Not a great way to end a road trip, but it could have been much worse. Let’s rock…
Right-hander Jordan Yamamoto got the ball in the series finale in Miami. His only other Mets start came on May 5 versus St. Louis (2.2 IP, ER, K). That effectiveness didn’t quite carry over into his outing on Sunday.
Without heavy velocity to lean on, the catalyst behind any success Yamamoto will find is in his command. On Sunday, his control was elusive early on.
The 25-year-old Hawaii product loaded the bases with none out in the second (single, walk, HBP) and Miami’s first run crossed on Cody Poteet’s (starting for the Marlins) infield hit.
Yamamoto made a play on the slow dribbler near the mound and threw wide home, cutting off Brandon Drury charging from third, who presumably would have gone to first for the out.
Jazz Chisholm’s RBI base hit in the next at-bat made it 2-0, leaving ducks on the pond for Miguel Rojas, who grounded out weakly to Dominic Smith at first base.
Had Drury successfully gone to first instead of Yamamoto making the play home, Smith’s toss to Lindor at second would have ended the inning.
Instead, Lindor’s double-play relay came in a little behind Yamamoto covering at first and skipped into the dugout, plating two more. Costly gaffe.
Jesus Aguilar’s run-scoring hit scored another to extend Miami’s lead to 5-0 and that pretty much set the tone for the afternoon.
To his credit, Yamamoto settled down considerably after that rough second (needed just 17 pitches total to get through the third and fourth before exiting with shoulder soreness).
Yamamoto hadn’t made an MLB start since May 5 and is pitching for a roster spot. His command disappeared for a spell, but he rebounded terrifically. All things considered, we’ll take that.
Let’s hope that shoulder is of no concern moving forward. If Yamamoto can find a rhythm as a long-man/piggy-back option to rotate into the Joey Lucchesi/Sean Reid-Foley mix, that’s a win for this team moving forward.
Put guys in spots to succeed.
Unfortunately, the Mets’ lineup, in the tattered form it’s in, just couldn’t get much going against Poteet, who set down 14 in a row through the seventh inning on 93 pitches (four strikeouts, no walks).
Poteet pitched pretty darn well for a guy making his fourth career MLB start. This Marlins system just churns these guys out.
Sure, with the coffers full, Poteet — or any young pitcher — is someone the Mets should have been able to knock around. At this current juncture, with this personnel, these things will happen.
Lindor, riding out a 1-for-16 stretch after hitting .282/.383/.487 over 48 plate appearances from May 6 to May 18, kinda has to be the guy to lead this team right now. Let’s see if that tide turns soon.
The Mets plated one against John Curtiss in the eighth on a sequence of hits from Johneshwy Fargas (double) and Wilfredo Tovar to make it a 5-1 game, but that’s how it would end.
Hey, you can’t expect miracles. But, in all fairness, you can’t ask for much more than a 3-3 stretch against the Braves and Marlins on the road under these conditions.
The Rays, who rode into Sunday on a nine-game winning streak, swept the Mets out of Tampa last weekend and could have easily sent this team spiraling. Wasn’t to be.
Big picture, this was a successful end to the road trip. Best case scenario? No, certainly not. But palatable? Most definitely.
Stay above water, that’s all that matters at this point. As Rojas intimated on Friday, the next game is always the most important of the season. Stay focused. Keep swinging.
This is a patchwork roster and even the patches have holes. It is what it is. Yet, they’re making due, aren’t they?
Entering Monday, the Mets’ lead — yes, lead — in the National League East will be no less than a game-and-a-half.
They’re heading home for seven and facing the Rockies for four, who have gone 2-17 on the road this season. Jacob deGrom is scheduled to return on Tuesday (per Luis Rojas).
Things could be worse, friends. Plus, I hear Panic City really isn’t a great destination point this time of year.
New Simply Amazin’ drops in the morning. We’ll be expanding on all of this. LFGM.
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