After being scratched due to weather concerns on Sunday and rained out on Monday, Jacob deGrom finally got to take the mound against the Marlins on Tuesday night. Miami has been something of a bugaboo for deGrom; he’s only 4-5 against them in his career, though he did memorably strike out the first eight batters in September 2014. For once, the Mets actually built a close-to-optimal lineup behind their ace, with Amed Rosario, Jeff McNeil and Michael Conforto in the first three spots in the order.

Arguably, the Mets should have just let deGrom pitch on Sunday, as he’s now set to make only four starts the rest of the way rather than five. On the other hand, I get to recap a game started by deGrom rather than one started by Jason Vargas, so I’m not going to complain.

Game Recap

Rather than dragging this out and waxing poetic about how good deGrom was at the start of this game, let’s just jump straight to the part where the BABIP fairy sprinkled her magic dust on the Marlins, as she always seems to do at Citi Field. With two outs and nobody on in the fourth, deGrom gave up an infield single, a bloop single and a double that scored two. The infield single was off the glove of Jeff McNeil (would have been a tough play) and the double was a total misplay by Austin Jackson (also a tough play, but probably should have been made). As a reminder, the Mets like Jackson, a horrifically bad defensive outfielder, specifically for his center field defense.

Fittingly, a Michael Conforto double leading off the bottom half of the inning was wasted. deGrom went back to dominating and only got a solo home run from Conforto in run support. He left for a pinch hitter in the seventh, when the Mets squandered another leadoff baserunner and left the ace without a chance for a win. He finished with nine strikeouts, two walks and three hits allowed, with both runs coming due to the BABIP misfortune and poor defense behind him in the fourth. The outing raised deGrom’s ERA on the season to a still ridiculous 1.71, and lowered his FIP to an equally insane 2.06.

Anthony Swarzak replaced deGrom and served up a solo home run to J.T. Riddle that stretched the Marlins’ lead to 3-1. Todd Frazier got ejected at some point for arguing balls and strikes (he was right). Robert Gsellman gave up two runs in the ninth, with the help of an ill-advised dive from Brandon Nimmo that turned a single into a triple.

Kevin Plawecki hit a two-run home run in the ninth and a two-out walk to Jack Reinheimer brought Amed Rosario to the plate as the tying run. Rosario could only manage a weak dribbler to second, and that was that. The 5-3 loss was the Mets’ 78th of the year and dropped deGrom’s record below .500, now at 8-9.

Thoughts from the Game

The latest installment of Jacob deGrom facts:

• Lewis Brinson’s double was the first extra-base hit on 0-2 allowed by deGrom this season.
• deGrom has now broken Leslie “King” Cole’s single-season record with his 26th consecutive start allowing three runs or fewer, a record that stood for 108 years.
• Still the most deserving Cy Young candidate in the National League. But you knew that already.

Why the Mets have decided to rush Swarzak back this season is a mystery. This is a reliever who they need to contribute to the bullpen next year if the team wants to contend next season. He’s dealt with shoulder issues multiple times, and pushing a 33-year-old to come back quickly in a lost season rather than just shutting him down and protecting him for the future is silly. It’s also a great juxtaposition against the extreme “caution” the team is taking with David Wright. Nothing fishy there at all, no sir.

Austin Jackson is terrible. He doesn’t make contact — 32.7% K%. He doesn’t hit for power — .078 ISO. He doesn’t walk a noteworthy amount — 7.2%. His defense has been a travesty for three seasons; -12.5, -7.7, and -16.8 UZR/150 in the outfield the past three seasons. He’s not a prolific basestealer or a particularly good baserunner. His presence in the Met lineup hinders the offense, and his defense might’ve cost deGrom two runs and a win last night. Given all of this, get ready for Austin Jackson, 2019 Opening Day center fielder.

Other Mets News

A report by Andy Martino today had some troubling news regarding the Mets’ GM search. First, Terry Collins is expected to assume a larger role in the organization. Terry Collins, who was one of the most inept managers in baseball largely because of his inability or unwillingness to use or develop young players, will likely be playing a larger role in player development. This is the sort of hiring that reeks of interference from Fred Wilpon.

Secondly, Martino mentions Mark Shapiro as a name to watch in the GM search. Shapiro has a long track record, serving as GM and later team president of the Cleveland Indians, and more recently as CEO and president of the Toronto Blue Jays. He’s most notable for his obsession with young cost control, which, in and of itself, is not a bad thing to focus on; young, cheap players provide the core of most winning teams. But Shapiro seems to focus more on being cheap for the sake of being cheap, rather than for the purposes of building winning teams. In short, he offers perfect cover for the Wilpon not spending money.

Matched up against Philadelphia ace Aaron Nola it was clear Syndergaard would have to be at his best, as Nola easily struck out the side in the road first to open the game. Trouble unfortunately found Syndergaard from the outset of his outing.

Cesar Hernandez led off the Philly first with a single and advanced to second base when Rhys Hoskins walked. Up stepped our old friend Asdrubal Cabrera, who sent a sinking line drive past a diving Jack Reinheimer into the left field corner to open the scoring and put two more Phillies in scoring position. Nick Williams then lined a shot up the middle to plate Hoskins and chase Cabrera to third, giving the home team a 2-0 lead. Syndergaard was fortunate to get a double play ground ball from Carlos Santana for his first two outs of the night, but Cabrera was able to walk home on the play to put the Phillies ahead 3-0.

That score would hold into the fourth, when the Mets used hits from Jeff McNeil and Austin Jackson to set up a sacrifice fly off the bat of Todd Frazier to get on the board. Philadelphia would immediately answer in their half of the frame though, as Roman Quinn led off with a triple and scored on a hit from Jorge Alfaro. Alfaro then stole second base which further exacerbated a main storyline in this game.

Syndergaard had shown flashes of getting better at limiting the running game earlier this season, but since returning from his brief bout with hand, foot and mouth disease, opposing teams have been running wild on him. Last night, Alfaro swiped the first two bases of his career, and slow footed runners like Santana and Maikel Franco were able to steal bases. All told, Philadelphia successfully stole five bases in 5.2 innings against Syndergaard, a trend that just can’t continue.

Following Syndergaard’s departure the Mets were able to get 1.1 scoreless innings from Daniel Zamora in his Major League debut, but on the other side of the field, Nola was showing no signs of letting New York get back in the game. Leaving after successfully registering a 1-2-3 seventh inning, Nola finished his outing with only one run and three hits allowed, while punching out 11 Mets batters.

In the eighth, New York was able to get one back against the Philly bullpen when the white hot Jackson scored McNeil with a two-out RBI hit. Unfortunately, that was as close as the Mets would come to making this a competitive contest.

Up next the Mets will send their Cy Young and MVP candidate Jacob deGrom to the mound this afternoon against Philadelphia’s Jake Arrieta.

Photo credit: Bill Streicher – USA Today Sports

Las Vegas 51s (Triple-A)

Pitcher: Bobby Wahl

The 26-year-old Wahl came over to the organization in the Jeurys Familia trade and made his Mets debut Thursday against the Braves. It wasn’t his major league debut, as he appeared in seven games for Oakland last season, but this figures to be the beginning of an extended stay for the right-hander.

Wahl fits the Mets relief profile to a T, throwing a mid-90s fastball and a sharp slider. His fastball sits 95-98 and will touch triple digits with above-average movement. The slider sits in the mid-80s and is his go-to out pitch. He’s effectively a two-pitch reliever, though he does have a change that shows signs of usefulness. Wahl could be a high-leverage option sooner rather than later, or he could be ticketed for a career in middle relief. It all depends on how his below-average command plays at the major league level and how well he can suppress walks.

Hitter: Jack Reinheimer

The Mets scooped up Reinheimer off waivers after the Arizona Diamondbacks needed to do some roster shuffling with their trade deadline acquisitions. The light-hitting utility man was a fifth-round pick of the Mariners in 2013 but spent the past four seasons in the Diamondbacks organization.

Reinheimer offers a similar skill set to utility players already on the Mets 40-man roster, making the waiver claim highly questionable. His best skill is his versatility, as he’s capable of playing every infield position, as well as some outfield. He has some contact skills, but he has well below-average power and doesn’t project as an impact bat in the majors. Clearing a 40-man spot for Reinheimer likely cost Kevin Kaczmarski his roster spot, a bad tradeoff for an organization seemingly always in need of outfield depth in the upper levels of the minors.

Binghamton Rumble Ponies (Double-A)

Hitter: Will Toffey

Toffey was the other prospect to come over from Oakland in the Familia deal. A fourth rounder out of Vanderbilt last year, Toffey has already reached Double-A despite middle-of-the-pack numbers in A-ball. He’s reportedly dealing with a serious shoulder injury that will require surgery this offseason, leaving many wondering why having him play through an injury for a month is necessary.

Toffey doesn’t fit the traditional third base profile – he’s hit before power- but he could develop into a second-division regular if everything breaks right. Wahl was the so-called “prize” of the deal though, so anything Toffey contributes would be considered a bonus.

Pitcher: Franklyn Kilome

The real prize of the Mets deadline dealings, Kilome has tantalizing stuff that he hasn’t been able to fully piece together yet. He owns an explosive mid-90s fastball and a potential plus-plus curve, two offerings that give him a fallback option in the bullpen if it ultimately never comes together as a starter. Kilome’s command is what’s currently holding him back, as he’s averaging over 4.50 BB/9 in Double-A for the second straight season.

The Mets will try to develop Kilome as a starter and that they should, as there’s still starter potential here. The Phillies clearly weren’t convinced he’d ever reach his ceiling, but the Mets actually have a decent track record developing pitchers with this sort of profile. It was the perfect buy-low opportunity and the Mets rightly took advantage. Here’s hoping the player development staff can get Kilome back on the right track.

Brooklyn Cyclones (Short-Season-A)

Pitcher: Jaison Vilera

Vilera hasn’t allowed an earned run since July 5, a streak spanning four starts and 26.2 innings. With a pristine 0.78 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 46 innings, Vilera has certainly put his name on the map this season.

The 21-year-old right-hander is running a 50% groundball rate to go along with his 10.96 K/9. He features a fastball/changeup combo that’s simply too advanced for short-season ball. Vilera shouldn’t be in Brooklyn any longer and the Mets would do well to promote him to Columbia before seasons end.

GCL Mets (Rookie Ball)

Pitcher: Simeon Woods-Richardson

He’s only made three appearances this summer but SWR is showing the premium velocity that enticed the Mets to draft him in the second round of this year’s draft. The pre-draft reports noted inconsistent velocity that often dipped into the 80s, but I’d heard he popped late and the early returns confirm that.

Woods-Richardson has been sitting in the mid-90s, even touching 99 a handful of times in a relief appearance in July. He’s also cleaned up his delivery some, as it doesn’t feature the same violence it did just a couple of months ago. All positive signs for the 17-year-old who will likely pitch the 2019 season in Brooklyn, though he does have an outside chance of reaching Columbia.

Photo credit: Brad Penner – USA Today Sports