What’s up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets stayed fast asleep against the Phillies on Thursday, dropping the first game of their four-game series 3-0 (box)
RHP Nolan McLean started for the Mets and he was excellent over six innings, allowing just one run to lower his ERA to 3.18 for the year
RHP Tobias Myers allowed two runs (one earned) over two innings of work, while RHP Austin Warren gave the Mets a scoreless frame
The Mets offense was absent once again as they scattered just four singles against RHP Aaron Nola and the Phillies bullpen
The Mets have now lost five games in a row, having scored just seven runs during that span while hitting .192/.269/.251 as a team
1B Jared Young was carted off the field after a collision with McLean at first base - he is undergoing concussion protocols after being hit in the head but has feeling in his extremities
Roster Moves 📰
RHP Xzavion Curry optioned to Triple-A Syracuse
RHP Cameron Weston (#74) recalled from Triple-A Syracuse
Injury Updates 🏥
RHP Devin Williams (shoulder strain) is expected to return from the injured list either this weekend or early next week
Play of the Game 🙃
The Mets best chance came in the bottom of the eighth inning when they had two runners on down 3-0. But Tim Mayza got Juan Soto to ground out to end the threat, and basically end the Mets hope of showing a pulse in this game.
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
In the latest midweek edition of The Just Mets Podcast, Andrew Claudio and Rich MacLeod debate how bad David Stearns, Steve Cohen and Mets fans looked after Pete Alonso made his return to Citi Field during an emotional and vitriolic series vs. the Baltimore Orioles...
SUBSCRIBE: YouTube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify
Down on the Farm 🌾
3B Jefferson Rojas (No. 1 prospect, Triple-A): 2-for-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI
INF Vidal Brujan (Triple-A): 1-for-3, 2 RBI
INF Eric Wagaman (Triple-A): 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI
BOX SCORES
Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (69-84) vs. Phillies (85-68)
Where: Citi Field - Flushing, NY
Starters: LHP Zac Thornton (4-5, 3.44 ERA) vs. TBD
When: 7:15 PM EDT
Where to Watch: Apple TV
The meaning of this final week for the Mets in 2026 ✍️
I am trying to look at the last week of these mathematically meaningless games for the Mets as something meaningful for them. It’s hard when their biggest distraction and controversy of the year transpired in the middle of them, and it’s hard when the offense, which hibernated for much of the year, is hibernating once again. As I always like to say, this isn’t for a lack of effort. We know they’re trying and, whether you agree or disagree with what happened with Pete Alonso this week at Citi Field, there’s definitive proof they care about the results and competing even if they’ve been eliminated from playoff contention.
And the truth is, it isn’t as if they’re not competing in these games. They’re not hitting, but there’s zero question to me they’re doing what they can to play spoiler and play their part in the pennant race against other teams which are contending.
The issue is, they’re not playing well collectively again, which is pretty much what bad teams do and what the Mets generally are despite their strong-ish record in the second half. This week alone has magnified their holes and weaknesses, which is totally fine— it should only put an enhanced emphasis on their decisions around Sean Manaea and the rotation, what they need on the north and south side of their bullpen, and their glaring (and aggravating) holes in their lineup.
I maintain my position that the lineup is going to be the hardest problem to solve, and only harder if Bo Bichette opts out. I believed not too long ago that Bichette would stay, but he would be the best free agent available with a clock ticking against a collective bargaining agreement which could be a last chance for him to truly maximize his value. Yeah, he’s been league average overall, but that’s because he was so pitiful for the first two months of the year. That’s how good he’s been since mid-May, and that will matter given his track record coming into New York.
We will see, of course, but I am a little nervous now about the Bichette situation, only because the Mets have so many problems to solve, and his departure would only add to the problems this front office must solve, and solve most of them before December 1 when the CBA expires.
I plan to get into a lot of this after the regular season ends. So, I hope you’re looking forward to some long-form pieces on these issues and my thoughts and analysis there.
There were a couple of positives that came out of last night’s game and, as you know, I like to focus on anything we can find that’s good when the Mets are bad.
First off, thank goodness Jared Young isn’t terribly injured. He got clipped in the head by Nolan McLean on a play at first and had to be carted off while immobilized. He went to the hospital, underwent imaging, and is undergoing concussion protocol. He can feel his extremities, and so Young seems to have dodged a major injury. I don’t expect him to return this year— there’s no reason for that at this point even if he’s feeling good in a week. Just rest, make sure these symptoms clear out, and get back to the team healthy in five months in Port St. Lucie.
Second, there’s McLean who pitched really well last night against one of the best teams in the game right now. I was looking for a strong rebound against a strong team like the Phillies after a real clunker at Yankee Stadium last Friday. That game last week felt like a real rookie boo-boo where he came out over-amped and out of his game, and he bounced back in the best way possible, even if the Mets ultimately lost the game. Those are the kinds of lessons he needs to learn if he is going to take the next growth step.
As far as his Rookie of the Year candidacy is concerned, my gut says he has probably moved ahead of Carson Benge, but this is a three-horse race between McLean, Benge, and Sal Stewart. Benge has been worth more fWAR than either of the two, but it’s hard to ignore Stewart’s 32 home runs and McLean’s 3.18 ERA, either. To me, it’s good that this debate might not end until the award is announced in November, and that all three really need to have a good final week of the season to make their case. Nothing looks truly defined as of yet, and it may not actually happen at all, especially if all three continue to have strong finishes.
McLean will make one more start this season in Texas next Wednesday, assuming they keep him on schedule. That will get him into the upper 170s in innings pitched with a low 3’s ERA in all probability, assuming he has a good final start, which will be important in this race considering how close this all feels. Benge too needs to have a strong final push to make his case.
So yeah, there is some meaning to these games, even if it’s not in the standings.
Around the League 🚩
The Dodgers won the NL West for the 13th time in the last 14 years and beat the Reds 8-2 on Thursday
Munetaka Murakami hit his 32nd home run to help the White Sox back into first place with their 3-1 over the Tigers
Yordan Álvarez hit his 40th home run to propel the Astros to a 6-2 win over the Royals and into first place in the AL West
After a few weeks of playing for their lives, it seems the players have already taken an early vacation. Annoyed by the reception Pete received? Is the drop in intensity since the series against the Orioles just a coincidence?
The Dodgers have won the West for the 13th time in 14 years huh? What is their formula? I know every organization is different but can't they copy them??