Pitching problems come to the forefront as the Mets get swept away by the Brewers

The Mets pitching was poor all weekend as the club starts 0-3 for the first time in ten years

(New York Post)

What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️

• The pitching, defense, and offense were all substandard as the Mets fell to Milwaukee 4-1 to start the season 0-3 (box)

• This is the first time the team started the season 0-3 since 2014

• RHP Tylor Megill gave up two runs, one earned, in four up and down innings

• RHP Yohan Ramírez was issued a three-game suspension for throwing at Rhys Hoskins but appealed the decision. He got in the game and gave up two runs in three innings

• Francisco Alvarez served as the DH in the finale and went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored

• Pete Alonso had two opposite-field hits with a 2-for-4 game

• Manager Carlos Mendoza served a one-game suspension that stemmed from Ramirez intentionally throwing at Hoskins on Saturday

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Injury Updates 🏥

• Tylor Megill will undergo an MRI on his shoulder after his outing during his Sunday’s game

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Prospect Watch 🔎

• 3B Mark Vientos (Triple-A): 1-for-3, BB, RBI

• SS Luisangel Acuña (Triple-A): 1-for-4, run

• RHP Mike Vasil (Triple-A): 2.1 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 4 BB

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Rumor Mill 🤫

• The Mets were among eight teams to scout 22-year-old NPB ace Roki Sasaki in Japan (LA Times)

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Today’s Game 🗓

Match-up: Mets (0-3) vs. Tigers (3-0)

Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY

Starters: LHP Sean Manaea vs RHP Reese Olson

When: 7:10 PM EDT

Where to Watch: SNY

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So, about that pitching… 📝

After last season the rotation needed to revamped which lead to a few question marks heading into spring training.

However, once spring training started the fears were settled somewhat when the pitching looked great. They lead the league in ERA and overall looked like an impressive group as a whole.

Then the season started which is, once again, a reminder spring training does not matter.

José Quintana was an unlikely Opening Day starter and was not at his best on Friday, to say the least. He gave up six hits and two runs in just 4.2 innings which led to needing bullpen innings early.

Luis Severino lasted a full five innings but got shelled on Saturday - he gave up 12 hits and six earned runs which once again led to heavy bullpen usage. The performance also did not help any lingering fears that he might not able to rebound from last year’s abysmal season.

Tylor Megill was the best of the bunch but was far from sharp. He was let down by his defense and had to battle his own share of command issues on Sunday, but now there are concerns about his health after he left his start early with shoulder discomfort.

The Mets will now play an undefeated Tigers team, they will have one off day, and then play thirteen straight before their next day off. The bullpen has already had to cover alot of innings and their starting pitching depth might get pressed into service early.

At a minimum, one has to figure the Mets will be digging into their starting pitching depth now thanks to the uncertainty with Megill’s shoulder, and could need more to cover this long stretch of games - they’re opening the season with 19 games in the first 20 days of their seasons.

The concerns with their pitching staff in general remain legitimate.

Hopefully, the rest of the rotation can come through and this last series was just a fluke. They’ll turn to Sean Manaea today and then Adrian Houser tomorrow before turning over the rotation on Wednesday. Weather could play a factor this week which could alter their rotation plans for the week, which could help with their current predicament in the rotation.

Yes, it’s still early. And yes, there were other problems which didn’t help the club this weekend. Especially the offense which, outside of one or two innings, did very little over their first 27.

In the end, their most immediate roster weakness was immediately called into question. They need to figure out how to get more quality innings out of this rotation, which was the endless issue this club had last season. It’s going to be a while before Kodai Senga returns, so Carlos Mendoza and crew will have their work cutout for them with a very big pitching puzzle to solve before that happens.

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Around the League 🚩

• OF Juan Soto went 3-for-5 with an RBI to help the Yankees win 4-3 and finish off a sweep of the Astros

• After their game, the Yankees acquired Jake Cousins from the White Sox

• Pirates defeated the Marlins 9-7 to start the season 4-0 which is the first time the team has started the season with a four-game road series sweep since 1903

• The Phillies rallied late to defeat the Braves 5-4 to pick up their first win of the season

• The Reds walked-off the Nationals with back-to-back home runs with two-outs in the ninth inning

• Blue Jays LHP Genesis Cabrera was issued a three-game suspension for his actions in causing a benches-clearing incident against the Rays