Well, that was another excruciating loss to say the least. For the fourth game in a row, the Mets were in it until the end but just could not get the job done when it counted. Who was it this time? There are a few people that could be blamed for the loss – Rafael Montero definitely being towards the top of that list. However, if Jose Reyes had caught a popup, the Mets probably would have won.
Reyes was tasked with catching a popup with two outs and a runner on first base. As you probably know by now, he dropped it. Yes, it was windy, Yes, Travis d’Arnaud stood in his path.
But Reyes has been playing long enough to know what he needs to do to catch an infield popup. There is no excuse for dropping that ball. After that play, with runners on first and third, Jerry Blevins was brought in to face Andres Blanco who hit a ground rule double to left field, tying the game.
Reyes had an opportunity to make up for his mistake in the bottom of the 9th with one out and a runner on first. Instead, he hit a double-play ball which, if not for his speed, would have ended the inning. He beat out the return throw to first to remain on the base paths with two outs. As if Reyes wasn’t having a bad enough night already, he almost gets picked off after he fell asleep and was stranded in no-man’s land on a wild pitch.
“My mind is fine,” Reyes told reporters after being asked how his mindset was during this slump. “I want to be good, I want to help my ball club as much as I can. The only thing I have to continue to do is work at it and try to get out of this slump sooner than later.”
“I’m going to be better than this,” Reyes concluded.
The aging third baseman hit a double in the fourth inning and ended the game having gone 1-for-4, actually raising his batting average to .100. He has not done what he was brought back to do, and that is to be a speedy spark plug at the top of the lineup. He does not have a triple or a stolen base, and in 55 at-bats has only recorded five hits. If he is not performing well enough to be the leadoff hitter, the reason he was signed, why have him in the lineup at all?
