The Mets have their first losing streak of the 2022 season. A 5-4 loss at the Philadelphia Phillies also came with a couple of injury concerns.
First, the loss was the second consecutive night an 8th-inning lead was blown. Relievers Joely Rodriguez and Seth Lugo failed to hold a 4-0 lead, the Phillies rallied for five runs and held on for the win.
The bullpen faltering on back-to-back nights warrants a raised eyebrow. Let’s remember, it’s still early in the season. Because of an abbreviated spring training, starting pitchers are mostly still being stretched out. A strong bullpen is a must and, right now, the Mets have a couple of question marks in their pen.
Second, health is now a concern — albeit a minor one — for this team. Starting pitcher Taijuan Walker looked great for two perfect innings but left the game with right shoulder irritation. For the Mets, fortunately David Peterson brought his A-game out of the bullpen with four innings of excellent long-relief. Walker, meanwhile will have a precautionary MRI on his shoulder.
Trevor May relieved Peterson and attempted to pitch 2 innings of work, however, departed the game in the dreaded 8th inning with what was described afterwards as possible arm fatigue. May, like Walker, will also have an MRI,
Mets manager Buck Showalter downplayed both injury updates on Walker and May. However, there’s no downplaying the early concerns the Mets are running into with holding late-inning leads.
It’s early in the season and this is a marathon. But still, the emphasis should be on stopping the bleeding as soon as possible.
