3 UP
1. Offense Awakens
Entering the series, the Dodgers had the best pitching staff in baseball, and the Mets had a lineup full of players much better suited to bench roles or starting in Triple-A. Honestly, you would not expect the Mets bats to break out and obliterate the Dodgers pitching, but that’s what happened.
The Mets averaged 6.7 runs per game in the first three games of this series. In that stretch, Amed Rosario hit .500 with four extra base hits. Todd Frazier was 6-for-14 with two doubles, a homer, and an RBI. The Dodgers couldn’t get Pete Alonso out as he hit for both average and power. Adeiny Hechavarria showed he and not Robinson Cano was the Mets second baseman who hits for power. Michael Conforto hit his first grand slam and showed no ill effects from the concussion.
Yes, they were shut out and dominated by Hyun-Jin Ryu. Looking at his season, he’s done this to everyone. Even with that shut out, the Mets averaged five runs per game in the series and have been averaging 5.5 runs per game over their last 11.
This isn’t the first time the Mets offense has taken off like this. The key going forward is to get the offense synced up with the pitching so the Mets can go on a real run.
2. Matzterful
For all the discussion of how the Mets starters haven’t performed up to their previous standards, Steven Matz is pitching the best baseball of his career. We saw it again in his Tuesday start against the Dodgers.
In six innings against the Dodgers, he allowed two earned on four hits and three walks. He struck out six. For all the discussion of his mental toughness, he got out of a big jam in the second, and he cooled down after Cody Bellinger hit a go-ahead two run homer.
Not that it works this way, but if you eliminate his horrendous start against the Phillies and his short start in his first game off the Injured List, Matz is 4-1 with a 2.30 ERA and a 1.191 WHIP. This is just to show how reliable a starter Matz has been in eight of his 10 starts and how in all but one of his starts he has given his team a chance to win.
3. Vargas Showed Up
Entering last night’s game, Jason Vargas averaged 4.0 innings per start, and opponents were hitting .270/.353/.487 off of him. Yesterday should have been a complete and total disaster.
It looked like that from the get-go with the Dodgers scoring a run before getting an out. He somehow navigated his way out of that inning without further damage, and he got through a third inning jam unscathed. Next thing you knew, Vargas pitched seven innings allowing just one run.
This was one of the better starts any Mets pitcher had all year, and it came at a time when the Mets desperately needed it to help rest a tired bullpen. The Mets are going to need to see a lot more of this from Vargas.
3 DOWN
1. Diaz Meltdown
The Mets had an opportunity to get to a game over .500 and earn at least a split in a road series against the Dodgers. It was setting up to be the Mets biggest win on the season, and it was the type of win which could catapult the team on a big winning streak.
Instead, Edwin Diaz completely melted down. Despite being ahead in the count to all six batters he faced (the other being an intentional walk), he did not record an out until the game winning sacrifice fly. This was the exact worst time for him to have what he called “easily the worst day of my career, worst game of the season for me.”
Part of the reason why Diaz melted down was this was his eighth appearance in 11 days. That doesn’t include the times he was dry humped. Fact is, Diaz is overworked. Really overworked.
The question is who is to blame for that. Yes, Mickey Callaway does deserve his share of blame. Frankly, he needs to be more judicious in his usage of his closer. However, what other options did he realistically have? With Seth Lugo on the shelf, Diaz and maybe Robert Gsellman are the only two reliable arms the Mets have in the bullpen.
On a team hanging by a thread and with Callaway not far removed from having his job in jeopardy, what do you expect him to do? Trust Tyler Bashlor and Drew Gagnon in a big spot? Of course not.
The truth of the matter is Callaway may be going to the whip too often with his best relievers, and we saw it lead to Diaz blowing the save. He’s doing that because he’s given little other choice.
2. Come Get the Dodgers
There’s nothing wrong with losing three of four to the Dodgers on the road. There will be a number of good baseball teams who do that all season long. It happens. No one should be alarmed by that much like people shouldn’t overreact to the Mets getting swept by the Marlins, especially with how well the team responded to it.
The real issue is the Dodgers have the type of team Brodie Van Wagenen purported to build. They are a deep team who is the best team in the National League right now. The difference between the two teams runs much further than the talent.
Dodgers ownership is fully committed to winning. It’s not just their spending or willingness to move on from a bad deal; it’s also how they built their front office. The Dodgers hired all of the best people available, and they continue to be leaders on the analytics front.
This is why after the 2015 NLDS the Mets have not been able to have sustained success while the Dodgers are well on their way to their seventh division title and possibly a third straight National League pennant.
Maybe Van Wagenen should have said, “Come get the Dodgers!”
3. Lagares’ Career Worst Season
Last year, before his season ending injury, it seemed like Juan Lagares had finally discovered how to be a good enough hitter to keep his incredible glove in the lineup. This year, he has completely fallen apart.
Currently, Lagares is in the middle of an 0-for-13 stretch, and he is just one for his last 26. He currently has a career worst 28.6 percent strike out rate, 56.7 percent ground ball rate, and a 40 wRC+.
Worse yet, Lagares has completely regressed in the field with a -1 DRS and just a 1.8 UZR. Sure, his 17.3 UZR/150 is in line with career numbers and fifth best in the Majors, but he needs to be better than this, especially if he’s going to be this incompetent at the plate.
This is the worst we’ve ever seen of Lagares, and it could not come at a worse time. It’s a bad time for him because this was his opportunity to earn more playing time, and it was a bad time for the Mets because they desperately needed him to step up.
