Necessary lineup changes inspire Game 2 win as Mets split doubleheader
New York recovers from a tough afternoon loss to take the nightcap. Plus, Carlos Mendoza's gutsy lineup changes paid off and deserve a lot of praise...
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What’s up with the Mets? ⚾
Game One
The Mets dropped their fourth straight after losing 7-2 to the Brewers in the first game of the doubleheader on Wednesday (box)
RHP Clay Holmes allowed two earned runs on three hits and four walks with one strikeout across 5.1 innings
RHP Reed Garrett quickly gave up a single and a grand slam to turn a 2-1 lead into a 6-2 deficit - one his team couldn’t recover from
1B Pete Alonso gave the Mets the lead in the fourth with an RBI single, but that was just one of two hits all game for New York
With the loss in Game One, the Mets’ 3-14 record since June 13 marked their worst 17-game stretch since 2018
Game Two
The Mets rebounded in the second game of the doubleheader to beat Milwaukee, 7-3, and snap a four-game losing streak (box)
RHP Blade Tidwell came in as the bulk reliever and gave his team 4.1 innings, allowing three earned runs on five hits and two walks with three strikeouts
The bullpen, including RHP Huascar Brazobán as the opener and led by RHP Edwin Díaz, combined to throw 4 2/3 shutout innings in the win
LF Brandon Nimmo - hitting in the leadoff spot - hit a huge grand slam in the bottom of the second inning and finished 2-for-5 with a run scored and a stolen base
SS Francisco Lindor drove in the Mets’ other runs, going 3-for-4 with a run scored, a double, a home run and three RBIs
Lindor was also announced as the NL starting shortstop for the 2025 MLB All-Star Game in Atlanta - this is his first time being an All-Star starter
Roster Moves 📰
RHP Austin Warren appointed the 27th man and made available for Game Two of the doubleheader
Injury Updates 🏥
LHP Sean Manaea (strained right oblique, left elbow discomfort) allowed three runs - two earned - on six hits and one walk with three strikeouts across three innings and 60 pitches in his latest rehab start for Double-A Binghamton on Wednesday. He’s scheduled for another rehab start next Tuesday
OF Jesse Winker (right oblique strain) went 1-for-4 with a home run, a run scored and three RBIs in his latest rehab outing for Double-A Binghamton on Wednesday
Plays of the Games 🌟
Game One
Talk about an obvious pick. Things were going relatively well for the Mets in Game One of the doubleheader against the Brewers.
Until Reed Garrett relieved Clay Holmes, of course.
They entered the top of the sixth with a 2-1 lead after Pete Alonso had scored Juan Soto on an RBI single in the fourth.
However, a lack of offense coupled with a badly taxed bullpen has proven to be a recipe for disaster for this team over this recent stretch of awful baseball.
Therefore, we shouldn’t exactly be surprised by what happened next.
Garrett entered the game in the sixth, tasked with protecting a slim lead and picking up some of the slack for the offense. Instead, the righty immediately gave up an RBI double to Brice Turang that made it a tie game.
And that proved to be the crack that helped to break the dam. Garrett then snowballed, quickly allowing Joey Ortiz to hit a go-ahead, back-breaking grand slam that blew the game wide open.
Garrett and the Mets were unable to recover from that knockout punch.
Game Two
There is only one contender for Play of the Game from the second game of the doubleheader, too.
With the offense having struggled in Game One, a serious spark was needed in Game Two. It was needed early, too.
And that’s exactly what the Mets got.
After Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio drew back-to-back walks, and after Hayden Senger had reached base on a lucky bounce, Brandon Nimmo came to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the second.
Hitting leadoff after manager Carlos Mendoza had decided to get creative with his lineup card in order to generate some offense, Nimmo showed the change was justified immediately.
Handed an absolute gift, Nimmo crushed the first pitch he saw for a monster grand slam to give the Mets a 4-0 lead almost right out of the gates. It was a huge shot that changed the entire complexion of the game and served to wake this stagnant offense up.
You don’t get many bigger moments than Nimmo’s show of power in a key spot.
Down on the Farm 🌾
C Francisco Álvarez (Triple-A): 3-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 HR
OF Drew Gilbert (No. 9 prospect, Triple-A): 1-for-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 HR
OF Nick Morabito (No. 16 prospect, Double-A): 2-for-3, 1 R, 3 RBI, 1 HR
1B Trace Willhoite (Single-A): 2-for-4, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 2B
BOX SCORES
Single-A STL | High-A BRK (GM 1 | GM 2) | Double-A BNG (GM 1 | GM 2) | Triple-A SYR (GM 1 | GM 2)
Today’s Game 🗓️
Match-up: Mets (49-38) vs. Brewers (48-38)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: LHP David Peterson (5-4, 3.30 ERA) vs. LHP Jose Quintana (6-2, 3.30 ERA)
When: 7:10 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
Carlos Mendoza deserves a ton of credit for bold Game Two changes… ✍️
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza was in an incredibly tough spot in-between Games One and Two of the doubleheader on Wednesday.
He had come in for a ton of criticism after pulling Clay Holmes from the matinee after 90 pitches. The end result? Reed Garrett entered with a 2-1 lead and left with a 6-2 deficit.
Yeah, not great.
The ugly implosion in the afternoon resulted in the Mets going 3-14 since June 13 - the team’s worst 17-game stretch since 2018.
Confidence was at an all-time low. All morale and goodwill had seemingly disappeared as fans waited with dread for the second game of the doubleheader. This team was in free-fall, and there didn’t seem to be any stopping the spiral. It seemed as though the Mets were inventing new ways to lose games every single day.
While those at Citi Field braced themselves for a tough ending to an already rough day, Mendoza had some tough decisions to make.
Something had to change.
So, Mendoza decided to do something drastic in a bid to spark his slumping team into life and halt a negative wave of momentum that was gathering steam with each backbreaking loss.
The struggling Francisco Lindor - who entered Game Two in an all-time 2-for-29 slump with 13 strikeouts in his previous 15 games - was bumped out of the leadoff spot. It was the first time since last May (191 starts) that Lindor had not batted leadoff for the team. Instead, that role would be filled by Brandon Nimmo, who was bumped up.
It was a bold move to make and, if it would have backfired and the offense would have struggled once again, Mendoza no doubt would have heard about it.
Well, the best managers are the ones not afraid to make tough decisions in the toughest of moments. They go with their gut and trust that the results will play out the right way.
And, on this occasion, Mendoza’s gut was proved right.
Swapping around two veterans in the lineup, while taking some of the pressure away from a slumping Lindor, proved to be a genius move.
In the bottom of the second, with the game still yet to see a run scored, Brandon Nimmo came to the plate with the bases loaded and blasted a grand slam in the leadoff spot to give the Mets the kind of offensive spark they have been missing over this recent stretch.
With one emphatic swing of the bat, the entire complexion of the game was changed, and the entire mood of a team had been shifted. Just like that.
Mendoza’s lineup gamble had paid off. And it would only get better too.
Lindor, hitting second, continued to show why his manager was right by hitting a home run of his own immediately after Nimmo’s heroics. Lindor would finish Game Two 3-for-4 with a run scored, three RBIs, a double, and a home run.
All in all, Nimmo and Lindor combined to drive in all seven of the Mets’ runs in the nightcap.
And, let’s not forget who the Mets were up against in Game Two, by the way. Jacob Misiorowski - the Brewers rookie phenom who entered the game with a 1.13 ERA and a 3-0 record - had given up just three total hits in his first three career MLB starts. However, he was unable to stop Nimmo and Lindor.
Mendoza was burned when rolling the dice in Game One, but he didn’t allow that mistake to haunt him and prevent him from doing what was necessary to try and win the second game and salvage something from the day.
That’s gutsy, smart managing right there.
Mendoza also deserves credit on the pitching side too.
I’d say the vast majority of Mets fans were probably running for the hills when it was announced that Huascar Brazobán would be the opener in Game Two. After all, the veteran had allowed 11 earned runs in his last five outings prior to Wednesday. The stage was set for an ugly start to the nightcap.
Instead, Brazobán delivered for his manager and his team, throwing a shutdown inning with no hits or runs allowed. Mendoza then got Brazobán out of there, trusting Blade Tidwell to provide some length and give the bullpen a bit of a breather. Tidwell also did his job for the most part, delivering a solid 4.1 innings of work before running into trouble in the sixth after giving up back-to-back home runs. Dedniel Nuñez, Richard Lovelady, Ryne Stanek, and Edwin Díaz then combined to lock it down the rest of the way, with Díaz recording the final four outs for his 17th save of the season.
Overall, Mendoza pressed all the right buttons in the second game of the doubleheader to set the stage for his team to snap a four-game losing streak. It was also New York’s fourth win in their past 18 contests.
Mendoza showed a pulse and a beating heartbeat when it mattered the most. His team followed suit by doing their jobs and stopping the slide with a big-time win. Whether they can now build on that win and take off remains to be seen, but Mendoza deserves plenty of praise for not being afraid to mix things up in order to spark a change in results.
His bold, gutsy calls were the catalyst behind what could turn out to be a pretty big win for the Mets.
Around the League 🚩
The Braves placed RHP Spencer Schwellenbach on the 15-Day IL with a fractured right elbow
Former Met and 13-year veteran Kevin Pillar announced his retirement from Major League Baseball on Wednesday
Starters for the 2025 MLB All-Star Game were revealed with the likes of Mariners C Cal Raleigh and Tigers OF Javier Báez set to start for the AL, while Padres 3B Manny Machado and Cubs OF Pete Crow-Armstrong were among the starters announced for the NL (MLB.com)
Dodgers LHP Clayton Kershaw made history by becoming the 20th member of the 3,000 strikeout club with three strikeouts on Wednesday night
The Pirates shutout the Cardinals 5-0 for a series sweep and their sixth straight win, while throwing three shutouts in a series since 1976
RHP Nick Pivetta threw six innings of one-run ball to help lead the Padres to a 6-4 win over the Phillies
OF Jose Altuve recorded two hits in the Astros’ 5-3 win over the Rockies, passing Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell for second-place on Houston’s all-time hits list
Am I the only one who noticed Dicky Lovelady came up big in the second game? I mean he was up for the moment.
Okay, I'll show myself out.
Looking forward to after the break: "Francisco Alvarez went 3-for-4 in game one with a home run for the Mets and has now hit a homer in three straight games."