Another game, another injury, another loss
The Mets were competitive, but ultimately came up short in the second matchup of their series in Anaheim
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets lost a nail-biter to the Angels in extras, 4-3 (box)
RHP Nolan McLean wasn’t his typically dominant self, surrendering three runs on six hits in four innings before getting the hook; McLean struck out Mike Trout looking twice
The Angels opened the scoring on a third-out scoring play in the first inning that Carlos Mendoza didn’t challenge after the replay team missed it
3B Bo Bichette evened the score with an RBI single in the third, his only hit of the night; he also hit into a costly double play in the top of the 10th inning
The Mets’ newest additions came through when needed, as LF Andy Ibañez and RF Austin Slater provided clutch hits throughout the night
CF Tyrone Taylor also got in on the scoring action, tying the game again in the seventh inning after a huge stolen base by 2B Marcus Semien
Tobias Myers, Huascar Brazobán, and Craig Kimbrel stepped up with five scoreless innings of relief behind McLean
RHP Austin Warren surrendered the game-winning hit on a two-out, two-strike curveball to Oswald Peraza
C Luis Torrens and the Mets agreed to a two-year, $11.5 million contract extension on Saturday
Injury Updates 📰
INF Ronny Mauricio will be placed on the injured list after fracturing his thumb on a head-first slide into first base on Saturday against the Angels
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
ICYMI: Andrew took the mic for this week’s solo episode to cover that nasty Nationals series and address the Mets’ continued misery.
SUBSCRIBE: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify
Play of the Game 💔
Sigh.
In the bottom of the 10th inning, Mets reliever Austin Warren quickly loaded the bases with no outs. Though he put up a valiant effort to wrestle back some control by getting both Josh Lowe and Vaughn Grissom to fly out to Carson Benge in back-to-back at-bats, Warren ultimately gave up the game-winning RBI on an 0-2 curveball that was actually pretty well placed.
The walk-off snapped the Angels’ seven-game losing streak.
Who’s Cold? 🥶
Francisco Álvarez is hitting .174/.174/.217 with a single RBI and no walks against seven strikeouts in his last seven games
Down on the Farm 🌾
RHP Jonah Tong (No. 2 prospect, Triple-A): 6.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R (0 ER), 2 BB, 6 K, 1 E
RF A.J. Ewing (No. 3 prospect, Triple-A): 2-for-5, 1 R, 1 K, 1 SB
LF Cristian Pache (Triple-A): 2-for-3, 1 R, 2 2B, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 SB
RHP Channing Austin (High-A): 5.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K
C Ronald Hernandez (High-A): 1-for-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB
BOX SCORES
Single-A SLU | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG (SSPD) | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (11-22) at Angels (13-21)
Where: Angel Stadium - Anaheim, CA
Starters: RHP Clay Holmes (3-2, 1.75 ERA) vs. RHP Jack Kochanowicz (2-0, 3.09 ERA)
When: 4:07 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Where are the Mets going to find a shortstop now? ✍️
I suppose this could’ve also filled the ‘Play of the Game’ section, given how consequential a moment it may prove to be — but why not spread the misery around a little bit?
In the top of the seventh inning of an at-the-time tied contest, Ronny Mauricio stepped up against Reid Detmers with runners at first and second and only one out. On a 1-2 curveball, Mauricio smacked the ball towards the first-base hole and, in an attempt to beat the play at the bag, dove headfirst into first base.
Though fans and coaches alike certainly can appreciate his sense of urgency, his execution left quite a bit to be desired:
After the game, Carlos Mendoza announced that Mauricio had fractured his left thumb and will be headed to the IL. Mauricio is the sixth Met to land on the injured list in a matter of weeks, further complicating what has already been an unsteady season in Queens.
The switch-hitting Mauricio was brought up to replace the switch-hitting Francisco Lindor, who will likely be on the shelf until June. That creates an obvious problem, in that it leaves the Mets without an active full-time (current) shortstop on the Major League roster.
The obvious answer, it seems, is to move Bo Bichette back to shortstop, and it’s hard to imagine the Mets going any other route. That would all but guarantee full-time reps at third base for Brett Baty, which could either go really well or, more likely, just lead to more of the same from the league’s most frustrating offense.
Given what we’ve seen from Bichette so far at third base, I don’t anticipate him handling that transition all that poorly. He’s logged 14 innings at the position since the Mets lost Lindor, so the easing-in process has already been started, and it’s hard to foresee any sort of additional statistical fall-off at the plate following another positional shift.
Though his offense hasn’t always matched — despite leading the team in hits, doubles, runs scored, and RBI — Bichette’s played more-than-competent defense at third base to open the season. His +1 DRS is his best mark since 2023, and his +2 OAA and +1 FRV scores are his best since the shortened 2020 season. With just shy of 300 innings logged through April, this is looking like a career-best year in the field for the Mets’ new third baseman.
Bichette moving to shortstop opens up the third base slot for Brett Baty to take over full-time in his natural position. Given how cold Baty’s been to start the season — especially recently — I’m not sure that’s going to have much, if any, positive impact, and could actually lead to even more underperformance at the bottom of the lineup.
On paper, Baty and Bichette’s offensive years actually look incredibly similar through the first few weeks of play: though both players sit atop the Mets’ run scoring and runs batted in lists, they both have an OPS+ way below 100 and have combined for nearly 60 strikeouts against less than 20 walks. Bichette has grounded into six double plays — a symptom of his continued proclivity for hitting hard-hit balls straight into the ground — which has arrested momentum in several critical moments already this season, and Baty is swinging less than ever while making the worst contact of his career when he does. It’s bad both ways.
However, their deep data tells two distinctly different stories: one of a veteran hitter who’s off to one of the worst starts of his career but should start to level off sooner than later, and the other of a beloved homegrown prospect turned full-time big leaguer who just can’t quite seem to figure it out, no matter how many reps he gets.
Though the basic stats may not show it, Bichette’s deeper batted ball (and some plate discipline) data suggest his stat line will even out eventually. Sports Info Solutions published an article earlier this week that illustrates just how extraordinarily unlucky Bichette was last month relative to his performance last season; the nerd stats suggest the same. He also has a career wRC+ of 89 in March/April, so let’s see what warmer weather has in store for his bat.
Baty’s deep data, on the other hand, doesn’t offer much anything to inspire the same sort of hope earned by Bichette’s chart (and career track record). While his bat is plenty fast, it’s doing absolutely nothing for him: he’s not making hard — or even particularly good — contact with the ball, mostly because he isn’t making good swing decisions, or even swinging all that often. Worst of all, his defense, his hallmark heading into this season, has been largely awful this year. Granted, a good part of that can likely be attributed to his floating between positions this season, so perhaps we’ll see a boon in that department by getting some focused time at the spot on the diamond he’s most familiar with. Maybe that stability will also translate into improvements at the plate.
I don’t mean to single one guy out: Baty is just one of many 2026 Mets whose year has off to a negligible start. There’s just literally nowhere for this team to go to get an offensive boost. The Mets will certainly need to address the lack-of-infielders situation on the big league roster, but there aren’t many clear impact options available.
Maybe Christian Arroyo could get the call: he’s seen time at third base in Triple-A this season, and he’s hitting .304 with a homer, 13 RBI, three swipes, and a .757 OPS in his first 69 at-bats. Beyond that, I don’t see a ton of options: should they call up Vidal Brújan, who’s hitting .241 in Syracuse? That doesn’t sound like it would do much. Perhaps Jackson Cluff, who’s rocking a cool .139 average and has two hits in his last eight games? Doesn’t seem like a great option either. A.J. Ewing has been excellent out of the gate in Triple-A, but he’s also logged fewer than 20 at-bats and has been primarily patrolling the outfield — not really an answer to this problem.
Who knows? Maybe regular reps at third base will unlock something in Baty that turns him into prime Robin Ventura or something. Maybe the Bichette-Baty tandem will be incredibly slick, and they’ll both start hitting, and everything will turn around overnight. More likely, very little will change, and the offense will stay terrible while the defense stays mostly fine.
This team has taught us not to expect anything, so I won’t. I just don’t see any other path forward besides the most obvious one — and if it looks anything like the road we’ve been down so far, this journey doesn’t seem to be getting any more encouraging or predictable any time soon.
Great.
Around the League 🚩
The Seidler family formally announced its intent to transfer ownership of the Padres to Kwanza Jones and José E. Feliciano (MLB.com)
Chris Sale struck out 11 Rockies, but Ronald Acuña Jr. went down with a hamstring injury in Atlanta’s 9-1 victory over Colorado
OF Jordan Walker continued his breakout campaign with his 10th home run of the season to help propel the Cardinals to their sixth straight win
Cody Bellinger had a four-hit, four-RBI day that featured two homers in the Yankees’ 9-4 win over the Orioles
Max Meyer and the Marlins bullpen combined to one-hit the Phillies in Miami; Meyer threw seven strikeouts and just one walk over seven innings, facing just one batter over the minimum
I thought head-first into first base was pretty much forbidden because a., it often leads to injury and b. it doesn't get you to first any faster than running. On a personal level, Mauricio will never have as good an opportunity for playing time and he blew it.
Dumb stuff, followed by more dumb stuff. It’s hard to watch these days.