The Mets are wilting at an absolutely dreadful time in the season, dropping the second game of a crucial four-game series with the Phillies, 9-3.
The Phillies struck early against Sean Manaea. After getting the first two men out, Manaea gave up a single to Bryce Harper, and hit J.T. Realmuto in back to back at bats, putting two on with two outs. Nick Castellanos doubled to left, scoring two and putting the Phillies up 2-0.
In the second, Bryson Stott singled with one out, but was picked off of first
base on a challenged call. However, the next two batters, Otto Kemp and old friend Harrison Bader, each homered to extend the Phillies lead to 4-0.
Manaea would settle down, finishing five innings with four runs, five hits, one walk, and five strikeouts. But against Ranger Suárez, four runs were more than enough. Suárez struck out a season high 12 batters tonight, not allowing a run on one hit (a single for Brandon Nimmo) and three walks across six innings. Suárez especially had Juan Soto and Pete Alonso’s numbers, as both whiffed three times against the lefty in consecutive at-bats.
The Mets finally got on the board in the top of the seventh with Suárez out of the game when Mark Vientos homered to left-center field to score the Mets’ first run of the series and put his team on the board off of old friend David Robertson. However, baseball giveth and baseball taketh away.
In the bottom of the inning with one out, Bryson Stott hit a routine ground ball to third, and Vientos did not hustle on the play and allowed Stott to get to first. Kemp flew out to left one batter later, which should’ve ended the inning. However, after Bader singled to right, Kyle Schwarber hit his 50th home run of the season off of Justin Hagenman, and the Phillies were now up 7-1.
In the eighth against Tanner Banks, Jose Siri would collect his first hit since coming off the Injured List earlier today with a one-out double off the outfield wall. It was just Siri’s second hit – and second double – of the season. Soto broke his streak of strikeouts and drove in Siri on a single to left and make it 7-2. Alonso would also get off the schneid with a two-out single to put two on for Vientos. Would baseball giveth and taketh again?
It would not. Vientos would line out to center field to end the inning.
Well, it sort of would, because a misplayed fly ball by Siri led to the Phillies eighth run when Stott singled past a diving McNeil and drove in Edmundo Sosa. Bader, at this point a certified Met killer, singled to score Stott and give the Phillies a seven run lead.
Although four runs scored against him, Hagenman deserves a lot of credit, going three innings, and should’ve been out of both innings that led to Philadelphia runs. He saved the bullpen for, hopefully, a brighter day tomorrow.
In the ninth, Starling Marte got on base against Max Lazar with a one-out single. Francisco Alvarez then lined a double to left, putting two in scoring position with one out. McNeil then dorked a ball over second base to drive in Marte and push Alvarez to third. Would baseball giveth and taketh yet again for Siri with two on and one out?
It would not. Siri would put out for the second out of the inning. The ice-cold Francisco Lindor was the Mets’ final chance, and he waved at a breaking ball for the 27th out of the game, and the Mets lost four in a row and continue to put their playoff chances in jeopardy.
Of note, Soto stole third base in the eighth with two outs in a risky move, but it did get him to 30 steals on the year, giving him his first 30/30 season, with 40/30 looking likely as well.
The Mets will send Clay Holmes to the mound tomorrow to face off against Cristopher Sánchez. Maybe tomorrow will be better. Maybe not.
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Box scores
Win Probability Added
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Big Mets winner: None
Big Mets loser: Sean Manaea, -21.0% WPA
Mets pitchers: -25.5% WPA
Mets hitters: -24.5% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Mark Vientos’s solo homer, +4.8.% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Nick Castellanos’s first inning double, -17.9% WPA
