Mets’ Offensive Woes Continue in 2-1 Loss to Padres
Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Another lifeless performance from the offense doomed the New York Mets (58-37) in a 2-1 defeat to the San Diego Padres (54-42) on Saturday night. The Mets were unable to provide any run support for Chris Bassitt, who was fantastic through seven strong innings, and the team has dropped three straight games dating back to before the All-Star break.
The Mets lead the Braves by just a half game in the NL East.
Bassitt had one of his worst starts of the season in his previous matchup with the Padres (7 ER in 3 1/3 innings), but he was on a tear through the early innings on Saturday. He retired the first 12 batters he faced and struck out six, completely shutting down the Padres’ offense.
The Mets had runners in scoring position in four consecutive innings, consistently getting on base against Padres starter Blake Snell. However, the offense could not come up with the big hits needed to drive home any runs, as the Mets combined to go 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position in those chances.
Bassitt looked vulnerable in the sixth inning and the Padres capitalized via Manny Machado, who launched a two-run homer to give his team a 2-0 lead. Bassitt did manage to strike out three batters in the inning, recording his first double-digit strikeout game as a Met and the fourth of his career.
Chris Bassitt was fired up after his 11th strikeout of the night. pic.twitter.com/7bzOCWy0xZ
— SNY (@SNYtv) July 24, 2022
The Mets stuck with Bassitt for the seventh inning, and he rewarded that decision by working out of a jam to keep the Padres off the board. The Mets have now had 12 consecutive games where their starters have allowed two runs or fewer, with each of those starts going at least five innings.
Snell was pulled after five innings, and the bullpen arms picked up right where he left off in disposing of the Mets’ offense with ease. The Mets had an entirely left-handed hitting bench, so the Padres were able to ride with their southpaws for big outs down the stretch.
Adam Ottavino struck out the side in the eight and Edwin Díaz recorded one strikeout in the ninth inning, bringing the tally up to 15 strikeouts for Mets pitchers.
The Mets finally got something going in the ninth inning off Padres closer Taylor Rogers, as J.D. Davis looped an RBI single to right field to put the Mets within a run. Rogers settled down and got Tomás Nido to pop out to bring a close to a disappointing loss for the Mets.
The lone bright spot for the offense was Pete Alonso, who had three hits including a double. The Mets’ offense had the leadoff batter reach base in six different innings and were only able to score on one of those occasions. In fact, the Mets have scored a grand total of two runs through the first two games of this series, hardly a recipe for success.
Player of the Game: Chris Bassitt
Bassitt did everything he could to will the Mets to a victory, matching a career high with 11 strikeouts and really only making one mistake all night. Unfortunately, that one mistake was enough to see him saddled with a tough-luck loss. He has been the mark of consistency since that previous outing against the Padres, completing at least six innings in each of his last six starts, and his 3.72 season ERA is more than serviceable.
Final line for Bassitt: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 11 K
On Deck
The Mets will look to avoid a series sweep and snap their losing streak when they take on the Padres on Sunday night at Citi Field. First pitch is set for 7:08 p.m. ET, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN. The Mets will give the start to Carlos Carrasco, while the Padres are set to counter with Joe Musgrove.
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