3 UP

1. Thor Returns

It has been an up-and-down season for Noah Syndergaard, and things did not look good. He was coming off a poor start against the Padres, and he was set to pitch in Nationals Park, a place where he had never pitched well.

To the surprise of some, Syndergaard looked like the Syndergaard of old. He held the Nationals hitless over the first five innings, and he would allow just four hits over eight innings while striking out six batters.

Just like that, two of Syndergaard’s last three starts have been dominant. In the Month of May, he is 2-0 with a 2.35 ERA, 0.870 WHIP, and a 7.00 K/BB. This is exactly what the Mets need him to be if the team has any hopes of righting this ship.

2. Great Bullpen

With injuries to pitchers like Jeurys Familia and Justin Wilson, two pitchers who were supposed to play a big role in the bullpen, you could foresee an already struggling bullpen getting worse. To the surprise of some, the opposite has happened. In fact, during the Month of May, the Mets bullpen has a National League best 1.83 ERA.

The reason why is everyone in the bullpen has stepped up. While we notice Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman, we overlook the job pitchers like Tyler Bashlor, Daniel Zamora, and Drew Gagnon have done to make this a dominant bullpen.

With respect to Bashlor, this was a pitcher who had a 4.22 ERA last year. In his brief time this year, he has a 1.42 ERA, and he is striking out 10 percent of the batters he has faced. That’s a huge step forward for one of the more promising relief arms in the Mets system.

3. Pitchers Who Rake

Time and again, we have seen Mets pitchers help their own cause. We saw that again in this series with Drew Gagnon and Zack Wheeler getting hits. So far this season, Mets pitchers lead the Majors in homers, and they are second in hits. They are also second in the National League in batting average and OBP while leading the league in slugging.

3 DOWN

1. Mets Are A Bad Team 

A bad Nationals team still without Trea Turner beat the Mets in a three game series where two of their three starters were Jeremy Hellickson and Anibal Sanchez. With yet another series loss, the Mets are now two games under .500.

As noted by MMO‘s Michael Mayer, the Mets are now 0-5 in rubber games, and they are 0-20 when trailing after seven innings.

You can choose to cut this anyway you want, but in the end, the Mets are a bad baseball team, and that’s been the case with them having a fair share of luck on the injury front. Now, who knows what’s going to happen with Michael Conforto having a concussion and Jeff McNeil having some sort of ill defined abdominal pain.

2. Bad Roster Decisions Biting The Mets

There was a chance to seize some momentum, not just in the series, but going forward. However, the Mets had Wilmer Font, a 29 year old reliever 6.81 career ERA pitching like a 29 year old reliever with a 6.81 ERA who has been pressed into a starting role. The decision to not just obtain him, but also to start him looked all the more ridiculous when Drew Gagnon, a pitcher with a very similar skill-set already on the 40 man roster, out-pitched him in the same game.

Of course, this is what happens when you open the season with just four Major League caliber starting pitchers. The Mets appear to be in no rush to remedy the situation as the team is not yet compelled to promote Anthony Kay to Syracuse.

With injuries to Conforto and McNeil, the team now needs an outfielder. The very frustrated Keon Broxton isn’t an option because he’s been terrible in his limited opportunities, and now he’s at the point where he’s wondering why the Mets obtained him in the first place. He’s not the only one.

Another option not available is Dominic Smith because the team has refused to let him work out in left field despite his requests. Apparently, the Mets are more invested in J.D. Davis, a player with similar foot speed who has hit .219/.219/.250 in May than the younger and more talented former first round pick of the organization.

Overall, Brodie Van Wagenen made a lot of moves this past offseason and gave up a lot of young talent. So far, the only player who has played well is Edwin Diaz. While Diaz has been great, a closer doesn’t move the needle much when the position players can’t get him leads to protect.

3. How Will Alonso Respond?

In April, Pete Alonso was a sensation and would ultimately be named the Rookie of the Month. Things have been markedly different in May. In May, Alonso is hitting .191/.255/.383, and he is striking out 29.4 percent of the time. Teams have begun shifting him more effectively with Alonso hitting .200 with no extra base hits against the shift this month.

It’s difficult to ascertain if this is a prolonged slump or if the league has figured him out. In the end, the answer to that question lies with Alonso, and the Mets need him to find that answer sooner rather than later.