3 Up, 3 Down: Mets Complete Abject Homestand With Series Loss to Nationals

It was not a happy homestand for the New York Mets.

Looking to fatten up against lowly opposition, the Mets instead finished with a disappointing 3-6 record. That included a sweep by the Colorado Rockies.

The Mets finished the homestand by dropping two out of three to the Washington Nationals. As a result, New York is now the worst team in baseball with an ugly 10-21 record. The Mets have also lost 17 of their last 20 games.

Are things actually going to get any better for this team?

We will have to see, but for now, let’s recap the Washington series in the latest edition of 3 Up, 3 Down…

3 UP 

DOING HIS JOB

Freddy Peralta gave the Mets every chance to win in the series finale on Thursday afternoon. The righty completed a full six innings for just the second time in a Mets uniform. He allowed one earned run on four hits and three walks with six strikeouts. Sure, it wasn’t always pretty with Peralta botching a comebacker to allow a couple of unearned runs to score. Even so, Peralta gave the Mets the kind of outing they needed, and hopefully, he can continue to go deeper into games.

SPARK PLUG

MJ Melendez is proving to be quite the pickup. The 27-year-old has done nothing but hit since being called up, and he currently has a higher OPS than Juan Soto (1.061). Of course, that probably won’t be the case come the end of the season, but the point still stands. Melendez is producing for the Mets when most other hitters aren’t. Take this series, for instance. Melendez had at least a hit in all three games, including two hits and a three-run homer in the finale. Despite all the offensive struggles, Melendez is providing a rare spark.

BACK IN THE GROOVE

Juan Soto hasn’t missed a beat since returning from the IL. The superstar hitter has reached base 16 times in 34 plate appearances, including going 6-for-12 with a walk against his former team. Soto also recorded two doubles, two home runs, and three RBIs against Washington while scoring four runs. If the Mets stand any chance of turning things around, they will need Soto to be as locked in as he is right now.

3 DOWN

PILING UP

The Mets can’t catch a break right now. If losing almost every single day wasn’t enough, the injuries are really starting to pile up. Luis Robert Jr. is the latest name to hit the IL, joining Francisco Lindor, Jorge Polanco, and Kodai Senga. The loss of Robert Jr. is pretty galling given just how bad the offense has been. As anemic as the lineup was with Lindor, Polanco, and Robert Jr. all playing, it likely won’t get any better with those three all on the shelf.

EVERYTHING GOING WRONG

When you are as bad as the Mets are right now, nothing seems to go right. That was certainly the case throughout the Nationals series, and especially in the finale. New York actually had a lead heading into the eighth and looked set to secure a much-needed win. Instead, Luke Weaver entered the game in relief and proceeded to give up a two-run homer that sealed another soul-crushing loss. Talk about a heartbreaker.

OASIS OF MISERY

You are what your record says you are, and the Mets are officially the worst team in baseball. Sure, there’s still time to turn things around here. However, the most worrying aspect about this start is that the entire team seems incapable of making the necessary adjustments needed to stop the losing. In short, we’re seeing nothing that would prompt hope of an uptick in results. Instead, the players continue to fail to execute on a daily basis. Furthermore, this roster resembles Frankenstein: a horrible mishmash of body parts that just don’t fit together. And that’s the biggest worry here. This team is so poorly constructed that it is hard right now to envision things getting better. Let’s hope we’re proven wrong on that.

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