These fuckin’ guys can’t catch a break! Kodai Senga had a solid outing Friday night but outside of that, the Colorado Rockies walked into Citi Field and straight up, stole the Mets lunch money. The offense was a bit improved this series, but still inconsistent. A lot of issues with this team haven’t gone away, and for the first time in Buck Showalter’s tenure here in Flushing, his decisions are coming into question. I think that’s a natural reaction, especially when a team is playing below the standard set for them. Some criticisms are justified, but honestly a lot of the issue’s are players just not performing. We can dive into the upcoming reality of Mark Vientos getting called up, and maybe you can criticize Buck for not bringing him up sooner, but Vientos can’t pitch. At the end of the day it doesn’t matter how much run’s you score if you’re bullpen is getting taxed and your starters can’t get through the 3rd time through the order, you aren’t going to win much In this league. The Mets look like shit, no doubt about it, but let’s get into some things that maybe can leave us with some hope here:

Its May: World Series games are won and lost in October/November, not in the Spring. Around this time last year we were the hottest team In baseball, way ahead of both the Braves and Phillies in the standings, and by October, we were playing in the Wild Card series because we couldn’t muster 1 win against the Braves in late September. We have learned the hard way two years in a row, it isn’t how you start, it’s how you finish. A record of 17-18 isn’t the end of the world, but at some point, you gotta wake up. If you keep losing series’ like this, you’re not gonna have a Wild Card round to even talk about. It’s one thing to go on a skid of bad baseball over the course of 2 weeks. It’s another thing to shit the bed for a month, with your wins in the single digits. Take 2/3 against the Reds this week and you can begin to change the narrative on the season so far.

Hopefully Vientos Can Bring Some Pop: The guy is ripping the cover off the ball in Syracuse. Last I checked he was hitting well over .300 and he’s got 10 HR’s so far this year. We have seen a bit of a better offense as of late, but it’s no secret the Mets could really use some more power out of this lineup. Brett Baty has brought some pop lately and it’s great seeing Showalter move him up to 5th in the order. The question is not really as to whether Vientos is ready, but rather who gets the boot? Luis Guillorme has minor league options on his contract, but is that really a move you want to make? He’s a guy that can play literally any position in the infield and his plate appearances aren’t a liability. Vogelbach? The knock against Vogey is that he’s essentially position-less. In a pinch you can ask him to play first base but he’s not great out there, so that’s a guy that takes up a roster spot to only be the DH. However, he does bring some level of pop into the lineup, actually hitting a home run yesterday. Tommy Pham? He’s nice to have as a 4th outfielder, and he does put together some nice AB’s, however this team is slumping and “nice at bats” don’t really cut it. If the Mets were 10 games above .500 that’s one thing, but they need something to get them going and energized. You can’t really afford to get rid of a pitcher from your bullpen, especially considering most of our starters are out in the 5th inning every night. I think ultimately it comes down to those 2 guys, Vogelbach and Pham. You can make a legitimate case for either, Pham isn’t hitting as well but he can actually play the field, Daniel Vogelbach can’t field but he’s at least hitting at .265 with an OPS in the .800’s. Either way someone has to go to make room for the rising star in Syracuse, he’s not gonna get any better just dominating in AAA. Right now if I had to guess, I’d probably say Pham, but either way I wouldn’t be surprised.

Shit or Get Off The Pot: What’s up with this guy? Max Scherzer spoke to the NY Post today about having a scap injury and “trying like hell” to not go on the IL. This maybe gives us some clarity of why he’s looked so bad so far this year, but also it leaves us as a fan base, scratching our heads. If Max is hurt, why is he not on the IL? I understand why he doesn’t want to go there and that he wants to compete, but this isn’t October. It’s still early and the last thing we need is for him to make this injury any worse! Now, as I’ve said before I dig holes for a living, I’m by no means, a doctor. I just can’t really wrap my head around the ace of this staff, pitching on a shoulder that’s kind of fucked up, why can’t he rest it? At this point, pitching for 3 innings and giving up 5 runs really isn’t helping the cause, so if he’s gotta shut it down, someone needs to sack up, and tell him that. Ultimately this next start in Cincinnati will hopefully give us an answer on if he’s getting any better or not.

We’re all frustrated and I think all the complaints from the fan base are justified. What we are watching night in and night out is unacceptable. However, I don’t believe this team is that bad, there is way too much talent on this roster for me to accept that “they just aren’t good anymore”. That’s bullshit. At some point these guys will turn it around, we just have to hope it’s sooner rather than later. Have some hope, keep the faith, and LFGM!