Three takeaways from Mets' series loss to Athletics
The Mets’ Mark Vientos runs on his solo home run against the Athletics during the fourth inning of an MLB game at Citi Field on Thursday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Here are three takeaways from another series loss for the Mets, as decided by a 7-6 decision against the Athletics on Thursday.
1. Mark Vientos has been a revelation
Slotted into the No. 2 spot in the batting order for the first time this season, Vientos hit two home runs - one to right-center and the other to right. It was a heck of a power display for the 24-year-old, who is up to 19 long balls on the season.
One modern school of lineup-building thought says to put your best hitter second. By some measures, including his .890 OPS, Vientos has been that for the Mets.
Might they leave him there? Manager Carlos Mendoza didn’t rule it out but emphasized that it would depend on other personnel. The Mets’ regular No. 2 choice, Brandon Nimmo, entrenched in a slump for a month, was unavailable due to a stomach bug.
“He looked comfortable there,” Mendoza said of Vientos.
Vientos said: “Second is nice, honestly.”
Wherever he hits, Vientos hits. He is the only one of the Mets’ previous big three position-player prospects — along with Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty — to take a big step forward at the plate this season.
“He’s got confidence in the box and he’s not scared of anybody,” J.D. Martinez said. “That’s something that you want to see. That’s something that you see from a lot of really good players.”
2. A Jose Butto-centric bullpen strategy is not a sound one
Think back to Tuesday night, when Mendoza called on Butto — the Mets’ most reliable reliever for six weeks — in the middle innings of a game in which his team was down big. That was an unusual spot for someone who lately has been used in late-and-close situations, but it was easy to see Mendoza’s strategy: Hold it there, and maybe the Mets can come back against a bad Oakland club.
It backfired. The Mets didn’t rally enough and lost. Butto allowed a couple of runs and threw 46 pitches across two innings — sidelining him for the rest of the series.
So when they really could have used him Thursday, he wasn’t available. Instead, the Mets went to Reed Garrett, who blew what remained of the large lead.
It would help Mendoza, of course, if he had more than just Butto to set up for closer Edwin Diaz. None of Garrett, Phil Maton, Ryne Stanek or others have grabbed ahold of a lock-down role like that. Butto can’t do it alone.
3. The National League is not very good
We wrote that in this space last week, and we cannot emphasize it enough. For all that has gone wrong for the Mets lately, they are only two games behind Atlanta for the last NL wild-card berth. And there is still a quarter-season to go.
Here’s a fun thing: On their road trip that begins next Thursday, the Mets will face Arizona and San Diego, the top two wild cards. They don’t lose lately, but you have to figure they’ll slow down at some point. The Mets will have a big chance to reassert themselves.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
