3 Up, 3 Down: Mets Not In Astros Orbit

3 UP

Guillorme’s Gold Glove

Luis Guillorme was sensational defensively in this series. Go back to his play at third where he nearly set a Mets record by recording 10 assists with two putouts. On a day where the pitchers were dealing, it was Guillorme and his defense that was worth the price of admission.

Guillorme has long been noted for his defense, and he’s finally found a manager in Buck Showalter who understands the value he brings to the Mets. The result is show-stopping defensive plays and great defense.

On the season, Guillorme is one of the best defenders in the game. His 3 OAA ties him with Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo for the Mets lead and has him tied for 46th overall in the majors. Keep in mind, that’s with his having irregular playing time and bouncing between positions.

As Mike Petriello of MLB.com put it, the All-Star Game needs to have a separate event just to feature Guillorme’s ability to catch anything. Seeing him play, you also have to wonder if Major League Baseball should eventually institute a Gold Glove award for part-time or utility players like Guillorme.

Walker Phenomenal Again

We’re starting to run out of ways to say Taijuan Walker has been great for the Mets this season. After his pitching 7 1/3 scoreless innings against a Houston Astros team who scored nine runs the previous night, we’re going to have to find more.

Each and every time Walker takes the mound, he seems to outdo himself. After he has voiced his frustration in the past about not going deeper into games, he answered his manager’s call to go back out for the eighth.

He was an All-Star for the first time last season, and he has been nearly as good this season. He’s also trending upwards getting better and stronger each and every time he starts. While he may not be an All-Star this year, he is pitching like one. Really, he’s pitching like a true ace.

Trumpets Blasting

Edwin Diaz came into an unusual situation in the series finale. It was a tie game, the middle of an inning, and it was the eighth. In years past, this was a situation where we would see Diaz have one of his inexplicably bad games. After Jeremy Pena singled, it appeared things were heading that way.

However, Diaz rebounded with two big strikeouts. The sliders he threw to strike out Yordan Alvarez and Alex Bregman were really unhittable with Alvarez lucky to get even a foul tip.

This should be the year Diaz is finally an All-Star with the Mets. He leads all relievers with a 17.5 K/9, and his FIP is tied for sixth-best in the majors. He’s also converted the fourth-most saves in the National League. Overall, he should be going to Los Angeles in the middle of July.

3 DOWN

Mets Aren’t Good Enough

After the Mets were beaten four times by the Houston Astros over the past week, it’s clear the Astros are at a different level than the Mets. As fans, we can make excuses saying Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer would make a difference. Perhaps, but that doesn’t help a Mets team who scored just one run over the past 18 innings against the Astros and just six over the four games between the teams.

Fact is, while everyone loves Buck Ball, the Mets need more than Pete Alonso as a power threat. Station-to-station baseball can be more fun, but fact is, against teams like the Astros, you need multiple players who can capitalize on a mistake by driving it out of the park.

Yes, the Mets remain productive offensively with a 110 wRC+, sixth-best in the majors. However, with the Mets playing against better pitching this month, they were just a 95 wRC+, which is the fourth-worst in the National League.

There are areas for improvement. As we have seen, James McCann is a massive boost at the plate over Tomas Nido and Patrick Mazeika, so his return should help. However, that is far from sufficient.

The Mets need to get something out of the DH position, and by extension, the J.D. Davis fascination there must end. He’s at a 101 wRC+ with one of the worst whiff and strikeout rates in the majors. This is a position in desperate need of upgrading.

It also doesn’t help Francisco Lindor went back to not hitting after that one brief hot streak. Eduardo Escobar is completely lost at the plate and at third. Mark Canha has among the worst hard-hit rates and barrels leading to .377 SLG and .107 ISO.

Really, when you break it down, this Mets team is so close, and yet, they are missing 1-2 bats to really take it over the top. Really, what they need is to find this year’s version of Donn Clendenon or Yoenis Cespedes. If they don’t, this year appears like it will end in heartbreak.

Homer Prone Drew

Baseball is funny. When the Mets traded Lucas Duda to the Tampa Bay Rays for Drew Smith, the talk was how he had this elite ability to suppress homers. In fact, the joke around minor league circles was Smith would now never allow a homer because up until that point in his professional career, Alonso was the only player to homer off of him.

This season, Smith is among the worst with a 1.38 HR/9. His hard-hit rates, exit velocities, and barrels are among the worst in the majors and trending downwards. To make matters worse, his walk rate is not good, and he’s not getting batters to chase his pitches.

All told, a reliever who appeared to be a potential closer of the future increasingly looks like just another guy in the bullpen. Yes, he’s a part of the equation, but he’s not THE part of the equation. With his regression, the Mets now need to look past just dumping Chasen Shreve, who has been absolutely terrible, at the trade deadline.

They now need to find another piece to bridge to Diaz. That’s because Smith just hasn’t taken that next step he and the Mets needed him to take.

Carrasco Fading

In the first at-bat of the game on Tuesday, Carlos Carrasco had Jose Altuve struck out. However, it didn’t happen as the first base umpire was clearly not paying attention and ruled it not a swing leading to a walk. By his own admission, Carrasco unraveled from there.

It’s odd to hear that type of admission from a 35 year old pitcher who has been through as much as he has. Honestly, you have to take him at his word while getting concerned as to how he will perform the rest of the way if one blow call can take him out of a game.

Then again, it can just be an excuse after he was shelled for six runs over 4 1/3 innings. That comes off his leaving his last start with back problems after he allowed five earned over 2 1/3 against this same Astros team.

Really, when you break it down, Carrasco has simply struggled of late. Over his last four starts, he has a 9.68 ERA while averaging 4 1/3 innings per start. Going further out, while he has had some gems, he has a 6.20 ERA while averaging five innings per start over his last nine starts.

We have to remember Carrasco only made 12 starts in each of the previous three seasons. He’s at the 15 start mark, and he’s thrown 81 2/3 innings which is his highest total since 2018. It’s very likely he’s tired and needs a breather. Unfortunately, the Mets aren’t in a position from a depth standpoint to give him one right now.