Its never easy on the eyes with these Mets
The Mets won, but the club is still a hot mess
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets walked-off the Marlins in the 10th inning of a wild 9-7 in the opening game of the series at Citi Field on Friday night (box)
DH MJ Melendez entered the game as a pinch-hitter and emerged as the hero, blasting a walk-off two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th. Melendez finished with three RBIs and a run scored
RHP Freddy Peralta failed to go deep in a game yet again, allowing four runs - two earned - on seven hits with one walk and five strikeouts across 4.2 innings
RHP Austin Warren came through clutch in the 10th inning, producing a huge 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout
On the flip side, Manager Carlos Mendoza sent out RHP Tobias Myers for the eighth, with Myers giving up a two-run homer to blow what had been a four-run lead at one point
On the offensive side, CF A.J. Ewing and 3B Brett Baty both came up with two-run singles in the bottom of the 1st, while 1B Mark Vientos hit a solo home run in the third inning
LHP David Peterson will be moved to the bullpen, with LHP Sean Manaea set to slot in as his replacement (MLB.com)
RHP Tobias Myers will be optioned in order for a fresh pitcher to be called up (The Athletic)
The Mets will induct Lee Mazzilli and Bobby Valentine into the franchise’s Hall of Fame today. Fans are urged to be in their seats by 3:30 PM EDT
Injury Updates 🏥
INF Jorge Polanco (left Achilles bursitis) blasted a three-run homer in his second rehab game with Double-A Binghamton on Friday night, finishing 1-for-1 with three RBIs and two walks. Polanco will play for Binghamton again on Saturday, and could re-join the Mets on the next road trip if all goes well
C Francisco Álvarez (torn meniscus) continues to make incredible progress in his recovery, including taking full batting practice on Friday, and could start a minor league rehab assignment as early as next week
SS Francisco Lindor (left calf strain) has resumed baseball activities and is progressing well, but there’s still no timeline for a return
CF Luis Robert Jr. (herniated disc) still hasn’t resumed baseball activities, and has undergone a series of injections in order to get through rehab activities
RHP Kodai Senga (Lumbar spine inflammation) will throw a bullpen session on Sunday, followed by another rehab outing
Play of the Game ⭐️
This one is easy.
After failing to put the Marlins away and then blowing a lead late, you couldn’t blame Mets fans for having that sinking feeling as the game entered extra innings.
Well, enter MJ Melendez.
The outfielder was 5-for-45 at the plate in May and mired in a real funk, yet he found a way to come through in the clutch in the biggest way possible.
With the runner on second and one out, Melendez delivered his first career walk-off with a two-run bomb that sealed a second straight win for the Mets.
It was a special moment for Melendez, as well as a rare moment of joy for those Mets fans inside Citi Field.
Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
On the latest midweek edition of the podcast, Andrew reacts to the Mets losing two out of three to the Reds and attempts to find five positives about the 2026 season so far…
SUBSCRIBE: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify
David Stearns Speaks 🗣️
Mets President of Baseball Operations David Stearns spoke to the media before Friday’s game at Citi Field. Here’s a quick rundown of what he had to say…
Stearns acknowledged that the Mets have dug themselves a hole, but stressed that it isn’t an “insurmountable hole.” He did also admit that the team will have to play a lot better baseball in order to achieve what they want to achieve this year.
We’ve already seen plenty of youth movement this year, but Stearns said that any more callups will only happen if the organization believes those prospects are ready to contribute.
Stearns admitted that injuries have had a sizable impact, but made clear that it is on the team to overcome those injuries.
On the subject of injuries, Stearns also conceded that “one of the most frustrating parts of the season” has been the fact that the envisioned top of the order has hardly had any time together.
Stearns still believes the Mets have the talent to be a “very good offensive team,” while again backing the coaching staff and certain players to be able to turn things around.
Down on the Farm 🌾
1B Christian Arroyo (Triple-A): 2-for-5, 1 R, 3 RBIs, 1 HR
C Kevin Perada (Triple-A): 2-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 2B
LF JT Benson (High-A): 2-for-3, 1 R, 2 RBIs, 1 BB
SS Elian Peña (No. 7 prospect, Single-A): 2-for-4, 3 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 1 HR
2B Jamari Baylor (Single-A): 3-for-6, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 2B
LHP Nicolas Carreno (Single-A): 5.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K
BOX SCORES
Single-A SLU | High-A BRK | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (24-33) vs. Marlins (26-32)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: RHP Christian Scott (0-0, 3.20 ERA) vs. RHP Tyler Phillips (0-0, 1.07 ERA)
When: 4:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Yeah, they won but this isn’t fun ✍️
It says a lot about the current state of the New York Mets that it is hard to get excited about a walk-off win, doesn’t it?
MJ Melendez’s heroics sealed a second straight win, but it all felt rather arbitrary. I don’t know about you, but last night just didn’t resonate with me at all. Maybe that’s because the Mets did everything within their power to lose and it took one swing to escape with a win.
Or, rather, maybe it is because this team is just incredibly hard to root for right now. I feel as if all the fun and joy has been taken out of supporting this team.
And, if you ask me, that lies directly with the front office.
Linda did a great job on Friday at looking into whether or not it is time for Carlos Mendoza to lose his job, and that viewpoint has more credence today after Mendoza managed last night’s game horribly. He didn’t do himself any favors, that’s for sure.
But I’m not going to get into Mendoza’s job security, or into the finer details of last night’s win. Instead, I want to focus on the front office and, more specifically, David Stearns, because I think they are more to blame for the current feeling of apathy that is settling in around the Mets.
After all, Stearns is responsible for putting the product we’re currently seeing on the field, and it stinks. Again, over the course of a long season, even the worse teams in all of baseball will run into a winning streak here or there. The last two games don’t change anything. This is still a really fundamentally bad baseball team.
It is also a horrible team to watch on a daily basis. The starting pitching is a mess and was never fully addressed, despite the fact that the rotation sunk the Mets last year. And people wonder why six relievers were used on Friday night, potentially throwing the rest of the weekend into chaos. Sure, Freddy Peralta was a great get even if he’s only been so-so so far, and it isn’t on Stearns that the righty can’t go deep into games, but it is on Stearns that he didn’t do more to address a very obvious flaw.
It is also Stearns’ fault that the offense is a stinking hot mess. I mean, take Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo out of the lineup and replace them with Marcus Semien and Jorge Polanco (which has literally been negative value for this team), and this is what happens. Semien has clearly lost all ability to do anything at the plate, while Polanco can’t even get on the field. There are just too many pieces that don’t fit in that lineup, and that is squarely on Stearns.
Sure, injuries haven’t helped, nor has the fact that the likes of Bo Bichette have yet to really get firing. With that said, this team wasn’t exactly winning at a high clip with the likes of Francisco Lindor, Polanco, and Luis Robert Jr. all healthy. And maybe signing Bichette to play an alien position, when he’s hardly even a good defender to begin with, has contributed to the infielder’s sluggish start at the plate.
Furthermore, most days feel like a chore watching the Mets. We see the same mental mistakes and embarrassing brain farts over and over and over again, and there is never any urgency to correct those errors or adjust on the fly. It is as if the players have given up already. Either that, or they are simply just incapable of turning things around.
I would lean towards the latter being correct because the roster is just flawed. It is a mishmash of ugly parts that just don’t fit together properly, and that’s resulting in the mess we’re witnessing on the baseball diamond on a nightly basis. That isn’t a manager problem, it is a front office problem. And it is a whopping big one at that.
We’re not just dealing with a small sample size here, either. Since June 12, 2025, the Mets are 63-88, which is the fifth-worst mark in all of baseball. And that level of ineptitude is down to the fact that, outside of his first year, Stearns hasn’t been able to construct a roster capable of being just good, let alone competing.
And forget about making the postseason. Stearns’ failure to do the job he was hired to do has made this team unwatchable, and it has made moments like Friday’s walk-off win feel insignificant.
Firing the manager won’t change any of that. And if the Mets want to just stay relevant, let alone do anything else, and keep fans engaged at the same time, then holding the man responsible for building this hot mess accountable is the only way to do that.
If Stearns is allowed to continue to make the same mistakes over and over, then I fear it will be a long time before we have fun as Mets fans again. And owner Steve Cohen may lose a lot of goodwill unless he’s prepared to make the change that is actually needed, and not just a superficial one that makes it look like the team is doing something.
Around the League 🚩
The White Sox are reportedly calling up top prospect INF Jacob Gonzalez, with INF Munetaka Murakami set to miss some time with a hamstring injury (ESPN)
OF Bryan Reynolds crushed a walk-off two-run homer to lift the Pirates to a 6-5 win over the Twins
LHP Justin Wrobleski struckout nine over seven stellar innings and the Dodgers got four home runs in a 4-2 win over the Phillies
LHP MacKenzie Gore tossed 6.1 scoreless innings as the Rangers beat the Royals, 9-1
The Blue Jays wiped out a five-run deficit to come from behind to beat the Orioles, 6-5
LHP Carlos Rodón tossed six innings of one-run ball and three different Yankees homered in a 8-2 win over the A’s
Stearns owns this. I get he needs to show optimism or else the wheels REALLY come off, but the guy would benefit from adding just a tiny bit of contrite self awareness into his public face to the fans.
Seeing the sum total of his moves has made me appreciate what an amazing manager Counsell was in Milwaukee. Made Stearns look like a genius.
Andrew, can you explain what you thought were Mendoza's "horrible" moves last night? "Linda did a great job on Friday at looking into whether or not it is time for Carlos Mendoza to lose his job, and that viewpoint has more credence today after Mendoza managed last night’s game horribly. He didn’t do himself any favors, that’s for sure."