Mets' offense no-shows again in loss to Dodgers as skid hits four
As miserable as the first half of the season was for the Mets, the second half is shaping up to be even worse.
They lost Saturday night for a second straight since the All-Star break, a putrid 5-1 defeat to the Dodgers that featured another no-show from the lineup, some shaky work out of the bullpen and comically bad fielding.
As a result, they have followed up a six-game winning streak by losing four in a row.
The only sounds out of the Citi Field crowd were either more boos from the Mets fans on hand or cheers from the many Dodgers fans in attendance.
It’s hard to say what was more emblematic of the Mets’ horrific season, their failure to score while down by a run with runners on the corners and no out in the eighth or Brett Baty’s Little League-level error on a Max Muncy pop-up in the ninth.
They also have scored just one run on four hits in their last two games, but all that really matters is the latest loss dropped the Mets (42-50) back to eight games under .500.
Pete Alonso reacts during the Mets’ loss to the Dodgers on July 15. Robert Sabo for the NY Post
From this point, to get to the 87 wins that got the Phillies into the postseason last year, the Mets would have to go 45-25, which seems fairly improbable.
“Not good enough,’’ Adam Ottavino said of the team’s play. “I don’t know how else to say it.”
Ottavino, who gave up the go-ahead run in the eighth inning, said that despite the daunting numbers, the Mets haven’t given up hope.
“It’s still largely a group of guys that have won a lot of games in our careers,’’ Ottavino said. “You try not to look too far at the big picture because that’s something we can’t control.”
A strong outing by Kodai Senga, who allowed one run in six innings after the start of the game was delayed by 46 minutes due to bad weather in the area, was wasted.
Ottavino was the victim of some misfortune as he gave up the go-ahead run in the top of the eighth.
Pete Alonso’s poor throw to second prevented what could have been an inning-ending double play by David Peralta, which instead turned into a go-ahead forceout.
Alonso said he didn’t “regret the decision” to throw, noting that a good toss likely would have resulted in the double play.
Kodai Senga pitches during the Mets’ loss to the Dodgers on July 15. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
The Mets had just two hits before pinch-hitter Tommy Pham walked to lead off the bottom of the eighth and Francisco Alvarez’s single to left-center sent him to third. But pinch-hitter Mark Canha popped out on the first pitch he saw from lefty Caleb Ferguson and an overmatched Baty struck out before Luis Guillorme — with Starling Marte apparently unavailable off the bench due to illness — did the same.
“It’s probably a different game if we get a run in,” Canha said. “We have a lot of work to do. We know that. It’s been a struggle all year to find consistent production.”
Not surprisingly, the inability to at least tie the score drew the ire of the Citi Field crowd, as the Mets’ season slipped further into oblivion.
Adam Ottavino reacts during the Mets’ loss to the Dodgers on July 15. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
Facing Tony Gonsolin — who had an 8.14 ERA over his previous four starts — the Mets’ lineup came up nearly empty again after they had been one-hit in a shutout loss on Friday.
Mookie Betts gave the Dodgers the early lead with a two-out, opposite-field solo homer in the third inning.
Brandon Nimmo, who just missed a leadoff homer Friday (it ended up a double), blasted a leadoff no-doubt home run to center in the fourth.
Brett Baty can’t field a pop-up during the Mets’ loss to the Dodgers on July 15. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
Brett Baty can’t field a pop-up during the Mets’ loss to the Dodgers on July 15. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post
That tied the score at 1-1 and gave the Mets their first run of the second half.
The Mets ran into trouble in the eighth as Ottavino gave up consecutive one-out singles through the right side of the infield to Muncy and J.D. Martinez.
That set up Peralta’s go-ahead grounder.
And after the Mets squandered their chance in the eighth, the Dodgers tacked on three more runs in the ninth, capped by Baty’s ugly play, on which he lost track of the Muncy pop-up before the ball hit off his face and rolled away, allowing a run to score.
“It’s extremely frustrating,’’ Alonso said. “We didn’t hit well and we had some opportunities, especially late in the game. One run isn’t gonna get it done.”
Source: New York Post
