The Mets bullpen was a six-man show on Wednesday night for the second consecutive game. It was probably less than that with Hansel Robles having been worked heavily in the previous two games, but there were still five relievers Terry Collins could have used to try and get the final six outs of a badly needed win they eventually would lose.
Collins decided to start the eighth inning with Carlos Torres who, in fairness, had the last two days off and was among the fresher arms in the bullpen, despite having worked in 16 of the team’s first 33 games of the year.
Things started off fine for Torres. He induced a groundout from pinch hitter Wellington Castillo.
But that was the end of anything good for Torres on the night.
Addison Russell then hit one hard through the hole on the right side for a single. Then, he threw a wild pitch with Dexter Fowler – the lefty – at the plate to advance Russell to second as the tying run. Fowler then laced a single to right, and the lead was gone.
He was not removed from the game after the eighth inning, instead starting the ninth and allowing a leadoff single to Anthony Rizzo. Then, Starlin Castro singled, and that ended the night for Torres, and pretty much for the Mets.
“[Matt Harvey] threw a tremendous game today, and it’s just a shame that I end up losing the game for the team at the end,” Torres said after the game.
Torres is being asked to tow way too large of a load at this point. He’s been assigned the eighth inning setup role, something which just overexposes him. Sean Gilmartin was probably not available to face Fowler, as he had worked the previous two nights, and Alex Torres has been very ineffective lately, leaving Terry Collins in a spot they were more likely to fail than they were to pass, with no effective left-handed reliever at his disposal.
Collins considered using Jeurys Familia for a four out save, but he never got the chance.
“I was going to bring [Familia] on in the eighth inning,” Collins explained. “If we got Fowler out, I was going to bring him in for a four-out save.”
Of course, Torres did not get Fowler out, at the plate anyway.
But where was Familia to start the ninth?
It’s atypical to use the closer in a non-save situation on the road, but this was a circumstance the Mets absolutely had to find a way to win, even though they had already given up the lead in the previous inning. If Familia had held Chicago down, Collins might have been able to go to Erik Goeddel for multiple innings if needed.
Instead, Collins had Torres start the ninth, his ineffectiveness continued, and he brought Familia into a situation when the Mets were already doomed, with the bases loaded and nobody out in a tie game in the ninth.
Yes, it’s May. Yes, the club is in first place. But the ace just pitched his heart out brilliantly for seven innings in a game the Mets needed for a lot of reasons, both in the standings and for inspiration as well.
And it seems the Mets lost this game without their best possible options on the field on Wednesday, and that makes it sting even more.
It may not have mattered anyway, but at least lose with the best possible chess pieces on the board…
Just Mets 