The Mets season has not gone according to plan thus far.
Carlos Mendoza’s squad currently sits in fourth place in the NL East with a 32-37 entering Sunday’s series finale against the San Diego Padres. However, despite all of the drama this season has featured, the team finds themselves within striking distance of a playoff spot.
Entering play Sunday, the Amazins were two games back of the final NL Wild Card spot. While that may say more about the level of competition in the National League as a whole rather than what the Mets have accomplished, the team is playing their best baseball of the season winning three of their last four series.
“It hasn’t been easy,” Mendoza said Sunday. “Good, bad, rough. As of late, obviously [we’re] playing more complete games. I’m not looking at the standings, obviously, I know we got to continue to play better. You just got to take it one game at a time.
“We’re going to be right there until the end. We got a lot of good players there and there’s a good feeling right now in that clubhouse. So, yea we still got a lot of baseball left. But, we got to continue to take care of business.”
The Mets could be hitting their stride winning eight out of their last 10 games before Sunday’s matchup. And despite the eventful start to the season, there is still plenty of baseball to be played.
BULLPEN BETTER
The Mets’ bullpen has got their swagger back.
After a rough few weeks for Mendoza’s stable, the unit has played an enormous role in getting the club back on track in recent weeks. Thanks in large part to the return of the Trumpets in resounding fashion.
“Now that [Edwin Diaz] is back, it’s a good feeling,” Mendoza said before Sunday’s series finale against the Padres. “I wouldn’t say [the bullpen was] pressing, but it’s contagious. When you go through slumps offensively, guys try to do a little too much, defensively we’re going to go through ups and downs. And the pitching staff will feel that as well. They feed off each other.”
Diaz has pitched in two games since his return from the injured list on June 13. The right-hander has tossed two scoreless innings racking up three strikeouts. The overall numbers are not pretty — 4.91 ERA in 22 games — however, Diaz has looked much closer to his dominant 2022 form than he did prior to his stint on the shelf.
SENGA UPDATE
Kodai Senga will take another step in his rehab this week. The Mets ace will throw another up and down on Wednesday and will look to move to the next step of facing hitters, Mendoza said on Sunday.
Senga continues to work towards a return from a right shoulder capsule strain that has kept him from throwing a single pitch this season. The 31-year-old has not been able to take the stage for an encore to his impressive rookie season in 2023. The runner-up for the NL Rookie of the Year recorded a 2.98 ERA in 29 games last season.