3 Up, 3 Down: Mets Humiliated In Philly

The 2026 New York Mets may well be one of the worst teams money has ever bought.

Unable to put any sort of winning streak together, the Mets once again showed how flawed they are during a series loss in Philadelphia over the weekend.

Despite taking the series opener, the Mets flamed out in the final two games, including suffering a humiliating 15-3 blowout loss on Saturday. As a result, New York was outscored 25-11 by the Phillies. The team is also 34-43 on the year and sitting in last place in the NL East.

The Mets are now 2-4 over the last week. Consequently, they look anything but a team that can drag itself back into the playoff race. Plus, with the starting pitching a complete mess, those odds are looking more and more insurmountable.

It is time for another edition of 3 Up, 3 Down …

3 UP

HELP ON THE WAY

Without doubt, the biggest positive for the Mets over the weekend was the continued progress made by Francisco Lindor. The shortstop came through two rehab games in the minor leagues unscathed over the weekend. He even ticked off a big box by recording a stolen base for Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday. As a result, Lindor looks set to return to big league action later this week. That would serve as a big boost for the Mets, who need all the help they can get.

REWARDING THE FAITH

In a weekend full of lows, Sean Manaea at least provided a faint glimmer of hope. The lefty was solid in his latest outing, giving up two earned runs on six hits and one walk with five strikeouts. More importantly, Manaea pitched into the sixth inning, doing enough to keep his team in the game until the offense took over. Furthermore, Manaea’s gritty outing also eased the workload on the bullpen. Overall, the veteran is showing small signs of heading in the right direction.

GETTING HOT

Carson Benge was a consistent producer for the Mets in Philadelphia. He recorded five total hits, including a three-hit night in the opener. He also smacked homers on both Saturday and Sunday. Even though the offense did very little against the Phillies, Benge at least tried his best to provide a spark. Plus, Benge is now hitting .290/.333/.548/.882 over his last seven games.

3 DOWN

HITTING THE LOWPOINT

This weekend provided another reminder of just how badly things have gotten off track this season. Thursday’s opener aside, the Mets were not really competitive in Philadelphia. They were totally blown out on Saturday in just an embarrassing effort. And they also couldn’t dig themselves out of a hole on Sunday. As a result, we saw further proof that the Mets probably aren’t equipped to handle good teams or great pitching. This series was just another sobering reminder of how fatally flawed this team really is.

STINKING UP THE JOINT

Freddy Peralta was next-level awful on Saturday. The guy who was supposed to be an ace for this team laid a Godzilla-sized egg on the mound. In what was the worst start of his career, Peralta allowed a career-high 10 runs over just 2.2 innings. He was relentlessly smacked around in a hard-to-watch beatdown. Now owning a 4.83 ERA, Peralta must bury Saturday night as he bids to turn his season around. Buying your team before the third inning is unacceptable, especially for a player of Peralta’s ilk.

NOT HELPING MATTERS

With the Mets reeling from Saturday night, David Peterson needed to offer some stability. Instead, he did the complete opposite of that. Peterson was uncompetitive from the get-go, allowing two runs to score in the first. Then, in the second, he sealed his team’s fate by giving up a three-run bomb to Kyle Schwarber. And, just like that, the Mets were dead and buried by the third inning for the second time in as many nights. The fact that Peterson even started this game underlines what a mess the rotation is right now. The lefty has now allowed 19 earned runs over his last five outings, and is showing no signs of stopping the slide. For the second straight year, it sure looks like the starting pitching will play a big role in dooming the Mets.