In defense of the Mets bullpen who look determined to ruin our summer

What does a lawyer do when they know their client is guilty? They try to get them off with a more lenient sentencing. It’s hard to defend the New York Mets bullpen right now. Wherever Carlos Mendoza turns, they seem to fail.

Jake Diekman was the last line of defense on Sunday and he followed the recent trend of Mets relievers blowing up in the ninth. They’ve all had their recent chance. It’s a mess no cleaning service would take on.

But can we put it all on the bullpen? Taxed mightily in the first month of the season, we’re seeing the results of an overworked crew. Furthermore, on Sunday alone, it wasn’t all on them.

Jake Diekman shouldn't run a lap alone after blowing the game for the Mets on Sunday

Back-to-back home runs to start the game put the Mets in an early hole. Jose Quintana would settle in, allowing 3 in his 4 innings of work. It wasn’t a particularly good outing for the veteran lefty who walked 3 and hit 2 batters. There wasn’t a smooth inning to be found in his 84 pitch performance.

Yet again, the Mets bullpen was called upon early. Even with Drew Smith back, they didn’t feel the need to turn to him at any point. Maybe he just wasn’t feeling right mid-game like they believed he would.

The relievers did their job from innings 5 through 8. Four different guys pitched scoreless frames all the while the Mets offense went limp. A Mark Vientos walk in the fourth inning followed by a DJ Stewart single in the sixth was all the Mets would do after their explosive third. Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, and Brandon Nimmo all struck out in the eighth inning. One prior, Tyrone Taylor, Jeff McNeil, and Luis Torrens went down on consecutive groundouts. All six outs came against the same pitcher.

This was an incomplete game by the Mets who took the lead then removed their foot from the pedal. After showing some guts late on Saturday, it seemed to evaporate less than 24 hours later.

No lead is safe for the Mets. Yes, we should be angry about how the bullpen has decided to ruin our summers. Equally as accountable are the two straight meatballs Quintana served and the decision by the hitters to disappear. This wasn’t a complete meltdown game so in comparison to so many other losses it kind of blends in. Still, the positive vibes coming out of the team meeting last week seem to have already dissipated. A two-game winning streak already erased with two straight losses. Are we sure London will buy that they are a professional baseball team?