Note: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links, Schneps Media may earn a commission.
New York Mets pitcher Justin Verlander reacts during the first inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Monday, June 26, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
QUEENS — The Mets lose; the Braves win. Lather, rinse, repeat.
As they continue to prove that there are limitless discoveries on how to drop ballgames, the Mets were three-hit by the Milwaukee Brewers during a 2-1 loss on Monday night at Citi Field. After the bullpen blew a 6-3 lead on Sunday afternoon in Philadelphia against the Phillies, reliever Drew Smith gave up a decisive sixth-inning two-run home run to Joey Wiemer in the sixth inning to dismantle Justin Verlander’s slim 1-0 lead.
A team that won 101 games last season and entered this year as a perceived World Series contender is now 35-42 and eight games under .500 — a hole built on the shoulders of a horrid stretch that has seen it lose seven of nine games and 16 of their last 21.
“I don’t think anybody saw this coming,” Verlander, who signed a two-year, $86.6 million deal with the Mets this winter, said. “Disappointing, disappointing for everybody in this room, it’s disappointing for the fans.”
Following the Braves’ 4-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins to improve to 51-27 on Monday night, the fourth-place Mets’ deficit in the National League East is now at a season-high 16 games, which lends to the obvious notion that their hopes of winning the division are already lost before two weeks before the All-Star break.
Their playoff hopes in general are beginning to thin, as well. Even with the expanded postseason, manager Buck Showalter’s men are 8.5 games back of the final NL Wild Card spot, which is owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“We just have to keep trying,” Verlander said. “If there’s one thing I know it’s that the guys in this room are trying our ass off……
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply