In the aftermath of another Mets debacle that culminated in the departure of slugger Yoenis Cespedes, the Amazins found it within themselves to take one against the Atlanta Braves on Monday.
With their ace Jacob deGrom on the mound, the team finally gave him some runs to work with and the veteran right-hander responded with his typical dominant performance to earn his first win of the season.
However, the much needed victory also came with some losses on the injury front for the Mets who saw Jeff McNeil, Robinson Cano and Amed Rosario hit the trainer’s room with various injuries. All three will be evaluated before Tuesday’s game in Washington, according to Luis Rojas, and none of the injuries are considered serious. We’ll see…
The Braves on the other hand were not as lucky as their young starting pitcher Mike Soroka suffered a season-ending torn Achilles tendon in the third inning, while attempting to cover first base.
It was a gruesome injury and one that could certainly impact the NL East race.
“It kind of makes you sick, honestly,” Michael Conforto said. “He’s a bright star and we know he’ll come back.”
The Mets find themselves in fourth place but only three games back, and with the expanded playoff format it’s not a stretch to think there’s a good chance for them to play some October baseball. But not unless they get their act together.
As the team heads to DC for a pair of games against the Washington Nationals, it’s imperative that we start to see the middle of the order driving in more runs. With Pete Alonso, Michael Conforto and J.D. Davis expected to provide the power, their bats have yet to come alive.
As a team, the Mets are batting .268 which actually ranks third in the NL. However they have only scored a disappointing 45 runs in 11 games, while allowing the opposition to score 60. That’s not a formula for success.
The team showed signs of waking up last night, with contributions up and down the lineup. Wilson Ramos clubbed his first home run in a big night for him, amd Cano was 2-for-2 with three RBIs and raising his batting average to .412.
That’s all fine and dandy but it’s the bat of Pete Alonso that the Mets will desperately need if they expect to make any real noise this summer. His power is vital to the team’s success and it’s been lacking thus far.
Of course none of that means anything unless the Mets can solve the back of the rotation and the front of the bullpen. Let’s see what happens tonight.
