The New York Mets need to turn their season around if they want to come anywhere close to a playoff spot come October. Add in losing 14 of their last 17 games, the team has underperformed to the point where they are free-falling down the National League rankings. As of Thursday, they have the worst record, 10–21, in Major League Baseball. To avoid continuous losses, ownership can consider these points.
Moving on From Carlos Mendoza
In the past week, the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies made bold moves by firing their managers. This followed disappointing starts similar to the Mets’. But it only took them a little over a month to move on from two managers who led their team to last year’s postseason.
Mets skipper Carlos Mendoza, on the other hand, did not lead his team to the playoffs. Even so, he was at the helm of last season’s catastrophic end-of-season collapse that saw them lose out on a playoff spot after once having the best record. But President of Baseball Operations David Stearns did not remove Mendoza, but overhauled his coaching staff.
With new, experienced coaches, the Mets were expected to improve from last season. However, Mendoza has made a slew of mistakes that contributed to their early losing streak. An abundantly clear error came in extra innings against the Chicago Cubs, when Mendoza chose to pitch to Nico Hoerner, the Cubs’ most consistent batter, instead of issuing an intentional walk. Moments later, Hoerner hit the winning run, leaving a sour taste in Mendoza’s mouth.
Nine games later, against the Washington Nationals, Mendoza chose to have Austin Slater pinch hit, removing MJ Melendez from the game. But Melendez hit a game-tying three-run shot earlier in the game. Taking him out meant another reliable hitter was out of the game, contributing to the Mets’ loss. Safe to say, Mendoza can be blamed for making these decisions and will ultimately be fired by Stearns. Mendoza can be replaced by one of the now-free-agent managers. This can help the Mets start to turn their season around.
Readjust the Pitching Staff
Clay Holmes and Nolan McLean have provided the Mets with consistent production in all of their starts. But the same can’t be said for David Peterson and Kodai Senga.
In Peterson’s last outing, he surrendered seven earned runs in 3 ½ innings. He wasn’t productive in his other starts either, giving up nine earned runs in consecutive games. He holds a 6.53 ERA and -0.5 WAR. Senga has struggled as well, allowing 16 runs to score in his last three outings. He failed to pitch for longer than two thirds of an inning.
To make up for their lackluster performances, the Mets can consider moving Tobias Myers into the rotation. The 27-year-old righty pitched in relief for most of this season. But he made one start this season and has started before. Moving Myers into the rotation to replace either arm can be a step towards turning their season around.
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