mets royals sweep
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While the rumor mill was churning in full force ahead of the trade deadline, the Mets were trying to enjoy an off day on Monday in Kansas City. They didn’t have to start their series with the Royals until the deadline passed on Tuesday. They were probably better off just skipping it altogether, though.

Any expectations I had left for the Mets went out the window after general manager Billy Eppler capped off an incredibly busy deadline. But still, I wasn’t expecting to watch New York get swept by the Royals. The Royals! Even with three straight wins against the Mets, Kansas City still owns the second-worst record in the American League at 35-75.

And in true Mets fashion, it wasn’t just the fact that they got swept. It’s how everything went down that made it even worse.

Tuesday night included a bit of a back-and-forth affair. They were tied at four heading into extra innings when Francisco Alvarez gave New York a much-needed jolt with this clutch home run:

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Naturally, the bullpen blew the lead in the bottom of the 10th to lose the game. Brooks Raley got the loss, but it was Josh Walker who balked in the winning run.

Mistakes happen, but this is another thing I didn’t have on my 2023 Mets Bingo card. After what transpired at the trade deadline, getting a win on Tuesday night would’ve been huge for that clubhouse. It could’ve set them on a more positive trajectory moving forward. But that didn’t happen.

Kodai Senga allowed three runs in the first two innings of Game 2, and the Mets managed to get shutout despite recording nine hits and three walks. They left 10 runners on base and went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Those two losses led to this stat:

Now, don’t get me wrong. This is an incredibly obscure stat that nobody should really care about. But then again, of course this happened at the Mets’ expense.

The finale made things even worse. It took New York until the ninth inning to score at all. Francisco Lindor’s home run was only exciting because it was the Mets’ lone extra-base hit and sealed the deal on them not getting shutout on consecutive days.

Overall, the Royals held New York scoreless for 17 straight innings over the last two games of this series. Just absolutely pathetic all around.

The sell-off we saw take place is a gut punch for any fan. Even if you agree with what they did. We know that Steve Cohen’s Mets don’t do anything halfway, so it’s not surprising they sold to that extent.

I’m hopeful that brighter days are ahead for this franchise as they’re executing one of their most obvious goals since Cohen took over. Also, I’m not a buffoon — while this series in Kansas City was awful, it’s far from the most pathetic showing the Mets have ever put together on a baseball field. There have been several dark times throughout franchise history. And, no — I’m not going down that rabbit hole. I’m sad enough and I don’t need any more ammo.

But after having those sky-high expectations and excitement at the beginning of the year, this was awfully tough to watch. It also doesn’t bode well for their weekend series in Baltimore against the Orioles, who at 67-42, have the AL’s best record.

There have been many moments this season where it felt like the Mets hit rock bottom. Let’s hope this is actually it, mostly because I don’t want to think about things getting much worse.

You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.

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Matt Musico
Matt Musico is an editor for ESNY. He’s been writing about baseball and the Mets for the past decade. His work has been featured on numberFire, MetsMerized Online, Bleacher Report, and Yahoo! Sports.

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