In the past few weeks, the Mets’ bullpen has experienced a ton of issues, so it begs the question: Does the team have long term issues in their pen and what is the level of concern? The short answer is that it is far too early in the season to push the panic button, but there are things to address.

First of all, Edwin Diaz had his first off night, which is bound to happen to any reliever. He has been for the most part dominant this season. And overall, as Mickey Callaway has said on a number of occasions, this BP protects leads very well but when the Mets fall behind they have had problems keeping the game within striking distance.

From a clinical standpoint, the biggest problem is far too many walks but that is an issue the entire staff has to deal with, not just the bullpen. The hurlers leading up to Diaz have at times looked helpless out there, unable to throw consistent strikes and in a spacious ballpark like Citi Field. That is inexcusable. Seth Lugo has been the best setup man for Diaz but I think he has been slightly overworked already this season and his innings pitched must be carefully watched by the Mets.

The frustrating part about last night’s loss to the Reds is that this is the type of game the Mets thought they could put in the win column after reconstructing this bullpen in the offseason.  The last thing I want to do is overreact to one game, but a tied game in late innings at home versus an inferior team needs to be money in the bank if the Mets are going anywhere this season.

The club has split their first 28 games this season and really done that based on their offense more than anything else as their pitching and defense have at time betrayed them. And their 5-7 record at Citi Field is troubling because with this pitching staff, wins should become commonplace especially in contests like last night.

I am evaluating things on a very small sample size, but my overall sense is the Mets need more bullpen depth and there is a big reliever still out there waiting to help their bullpen. To me, Craig Kimbrel is the tonic for this bullpen as combining his skills with Edwin Diaz gives the Mets an outstanding duo and allows guys like Lugo and Jeurys Familia to assume lesser roles in the pen which could give them a better chance for success. It also gives the Mets the flexibility of putting Lugo in the rotation if Jason Vargas continues to under-perform.

So my short answer to the headline is that the bullpen is becoming a slight concern but can be rectified by putting the money on the table to bring in a pitcher who will provide the depth this pen needs. To me, it is a simple solution to a problem that is brewing in that bullpen. And it could be a problem that festers into a chronic issue as the Mets head into the summer unless it is addressed right now.