Ohtani had a great night at the plate, as he always seems to. He only recorded one hit, but he reached base three other times via the walk, one of which was intentional. He made his one-hit count, as it was a 115.4 miles-per-hour laser double to right field in the third inning. That set up runners on second and third with nobody out and both runners came around to score on a sacrifice fly and an RBI single off the bat of Mike Moustakas, giving the Angels an early 2-0 lead.

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Outside of facing Ohtani and those two runs he gave up, Senga had a really strong night on the mound. He had good swing-and-miss stuff, especially with his ghost forkball against an Angels lineup that was seeing him for the first time. That led to a terrific outing in which he struck out 10 batters over 6 2/3 innings. With his performance, he lowered his already stellar season ERA from 3.19 to 3.17.

As good as Senga was, though, Angels’ starter Patrick Sandoval was arguably even more impressive. Like Senga, Sandoval also generated plenty of swings and misses, particularly with his changeup. That led to seven strikeouts over six innings in which he only gave up one run and two hits, his lone blemish being a Francisco Lindor solo home run to make it a 2-1 game. Sandoval did walk four batters, including Pete Alonso three times, but those free passes never came back to bite him.

The Mets had a chance to tie or take the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning, with Sandoval being replaced by lefty reliever Matt Moore. Danny Mendick greeted him with an opposite-field double before Jonathan Araúz laid down a bunt that the catcher Logan O’Hoppe couldn’t gather cleanly, putting runners on the corners with still nobody out.

However, a brutal sequence followed in which Tim Locastro struck out on three pitches and Brandon Nimmo hit a shallow fly ball to left field. Mendick tagged up, a questionable decision given where the ball was caught and the fact that Lindor was on deck, and he was easily thrown out at the plate which put a disappointing end to a once-promising inning.

Adam Kolarek and Trevor Gott pitched 1 1/3 combined shutout innings behind Senga out of the Mets’ bullpen before Sam Coonrod found himself in trouble with runners on the corners in the ninth inning. With Coonrod needing just one more out to escape the inning, Nolan Schanuel kept his hitting streak to start his big league career alive by throwing his bat out and looping a tough pitch into shallow center field which scored the runner on third, giving the Angels a massive insurance run and making it a 3-1 game.

The Mets brought the tying run to the plate with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, but 2023 All-Star closer Carlos Estévez struck out Daniel Vogelbach to put the finishing touches on this one. The 3-1 loss was the Mets’ third in a row as their season record drops to 59-70.

Stat of the Game

With a Nationals victory earlier tonight and the Mets losing this one, the Mets find themselves in last place in the NL East for the first time all year and for the first time since August of 2020. It has been a year of unforeseen lowlights for the Mets and being in last place in late August might just be the worst of them all.

On Deck

The series with the Angels will continue Saturday evening with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET. Carlos Carrasco (3-7, 6.42 ERA) will take the mound for the Mets as he hopes to find any sort of glimmer of hope in what has been a really tough season. For the Angels, 23-year-old Chase Silseth (4-1, 4.00 ERA) will take the mound as he comes off of a rough start against the Rays. The game will be broadcast on SNY.

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Francisco Lindor was scratched from last night’s game against the Braves due to right side soreness. Buck Showalter explained after the game that Lindor felt the soreness during batting practice, and he is set to have medical imaging done today to determine its severity. Lindor remarkably played in every game this year before missing yesterday’s game, a year after he played 161 games and only missed one due to a finger fracture.

Latest Mets News

Denyi Reyes has joined the Mets to start the first game of today’s doubleheader against the Braves, with José Quintana getting the start in the second game.

Mike Puma of the New York Post wrote about how the Mets may consider playing Jeff McNeil at third base next season.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote that he believes the Mets will pursue Shohei Ohtani this offseason. He also believes that Japanese superstar pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto may be the best fit for the Mets this offseason in terms of free agent starting pitchers.

Latest MLB News

José Bautista is officially retiring from baseball. He will sign a one-day contract with the Toronto Blue Jays and enter the team’s prestigious Level of Excellence.

The Yankees placed starting pitcher Nestor Cortes on the 15-day injured list with a left rotator cuff strain. Cortes had been out since May due to injury before returning to make a start last week.

Short once again on starting pitching, the Yankees recalled both Jhony Brito and Randy Vásquez from Triple-A Scranton/Wilks-Barre.

Former Mets’ minor leaguer Allan Winans has a locker in the Braves’ clubhouse at Citi Field, presumably to start one of the doubleheader games today. Winans was left unprotected by the Mets a couple years ago during the minor-league Rule 5 draft, and he will now get a chance to face them in the big leagues.

Latest on MMO

In the latest Mets Minors Recap, Michael Mayer highlighted Brett Baty‘s home run in his first game back with Triple-A Syracuse.

Chris Bello broke down a potentially game-saving decision by Francisco Álvarez during Wednesday night’s win against the Cubs.

James Villani analyzed the updated MLB Pipeline prospect rankings in which the Mets have five top-100 prospects.

On This Date in Mets History

2000: Benny Agbayani infamously forgot how many outs there were after catching a fly ball, handing it to a young fan thinking the inning was over. A run came in to score due to Agbayani’s blunder before he realized his mistake and snatched the ball away from the fan.

Birthdays: Barry Manuel (58)

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Shohei Ohtani will be baseball’s biggest white whale next offseason. He should still be a very obtainable target for the New York Mets, despite their incredible spending spree this winter.

As crazy as this offseason was in terms of the money spent on some of the biggest names in the game, next winter should reach another insane level mainly because one of the most dynamic superstars in baseball will be a free agent. That man is Shohei Ohtani.

One of the finest and most majestic unicorns we have ever seen grace this great game will be a free agent after the 2023 season. And all signs point towards Ohtani becoming MLB’s first $500 million man. Put it this way; if the two-way superstar sets the sport alight once again in 2023, he will very likely become the best paid player in the history of the game no matter what the final figure is.

And, despite the fact the Mets already blew through every luxury tax threshold imaginable this winter by committing over $350 million in payroll for the 2023 season, don’t be foolish enough to think that owner Steve Cohen won’t be going all out to add baseball’s most attractive star to his team next winter.

Even when or if the Carlos Correa deal is confirmed, and we’re still waiting on that, that won’t prevent Cohen from going big game hunting once again next year. In-fact, thanks to his incredible and never-ending personal wealth, he can go out and add a star to his team every single offseason if that’s what he so wishes.

While other teams and organizations may have to move some pieces in order to accommodate Ohtani, the Mets are in an unprecedented position where they can just go and give the superstar whatever he wants. No matter the cost. After all, Cohen has already made it abundantly clear he will do whatever it takes to improve this team year in and year out. That’s despite what it may cost him personally in terms of luxury taxes.

That’s the main point to consider here when it comes to the Ohtani sweepstakes in 2024. The Japanese sensation would significantly improve every single team in MLB and the Mets would be no different. Because, effectively, you are getting two players in one with Ohtani due to his brilliance as a starting pitcher, coupled with his prowess at the plate.

The 28-year-old is making history on a daily basis in MLB. He would instantly solve the Mets’ struggles at the DH spot given his ability to absolutely mash and put the ball in play at a high rate. He hit .273/.356/.519/.875 with 34 homers, 95 RBI, 11 stolen bases and 30 doubles in 2022. He led all designated hitters with at least 100 at-bats in hits, runs, total bases, triples, homers, RBIs and walks. Ohtani also owned an 18-game hitting streak last year. He would transform the Mets lineup greatly.

As for Ohtani the pitcher, the righty excelled in 2022. He had a better ERA+ as a pitcher (172) than both the Mets’ Max Scherzer and new Yankees starter Carlos Rodón, he had a better strikeout percentage (33.2 percent) than Gerrit Cole and Corbin Burnes, and he allowed the third-fewest extra-base hits (39) of any starting pitcher in the American League (with a minimum of 600 opponent at-bats). The two-time All-Star finished with a 2.33 ERA, 219 strikeouts and just 44 walks.

Ohtani is a true generational one-of-a-kind talent as it gets, and the payday he’ll receive next offseason will probably reflect that fact. It stands true that the Mets are probably the only team willing to absorb the penalties associated with being a repeat luxury-tax offender. It also sure as hell stands true that Cohen is one of the only owners in baseball happy to be hit hard in his own pocket in order to make sure his team remains a perennial winner.

As a result, the bevy of moves made this offseason and the money those moves cost won’t prohibit the Mets from making major additions further down the road. These aren’t the Mets of old. If Cohen wanted to sign first baseman Pete Alonso to a long-term extension and then go make a serious run at Ohtani in 2024, he has the means, the resources and the attitude to be able to accomplish both goals. The Mets are all-in to win right now and for the foreseeable future. They should also absolutely be in on Ohtani next winter because they are perfectly equipped to pull off such a deal.

Cohen no doubt also has the vision to understand that Ohtani would act as a serious money maker for the Mets. After all, his considerable talents are wasted with the Angels but, placed in a big market and a baseball hotbed such as New York, the marketing opportunities would be endless. As would the amount of Mets fans wishing to get their hands on an Ohtani jersey. A blockbuster free agent pursuit of Ohtani in 2024 would make all the sense in the world for the New York Mets. And it is one they could still afford despite their lavish spending this offseason.

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Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

At the start of what is sure to be an offseason full of rumors surrounding one of the best players in baseball, Los Angeles Angels general manager Perry Minasian tried to shut some of those rumors down before they even start.

Minasian at the start of the GM Meetings said the team won’t trade star pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani this offseason, according to Sam Blum of The Athletic. He also said recently the team had “no appetite” to trade him.

Ohtani has one year left on his deal with the Angels before hitting free agency at 29 years old. He won American League MVP in 2021, and he’s a finalist again in 2022. That might be an every-year thing as long as he’s healthy.

This year, Ohtani put up a .273/.356/.519/.875 slash line, 145 OPS+ and 3.8 fWAR as a hitter and a 2.33 ERA (2.40 FIP), 172 ERA+ and 5.6 fWAR as a pitcher over 166 innings.

He’s at the same time one of the best pitchers and best power hitters in the league.

Now, while Minasian says Ohtani won’t be traded, that’s the favorite line of many GMs around the league. With one year left on his deal and no real indication Ohtani is working toward a long-term deal with Los Angeles, it would behoove Minasian to at least feel out the market. He could still get a king’s ransom with just one year left of team control. (Check out our trade profile of Ohtani.)

Nationals GM Mike Rizzo said in June that Juan Soto wouldn’t be traded. He was traded in July. Now, while Soto had more left in team control, that’s all to say words mean one thing. Actions (and a hefty trade offer) mean another.

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Shohei Ohtani

Position: Starting Pitcher and Designated Hitter
Bats/Throws: L/R
Age: 28 (July 5, 1994)
2022 Batting
Traditional: 666 PA, .273/.356/.519/.875, 160 H, 34 HR, 95 RBI, 72 BB, 161 K
Advanced: 142 wRC+, 24.2 K%, 10.8 BB%, .320 BABIP, .385 xwOBA, 3.8 fWAR, 3.4 bWAR
2022 Pitching
Traditional: 28 GS, 166.0 IP, 2.33 ERA, 1.012 WHIP, 15-9 W/L, 219 K, 44 BB
Advanced: 172 ERA+, 33.2 K%, 6.7 BB%, 2.68 xERA, 2.40 FIP, 2.65 xFIP, 5.6 fWAR, 6.1 bWAR

Rundown

It’s Shotime!

Shohei Ohtani is a true once-in-a-generation player. It took him a few seasons to reach the full hitting and pitching potential he has but now he’s been everything expected and more.

Ohtani made his MLB debut at 23 with the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani was the 2018 rookie of the year after showing his two-way ability with 22 home runs and a .285/.361/.564/.925 slash line while pitching to a 3.31 ERA in 10 starts.

But it wasn’t smooth sailing for the Japanese megastar. Prior to even signing with the Angels, Ohtani was diagnosed with a first-degree UCL sprain in his elbow. By the time the end of the 2018 season hit, he was recommended for Tommy John surgery.

Ohtani wouldn’t pitch in 2019 but still appeared in 106 games as a designated hitter. Sadly his season was shortened when he needed surgery to repair a bipartite patella. His sophomore season finished with a .286/.343/.505 line, 18 home runs and 62 RBIs.

Ohtani attempted to pitch again in 2020. He made one start in July, allowing five runs without recording an out. He experienced discomfort in his arm following his second start of the season and was shut down from throwing for the rest of the season. It was the worst season of his career with Ohtani batting just .190/.291/.366.

Ohtani rebuilt himself in 2021. It was a magical season. Every game it seemed he broke a stat or record that hadn’t been done since the dead ball era. He easily won the MVP. He had 46 home runs, 100 RBIs, a 3.18 ERA and 156 strikeouts. What’s crazy about 2021 is he might’ve been even better in 2022.

This season Ohtani’s OPS fell slightly but his pitching was the best it’s ever been. Over 166 innings and 28 starts, Ohtani had a 2.33 ERA. That combined with his 34 home runs should make him the unanimous most valuable player. But that voting will have to wait.

Ohtani is a free agent at the end of the 2023 season. Angels owner Arte Moreno is looking to sell the team. The Angels are not in a spot to compete. All signs look toward Ohtani not finishing his initial contract in LA. Every team is interested, it’s all about who has the package available to get him.

Package

The Mets can put together a package of prospects to satisfy the Angels wants for Ohtani. The real question is if it’s worth it.

It’s likely the Mets are parting ways with all of these players.

MLB No. 1 Francisco Alvarez
MLB No. 18 Brett Baty
MLB No. 85 Alex Ramirez

That’s just the start. It’s impossible to quantify what’s needed prospect-wise for the only two-way player in the sport but three top-100 prospects is a good place to start. The Mets also have catcher Kevin Parada as the No. 37 ranked prospect. Is it possible he’s attached?

The Mets prospect list falls off after their top four. Ronny Mauricio is a name brought up in every proposal and Mark Vientos has been trying to be moved since last season. One thing between the top prospects is none of them are pitchers and none of them have an ETA until 2025. It’s possible someone as electric as Joel Diaz could propel himself to the majors quicker than his 2026 ETA but the Angels will be waiting for years on their return and how much does a new owner want to wait to compete?

If the Mets are fully committed to winning a World Series in the next three seasons than an Ohtani trade for all these players makes sense. The problem is it’s contradictory to every statement the team has made about building a sustainable winner under Steve Cohen.

My Thoughts

Absolutely you trade for Ohtani. No player can match what he does. It will be bittersweet to not see what Alvarez and Baty can do in the major leagues, especially if they have success, but World Series wins are forever.

Maybe the price is down because Ohtani has one year remaining on his deal but it’s hard to imagine any team moving for him without the intent to lock him up for the long term.

Trade for Ohtani. Sign Aaron Judge. It’s not your money so who cares if it’s reckless? Go out and win it all.

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Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

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