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Mets learning hard way that Atlanta owns the better team for almost half the price

A six-game losing streak has exposed the Mets as a middling team with concerning deficiencies that need improvement. The Mets have been struggling for six consecutive games, with a six-game losing streak and a 13-10 walk-off win over the Braves. Despite this, the team is learning hard to improve and is now owning the better team for almost half the price. Justin Verlander's poor start put the Mets in a bind they couldn't afford, and he was greeted with five straight hard-hit balls, each carrying exit velocities over 100 mph. The next time the Mets see the Braves, Max Scherzer and Verlander pitching better, the path toward making things matter in August is clear. Verlander said he was feeling good physically, but nothing jumps out as an obvious fix.

Mets learning hard way that Atlanta owns the better team for almost half the price

Published : 10 months ago by Will Sammon in Sports

ATLANTA — Before Ozzie Albies ever touched home plate, the Mets’ entire infield had reached the dugout, having jogged there with their heads down. As the Braves celebrated their 13-10 walk-off win in the 10th inning Thursday, none of the Mets even glanced toward the field. Inside their clubhouse, players tried to make sense of yet another loss by voicing frustration, staying positive and taking accountability, but explaining the recent failures of baseball’s most expensive team requires the truth.

A six-game losing streak, including a sweep against rival Atlanta, has exposed the Mets as a middling team with concerning deficiencies that need improvement in order to be taken more seriously.

For New York (30-33), things continue to worsen. New problems pop up. Old problems resurface. And even when things briefly feature positives, they eventually sour. Each day, they lose.

It just gets more maddening. For the first time in franchise history, the Mets lost three straight games after leading each by three or more runs. The latest loss qualified as the most excruciating; the Mets blew three leads amid troubling context. Because of a wrist injury, Pete Alonso missed his first game of the season. Justin Verlander continued his up-and-down debut season as the Mets’ $43 million co-ace with a poor performance that left him without clear answers on what’s even wrong. A thin bullpen looked more susceptible than ever. After so much struggling, the offense showed up and showed resolve, but it didn’t end up mattering because the gap between the Braves and Mets extends beyond the 8 1/2 games that separate them. For almost half the price, Atlanta owns the better team.

Speaking of money, the path toward making things matter in August, the next time the Mets see the Braves, starts with Max Scherzer and Verlander pitching better. One night after Scherzer allowed five earned runs in 5 2/3 innings, Verlander gave up seven hits, five runs (four earned) and four walks with three strikeouts in just three innings.

The Braves greeted Verlander in the first inning with five straight hard-hit balls, each carrying exit velocities over 100 mph. Austin Riley provided the loudest sound with a two-run home run. Verlander’s ERA in the first inning of games increased to 9.00. Verlander’s trouble continued into his next two frames. He threw a first-pitch strike to just 6 of the 20 batters he faced. He escaped trouble in the second inning but needed 35 pitches to navigate the third inning while allowing two more runs. After that he left, having allowed five runs (four earned) in a start for the third time. He hadn’t done that in a season since 2018. It’s only June. Verlander’s ERA stands at 4.85.

Verlander said he was feeling good physically. He checked out his metrics, and nothing jumps out as an obvious fix. Ditto for his mechanics. Clearly, though, something remains amiss.

Maybe it’s that hitters have responded differently than in years past to certain pitches, Verlander wondered. He wasn’t sure. Whatever it is that’s making his starts, as he put it, “feast or famine,” it’s on him and the Mets’ coaching staff to fix.

“This isn’t easy,” Verlander said. “It’s not easy for the team. Not easy for me. The one thing that I’ve always been is accountable, and this wasn’t good enough. This isn’t good enough. I will work as hard as anybody to find it.”

Verlander’s bad start put the Mets in a bind they couldn’t afford. Already, their bullpen had been taxed. They were unequipped to handle the task of covering six meaningful innings against a team that featured eight batters with an OPS higher than league average (.728) — the Mets, by the way, started just three such players. Showalter tapped all the familiar names sans Adam Ottavino, who had pitched the previous two nights: Jeff Brigham, Drew Smith, Brooks Raley and David Robertson. Because the bullpen needs more weapons after high usage and Edwin Diaz’s injury had already hurt their depth, Robertson needed to cover the final outs of the eighth inning; Smith had given up another critical late home run. Robertson also had to negotiate the ninth with a one-run lead. He ended up allowing a tying home run to Orlando Arcia. In the end, the Braves were able to deploy Raisel Iglesias while the Mets were forced to try Tommy Hunter. The difference reveals plenty.

The thing is, the Braves aren’t without concerns. Their rotation features injuries. They probably have three or four trusted, high-leverage relief options. But they keep churning out more talented arms from their farm system, keep getting production from their lineup and keep overcoming challenges. Why can’t the Mets, with all their talent and resources, at least do the latter? All season when he’s been available, the Braves were able to absorb Michael Harris II’s sub-.200 batting average until he broke out in the series against the Mets. New York can’t do that with a struggling player because they have too many of them. Yet for all their problems, the Mets tagged Spencer Strider for eight runs. Games like that, they can’t afford to lose.

After answering questions following the game, Robertson returned to a small group of reporters and said he wanted to add one more thing: “And that’s that we battled tonight and still lost, and that’s what sucks.”

Players know they need to be better. Quietly in a couple of corners inside the Mets clubhouse, some players engaged in deep discussions. Veteran leaders like Francisco Lindor say the clubhouse culture remains strong, that they feel prepared and believe they have capable leadership in the form of a handful of strong voices. Brandon Nimmo responded to a question about what makes a losing streak like the Mets’ so difficult with a knowing laugh that masked a feeling of frustration shared by his teammates.

“I think it’s pretty obvious,” he said. “We’re just not winning. That makes things really tough. It’s not a fun stretch to go through. Not how you envisioned things going. But your only option is to just keep pushing and put a lot of hope in that tomorrow you’re going to turn things around. At any instant, you can turn things into a 10-game win streak. You have no other choice but to believe that. Unless you want to give up.”

A week ago, the Mets appeared to be showing more encouraging signs. A mirage. While their rotation performed better and they won enough to push their record a few games over .500, their issues hid under the surface. They’ve yet to consistently offer much that indicates they’re better than what their record says they are. And lately, they’ve gone in reverse. The lack of depth in terms of quality teams in the National League coupled with the expanded playoffs makes stretches of poor play more tolerable — to an extent. Ninety-nine games remain, but things start to move faster once losses pile up.

The toughest part of navigating a skid like this?

“I wish I can be completely frank but it wouldn’t behoove anybody,” Mets manager Buck Showalter said.

He added, “Just trying to stay in reality. And also understand what reality is, too.”

In discussing Thursday’s game, Showalter said of his team, “I’m proud of them.” He viewed the fact they scored 10 runs as a positive. But the Mets’ reality doesn’t allow for that kind of sunshine. Things need to change, improve, and fast.


Topics: Georgia, Atlanta

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