Mets Drop Seventh Straight, Fall to Second Place in Philadelphia

A horrific seventh inning led to the Mets’ seventh-straight loss.

The Phillies scored six runs in the frame and went on to beat the Mets 10-2 Friday at Citizens Bank Park to drop New York (45-31) into second place in the National League East. Philadelphia (46-30) has won eight of nine.

Reed Garrett faced four batters to start the seventh with the score tied at 2 and didn’t record an out: Brandon Marsh and Trea Turner doubled, Kyle Schwarber walked and Alec Bohm singled before Carlos Mendoza brought in Justin Garza, who barely fared better.

Garza gave up an RBI single to Nick Castellanos, walked J.T. Realmuto to load the bases, and then Bryson Stott hit a three-run double to make it 8-2. It was the second-straight night that the Mets gave up a key three-run double and the third time during the losing streak. Garza would still go on to record five outs. Garrett, charged with four runs, saw his ERA jump from 1.23 to 2.45.

Zack Wheeler struck out eight in five scoreless innings, but left after throwing 98 pitches. Pete Alonso (18) and Jeff McNeil (8) hit back-to-back solo homers off ex-Met Taijuan Walker to start the sixth to tie the game at 2.

The Mets’ best chance to score off Wheeler was in the first inning before McNeil bounced into a 4-6-3 double play with the bases loaded to end the frame.

Blade Tidwell, called up from Triple-A Syracuse on Friday to make his second career start, was sharp early, throwing three scoreless innings before running into trouble in the fourth. He gave up two singles and a walk to load the bases with one out when fellow rookie Otto Kemp chopped a ball to third.

Brett Baty threw to second to try to start a 5-4-3 double play, but Kemp beat the relay to first, giving the Phillies a 1-0 lead. Mendoza brought in lefty José Castillo to face the left-handed hitting Marsh, who spoiled the move with an RBI single.

What a difference a week makes. The Mets had the best record in baseball seven days ago and a 5 1/2 game lead over the Phillies for first place. New York hasn’t won since.

Stat of the Game

The Mets’ team ERA in June is now 4.14 (161 innings). It was 3.15 in May (240 innings) and 2.64 in March/April (276 innings).

Player of the Game

Tidwell gave up two runs on four hits, walked three and struck out four over 3 2/3 innings, which was a big improvement from his MLB debut on May 4 when he gave up six earned runs on nine hits in 3 2/3 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals. The 24-year-old was a second-round pick in the 2022 draft from the University of Tennessee.

On Deck

Griffin Canning (6-3, 3.80 ERA) will try to stop the bleeding. He beat the Phillies with five innings of one-run ball in April, but he’s struggled lately with a 5.74 ERA in his three June starts. Rookie right-hander Mick Abel (2-0, 2.21 ERA) will make his fifth career start. Game time is 7:15 p.m. ET, and it will air on FOX.

The post Mets Drop Seventh Straight, Fall to Second Place in Philadelphia appeared first on Metsmerized Online.