The New York Mets have been perhaps the most disappointing team in all of baseball this season, sitting below .500 despite having the highest payroll of any team in the league. Mets manager Buck Showalter appears to be on the hot seat in New York, and the team’s latest loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday afternoon certainly will not help matters.
New York’s shaky bullpen reared its ugly head once again, blowing a three-run lead in the bottom of the eighth inning. Mets relievers walked three batters and hit two more with pitches.
The final nail in the coffin came as Mets reliever Jeff Brigham hit Trea Turner with a pitch with the bases loaded to bring in a run that gave the Phillies a 7-6 lead.
Mets play-by-play announcer Gary Cohen perfectly summed up the inning on the PIX11 broadcast, calling it a “bullpen meltdown.”
“And he hits him. The Phillies take the lead. Two consecutive bases loaded hit by pitches. And the Phillies go in front 7-6. Bullpen meltdown. Oh my word.”
Here's how the Phillies' go-ahead HBP looked and sounded on the Mets broadcast. ⚾️🎙️
"Bullpen. Meltdown."- Gary Cohen https://t.co/NcYnPBdJl0 pic.twitter.com/NJMtxTViVl
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 25, 2023
New York would miraculously get out of the inning with no further damage allowed, but it would be too late. The Phillies would go on to win 7-6, and Cohen yet again let his feelings be heard about just how brutal the loss was.
“The Mets’ 42nd loss of the year is their most horrific,” said Cohen as the Phillies recorded the final out. “As the Mets bullpen melts down, aided by a key error. Buck Showalter tried to stay away from his best relievers and the Mets paid the price.”
Gary Cohen sums up the loss.
"The Mets 42nd loss of the year is their most horrific."
"Buck Showalter tried to stay away from his best relievers and the Mets paid the price." pic.twitter.com/qTYaYx8Bgr
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 25, 2023
Cohen’s final statement about Showalter is perhaps what Mets fans are most upset with. Former All-Star reliever David Robertson had been the Mets’ setup man for most of the season, and Showalter opted not to use him. Understandably, fans took to social media to voice their frustrations on this decision.
This is certainly the type of game that gets a manager fired.
David Robertson has pitched twice in the last 10 days. Only 13 pitches yesterday.
Adam Ottavino has pitched just twice in the last week.
— Mike Mayer (@mikemayer22) June 25, 2023
The Mets had David Robertson available. And Buck Showalter let him be a spectator to that 8th inning bullpen meltdown. It smells of malpractice.
— Marc Carig (@MarcCarig) June 25, 2023
That whole 8th inning I figured David Robertson was unavailable
That he was available & started warming *after* Mets coughed it up without using any of their best relievers was mind blowing
It’s inexcusably bad strategy
Lots of this is on Eppler but what is Showalter doing?
— Danny Abriano (@DannyAbriano) June 25, 2023
Showalter was asked after the game whether he would redo anything about the eighth inning, and he didn’t exactly take accountability for his decision to not use his best relievers.
“What else can we do? I was hoping just like last night that we could’ve stretched every out we can with everybody we got. They are capable of doing the job, they just didn’t today.”
"What else can we do? I was hoping just like last night that we could've stretched every out we can with everybody we got. They are capable of doing the job, they just didn't today"
– Buck Showalter on if he would redo the 8th inning pic.twitter.com/yvEzGcH1jz
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 25, 2023
The Mets now sit at 35-42 after the loss, and it seems like fans and media members alike are starting to turn on Showalter as the manager in New York.
[SNY; PIX11]
