It’s been hard to find any positives with the Mets’ performance on the field this week. Following a sweep at the hands of the dreadful Royals, the Mets traveled to Baltimore and demonstrated more of the same sluggish, uncompetitive play Friday night as they lost 10-3 to the Orioles.
“We have to play better,” Buck Showalter said following the game. “Some people that are getting an opportunity have to take advantage of it… We’re just not pitching very well and not scoring many runs.”
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One of the Orioles players who took advantage of the poor Mets pitching was James McCann. McCann, who had two notoriously rough years with the Mets from 2021-2022, greeted his old team by reaching base four times, driving in five runs, and even stealing third base. Yes, you read that right.
McCann’s first two-run base hit opened the scoring in the fourth inning. With two outs and a chance to escape the inning with runners on second and third, John Curtiss threw a first-pitch fastball right down the middle that McCann sent back up the middle to give the O’s a 2-0 lead.
After the Mets’ offensive performance in Kansas City, a two-run Baltimore lead seemed much greater than that. This was especially so due to Dean Kremer, Baltimore’s starter, easing his way through the Mets’ lineup across the first five innings, allowing just one hit and one walk.
Kremer gifted the Mets a chance to score in the sixth, though, when he lost all command and walked the bases loaded. Francisco Lindor took advantage by looping a ball into the shallow outfield, tying the game at two apiece and giving the Mets some rare life.
Any momentum the Mets may have gained was squashed immediately in the bottom of the inning. The Orioles’ bats had their way with the newly-acquired Phil Bickford, tagging him for four runs over 1/3 of an inning. After an RBI single off the bat of Ryan O’Hearn gave the Orioles the lead again, McCann came to the plate once again with two runners on and launched a ball into left field that would have been a home run in almost any other ballpark. Instead, he had to settle for a two-run double to extend the Baltimore lead to 5-2. McCann then successfully stole third base before being driven home on a sacrifice fly.
Baltimore’s offense put up another four-run inning in the seventh off of Reed Garrett. Rookie Jordan Westburg hit his second career home run, a three-run shot, before McCann added yet another RBI hit, this time an opposite field single. The Mets added the final run of the game in the eighth inning, a fielder’s choice off the bat of Danny Mendick, to make it a 10-3 ballgame.
Before James McCann decided to terrorize his former team, David Peterson drew his first start for the Mets since being transferred to the bullpen. Despite a shaky first inning he exited the game after three scoreless, a successful outing considering he was never going to go the length he normally would if he was stretched out and firmly in the rotation.
Nevertheless, the prowess of the Orioles’ offense and the debacle that is the Mets’ bullpen made this game almost unfair upon Peterson’s departure. With the loss, their fourth straight, the Mets find themselves at 50-59.
James McCann Revenge Game
The former Met entered Friday night’s contest with the Mets with just 10 RBIs and a .570 OPS on the year. In this game alone, he went 3-for-3 with a double, two singles, a walk, five RBIs, and a steal of third base that directly resulted in another run. He was easily the biggest producer for either team, an irony that just seems fitting.
On Deck
The series between the Mets and Orioles will continue Saturday evening, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET. Tylor Megill (6-4, 5.17 ERA) will rejoin the Mets’ rotation and notch his first big league start in over a month. Baltimore will send Kyle Gibson (10-6, 4.53 ERA) to the mound as he looks to record his fourth straight quality start. The game will be broadcast on SNY.
