Just Mets

The Mets are no longer slumping. They’re no longer in a rut, they’re not underachieving.

These are the 2015 New York Mets. Now a 36-36 team, and falling alarmingly fast.

On Tuesday night, the Mets lost for the sixth time in a row, falling to 36-36 for the year, 2 1/2 games out of first place in the National League East, and 4 1/2 games behind the Cubs for the second Wild Card spot.

The Mets started their season 13-3. Since April 24, a span of 56 games or 78 percent of their season to date, the Mets have gone 23-33. In those 56 games, the Mets have scored just under 3.4 runs per game while allowing 4.1 runs per game.

Since their 13-3 start, the Mets have hit .235/.292/.370 and have grounded into 55 double plays, have walked just 2.3 times per game while striking out 8.1 times per game.

The defense has allowed 24 runners to reach via an error, and the pitching staff has allowed 23 unearned runs to score, or nearly 0.4 per game.

That’s just not passable, and nearly impossible for the pitching staff to navigate.

Of course, it shouldn’t be too unexpected there are non-starters starting, the left fielder is in right field, the right fielder is in left field, the third baseman is at shortstop, the shortstop is at third base, and they have an ill-prepared second baseman playing on an everyday basis.

“It’s [not the player’s] fault we are playing some guys where they don’t belong,” Terry Collins said on Tuesday night.

No it isn’t, but it’s more than just “some guys” who are out of position.

Speaking of the pitching staff, things haven’t been bad, but they haven’t been exemplary, either, although it could be a product of how the rotation has been handled, utterly poor defense behind them, the construction of the bullpen, and the natural ebbs and flows pitchers go through over the course of the season.

Still, what was considered the club’s greatest strength in 2015 has not performed nearly to expectation over the last 56 games.

The staff as a whole has a 3.82 ERA in their last 56 games, allowing 49 home runs (0.9 per game), while inducing 39 double plays with a 3.21:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Again, not bad, but not great with the aforementioned reasons likely a contributing factor.

Overall in 2015, the Mets have a -17 run differential, scoring 3.6 runs per game while allowing 3.9. They’ve scored three runs or less in 53 percent of their games, two runs or less in 33 percent of their games, and one run or less in 22 percent of their games.

That’s not a slump. That’s a reality. And Needless to say, the numbers speak for themselves, but the state of the Mets is pitiful right now.

If 2015 is about winning – like all of them said it was – It’s time for changes. Right now.

As harsh as it may sound, they’re probably not as good as their overall record shows at the moment. They’re probably somewhere in between the 36-36 overall record and the 23-33 record they’ve posted over the last 56 games. Certainly the run differential – a statistic this front office relies heavily upon – suggests they are a sub-.500 club.

Now, there’s no question the team has been marred by one injury after the next. Every time they get one guy back, another one seems to go on the disabled list.

Or in some cases, the same guy goes back on the disabled list.

Yes, the Mets have torn through their depth, and called almost everyone up from the minor leagues to fill in while they wait and hope their injured players come back. It’s next to impossible to respond to losing 12 or 13 players to the disabled list, many of which are long-term and season-ending injuries.

But blaming the poor play on injury only goes so far. The core fundamentals which are not being executed are simply inexcusable, whether it’s not covering a base, constantly running out of innings, their gross inability to turn routine double plays, dropping and missing flyballs – skills which are refined in high school – are all just maddening, mind boggling, and not acceptable at any level of the sport.

The product being run onto the field every day is a team playing not to lose right now. They’re clearly feeling the heat and the pressure, they know what’s happening to the club in the standings, and they’re being beat mentally by the grind. They’re clearly terribly afraid to make mistakes, and they look indecisive, lost and confused seemingly in every situation. All of this combined with the unfathomable number of injuries have brought the Mets back to .500 for the first time since April 12.

They can use the injuries as an excuse to their hearts delight, rationalize the poor play in whatever manner they choose. But they are what their record says they are – most contenders don’t play ten games under .500 for a third of the whole schedule.

As the team has fallen to a distinct line of mediocrity, it’s time for the Mets to stop going to the well with what they have running out on the field every day, and reshuffle the deck.

Again, they’re 23-33 over their last 56 games. There is nothing to lose, and running the same program every single day will likely provide the same result.

At this point, the Mets should consider purchasing Matt Reynolds contract, and making him the everyday shortstop. They’ll at least officially learn what they have in him at this level, he’ll likely provide improved range at a minimum over Wilmer Flores at the position and make the routine plays as many talent evaluators believe he will (something Flores also struggles with, according to FanGraphs).

The Mets can then demote Dilson Herrrera, who is clearly not ready for the big leagues. Flores can take over at second base, and Daniel Murphy can play third – his strongest position – until David Wright returns, if he does at all.

The Mets need to consider what Curtis Granderson and Michael Cuddyer are at this point in their careers. It’s a difficult and expensive call, but they could probably get more production in a platoon with both of them in one position and finding a true corner outfielder who is good at more than one or two things (including defense). That way, Granderson’s ineffectiveness against left-handed pitching is protected, his liability on defense is less exposed, and Cuddyer would predominantly face left-handed pitching.

Perhaps the end result will be more of the same, but it’s clear the status quo is not leading towards success in 2015. There’s only one way to find out, and considering how things have gone for 78% of their season, there is absolutely nothing to lose by trying something new.

This isn’t going to solve another core problem on this team, however.

This is an era of baseball which has shifted away from power to a game more defined by pitching, speed and defense. The Mets most certainly have the pitching and could be very dangerous in a short series with their staff. But they have neither of the latter two whatsoever, and because of that, they’ve been mostly outclassed by much of the opposition on a nightly basis short of their 13-3 start.

What’s worse, they don’t have anyone who hits for legitimate power anyway – even if everyone was healthy – which makes their offense completely non-competitive on a nightly basis.

And no matter how the Mets reshuffle the deck, that’s nearly impossible to change mid-season.