A lot more to blame for Mets' failure than Luis Rojas
Mets manager Luis Rojas walks to the dugout during the seventh inning against the Giants in an MLB game at Citi Field on Wednesday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The Citi Field fans couldn’t pin this one on the manager.
Rather than draw a stadium’s ire for any questionable moves, Luis Rojas was resigned to doing what everyone else did Thursday night — watching his offensively challenged Mets lose again to the Giants, who completed the sweep with a 3-2 win.
For those still keeping score, the Mets wrapped their pivotal 13-game stretch against the Giants and Dodgers at 2-11. And while that doesn’t officially end their playoff hopes in dropping them 7 1⁄2 games behind Atlanta, it ain’t looking good with 35 games remaining, even as they get ready to play 15 straight exclusively with the Nationals and Marlins beginning Friday.
For one night, Rojas got a reprieve from the restless Citi fans, who instead directed their vitriol at the new favorite target: Francisco Lindor, who went 1-for-5 with an infield single and popped up for the final out (the boos came shortly after contact).
Expect that to continue if Lindor doesn’t snap out of it soon. As much as Rojas is an easy target, as he was during Wednesday’s "Fi-re Ro-jas!’’ chants, Lindor’s inability to live up to Steve Cohen’s $341 million investment tends to make him a more attractive villain for a disgruntled fan base.
Point is, the Mets have a whole roster full of culprits for their 14-26 plunge since the All-Star break, as well as a number of losing indicators in the second half (previous to Thursday’s loss): a .387 slugging percentage (ranked 26th), 144 runs scored (27th) and a .205 batting average with RISP (28th in MLB /last in NL). They also slipped to .196 with the bases loaded (27th) after pinch hitter Jeff McNeil left them that way with his groundout to end the eighth.
Pete Alonso accounted for the Mets’ only offense Thursday night with a two-run blast off the windows of the club behind the leftfield foul pole. It was his 29th homer, and although he’s one of the few Mets performing at his expected level — along with Brandon Nimmo (three hits) — he can’t carry the Mets by himself despite his relentless positivity.
"I’m really excited for these next five weeks because this is a huge test for us," Alonso said. "We can’t fold, we can’t back down. Despite whatever the standings are, we’ve got to go full speed ahead . . . Honestly, I don’t think it’s ever too late to flip the script."
Carlos Carrasco finally provided a glimmer of hope on his end, allowing only Kris Bryant’s two-run homer in his seven innings. He retired 20 of 21 and the final 13 in what was by far his best performance as a Met.
Before Carrasco’s gem, for the second half, the Mets’ rotation had a 5.35 ERA (23rd), a .270 opponents’ batting average (23rd) and a 1.34 WHIP (21st).
That doesn’t even include their head-scratching blunders on the bases or costly defensive mistakes or shifting alignments that used to work but now seem to backfire more regularly. It’s safe to say this has been a wide-sweeping system failure, and that’s impossible to pin squarely on the manager.
While it’s true many of these Dodgers/Giants games were relatively close — eight of the losses were decided by two runs or fewer — the bottom line comes down to which side of the score you’re on.
"It’s been a tough stretch because of the results, but we’ve battled against these two teams," Rojas said before Thursday’s game. "I think we can take a lot out of it just knowing that we weren’t necessarily out of every game."
Rojas loses us with the "we battled" theme. That was Art Howe’s favorite saying, and his Mets’ career lasted two years with a .424 winning percentage. Heading into Thursday night’s series finale, Rojas is nearing the end of his second year at .468, including last season’s pandemic-shortened 60-game schedule. At this current pace, there is unlikely to be a third.
Since the Phillies knocked them from first place on Aug. 6, the Mets are 5-13, saving some of their worst baseball for the most critical part of the season. Rojas has to wear that, but it’s also a terrible reflection on his staff (assembled by the front office) and the players’ inability to do their jobs.
Next time the fans call for firing Rojas, they need to remember to spread those boos around liberally.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
