Frustrations Beginning to Grow as Mets Stay Impotent at the Plate
Fans booing Lindor is silly, but this Mets offense certainly hasn't been pretty
That was decidedly not how to keep the good times rolling.
In a disappointing return to action after a series win over the Nationals last weekend, the Mets lost 2-1 to the Red Sox at Citi Field on Tuesday night.
One step forward. Two steps back.
Once again, the Mets couldn’t get much going, garnering just seven hits, all off Boston right-hander Garrett Richards, who went seven strong frames with Jeff McNeil’s solo homer in the second as the only mark on his line.
Red Sox right-handers Matt Andriese and Matt Barnes kept the Mets’ bats in check late as New York sank back to a .500 record with just under an eighth of the season in the books. Plenty of time, but come on…
With Brandon Nimmo out of the lineup after receiving “a shot” on Monday for what’s been diagnosed as a “mild impingement” of his right hip (MRIs were taken after Cubs series) per Mets manager Luis Rojas, the Mets were noticeably lacking the spark atop the lineup that’s Nimmo’s been for this club.
The 1-through-3 spots in the Mets lineup were held to a dismal 1-for-12 with Francisco Lindor’s leadoff single in the sixth as the only base hit notched among the top third of the batting order.
Michael Conforto continued to heat up, going 2-for-4 with his fifth double of the year. J.D. Davis (started and played well at third base), Kevin Pillar, and James McCann all added base hits, as well. But it simply wasn’t enough.
That should not have been the case.
David Peterson did his job, allowing two runs over six innings of work on four hits with three strikeouts and a walk. Another solid effort from the 25-year-old left-hander.
Despite limited inconsistencies on the mound — even more so among the defenders behind him (his 4.68 FIP is over a full run lower than his 5.59 ERA) — Peterson is coming along just fine and holding down the fort sufficiently as the Mets await the respective returns of Carlos Carrasco and Noah Syndergaard.
The experience gained over the last 12 months for Peterson could prove to be invaluable as he treks further into his major league career. It’s just unfortunate the added confidence of contributing to team wins is escaping the young southpaw.
All in due time.
The bullpen continued to shine, with Jeurys Familia (1.59 ERA on the year), Trevor May (2.84 ERA), and Miguel Castro (2.25) keeping the Mets in the game and the BoSox at bay. Geez, this group has been terrific thus far.
This Mets pitching staff has undoubtedly led the way, and that's great but they can’t do it all themselves. The offense has shown flashes but will need to find their own consistency as the season trudges on.
A division projected as elite all performing at mediocre paces (Mets still lead the NL East at 9-9), any and all chances the Mets have to gain traction and separate themselves must be pounced on.
That hasn’t been the case yet and it’s beginning to become a bit disconcerting.
After the game, Rojas conceded that the level of production hasn’t been there but didn’t show much concern about his team pulling themselves out of the doldrums at the plate, especially with runners in scoring position.
The Mets’ .193 batting average and .556 OPS with RISP both rank last in the majors and their 67 wRC+ in those situations places them second-to-last. That’s not going to cut it.
“The guys, they show up every day and prepare their best. They want to give the fans what they want — they want to win,” he said. “[Producing with] runners in scoring position is the biggest thing right now. It’s almost like it’s still haunting us. We just gotta simplify things a little more and stay within ourselves.”
OK, let’s see it. LFGM.
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The baserunning is an issue too. Wasn't there a game plan? There is no way that Conforto should have been held at third on JD's hit AND McCann try to stretch his hit into a double. Either the plan was to run on Martinez or not.
Even when they get a hit with RISP, they still can't score. Not just limited to this season. Been happening for the past few seasons. Perhaps a different approach at the plate is needed. Hitting the ball the other way instead of being pull happy is one.