Mets third-string catcher Patrick Mazeika is a walk-off magician

It took New York Mets third-string catcher Patrick Mazeika three at-bats to have three RBI in 2021. Arguably the most ill-fitted member of the roster right now, the team is 4-0 in games he has played in this season. It’s not all just coincidence either.

Mazeika was promoted to the big leagues on May 5 on the same day the Mets played a doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals. He pinch-hit in the second inning of the second game. The result was a groundout.

It has been his least effective at-bat of the season thus far.

Ever since, Patrick Mazeika has been performing magic for the Mets

Two days later against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Mazeika was the man at the plate that ended the now-infamous “ratcoon” game. Pinch-hitting in the bottom of the tenth with the bases loaded and one out, Mazeika grounded into a fielder’s choice that plated a run and gave the Mets a victory.

Another two days would pass before Mazeika would get up to the plate again. In another pinch-hitting performance with the bases loaded, he drew a walk in the sixth inning to put his team ahead 3-1. The team would end up winning 4-2, making this RBI walk the game-winner.

Twice is a coincidence. Three times is something else.

After an off-day, Mazeika would again see a late-inning pinch-hitting opportunity arrive. Already, a few patterns are forming. Every two days, Mazeika has a chance to step up to the plate with a chance to win it or put his team ahead. He didn’t disappoint in the opener against the Baltimore Orioles.

The last man on the bench, Mazeika dug into the batter’s box in the bottom of the ninth for the Mets in a 2-2 tie. In a repeat of his first RBI of the season, he grounded into a fielder’s choice which brought a hustling Jonathan Villar across home.

Count them. Three at-bats. Three RBI. Three game-winning runs driven in. Two walk-off victories. The 27-year-old Mazeika must have sold his soul to some evil entity this offseason. There’s no other explanation for it.

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I’m not sure there has ever been anything quite like this start Mazeika has had in 2021. Not a guy anyone expects to get much playing time, he is making it tough to demote. This unorthodox production might not get analytical teams giddy but it sure does have the fans excited to see what else he has up his sleeve.