well, they are what they are. That, of course, is still a team that took two of three from the Mets.
So here we sit, one week later, with the bullpen going in quite the opposite direction. The Mets left Milwaukee with three losses and a tote-bag for the bullpen full of a ton of runs. Make no mistake, the struggles of AJ Ramos and Jerry Blevins aren’t new concepts to the 2018 season. The problem is that their struggles become amplified when, say, you don’t trust Robert Gsellman to pitch to lefties. With Blevins being the go-to (and only) LOOGY on the roster, you are forced to use a struggling pitcher in one of the higher-leveraged spots in the game. And when Paul Sewald is seated at the ‘does not look quite as sharp’ table with Gsellman, the result is what you saw on Sunday.
It’s always easier to play the ‘what if’ game when you know the outcome, but it certainly would’ve been tempting for me to bring in Jeurys Familia to follow either Gsellman or Blevins. Maybe having Familia, who has not pitched since May 23, finish the seventh and work the eighth inning would have been enough to stave off the Brewers. Maybe Familia follows the route Paul Sewald took. Who knows.
Don’t get me wrong, the loss does not fall on Jerry Blevins’ shoulders. What it comes down to is that the Mets currently do not have the depth to sustain struggles by Gsellman or Sewald. Of course, that is less of an individual pitcher problem than it is one of roster creation and early-season injuries. Familia has pitched well, and Seth Lugo has been phenomenal, but that is about where the current good feelings end. Gsellman had looked great, but should he or Sewald stay in any prolonged funk, one has to wonder where the help comes from. Hansel Robles is close to returning from his DL-stint, but he has struggled to start the year. Anthony Swarzak’s return from the DL will be a huge boost and, considering his success against lefties, he could be a candidate to take some of the pressure off Blevins. That is essentially the extent of the in-house help you could get, as many of the down-the-road men on the 40-man haven’t looked great.
In a much less macabre tone, the Mets have a large bullpen issue looming. While I think Gsellman and Sewald will work out of their funk, it feels like the Mets are walking a very thin line (per usual). For a team ravaged by injuries last season, especially in the rotation, that is not the best signal you want to be sending out in late May. The risk that comes with a middling bullpen forcing Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard to work deeper into games, even on days when they don’t have their best stuff, is not insignificant. One way to help would be for Zack Wheeler to do what he did on Sunday, and for Steven Matz to consistently work into the sixth inning. Getting anything remotely serviceable out of Jason Vargas would be huge, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

WHAT HAPPENED, YESTERDAY:

The Mets had one of their larger weaknesses exposed, finishing a forgettable series against the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. The Mets also hit baseballs, and did so very well. A Brandon Nimmo-less lineup still produced seven runs, but this shouldn’t be that much of a surprise. With Todd Frazier and Yoenis Cespedes nearing rehab assignments, the Mets have even more help on the way. They could certainly use it.

WHAT HAPPENS, TODAY:

Well, today will certainly be interesting. Barring any rainout, the Mets will play two against the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves. They will begin the day 25-24, just four games back of the division lead. Jacob deGrom will take the ball in game one, while I will get the call to start game two. It is exciting to finally get the call, as I’ve struggled mightily at the D3-level to prepare for this moment.

Photo credit: Benny Sieu – USA Today Sports

The Mets had 12 hits and scored six runs, which felt like an explosion considering the team’s recent offensive performance. The six runs were the most they’ve scored in a game since last Tuesday, when the Amazins’ put up a 12 spot against the Blue Jays. Brandon Nimmo and Michael Conforto both hit solo home runs and Wilmer Flores chipped in with three hits. Conforto finally looks “right” at the plate and I’ll have an in depth look at what he’s doing differently later this week. Devin Mesoraco had two hits to continue his unexpected but welcomed strong start to his Mets career. Jay Bruce looked competitive at the dish and reached three times on the afternoon. Amed Rosario drew a walk in his only plate appearance! Jerry Blevins was called upon for some mop up duty and didn’t allow a run. Also, Jose Reyes reached base twice?

THE BAD

Adrian Gonzalez was 1-5 with a team-high seven men left on base. The Mets have better internal options (see Alonso, Peter) and it’s becoming increasingly difficult for the organization to justify Gonzalez’s roster spot. Reyes reached twice and still has a .200 on-base percentage, which should tell you all you need to know. He also grounded into the Mets’ only double play and even made an error out at short while Luis Guillorme sat and wondered what exactly he needs to do to play. Asdrubal Cabrera, the team’s best player so far this season, was slow to get up after a play at second and was pinch hit for but should be good to go on Sunday. The Mets would be in big trouble should Cabrera require a DL stint of any kind.

THE (REALLY) UGLY

After allowing five earned runs in just three innings of work Saturday, Jason Vargas’ ERA is up to an unfathomable 10.62 in his 20.1 innings this season. The Mets have given Vargas five starts now and plan to give him another, but he’s been absolutely dreadful thus far. Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman both represent much more competitive options, but they’re also two of the Mets best relievers and a move would decimate an already thin relief corps. That’s because AJ Ramos, supposedly one of the Mets’ best high-leverage options, has been awful this season as well. After walking in the winning run Friday, Ramos was lit up for three runs on three hits and one walk in only two-thirds of an inning. It was a low-leverage situation and Ramos still wasn’t effective and at this point, your guess is as good as mine as to where Ramos and the Mets go from here. Chris Flexen was also shelled for eight hits and three walks in only two innings of work. Although he was only charged for three earned runs, Flexen was terrible Saturday and now isn’t available for Monday’s doubleheader; he’s likely to be sent down for P.J Conlon or possibly Tim Peterson, as the Mets will need another pitcher for the aforementioned doubleheader with Atlanta. Look for Conlon rather than Peterson, as he’s already on the 40-man and wouldn’t require a corresponding roster move.

Photo credit: Benny Sieu – USA Today Sports

Fresh off their ho-hum win Thursday in the series opener with Milwaukee, the Amazins’ felt good about their chances to take two straight with Noah Syndergaard on the bump. The big right hander did not have his dominant stuff early in this one, however, and it was clear from the outset this one was going to be a grind for New York. After an uneventful first inning and a half, Travis Shaw opened the scoring with a deep home run to put Milwaukee up 1-0 in the 2nd, a frame Syndergaard was fortunate to escape only one run to the bad, as the Brewers added two more hits before being retired.  Amed Rosario swung the momentum back into the road dugout with a long homer to center to even the game in the top of the third, but that proved to be short lived.

In the bottom of the third inning, Lorenzo Cain, Christian Yelich and Shaw all singled, with Cain and Yelich both stealing bases in the frame, and when the dust settled the Brewers had taken a 3-1 lead into the middle innings. Michael Conforto hooked a solo homer down the right field line to cut the Milwaukee lead in half in the fourth, but from that point on, the pitchers on both sides really took over.

Syndergaard settled in as his outing moved along, as the only runner he allowed in his final three innings came courtesy of a Wilmer Flores error. The problem for the Mets though was that Brewers starter Junior Guerra was throwing just as well. Both starters left after six, at which time both clubs summoned their primary bullpen weapons, Josh Hader and Seth Lugo respectively, and both turned in two hitless innings to carry the game into the ninth with Milwaukee clinging to the 3-2 lead.

The Brewers handed the ball to closer Corey Knebel to attempt to finish the game, and after he easily retired Flores and Jay Bruce it appeared he’d do just that. The Mets did not quit though, as after Knebel walked both Conforto and Devin Mesoraco, the newest Met, Jose Bautista, ripped a base hit through the left side of the infield to stun the crowd and get New York back tied. A Luis Guillorme pinch-hit walk then loaded the bases for Rosario and ended Knebel’s night, but Jeremy Jeffress was able to come in and strand all three, getting Rosario to bounce into a 6-4 fielder’s choice.

Mickey Callaway replaced Lugo with his other dominant bullpen pitcher, Robert Gsellman in the ninth, and the converted starter impressively worked around a lead-off double by Shaw to assure the fans of  bonus baseball. After the Mets went quietly in the 10th, it appeared Gsellman would be able to get the game to the 11th. The righty retired two of the first three batters he faced in the 10th, but with Yelich coming up, Callaway went to southpaw Jerry Blevins with two outs and a runner on first. The veteran was unable to get his man though, as Yelich roped a solid hit into right field to give the Brew Crew runners on the corners. Callaway then went to A. J. Ramos in search of one out to keep the game going, but the veteran was just unable to do it. Ramos fired nine pitches Friday. Eight of them out of the strike zone as he walked both pinch-hitter Hernan Perez and Shaw to disappointingly end the game with a walk-off walk.

New York will try to wipe this game and start fresh today, as Jason Vargas will attempt to back up his first good start as a Met with another strong outing  opposite righty Chase Anderson.

Photo credit: Benny Sieu – USA Today Sports

After a month of futility, the Mets found themselves in another good patch, having won four straight games and facing the lowly Marlins again on Tuesday night. Even better, the Marlin killer Zack Wheeler (3-1, 2.85 ERA career against Miami) was on the mound, though he’s much less effective at home (8-18 5.31 ERA at home). Still, an anemic Marlin lineup offered a good chance for Wheeler to get back on track.

Wheeler wasn’t the biggest story of the night, but we’ll get to that later. For now, the Mets set to work taking down Caleb Smith and the Marlins to push their winning streak to five games.

Game Recap

Good-against-the-Marlins Wheeler beat out bad-at-home Wheeler, and he put together a very solid start. His only real trouble came in the second, where he gave up an earned run on a couple hard hits and a seeing-eye ground ball up the middle. Jose Reyes then made a terrible error, hesitating when he had an easy play at second on a bunt, then throwing low to first to load the bases. Another ground ball single lead to two more runs, these unearned, and put the Mets in a 3-0 hole.

Wheeler prevented further damage, preventing Reyes’ error from turning into a true disaster. He worked around another throwing error from Reyes in the fifth, keeping the Marlins off the board despite being burdened with runners at the corners. He finished his outing after six innings, striking out nine and walking none while giving up just the one earned run on nine hits. The Mets offense couldn’t do much to back Wheeler unfortunately. Jose Bautista, making his Mets debut, score the only run in the second after doubling and coming home on a sacrifice fly from Tomas Nido.

Robert Gsellman and AJ Ramos got in the game after Wheeler, and both looked tired. Gsellman escaped the seventh unscathed, but Ramos served up a two-run bomb to Derek Dietrich that put the Mets in a four-run hole. That home run was ultimately a moot point, as the Mets didn’t score again. Asdrubal Cabrera grounding into a double play in the eighth inning with runners on the corners and one out was the dagger, squandering their last best chance before three batters were retired in six pitches by Brad Zeigler in the ninth.

With the loss, the four game winning streak is snapped and the Mets’ record drops to 24-20. Some credit certainly goes to Marlins’ starter Caleb Smith, who had good command and went after hitters. The offense for the Mets is a concern, however, particularly against lefties with Brandon Nimmo and Michael Conforto playing such critical roles. This tweet from Rich MacLeod sums things up nicely:

The Marlins have the worst team ERA in the National League. The #Mets have scored 3 runs against them in 2 games.

— Rich MacLeod (@richmacleod) May 23, 2018

Thoughts from the Game

Mickey Callaway’s bullpen usage early in the season was a strong part of his game, as he rotated through everyone in his bullpen and didn’t lean too heavily on any particular arms. Over the last month, however, he’s slipped into a Terry-ism, utilizing the same relievers again and again while leaving some guys in the back end of the bullpen unused. Jacob Rhame, Chris Flexen and Corey Oswalt have seen much less action than the core pitchers, and that’s starting to hurt – Gsellman and Ramos have both been used heavily of late, and both looked gassed last night. The Mets are currently in the front third of a brutal stretch of 18 games in 17 days, and Callaway will have to go back to using all the tools at his disposal if the bullpen is to survive.

Reyes continues to be a disaster for this team. He had two errors Tuesday, and a 1-for-3 performance with a walk raised his season line to a whopping .145/.203/.200 with miserable defense. I really want to know what sort of kompromat Reyes has on the front office, because at this point there’s little to no reason behind his presence on this roster. Luis Guillorme, Philip Evans, Jeff McNeil, and possibly even Ty Kelly and Gavin Cecchini would be upgrades on both sides of the ball right now, and for a team with a margin as narrow as the Mets, every bit of value counts.

Other Mets News

The big news of the day of course was the Mets’ signing of Jose Bautista. Bautista, picked up then immediately placed back on the scrap heap by the Braves earlier this season, took a flight from Tampa around 3 p.m. and made it into the lineup in time to go 1-for-3 with a double and a pair of strikeouts. On the surface, the signing makes sense given the Mets’ paper thin outfield depth chart and even thinner list of right handed bats.

Somewhat problematically for that justification, Jose Bautista is terrible. He hasn’t had a meanigfully above replacement season since 2015, and his 2017 was straight up disastrous. He can’t play the outfield, certainly can’t play at third base and, at 37 years old, probably isn’t getting much of what he’s lost with the bat back. The Mets farm is thin, but there are easily four or five more youthful options that could come up, play bad corner outfield defense, and offer more upside with the bat (McNeil, Evans, even Dom Smith come to mind).

If the Mets had a track record of bringing in wild card vets, giving them a chance, then cutting bait when they’re bad, I don’t think any fan would object to this signing. The Mets do exactly the opposite of that however, exemplified by Jose Reyes and, to a lesser degree, Adrian Gonzalez. Bringing in Bautista will more than likely do nothing but block younger options like Brandon Nimmo and Wilmer Flores from playing time, rob us of the chance to see intriguing players from the farm system and make the team worse in both the short and long term. Unfortunately, it’s just par for the course with this front office.

 Photo credit: Noah K. Murray – USA Today Sports

It’s no secret that the Mets, as a whole, have been struggling. But after sweeping the Arizona Diamondbacks this past weekend at Citi Field, there may be a glimmer of hope on the horizon. After defeating Arizona on Friday and Saturday, the Mets won back-to-back games for the first time in five weeks. When the completed the sweep on Sunday, it was the first time this ball club has ever swept a series without Yoenis Cespedes in the lineup (since he joined the team, of course).

With the lowly Miami Marlins next on the calendar, it almost seemed like a cruel joke that Mickey Callaway and Co. were sending Jason Vargas to the mound to attempt to keep the momentum going and the turnaround flowing. But to all of our surprise, Vargas held it together tonight. In fact, he was actually pretty good.

The New York Mets defeated the Miami Marlins by a score of 2-0 Monday, marking the Amazins’ fourth consecutive win and fifth of their last six. Here’s how it went.

No, You Didn’t Drop Acid — Jason Vargas Pitched Well

I’m really happy to see Vargas do something positive, because he was approximately two more bad starts away from a permanent residency on my dartboard. The $14 million man was good for five shutout innings Monday, only surrendering two hits and one walk. He struck out a season-high seven batters and picked up his first victory of the season. Granted, last night’s matchup was against the Marlins, who are really a Triple-A team at best, but I will take any progress at this point. We still are left to wonder if Vargas can remain effective over the course of the rest of the season, but his performance at least inspires some confidence going forward.

Bullpen Backs It Up

With Vargas only lasting five innings tonight, protecting the Mets’ slim lead fell into the hands of the bullpen. Luckily, they performed admirably. Paul Sewald took over in the sixth and recorded two outs before working into some trouble. With two men on and two out, Jerry Blevins took the mound to face Justin Bour, but surrendered a walk and was lifted promptly afterward. A.J. Ramos stepped in after Blevins and got the Mets out of trouble in the sixth. With Ramos struggling of late, watching him work out of a tight jam and then returning to post another shutout inning was a welcomed sight. Seth Lugo toed the rubber for the eighth and continued to be…well…Seth Lugo, which is a great thing in 2018. The only blemish in the eighth was a Starlin Castro triple that got behind a diving Michael Conforto, but Brandon Nimmo saved the day with a diving catch off the bat of Brian Anderson to retire the side. Jeurys Familia performed his typical routine of raising out blood pressure, allowing Derek Dietrich to crack a one-out double bringing the tying run to the plate in the ninth. Thankfully, he escaped trouble after Miguel Rojas struck out and Amed Rosario made a beautiful throw on a ground ball in the hole (the play was reviewed and confirmed). With the win, Familia picked up his 13th save on the year.

Cabrera Stays Hot, Flores Chips In

Asdrubal Cabrera continued to produce for this club with two more hits and an RBI. He opened the scoring in the bottom of the third, doubling home Rosario. That 1-0 stood up for the duration of the game and Wilmer Flores netted an important insurance run when he singled home Devin Mesoraco in the seventh. Despite recording nine hits, the Mets were only able to scratch across two runs. You can definitely tell the offense is hurting right now with the absence of Yoenis Cespedes and Todd Frazier, among others, but the pitching held up Monday, which is all that matters.

Other Offensive Notes

Conforto continued his climb above the Mendoza Line with two more hits, the ice cold Jay Bruce picked up a single and Mesoraco continued to prove that catchers are capable of hitting after lacing a double. Rosario is starting to look like the phenom we all expected with another base hit tonight and Philip Evans picked up his first base hit of 2018 with a pinch-hit single in the fifth.

The Mets are back at it tonight for the second game of the series against the Marlins. Zack Wheeler takes on Caleb Smith at 7:10 p.m.

Photo credit: Adam Hunger – USA Today Sports

Before the game, I happened to ask an usher what the ticket protocol was if the game was rained out. She didn’t have much information, but she basically said she was told they absolutely have to play this game, so they are going to play this game no matter what. Intuitively, that makes sense, since the Blue Jays do not come back to Citi Field this season. However, the Jays are back in New York in just three weeks, when they face the Yankees on June 5 and 6. The Mets are home throughout that entire week, and both teams have off on June 4. They could have played this game on that day. Whatever, though, I’m not privy to all the information they have.

The tarp came off the field at around 12:30 p.m., with rain still coming down, although it was rather light. Sitting our seats — which were not under an overhang, but too good to abandon — my friends and I were getting a little wet, but it wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle. And none of us owned or had any designs on purchasing either a poncho or an umbrella.

The game started on time, at 1:10 p.m., through the rain drops. It’s not often they start games while it’s already raining, but they had to play this game.

Zack Wheeler got the start for the Mets, and looked good through the first three innings, with his only blemish being a Justin Smoak solo homer that clanked off the facing of the Pepsi Porch Coca Cola Corner in the first inning. But the Mets couldn’t do much against J.A. Happ early on, due in part to the fact that they sent out a lineup featuring Phil Evans batting fifth. In the second inning, Michael Conforto hit a laser to center field that Kevin Pillar made a terrific catch on, but not much else was struck well against Happ.

By the bottom of the third, we were getting quite damp, but it was still an amount of water we could live with. We still were not going to purchase ponchos or umbrellas. But right at the start of the inning, the skies opened up. It rained a lot harder. The drops were getting discernably heavy. Significant puddles were forming on the infield, behind the batter’s box and in the stands, and it’s not like the rain was going to stop anytime soon. This is something that would stop literally any other baseball game. But it did not stop this one. They had to play this one.

While hitting in this rain, Wheeler lost his bat on a swing. On the next pitch, Happ slipped off the mound. What ensued was one of the strangest things I’ve ever seen at a baseball game. The umpires stopped play and instructed the grounds crew to come fix the mound. After that, they called the rest of the grounds crew to come and fix the rest of the infield. And so they did. And it took a while. The Jays walked off the field. The game was stopped for 20 minutes while the grounds crew patched up the infield (and did a tremendous job doing so). It was not an official rain delay. The tarp was never put on the field. Remember, they needed to play this game.

In how many other sports do they stop the game entirely so a bunch of dudes in khakis can come out to drop and rake dirt for 20 minutes? Zero, that’s how many. I went to the bathroom during this break in the action, and I overheard Gary and Ron in a deep discussion about the cleat scraper on the pitcher’s mound and the process of removing it and putting it back in the dirt. Also, this:

SNY is showing artistic shots of puddles on the infield while Ron explains how mud is created and we are all living our best lives.

— Kate Feldman (@kateefeldman) May 16, 2018

This is the best sport.

Once play restarted, it had lightened up again, but it was still raining. At this point, we were completely drenched. If you’ve ever gone on a water ride in normal clothes, that is pretty much how it felt to sit in a seat and watch this game after a few innings. We could have bought ponchos, but it was a lost cause at this point. We were too wet to even move.

The Blue Jays struck again in the top of the fourth off Wheeler when Teoscar Hernandez ripped a two-run dinger into the left field corner. Wheeler put two more runners on, but got out of the inning. The Blue Jays led 3-0.

In the fifth, the roof caved in. The inning began with a walk to the pitcher, followed by a Curtis Granderson double, followed by a Josh Donaldson RBI single, followed by a Justin Smoak two-RBI double. It was 6-0 Toronto at that point, the game was effectively over, and not only was I soaked, but I was now shivering because the water seeping through my clothes was making me very cold.

Wheeler allowed three runs in that fifth inning while never recording an out. It was another poor outing for him, as he continues his Jekyll-and-Hyde season. That said, he was looking pretty good before the not-a-rain-delay rain delay, which might’ve thrown him off a bit, so you can at least give him a pass for this one.

After that fifth inning, we decided to do something I never, ever do: leave a game early. Yes, I left in the fifth inning. My pants were so wet they felt 10 pounds heavy; walking to the car was a legitimate chore. My fingers were so pruned that it looked like I had been in a pool for two hours. My ticket, which was in my pocket the whole time, was basically ruined. When I took my clothes off later, I realized that, yes, even my underwear was wet.

It rained a lot.

The Mets lost the game 12-1. AJ Ramos and Buddy Baumann let up three more runs in later innings, and Brandon Nimmo hit a solo homer with two outs in the ninth, and still smiled around the bases. After which, of course, the umpires stopped the game so the grounds crew could apply more dirt to the infield.

What a sport.

Photo credit: Noah K. Murray – USA Today Sports

Mired in a miserable offensive stretch that has seen the Amazins’ get shut out three times in the last week and a half, and score only three times in their previous two games against the lowly Reds, New York’s series opener in Philadelphia looked like more of the same for almost three hours. The Mets were befuddled by Philadelphia starter Jake Arrieta for the entirety of the right hander’s outing, but their bats came alive at just the right time to secure a crucial divisional victory.

The game got off to a poor beginning for starter Steven Matz and the Mets as, for the second consecutive outing, the southpaw surrendered a first inning home run, this time to Phils’ center fielder Odubel Herrera, putting New York in an immediate hole. For the second straight start though, Matz settled in, pitching in and out of trouble in nearly every frame, but getting the outs he needed to keep his team in the contest. His heaviest lifting came in the fifth when he allowed Philadelphia to load the bases without a hit and then went 3-0 on Phillies’ first baseman Carlos Santana before rallying to get him on a ground ball to short, ending the threat. His pitch count prevented him from going deeper than five innings, but Matz has now surrendered only two solo homers in 11 innings in his last two outings, certainly a promising sign for himself and the Amazins’.

This was not a night New York wanted to be discussing silver linings during the postgame however, as with the way this team has struggled of late, this weekend series with a divisional team ahead of them in the standings is pivotal. The way Arrieta was cruising though, it was looking like the Phillies’ skinny 1-0 lead may as well have been 100. The Mets mounted just five hits against the veteran in 7.1 innings, reaching second base only twice. Philadelphia manager Gabe Kapler pulled Arrieta after he retired pinch-hitter Juan Lagares to begin the 8th, and righty Tommy Hunter was able to complete the inning with little drama. New York’s bullpen was able to pick up where Matz left off and keep the game close, as Seth Lugo, Paul Sewald and A.J. Ramos each contributed scoreless innings, but the Phillies were still in position to win when they summoned their closer, Hector Neris, into the game in the ninth.

Neris got Adrian Gonzalez on a pop-up that third baseman Maikel Franco ran down in shallow left field to begin the inning, but things got dicey for him after that. Wilmer Flores found the hole on the left side of the infield for a one-out single, and after Flores was replaced by pinch-runner Luis Guillorme, Michael Conforto stepped to the plate as the go-ahead run. The Oregon State product has struggled for the majority of 2018 after missing all of spring training recovering from shoulder surgery, but he began to swing the bat better in Cincinnati. He’d carried that momentum over into this game too, reaching base twice (a single and a walk) and driving a ball to the warning track the only time he was retired. In his final at-bat, Conforto got out in front of a Neris’ splitter and crushed the pitch down the right field line, narrowly missing a game-changing home run as the ball hooked foul. A couple pitches later, however, the Mets outfielder changed the narrative of the entire night, launching a two-run blast off the facing of the second deck to give the road team a 2-1 lead. Rattled by the blown save, Neris made a mistake with his very next pitch, leaving a ball up and over the middle of the plate to Devin Mesoraco, who crushed a home run of his own to double the newfound New York lead and stun the home crowd.

Closer Jeurys Familia came on in the bottom of the 9th and retired the Phillies in order to secure his 11th save.  Before Friday’s comeback, New York had dropped eight of their previous nine contests, but with any luck, the winds are shifting back in the right direction. The Mets send their top two pitchers, Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom, to the mound the next two days, setting them up to potentially string together a few wins. Fingers crossed.

 Photo credit: Eric Hartline – USA Today Sports

But a major league team, run by major league coaches and a major league manager, handing the umpire a lineup card that was different from what they intended is something that has maybe never happened in 100+ years of Major League Baseball, and may never happen again — especially because, you know, we live in a world now that has copy machines and technology that is specifically used to avoid making those mistakes. And batting out of order, in general, is something you almost never see in MLB anyway; the last occurence of it happened two years ago.

That’s why the first inning of yesterday’s game was one of the finest in-game examples of LOLMets in quite a long time. I could explain what happened in detail, but it took SNY just about three full innings to explain it themselves, so I’ll give you the Sparknotes version. Basically, the Mets gave the Reds and the umpires a lineup card that listed Asdrubal Cabrera batting second and Wilmer Flores batting third on the lineup, which was the reverse of what the Mets actually wanted. So in the first inning, Flores came up in front of Cabrera and struck out, and then Cabrera came up after and doubled. Reds interim manager Jim Riggleman came out to protest, and the umpires recognized the problem and ruled Cabrera out. However, the next batter, Jay Bruce, was the charged with the out (on a 2U putout) despite having nothing to do with the affair, and Cabrera’s double was wiped from the record books because baseball rules are weird. Either way, that was how the Mets blew their first RISP chance of the day.

Cool.

From there, Zack Wheeler continued to be a complete enigma, following up his eight earned run performance on Friday night with a splendid outing this time around, going six innings in a one-run effort, striking out seven and only walking three.

Going into the sixth, Wheeler had not allowed a run and had retired his last 12 batters. He was in control, and efficient in the process. But he ran into trouble in the sixth, by allowing a walk, a bunt hit and an RBI single to Joey Votto to bring in the Reds’ first run. He walked the bases loaded two batters later, but showed confidence and poise — something he’s not been known for —  and induced a pop out and then fanned Tony Cruz to end the inning, stranding the runners and finishing his afternoon with a flourish.

And now for the bad stuff, which is the the entire offense. The Mets mustered just four hits all game (that were counted, at least) and their one and only run scored on a groundout by Cabrera in the third. They were shut out by the worst pitching staff in baseball for the rest of the game, and have scored only three runs the last two games against said pitching staff.

The game was tied 1-1 as Wheeler exited, and the tandem of Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman was able to keep it tied through nine. But when the offense can’t score runs, the bullpen, naturally, will have to blow it eventually. A.J. Ramos came on in the 10th and surrendered a walk-off home run to Adam Duvall to end the game, giving the Reds a 2-1 victory.

The Mets just dropped a series they absolutely needed to take against the worst team in baseball. By losing to the Reds twice this series, the Mets have now contributed 20% of their wins on the season. The Mets are now 18-17 after getting off to an 11-1 start on the season.

These past few weeks for this team are eerily reminiscent of May 2017, when they fell apart and tanked their season in the course of about a week. They’ve also had a knack for ruining good starts in recent years, like in 2016 when they ruined a 15-7 start, or in 2015 when they ruined a 13-3 start. What I’m trying to say is: we’ve seen this movie before. This is the same team it’s always been. Hopefully it can end better this year than it did last year. But I’m not optimistic. Changes need to start happening.

In the mean time, nobody look at what’s happening in the Bronx, please.

OTHER NEWS OF THE DAY:

Jay Bruce will not be with the team over the weekend in Philadelphia, as he will be attending the birth of his second child, further cementing his status as the biggest dad on the team.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Mets can’t lose today, because they aren’t playing, but they’ll be visiting the surprisingly-good Phillies over the weekend. The three-game tilt kicks off tomorrow night, with Steven Matz squaring off with Jake Arrieta at 7:10 p.m. ET.

Photo credit: David Kohl – USA Today Sports

The Ian Desmond-led Colorado Rockies

WHAT HAPPENED, NOAH SYNDERGAARD DID NOT HAVE A NICE START:

The easiest thing to do is to start with the negative.
Sept. 7, 2016 was the last time Noah Syndergaard issued four free-passes in one start. In fact, over 68 career big league starts, Syndergaard had walked four or more batters just three times. In start number 69, that number would grow to four. He also surrendered a home run to Ian Desmond, which is less than ideal.
As Gary and Keith discussed on the SNY broadcast, Syndergaard just isn’t missing as many bats with his harder stuff as we are used to seeing. While they might be right, there is one reason that makes the most sense. Leading up to this start, we know that Syndergaard is getting more swings on his fourseam fastball and less swings on his sinker. Both are, for the most part, not good. Why? Thor isn’t getting whiffs on these pitches at the rates he typically does. In addition, he is doing things that would make sense as to why hitters are reacting this way. More pitches outside the strike zone with his sinker, more ‘grooved‘ fourseamers. But, at the end of the day, these differences aren’t greatly noticeable.
Is there something wrong with his pitches? No, not really. His spin rates look great, some have even increased. If you wanted a difference to point to, it’s that Syndergaard’s velocity down just enough to mention. This is easy to write off, and probably means nothing, as most pitchers aren’t throwing their hardest in April and May. After two mediocre starts in a row, there are a couple potential reasons/flags to watch. Maybe Syndergaard needs to utilize his high-velo/spin rate mix by pitching higher in the strike zone with his fastballs. Maybe he could lean even more on his offspeed pitch-mix.
The main, and correct, one? We’re just too freaking greedy.
For all the worrying, Syndergaard still worked six innings and held the Rockies to just two runs. He left Sunday’s outing with a lower season ERA than the one he entered with. After loading the bases with no outs to start the third inning, the only damage came from a walked-in run. Syndergaard worked himself out of each jam presented, despite most being the kind he created. While he didn’t look comfortable on the mound all day, this just seems to be a case of Thor working through some early season struggles — relatively speaking. It is certainly not the time to hit the panic button.

WHAT HAPPENED, THE IAN DESMOND GAME:

As all truly mediocre hitters do, Ian Desmond came into Sunday batting .282/.341/.490 against the Mets over his career. Having already homered off Syndergaard in the second — and despite the fact that Jerry Blevins and AJ Ramos worked a clean seventh inning — the righty was out for more. He could smell blood. He needed more.
Enter Hansel Robles, who promptly provided Desmond with the home run he desired. After giving the Rockies a 3-2 lead, Desmond knew it would be enough. It was the Sabbath, after all. He rested.

WHAT HAPPENED, THE FIRST IS THE EASIEST (AND THE ONLY):

The Mets showed up to hit in the first inning, kicking things off with three straight singles and a sac fly. After trips to the plate by Juan Lagares, Yoenis Cespedes, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Todd Frazier, the Mets held an early 2-0 lead — the first in a week. That joyous occasion would quickly halt, as the bats would stay dormant until the ninth inning. One batter after a Wilmer Flores walk in the ninth, Adrian Gonzalez would dump a hit into left field — putting runners on first and second with two outs.
The fun would stop there, as Tomas Nido would be called upon to pinch hit with the winning run at first base. Why, you ask? Brandon Nimmo subbed in for an injured Yoenis Cespedes after the first inning, Michael Conforto pinch hit in the seventh and Jose Reyes was put in to run for Flores after his walk. The decision ultimately came down to letting Jose Lobaton or Nido hit, with Mickey Callaway deciding in favor of the latter —using Gonzalez to hit in Lobaton’s place. The decision proved futile, as Nido struckout to frisbee-thrower Adam Ottavino to end the game.

WHAT HAPPENED, YESTERDAY:

Syndergaard didn’t have his best stuff, but was able to work through six innings of two-run ball. At the plate, the Mets looked to have a promising afternoon ahead of them. In the end, however, they were stymied by Colorado lefty Kyle Freeland — extending their losing streak to six games.

WHAT HAPPENS, TODAY:

The Mets start a three-game series with the Cincinnati Reds, which could not possibly have come at a better time. The Mets will send rookie P.J. Conlon to the mound for his Major League debut, and will square off against Homer Bailey. Maybe a small ballpark and a guy named Homer will help restart the Mets at the plate.

Photo credit: Gregory Fisher – USA Today Sports