Starting pitching dooms Mets in wild loss to Rays
New York slugged it out but was hurt by a horrific outing on the mound. Plus, Brett Baty shines in a true breakout game...
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets began the road trip with a wild 10-8 loss to the Rays as the starting pitching imploded early (box)
LHP José Quintana was shelled early and often, giving up eight earned runs on 10 hits in just 2 2/3 innings
3B Brett Baty had a two-homer night - his first multi-homer game - getting the Mets on the board with a 3-run blast that travelled 378 ft in the second inning, before launching a mammoth solo shot 421 ft in the ninth to give the Mets a slice of hope
SS Francisco Lindor finished 1-for-4 with a two-run double in the top of the 5th
1B Pete Alonso snapped a 0-for-17 stretch with a double that scored Lindor to make it a two-run game in the fifth
OF Tyrone Taylor finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored on the night as the bottom of the lineup came up big
RHP Adrian Houser has been taken out of the starting rotation and will be used out of the bullpen for now
The Mets have now lost seven of their last 11 games, and are back to .500 as a result (16-16)
Brett Baty! 🔥
Finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs
Had his first career multi-home run game
Completed his first multi-hit game since April 12
Snapped a 7-for-43 skid and raised his OPS to .725
Down on the Farm 🌾
3B Mark Vientos (Triple-A Syracuse) left the game after being hit by a pitch on his left arm
RHP Cameron Foster (Double-A Binghamton): 6.0 IP, 5 H, O R, O ER, O BB, 3 K
3B Rowdey Jordan (Double-A Binghamton): 1-for-4, 2 RBI, 1 2B
RHP Brandon Sproat (High-A Brooklyn): 5.0 IP, 1 H, O R, O ER, 4 BB, 8 K, 84 P
LHP David Peterson (Single-A St. Lucie): 3.0 IP, 1 H, O R, O ER, O BB, 4 K
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (16-16) vs. Rays (15-18)
Where: Tropicana Field - St. Petersburg, FL
Starters: RHP Christian Scott (MLB Debut) vs. RHP Zack Littell (1-2, 3.27 ERA)
When: 7:15 PM EDT
Where to Watch: FOX
Brett Baty enjoys monster night and flashes hopeful signs…✍️
Friday night proved to be a wild one for the New York Mets in Tampa Bay.
On a night where the bats actually came alive - rare during this recent stretch - it was the starting pitching that will grab the headlines. And rightly so.
LHP José Quintana, coming off a stellar last outing against the Cardinals, laid a Godzilla-sized egg on the mound in an ugly outing that was really tough to watch. To put it bluntly, the veteran absolutely crapped the bed.
Quintana was shelled, despite tossing a scoreless first inning, allowing eight earned runs on 10 hits. As a result, he didn’t even make it out of the third inning.
When your starting pitcher just doesn’t have it, and proceeds to implode on the mound, you will more often than not be left with a grueling mountain to try and climb. That was the case for the Mets, who never really recovered from their starter gifting the Rays eight runs.
It wasn’t for a lack of trying, however.
And, for that, New York has Brett Baty to thank.
The young third baseman, without a homer since the opening series of the year, had the kind of game that inspires confidence in both the player himself and also in those around him. It was the kind of game that gets you excited about the future.
Baty actually got the Mets on the board first, launching a 378 ft three-run homer in the second that was so well hit it actually vanished for a hot minute, before eventually showing up among the right-field seats.
We talk all the time about a ball being sent into orbit. Well, Baty actually did that. So much so that Rays OF Harold Ramírez quite clearly lost all sight of the ball. He visibly had no idea what just happened, but it soon became apparent that Baty had crushed one and showed a lot of power in the process.
It only got better from there.
With the rest of the offense doing their best to keep the game close - Starling Marte scored Tyrone Taylor on a sac fly and both Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor hit RBI doubles - Baty came up big at the plate again in the top of the ninth.
This home run was arguably more impressive than the first.
Baty blasted a mammoth solo shot that travelled 421 ft with a launch angle of 27 degrees. It made it a two-run game and gave the Mets a glimmer of hope, before Marte struck out to end the game.
Although the Mets lost, and Quintana’s stinker on the mound will spark a plethora of concern, it shouldn’t be lost just how encouraging a game this was from Baty.
After all, the 24-year-old finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored and four RBIs, raising his OPS to .725.
Friday was Baty’s first career multi-home run game, and also his first multi-hit game since April 12. The third baseman snapped a 7-for-43 skid and displayed the kind of power that leaves you drooling over the kind of destruction he could cause at the plate.
Furthermore, Baty also continued to flash his stellar defense at the hot corner throughout Friday’s game. He executed an elite play to rob former Met Amed Rosario - who had a big night himself with two RBIs and two runs scored - of an extra-base hit with a diving play in the fourth inning. Baty also showed great awareness to throw to home to begin a 5-2-3 double play with the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth.
All in all, on a night where the Mets proved once again that this year is going to be full of ups and downs, Baty provided the greatest boost with a tantalizing display of raw power that should leave everyone hopeful over the third baseman’s future.
Okay, so it is just one game, but it was one game that could prove to be a really important milestone and check mark in Baty’s career.
It was another pretty ugly day for the Mets, but Brett Baty’s offensive explosion and continued improvement in the field should make a wild loss easier to digest.
Around the League 🚩
The Padres are reportedly trading for two-time batting champion Luis Arráez from the Marlins. Miami will receive RHP Woo-Suk Go, OF Dillon Head, OF Jakob Marsee and 1B Nathan Martorella (MLB.com)
Cubs manager Craig Counsell lost his first game against former team Milwaukee, with the Brewers taking the opening game of the series, 3-1
Andy Pages had a four-hit night, including a walk-off RBI single as the Dodgers beat the Braves, 4-3 in LA
Phillies shortstop Trea Turner scored the winning run from second base in Philadelphia’s 4-3 win over the Giants, but injured his left hamstring in the process
Ryan McMahon blasted a leadoff homer that landed in the Allegheny River as the Rockies beat the Pirates, 3-2 at PNC Park
RHP Chris Paddack didn’t allow a run on two hits while striking out six as the Twins beat the Red Sox to win their 11th consecutive game
I hate the”crapped the bed “expression”when an athlete fails in any sport.We used to say that “he had nothing on the ball but his glove.”Seriously a bad outing happens and after his unreal outing last time out this one was truly a clunker.I would bet that he will make the necessary corrections and be fine his next time out.
So much for Stearns the Whiz Kid being such a great evaluator of talent - Houser is horrible , Wendle is horrible , etc. This concerns me very much about the future especially next year when they have money to spend. As far as what is going on lately - we knew we did not have enough pitching and I don't know what is going on with the offense. I do believe that all that trade rumors have gotten to Alonso.