As the season continues to spiral out of control, the New York Mets need a miracle. This is not something the fan base is saying. This is not something the media is saying. These words came out of the mouth of the embattled Mets manager Mickey Callaway. Callaway made the statement on WFAN’s Mike Francesa show, and he was not paying tribute to the ’69 Miracle Mets, who are being honored Saturday night at Citi Field.
Mickey Callaway to me minutes ago about his team’s chances: “it is going to take a miracle”.
— Mike Francesa (@MikeFrancesa) June 28, 2019
The Mets returned to New York on a brutal five-game losing streak that started with the clubhouse incident Sunday against the Chicago Cubs and concluded with a four-game sweep at the Philadelphia Phillies. To put this past week in perspective, here are some key points.
- The Mets have lost five games in a row — and they led by at least two runs in every game
- The Phillies had just lost seven straight games, including a sweep by the Miami Marlins, only to then sweep the Mets in a four-game series.
- After closer Edwin Diaz blew the save Thursday, the Mets now have more blown saves (20) than actual saves (18). They are the only team in baseball to have more blown saves than actual saves.
The Mets are the only team in the majors with more blown saves (20) than saves (18).
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) June 27, 2019
Miracle Mets
The damage control regarding Callaway’s now infamous “Miracle” statement began Friday night. Callaway is now saying it was a play on words. What he meant to say was if this keeps on going, it will take a miracle to get back into the playoff race. It’s this sort of double talk that infuriates Met fans about Callaway’s reign as the manager.
This just adds fuel to the fire that Callaway is in over his head and should have never been hired as a first-time manager of a team that plays in the media capital of the world. There is no other team in professional sports like the Mets. They share a city with the most successful sports franchise in the world, the New York Yankees. The long-suffering Met fan base can be very critical and impatient. Making a comment as Callaway did will not earn him fans in New York.
Callaway’s play on words, as he called it, was more about the Mets honoring the ’69 Miracle Mets but not about his team. The interview Callaway had with Mike Francesa is on the WFAN website. You can judge for yourself.
"That was more of a play on words with the 50-year anniversary and all that"
Callaway says it doesn't have to be a miracle, but "we have to get it going" pic.twitter.com/Su20FZKfyH
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 29, 2019
Mets Season
The Mets returned to New York and had ace pitcher Jacob deGrom on the mound against the first place Atlanta Braves. After losing Friday night, the Mets have a 37-46 record, 12 games out of first and in fourth place. With three teams to chase, it will be hard to see this team competing for the division unless the Mets get ridiculously hot and embark on a huge winning streak.
As for the wildcard, the Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers are tied for the lead, with the Mets six and a half games behind them. The bigger issue is including the leaders there are nine teams ahead of the Mets. This is a lot of teams to jump over. While this is not impossible, the Mets are going to have to fix their bullpen issues right now before the season becomes officially over.
Trading Chips
The Met fan base is now looking over the roster to see who can be flipped for any kind of future assets. There is Zack Wheeler, who will be a free agent at the end of the season. He will definitely be traded but might not get a great haul. Wheeler has been pitching better of late, and his strong second half of the 2018 season might be enough to convince a team to give up a good player for him.
Then there are veteran players such as Todd Frazier and Jason Vargas. Both are playing well and certainly are not the reason why the Mets are struggling this year. Both are free agents at the end of the season and figure to be moved, too. However, the Mets always seem to accept salary relief instead of getting the better player in return.
Since #TRADESZN is starting to bloom, my sense from those in and around the Mets organization is that they could be quieter than you might think. They pretty much have to trade Zack Wheeler. They'll try to flip Frazier, Vargas, at least for salary relief. That could be about it.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) June 28, 2019
Mets Outlook
With the trading deadline on the horizon, it is looking more likely the Mets will be sellers and not buyers. The Mets seemingly lack the big player that can fetch them a huge haul of young players. deGrom was that player last season. With deGrom now signed long term, the only other player they could move is pitcher Noah Syndergaard.
Syndergaard has not yet reached his full potential and is still under team control for a couple of more seasons. This is where his greatest value is. A change of scenery could possibly bring out the best of Syndergaard and maybe get the Mets a few more players to build around.
The Mets could finish this season with both the National League leaders in batting average in Jeff McNeil and the Home Run champion in Pete Alonso. Those are some big building blocks. It remains to be seen if Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen can make the necessary moves to right the ship for the long term.
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