Edgy MD

Ill-advised glove flip from Bichette, and a less-than-impressive stretch from Vientos at the other end, and a meaningful double-play opportunity falls through.

How about the overwhelming and unanticipated cost of lowballing Antoan Richardson? In 2025, they stole 147 bases in 165 attempts, for an 89.1% success rate. In 2026, they've stolen 29 bases in 43 attempts, for a 67.4% success rate.

There's this backwards-ass thinking that suggests "We have our four best relievers available for this game," and concludes, "We are going to let our starter pitch no more than it takes to turn the game over to those four relievers, and use all four, but none for more than a single inning." It is madness. Also, it is a good idea to try somebody else than Williams in your highest-leverage situations. Adapt, adapt, adapt to the circumstances on the ground.

Two bad things can happen when you break up with somebody. (1) Somebody else immediately swoops in and romances them, making you wonder why you would break with somebody so desirable. (2) Nobody else immediately swoops in and romances them, making you wonder why you ever were with somebody so seemingly otherwise undesirable. Both of these are stinking thinking, of course, but such is your vulnerability when your decision has left you newly alone and vulnerable — or if you are the Mets, spiraling toward oblivion and irrelevancy. GOING Cleared Waivers and Assigned to Syracuse Outfielders Austin Slater R/R DoB: 1992-12-13 High Level: MLB (2026) Austin Slater wasn't as bad as all that as the righthanded half of a Slater/MJ Melendez platoon that had been alternating with Juan Soto between DH and left field. He hit .250 (which is sadly a defensible umber by today's standards, but it was an empty .250 (.250 / .286 / .300 // .586). That is no worse than most of the lineup has been doing, and certainly no worse than his slumping platoon mate has been showing the world, but he's the guy with the least contract security, so he is the most easily shuffled off. With Jacob Young, on the mend, MJ might not be far behind. The clock is certainly ticking. Transactions, 5/24/2026 GOING GOING Cleared Waivers and Assigned to Syracuse Refused Minor-League Assignment and Opted for Free Agency Relief Pitchers Outfielders Craig Kimbrel Austin Slater R/R DoB: 1988-05-28 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 1992-12-13 High Level: MLB (2026) The apparent end of Craig Kimbrell's Mets career was foreshadowed by the Mets sending him out there for an extra inning to mop up a loss. He has been passed on, for the time being, by other teams who don't want to add him to their MLB roster, but there may or may not still be a market for the aging and man-bunned former star. Kimbrel has been assigned to Syracuse, but there is every reason to believe he will refuse that assignment, and like Slater, go hunting for a new home. Kimbrel's exile led to a new wave of premature speculation about his Hall of Fame chances, including a sorry case against offered in a hot take by Bob Nightengale, who just should know better. Nighty argues that John Franco had had 424 saves and 23.4 WAR (compared to Kimbrel's current 440 and 22.5) in 409 more innings, and got nary a tumble from Hall of Fame voters. Now, Mets Roster Central is not going come out for or against the enshrinement of Craig Kimbrel here, but putting aside the idea that taking less time to accomplish similar feats should be seen as a good thing, WAR is just a terrible measure of success for closers: Firstly, the formula that generates the number is proprietary, so it is an act of faith to accept WAR at face value. Secondly, what we do know about WAR is that it normalizes — it extricates the numbers players accomplish from the situations they perform in, and treats all situations as the same. This is disastrous for a situation-specific role, like and end-of-game specialist. Take, in that second situation, an NFL short-yardage specialist of a fullback. He may get 10 carries in a year, all on the one-yard line, plunging into the end zone for a touchdown each time. Extricate those 10 carries from the situation they occurred in, and this player looks like a disaster, a running back averaging one yard per carry. Worst in the league! Anyhow, the once indomitable closer has a three-pronged decision to make — retire, shop for a new opportunity, or humbly head to Syracuse to see if he can up his game. We expect (b) with Austin Slater has already taken, joining Tommy Pham and Andy Ibáñez on The Great List of Veteran Reserve Righthanded-Htting Outfielders Who Couldn't Stick on the 2026 Mets. Eric Wagaman, shuffled off before he could so much as appear, probably deserves honorary membership.

Two bad things can happen when you break up with somebody. (1) Somebody else immediately swoops in and romances them, making you wonder why you would break with somebody so desirable. (2) Nobody else immediately swoops in and romances them, making you wonder why you ever were with somebody so seemingly otherwise undesirable. Both of these are stinking thinking, of course, but such is your vulnerability when your decision has left you newly alone and vulnerable — or if you are the Mets, spiraling toward oblivion and irrelevancy. GOING Cleared Waivers and Assigned to Syracuse Outfielders Austin Slater R/R DoB: 1992-12-13 High Level: MLB (2026) Austin Slater wasn't as bad as all that as the righthanded half of a Slater/MJ Melendez platoon that had been alternating with Juan Soto between DH and left field. He hit .250 (which is sadly a defensible umber by today's standards, but it was an empty .250 (.250 / .286 / .300 // .586). That is no worse than most of the lineup has been doing, and certainly no worse than his slumping platoon mate has been showing the world, but he's the guy with the least contract security, so he is the most easily shuffled off. With Jacob Young, on the mend, MJ might not be far behind. The clock is certainly ticking. Transactions, 5/24/2026 GOING GOING Cleared Waivers and Assigned to Syracuse Refused Minor-League Assignment and Opted for Free Agency Relief Pitchers Outfielders Craig Kimbrel Austin Slater R/R DoB: 1988-05-28 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 1992-12-13 High Level: MLB (2026) The apparent end of Craig Kimbrell's Mets career was foreshadowed by the Mets sending him out there for an extra inning to mop up a loss. He has been passed on, for the time being, by other teams who don't want to add him to their MLB roster, but there may or may not still be a market for the aging and man-bunned former star. Kimbrel has been assigned to Syracuse, but there is every reason to believe he will refuse that assignment, and like Slater, go hunting for a new home. Kimbrel's exile led to a new wave of premature speculation about his Hall of Fame chances, including a sorry case against offered in a hot take by Bob Nightengale, who just should know better. Nighty argues that John Franco had had 424 saves and 23.4 WAR (compared to Kimbrel's current 440 and 22.5) in 409 more innings, and got nary a tumble from Hall of Fame voters. Now, Mets Roster Central is not going come out for or against the enshrinement of Craig Kimbrel here, but putting aside the idea that taking less time to accomplish similar feats should be seen as a good thing, WAR is just a terrible measure of success for closers: Firstly, the formula that generates the number is proprietary, so it is an act of faith to accept WAR at face value. Secondly, what we do know about WAR is that it normalizes — it extricates the numbers players accomplish from the situations they perform in, and treats all situations as the same. This is disastrous for a situation-specific role, like and end-of-game specialist. Take, in that second situation, an NFL short-yardage specialist of a fullback. He may get 10 carries in a year, all on the one-yard line, plunging into the end zone for a touchdown each time. Extricate those 10 carries from the situation they occurred in, and this player looks like a disaster, a running back averaging one yard per carry. Worst in the league! Anyhow, the once indomitable closer has a three-pronged decision to make — retire, shop for a new opportunity, or humbly head to Syracuse to see if he can up his game. We expect (b) with Austin Slater has already taken, joining Tommy Pham and Andy Ibáñez on The Great List of Veteran Reserve Righthanded-Htting Outfielders Who Couldn't Stick on the 2026 Mets. Eric Wagaman, shuffled off before he could so much as appear, probably deserves honorary membership. Your 2026 New York Mets Starting Pitchers Nolan McLean Freddy Peralta David Peterson Christian Scott Jonah Tong R/R DoB: 2001-07-24 R/R DoB: 2996-06-04 L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 R/R DoB: 2003-06-19 Relief Pitchers Huascar Brazobán Sean Manaea Tobias Myers Jonathan Pintaro Brooks Raley Austin Warren Luke Weaver R/R DoB: 1989-10-15 R/L DoB: 1992-02-01 R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 R/R DoB: 1997-11-07 L/L DoB: 1988-06-29 R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 R/R DoB: 1993-08-21 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Devin Williams Hayden Senger Luís Torrens Bo Bichette Brett Baty Vidal Brujan MJ Melendez R/R DoB: 1994-09-21 R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 R/R DoB: 1996-05-02 R/R DoB: 1998-03-05 L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 S/R DoB: 1998-02-09 L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 Infielders Outfielders Marcus Semien Mark Vientos Carson Benge A.J. Ewing Nick Morabito Juan Soto Tyrone Taylor R/R DoB: 1990-09-17 R/R DoB: 1993-12-11 L/R DoB: 2003-01-20 L/R DoB: 2004-08-10 R/R DoB: 2003-05-07 L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 R/R DoB: 1994-01-22 Also on 40-Player Roster Starting Pitchers Relief Pitchers Clay Holmes Tylor Megill Kodai Senga Zach Thornton Alex Carrillo Daniel Duarte Reed Garrett R/R DoB: 1993-03-27 R/R DoB: 1995-07-28 L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 L/L DoB: 2002-01-17 R/R DoB: 1997-06-06 R/R DoB: 1996-12-04 R/R DoB: 1993-01-02 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Justin Hagenman A.J. Minter Dedniel Núñez Dylan Ross Francisco Alvarez Francisco Lindor Ronny Mauricio R/R DoB: 1996-10-07 L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 R/R DoB: 1996-06-05 R/R DoB: 2000-09-01 R/R DoB: 2001-11-01 S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 Infielders Outfielders Jorge Polanco Luis Robert, Jr. Jared Young S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 Your Mets Coaching Staff Manager Bench Coach Pitching Coach Hitting Coordinator Third Base Coach First Base Coach Bullpen Coach Ass't Pitching Coach Carlos Mendoza Kai Correa Justin Willard Jeff Albert Tim Leiper Gilbert Gomez José Rosado Dan McKinney DoB: 1979-11-27 DoB: 1989-07-14 DoB: 1990-09-09 DoB: 1992-08-16 DoB: 1996-07-19 DoB: 1992-03-08 DoB: 1974-11-09 DoB: 1989-06-06 Hitting Coach Strategy Coach Catching Coach Coaching Assistant Bat'g Practice Pitcher Equipment Manager Bullpen Catchers Bullpen Catchers Troy Snitker Danny Barnes J.P. Arencibia Rafael Fernandez Kevin Mahoney Kevin Kierst Eric Langill Dave Racaniello DoB: 1988-12-05 DoB: 1989-10021 DoB: 1986-01-05 DoB: 1988-08-03 DoB: 1987-05-11 DoB: 1964-07-09 DoB: 1979-04-09 DoB: 1978-06-03 Your Mets Training Staff Director of Player Health Head Athletic Trainer Assistant Athletic Trainer Reconditioning Coordinator Reconditioning Therapist Head Performance Coach Assistant Performance Coach Performance Coordinator Soft Tissue Specialist Brian Chicklo Joseph Golia Bryan Baca Sean Bardanett Josh Bickel Dustin Clarke Tanner Miracle Jeremy Chiang Hiroto Kawamura DoB: 1972-07-17 DoB: 1978-??-?? DoB: Circa 1980 DoB: 1988-06-23 DoB: 1996-??-?? DoB: 1987-??-?? DoB: 1991-??-?? DoB: ????-??-?? DoB: 22846 View full article

Mark Vientos, who is in as deep a hole as anybody, is your new #3 hitter. CINCINNATI Starting Pitcher: Nick Lodolo LHP 0-1, 7.20 ERA Lineup: Blake Dunn (R) CF Elly De La Cruz (S) SS JJ Bleday (L) LF Sal Stewart (R) 3B Eugenio Suárez (R) DH Nathaniel Lowe (L) 1B Spencer Steer (R) RF Tyler Stephenson (R) C Matt McLain (R) 2B METS Starting Pitcher: Nolan McLean RHP 2-3, 3.57 ERA Lineup: Carson Benge (L) DH Bo Bichette (R) SS Mark Vientos (R) 1B Marcus Semien (R) 2B A.J. Ewing (L) CF Tyrone Taylor (R) RF Nick Morabito (R) LF Brett Baty (L) 3B Luis Torrens (R) C

The problem is that a problem has persisted across several hitting coaches. It follows league-wide trends but obviously is more acutely undermining the Mets. It's a philosophical matter and permeates deeply. If they fire a guy but do not reconsider the philosophies of offense that they operate under, the ghost of Charlie Lau himself will not rescue them.

Yeah, holiday Monday day games should be the tail end of a wraparound series — not something two teams just flew in for, but alas. Still, it's a 4:10 start so freshness will probably not be the Mets biggest problem.

They could have actually gotten ahead of what would happen, and influenced what would happen.

Close it was.

This is very much like that period in 2021 when everybody was hurt, Kalil Lee and Joneshwy Fargas were in the lineup, the offense was alternately scoring one and zero every night, but the Mets were staying in games by playing for the scoreless tie and hoping they could win on penalty kicks.

Benge had a challenge available to him. Striking out with two out in the ninth with the go-ahead run in scoring position seemse to be when you'd use it. Probably a strike anyhow, of course.

Gosh. Perfect pitch for a catcher to get when a guy is stealing.

Something magic about Ewing throwing out Sinoja.

There's nothing magic about 100 pitches. There's nothing magic about 100 pitches. Also, there's nothing magic about 100 pitches.

Had to break to clean up a basement flood. Vientos' new nickname should be "Sir Walter," because he has stranded a lost colony of baserunners.

With Jared Young rehabbing and Melendez not hitting in the last 2 1/2 weeks, MJ may be playing for his MLB life.

That strikeout breaking pitch with the bases loaded was something I didn't expect from Scott.

Phillips out there in the third. Not cool.

I merged it with one I started eight minutes earlier. METS STARTING PITCHER: Christian Scott (RHP), 0-0, 4.12 ERA LINEUP: Carson Benge (L) RF Bo Bichette (R) SS A.J. Ewing (L) CF Mark Vientos (R) 1B Brett Baty (L) 3B Marcus Semien (R) 2B MJ Melendez (L) DH Tyrone Taylor (R) LF Hayden Senger (R) C WASHINGTON STARTING PITCHER: Tyler Phillips RHP 0-0, 1.20 ERA, 27 SO LINEUP: Liam Hicks (L) C Xavier Edwards (S) 2B Owen Caissie (L) RF Kyle Stowers (L) LF Otto Lopez (R) SS Jakob Marsee (L) CF Connor Norby (R) 1B Christopher Morel (R) DH Javier Sanoja (R) 3B I would happily flip Ewing with Benji.

There'll be Marlins on the field. There'll be Marlins in foul territory. There'll be Marlins in the stans. There'll be Marlins on the dugout. All will be lying in stunned stillness from the drubbing they will receive in this, the third game of three, at loanDepot Park. Yes it has been called "loanDepot Park" since 2022, and you should probably admit that you didn't even know that, and probably still call it Marlins Park. And you should probably admit that their stylizing the name by smashing the two words together, and using a lower-case l at the beginning of the name, but a capital D in the middle is all so ridiculously unattractive that you will probably forget it again as a matter of personal integrity. And that is OK. Credit to the Mets here, because as distasteful as Citi Field might be, they never smashed the two words together and used and initial lower-case and mid-word upper-case like "citiField." Yes, congratulations to the Mets for reaching a really, really low bar of good taste. But yeah, the game. It will feature Mets rookie Christian Scott against Lumberton, NJ native Tyler Phillips throwing for the Marlins. Phillips has been a reliever the last two years, so this is likely merely an opener assignment for him, and he will presumably be showering by the third. And the Marlins will lose. And sink. Also appealing — if you are in Miami, and are one of the first 5,000 people through the gate, it's Color Changing Cup Day, presented by loanDepot. Because what your life is missing is a Marlins cup that changes color, presumably with the temperature, and if you're the Marlins, you can't find sponsors for your giveaways, so you just default to your stadium sponsor. Also ... FIVE THOUSANDS! Cheapos!

Well, that was progress. Toward what, I'm not sure.

Two-out dubble in the ninth for Tyrone Taylor is the first runner in scoring position for the Mets. In this series.

Going to Nardi to face Soto with none on, one out, and a 4-0 lead in the ninth is playing for keeps.