Brutal Schedule Coming Up

[Centerfield]

The Mets better make the most of these games against the Marlins. I took a peek at the Mets upcoming schedule. Absolutely brutal.

4 Games: Against the first place Brewers
4 Games: Against the first place Braves, including a doubleheader Monday.
4 Games: Against the Cubs. Not in first place, but playing at a .568 pace.

2 Games: Against the lowly Orioles. Then...

3 Games: Against the first place Yankees.
3 Games: Against the first place Braves
4 Games: Against the second place D-Backs
4 Games: Against the first place Rockies

26 of the next 28 games against teams with winning records. Our next three game series against a bad team? July 22-24 when we play the Dodgers at home.

[A Boy Named Seo]

And the Dodgers will probably have their shit together by then. No time to be mediocre!

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

4 Games: Against the first place Brewers
fuck them

4 Games: Against the first place Braves, including a doubleheader Monday.
Bill's Brooms open for biz

4 Games: Against the Cubs. Not in first place, but playing at a .568 pace.
overrated

2 Games: Against the lowly Orioles. Then...
they'll sweep

3 Games: Against the first place Yankees.
fuck them

3 Games: Against the first place Braves
not by then

4 Games: Against the second place D-Backs
who we just swept

4 Games: Against the first place Rockies
you're making this up

[seawolf17]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: 4 Games: Against the first place Brewers fuck them 4 Games: Against the first place Braves, including a doubleheader Monday. Bill's Brooms open for biz 4 Games: Against the Cubs. Not in first place, but playing at a .568 pace. overrated 2 Games: Against the lowly Orioles. Then... they'll sweep 3 Games: Against the first place Yankees. fuck them 3 Games: Against the first place Braves not by then 4 Games: Against the second place D-Backs who we just swept 4 Games: Against the first place Rockies you're making this up

Looks about right. 23-5 stretch (losing the five Vargas starts, natch), probably.

[G-Fafif]

seawolf17 wrote: (losing the five Vargas starts, natch)

The man's ERA dropped by four runs last night, indicating it will be sub-zero before this allegedly brutal stretch is done.

Viva Jace Vargas!

[Centerfield]

Part of that this schedule demonstrates is how strange things are in MLB.

The AL has probably the best three teams in baseball. Astros, Red Sox, Yankees, but also tons of bad teams. Out of the 15 AL teams, 9 are under .500, including the entire AL Central. Two teams are playing under .300 baseball.

Meanwhile, in the NL, no one team is on track to win over 100 games, but you have 11 teams playing .500 or better. If you figure that the Dodgers will eventually figure things out, that's 12 teams realistically competing for a playoff spot. Only the three last place teams are really out of it.

I don't know that I've ever seen anything like that before.

[Edgy MD]

We're in a very tanky era.

[Centerfield]

Edgy MD wrote: We're in a very tanky era.

Which is why it's kinda surprising no? I would expect in this tank and rebuild era, we'd have a lot more crap teams. In the NL, we have 3 crap teams and 12 teams going for it.

[Edgy MD]

It's sort of that we're not in an era of more crappy teams, but rather that the crappy teams are crappier.

Though I tend to think the Reds may be trying to actually compete year in and year out and just desperately unable to assemble a pitching staff.

[seawolf17]

Edgy MD wrote: It's sort of that we're not in an era of more crappy teams, but rather that the crappy teams are crappier. Though I tend to think the Reds may be trying to actually compete year in and year out and just desperately unable to assemble a pitching staff.

They've had decent young guys through the years who just haven't panned out for them: Latos, Bailey, Leake, Cingrani, DeSclafani, Finnegan, Lorenzen, Straily. This year, it's Mahle, whose era is over 4.50, and Castillo and Romano, who are both over 5.60.

[Ceetar]

Just get the damn pitching in order. Many of these teams suck at run creation.

Brewers are 25th. Diamondbacks 27th. Rockies 30th.

Braves aren't really that good, it's that beginners luck/prospect shine, and it'll wear off.

fuck the Yankees. They're getting really lucky with their non-Severino pitching. Those guys aren't that good, and they're also having some of that prospect shine/beginners luck. (bolstered by short fences obviously)

[Lefty Specialist]

Edgy MD wrote: We're in a very tanky era.

Unfortunately the Mets have had the misfortune of playing 4 to 6 games a year against the team that never, ever tanks.

It'd be interesting to do a post-mortem on this stretch, to see how well they did or didn't do.

[Guest 41Forever]

Centerfield wrote: The Mets better make the most of these games against the Marlins. I took a peek at the Mets upcoming schedule. Absolutely brutal. 4 Games: Against the first place Brewers 4 Games: Against the first place Braves, including a doubleheader Monday. 4 Games: Against the Cubs. Not in first place, but playing at a .568 pace. 2 Games: Against the lowly Orioles. Then... 3 Games: Against the first place Yankees. 3 Games: Against the first place Braves 4 Games: Against the second place D-Backs 4 Games: Against the first place Rockies 26 of the next 28 games against teams with winning records. Our next three game series against a bad team? July 22-24 when we play the Dodgers at home.

Each of these teams is saying, "Our schedule ahead is absolutely brutal. The Mets are back on track." Sucks to be them.

[MFS62]

The thing I'm most looking forward to is Fmann's KTE before the MFY series.
Later

[Centerfield]

3-10 so far.

[Centerfield]

4-16.

[Benjamin Grimm]

And we thought it was going to be brutal! HAH!

[Centerfield]

If you count the two games against the Marlins that were played immediately after I wrote this post, the Mets are 4-18 over that 22 game span.

This stretch of games just killed our season.

When we woke up May 22, the Mets were 24-19, 2.5 back of the division and a game out from the WC.

We are now 10.5 games out of the division, and 9 back in the WC, with a small army of teams in front of us. I guess we didn't know it at the time, but those two losses against the Marlins sent us into a tailspin that cost us our season.

Unless we have another 11-1 run in us somehow.

[Ceetar]

it's early enough that it doens't have tobe 11-1. I mean, like a 15-5 would do just fine. But it's gotta happen pretty soon or it'll have to be like 18-3. and much longer and it'll have to be like 22--3

[Ceetar]

Might as well extend it out to the break.

29 games. the last 4 against the Nationals.

go 17-8. Not an unreasonable result. Who knows what thee Nats will do. they're 5-5 last 10. Maybe they go 16-11.

That's a good stretch. Mets would make up 2 games. They'd be 7 back. Sweep the Nats and you're 3 back into the break. Win the series 3-1 and you're 5 back. That's extremely reasonable with 8 games left against them and roughly half a season.

And that's a 91 win pace for the Nats, and I don't think they're that good or have the depth to do that. They drop a few more than that and they're ripe.

Of course, assuming the Braves aren't really a 40-18 type team. I don't think they are. but things change.

anyway, the Mets need to wake up and start winning more games than they lose. That's step 1. soon.

[Centerfield]

That's the thing right? There's so much season left to be played. Plus, after the Dodgers series, they have 11 games against weak opponents. Pittsburgh, Toronto, Miami and TB. 9-2 over those 11 games goes a long way to getting back into this.

In order for that to happen, we need:

1. Cespedes, Syndergaard and Familia have to get back fast. duh.
2. Lugo should stay in the rotation.
3. Go get Wilson Ramos. I tried to believe in Plawecki but it just looks like it's not going to happen.
4. Either Dom Smith catches fire or we give Alonso a chance. We can't win with this little production from 1B.
5. Michael Conforto just has to hit. It's like not even an option that he doesn't hit.
6. Cut Reyes. Call up either that McNeil guy or Cecchini. I still believe in Cecchini

[Ceetar]

Those would work.

So would other less predicable things. Like ,we need Familia back less if another reliever suddenly becomes awesome (this happens all the time)

Lugo can go back to the bullpen if Vargas continues to give us QS type outings, as long as the other hitting stuff happens.

I wouldn't shed Plawecki yet. Mesorco gave us a few weeks and now seems to suck again. Plawecki at least gets on base. let him do that, and hopefully these other guys will drive him in. At least it's not outs. (wRC+ of 96 since he came back. .343 OBP) He should be the primary here.

That's why the Conforto homer was promising. At least he's an OBP guy though, so if he's meh but like, Cespedes comes back or Bruce heals enough to get it over the fence or Smith starts mashing, it'll contribute runs. But yeah, we need probably two more guys that aren't hitting to hit.

Reyes is useless. At least he's not playing. He's only made 4 outs in 11 games this month. But yeah, give one of those other guys a shot, maybe they can actually help.

Dammit just score some damn runs.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I think we were saying the same kinds of things last year around this time. Not too late. Plenty of time. Just need to start winning.

It did work in 2015 and 2016, so who knows? It's just that the hole keeps getting deeper. The Mets need to start by putting down their shovels.

[Centerfield]

Wait, they're using shovels? I think I know the answer to why they're not hitting.

I question the hitting coach. Gotta be able to spot something like that.

[Edgy MD]

Smeth Lugo is unscored upon in 10 innings as a starter. I'm in no hurry to send him to the bullpen.

[Lefty Specialist]

The problem with playing 'weak' teams is that the Mets are the weakest team in baseball right now. The Orioles came in at 17-49 and swept the Mets in two games in Citi. Weak teams are licking their chops when they see the Mets on the schedule.