Just Mets

On Friday night at Dodger Stadium, the Mets faced the daunting task of beating Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers in a place neither lose very much.

Coming into play on Friday, the Dodgers were 27-13 at Chavez Ravine, 32-13 in 2015 when allowing three runs or less this season, and 30-9 when they score first.

They scored first and allowed three runs or less against the Mets on Friday in a place they don’t lose very often in, with Clayton Kershaw on the mound.

The Mets, on the other hand, already have logged 26 losses on the road in 2015, thanks in large measure to a sheer lack of offense, far worse than their anemic display at Citi Field in 2015. They’ve posted a .226/.281/.340 line on the road this season.

But somehow, the Mets overcame all of those demons on Friday night. They came from behind against Los Angeles in Los Angeles, and while Kershaw didn’t lose officially, he didn’t beat the Mets either.

No, this time the Mets were able to match them pound-for-pound thanks to a star-like performance from the emerging right arm of Noah Syndergaard, a lock down performance from their bullpen, and barely scoring enough runs to wipe away their miserable three-game losing streak as they open a six-game road trip in California.

“We haven’t had any [luck] in a long time, so to catch a couple of breaks is huge for us,” manager Terry Collins said after the win.

The Mets scratched across a run in the fourth inning thanks to a leadoff double by John Mayberry Jr., a wild pitch by Clayton Kershaw to advance Mayberry to third, and a squibber of a single through the drawn in infield off the bat of Wilmer Flores.

Then with the score tied 1-1 in the ninth inning Lucas Duda recorded his 21st double of the year on a Texas Leaguer the other way. He then advanced to third on an infield single by Flores, and then scored on a sac fly from Kevin Plawecki.

“Overall, it was a great performance out there and a great team win,” Syndergaard said about the game on Friday night.

One thing it showed for sure is the Mets offense isn’t remotely good enough. They scored two runs on Friday and won, but that’s not acceptable on a daily basis, evidenced by 5-10 record they’ve posted while scoring 1.7 runs in their last 15 games. It remains an unquestionable problem for this roster.

But they also continue to show they have a championship-caliber pitching staff – from the starters to the closer – and they have the ability to pitch and compete with the elite on a nightly basis.

But most importantly, they showed while a juggernaut 1-8 in the order would be nice, they don’t need that to be an elite team, either.

It’s because of that elite pitching staff they’ve waited patiently to blossom – and is now here and performing at a high level every day – they need just enough offense most of the time to win on a daily basis.

They need players who can make contact with runners on-base, guys who can be productive without getting a hit, and they need some guys who can get the big hit, and not necessarily a three-run home run.

Whether that means they can win a game 2-1 after trailing 1-0, or battle in a slugfest and win a 9-8 games. It’s about having just enough offense to compete from game one to 162.

They don’t have that right now, especially with their third baseman and catcher on the shelf for an indeterminate amount of time. They need to get it, and soon because again, their offense simply cannot compete with most clubs in the league for the moment.

So, the question is, can they get it?

That’s on the front office.