3 UP

1. Mets Win Consecutive Games

As Lou Brown famously said, “OK, we won a game yesterday. If we win today, it’s called ‘two in a row.’ And if we win again tomorrow, it’s called a ‘winning streak’… It has happened before!”

After Brandon Nimmo hit that surprise go-ahead two run homer in the top of the ninth, the Mets would go on and win their second straight game.

This marked the first time the Mets have won consecutive games since, well, since they last faced the Diamondbacks. At that time, the Mets swept the Diamondbacks en route to winning four straight.

The Mets now go to face a Rockies team nine games under .500 at home and have lost eight of their last 10 games. If the Mets have a run in them, now is the time.

2. Demote This

With the Mets struggling offensively and searching for answers, there was some contemplation about demoting Michael Conforto to Triple-A.

With this series, Conforto’s hitting should no longer be a concern.

In the four-game set, Conforto hit a double, two homers, and drove in five RBI. In addition to the power numbers, he is getting on base (four walks and a hit by pitch).

With Conforto heating up, it should come as no surprise a Mets team who couldn’t score runs has scored 16 runs in the four-game set and 10 runs over the last two games.

3. Blistering

There’ were concerns about Steven Matz with his having a blister issue causing him to be pushed back in the rotation.

Any concerns about his fingers were alleviated with Matz pitching 6.2 terrific innings against the Diamondbacks, limiting them to one run on six hits. This is all part of a three-game stretch where Matz has allowed fewer than three runs per start while pitching at least six innings.

Looking at the bigger picture, Matz has allowed more than three runs just once all season, and he has been going deeper into games as the season has progressed.

3 DOWN

1. Same Old Issues

On Sunday, Jay Bruce came up as the go-ahead run and both times he failed to deliver. The guy brought to deliver in these spots and to provide a power bat is slugging .321, not to mention his .212 batting average and -0.9 WAR.

Bruce’s struggles are one of the issues which keep coming back to harm this Mets team. The team won’t put injured players on the DL, instead watching them flounder. Bruce is just the most recent example of this, and it’s not only hurting him, but the rest of the team as well, having an “easy out” in the middle of the lineup.

Ultimately, the same issues are holding this team back, and the team does not appear to do anything to adequately address the issues.

2. Can’t Finish Them Off

While Jacob deGrom‘s 2018 season seems to be specifically designed to prove pitching wins don’t matter, Zack Wheeler seems to at least prove the phrase “pitched good enough to lose” to be true.

While Wheeler hasn’t received much run support, he has been given leads. In four of his last five starts, Wheeler was given a lead by the Mets, and he would give them all back.

It’s fair to note Wheeler has not had much margin of error. It’s also fair to note just how little his run support is.

This puts added pressure on the pitchers to be perfect or near perfect. In games, Wheeler seems capable of doing that only until he gets a lead.

3. Familia Looked Shaky

Down 2-1 in the bottom of the 8th inning Sunday, Jeurys Familia was brought in to keep the score where it was. He was not able to do that.

In his first appearance back from the disabled list, he allowed an earned run on three hits and a walk, needing 22 pitches to get out of the inning. He did not strike out any of the six batters he faced.

After the Mets took the lead in the top of the 9th inning, Robert Gsellman was brought in for the save opportunity and seemed to handle it with ease. With the exception of an error by Dominic Smith, both mental physical, he had a clean inning. I think it is not outlandish to expect Gsellman to get some save opportunities before Familia shakes off the rust, and maybe even some after that if all goes well.