Mets Week in Review: Consistency Eludes Mets in Up and Down Week

The Mets finally got through a full week without any unforeseen postponements or unplanned double-headers, and we still have no idea how good or bad this team is.

In getting swept at Wrigley Field, a place they haven’t won a regular season series since 2013, the Mets showed how bad they are at their worst, kicking the ball around and leaving a battalion of men on base.

Returning home however, they showed how good they are at their best, taking two of three from the division-rival Nationals and recording shutouts in both their wins.

As usual with baseball, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. The trick for the Mets as the season moves towards the second month is to develop some sort of consistency outside of their impressive starting pitching.

Weekly Record: 2-4

2021 Record: 9-8 (1st place, NL East)

162 Game Pace: 86-76

Went Went Right: Elite Pitching

In both the Met wins this past week, they held their opponent without a single run. Jacob deGrom continues his historic start to the season, making his case as the best pitcher player in the game. The Mets ace threw a complete-game, two-hit shutout against the Nationals in his lone start of the week, striking out a career-best 15 batters in the process.

Sunday’s win came courtesy of Taijuan Walker, who bounced back from a tough start in Chicago on Tuesday to go seven scoreless innings against the Nationals in a 4-0 win. Miguel Castro and Edwin Diaz took care of the eighth and ninth innings, respectively, effectively shutting the door on the afternoon.

In three appearances this week, Castro went 2.1 innings without a run, striking out six batters in the process, while Diaz has looked like the player the Mets thought were getting when they traded for him ahead of 2019.

Sean Reid-Foley impressed in his season debut Thursday, working three scoreless innings out of the bullpen, striking out four Cubs without allowing a hit.

The Mets bullpen, a question heading into the season, has combined for a 2.22 ERA with 38 strikeouts in 28.1 innings so far this year.

What Went Wrong: Consistency

So far this season the Mets have proved to be much better at home (6-2) than on the road (3-6). The series in Chicago was a mess, as the defense seemed to realize every Met fans’ worst fears in the Windy City, committing a combined six errors over the first two games.

In Thursday’s extra-inning loss, the Mets had a runner on third with nobody out and the bases loaded with one away in the 10th and couldn’t scratch out a run.

Sunday however, looked much different as the Mets picked off a runner, made two spectacular catches courtesy of Albert Almora Jr. and Francisco Lindor and nabbed Victor Robles trying to stretch a double into a triple with a perfect relay from Michael Conforto to Jonathan Villar and eventually Davis.

More consistent contributions from the lineup could alleviate some of the defensive pressure, but the Mets need to be at least middle of the pack defensively if they want to compete for a spot in the postseason.

Stock Up: Pete Alonso

Bad News for pitchers everywhere: The Polar Bear is sure starting to look like the 2019 version that hit 53 homers and drove in 120 runs.

In his last seven games, Alonso is hitting .333 with three homers and only struck out four times to go with four walks.

Alonso is currently on pace to finish with 47 home runs and 114 RBI, which will certainly play, and leads MLB in average exit velocity at 98.6 MPH.

Stock Down: Joey Lucchesi

To be fair to Lucchesi, the inconsistencies of the early Mets schedule never really allowed him to find a groove, but after allowing three runs over three innings to the Cubs on Thursday, the lefty was optioned to the Mets alternate site.

With the Mets not needing a fifth starter over the next week because of off days, and Carlos Carrasco on the precipice of an early-May return, the immediate future of Lucchesi is very much up in the air.

Injury Updates:

Speaking of Carrasco, the veteran righty threw four innings of a simulated game on Saturday and is ahead of pace after suffering a torn hamstring in spring training.

Noah Syndergaard also seems on pace to return from last year’s Tommy John surgery sometime in June. He faced live hitters for the first time Saturday and reached 97 MPH with his fastball.

Reliever Drew Smith was activated off the IL and is currently at the alternate site with a return seemingly imminent and Seth Lugo has begun his rehab assignment, throwing two bullpen sessions after surgery to remove bone spurs earlier in the 2021.

Week Ahead:

After an off-day Monday, the Mets will host the hard-hitting Red Sox on Tuesday and Wednesday in the first interleague series of the year. David Peterson and deGrom are set to start against the first-place, 14-9 Sox, who are 6-1 on the road this year.

Another off-day Thursday precedes a weekend set at Philadelphia, already the third meeting of the teams this season. The Mets currently hold the lead in the season series, 4-2, and play 10 games in a row starting with Philly.