No baseball player worth his weight in pine tar would ever admit it, but this must have looked like a tantalizing stretch for the Mets — three games against the slumping Pirates and another three against the Braves, the National League’s resident rosin bag.
But that’s not how baseball works, and it’s certainly not how it works for the Mets these days. They went 2-4 in that stretch, got swept by the worst team in the National League and now face a pivotal period where they must prove themselves equal to some of the best teams in baseball. This, after failing to keep up with some of its worst. Now with the All-Star break three weeks away these Mets — injury prone, offensively challenged — face a test that could make or break their season.
And boy do they know it.
“These next seven games with the Nationals and we’ve got the Marlins in the mix, I think are going to be really big, really, really big,” said Terry Collins, referencing the two series before the All-Star break, which he uses as a barometer for the second half of the season. “One of the things that you see on teams that win is that you beat teams that you’re supposed to beat because when you’re playing real good teams, I think it’s going to be a battle.”
The Mets take on the World Series champion Royals for a two-game set starting Tuesday, and then, after a four-game series in Atlanta, face the Nationals, first in the NL East. It doesn’t get easier, either. After that, it’s the Cubs, the best team in baseball. That brings them to that stretch Collins was referring to: three against the Marlins, second in the NL East after the Mets got swept, and four against the Nationals.
It all seems daunting, especially considering some of the hurdles the Mets are facing — ones not unlike the difficulties they faced in the first half of 2015. They’re not scoring runs, many of their key players are hurt, and there may not be a trade that can save them, like Yoenis Cespedes did last year.
The direness of the situation has forced Collins’ hand, and though he didn’t reveal specifics, he said he intended to shake things up. When pressed after Sunday’s 6-0 loss to Atlanta, he acknowledged that roster moves may be coming. “We’ve got to get better,” he said. “We’ve got to start playing better. We’ll see what we can do.”
One move everyone can count on is the return of Travis d’Arnaud on Tuesday. D’Arnaud, who has been out since April 25 with a strained rotator cuff, completed his rehab with Triple-A Las Vegas and, the Mets hope, will provide some pop to their pop-less lineup. This move likely means the demotion of Kevin Plawecki for now, as the Mets will no doubt opt to retain Rene Rivera as the backup.
Another more difficult move would be to send Michael Conforto back to Triple-A, and possibly call up outfielder Brandon Nimmo from Las Vegas. Nimmo, a lefthanded bat, is hitting .325 in Triple-A, with a .404 on-base percentage. Either Alejandro de Aza or Conforto could be sent down to make room, and when asked about Conforto — 7-for-51 (.137) in June — Collins did not rule him out.
He “still is” in the middle of an offensive drought, Collins said. “We are looking at him. The other night he had a pretty good game so we put him in there the next game and he didn’t do it. I’ll tell you, Michael Conforto plays, but he’s not coming in off the bench . . . We’re going to look at every angle we can.”
Conforto, aware his time may be running out, took a moment to plead his case. No one has mentioned a minor-league recalibration, he said.
“Obviously, hopefully, I don’t go that route,” he said. “I want to be here and I want to help the team and help us get out of this tough time that we’re having, but you know, that’s out of my control and all I can do is go out there and try to produce as much as I can.
“I can get back to that and come out of the slump, the rough patch that I’m in right now. I know it’s going to happen. There’s no doubt in my mind. It’s a work in progress. You’ve got to trust the process and just know you’re going to come out of it and I know I will.”
..... - Newsday