3 Mets who deserve a lot of credit for resurrecting the team back from the dead

3) Carlos Mendoza

Those smart in-game pinch hitting moves couldn’t be possible without the manager. Carlos Mendoza has a horrible first homestand. It seemed like any of the managerial decisions he could make backfired. We still shouldn’t forgive him for asking Brett Baty to bunt in extra innings.

Mendoza has been ultra-aggressive. The double steal from Monday right before Bader’s double shifted the momentum entirely in favor of New York.

It’s the manager who gets the credit, rightfully or wrongfully, for the success of that move.

For Mendoza, those early shortcomings may have been personnel related. The Mets lost two of their games because Michael Tonkin couldn’t pitch in the clutch. Another, the one where Yohan Ramirez got lit up by the Cincinnati Reds, was in large part due to the overuse of bullpen arms which again is in part due to the players he has. The Mets starting pitchers just aren’t efficient and with a lack of flexibility at the time to promote relievers, Mendoza has to tread carefully and let Ramirez pitch his way off the roster.

A couple of those early losses were also due to a lack of hitting; something the Mets are doing much more.

It’ll be a learning experience throughout the year for Mendoza. We haven’t seen the last of the boneheaded decisions. Fortunately, we’ve seen some brilliance lately. All he has left to do is find a way to get Francisco Lindor out of his slump.