Mets Scapegoats: 1 person to question, 1 to remain patient with, 1 perfect patsy

There aren’t enough fingers to point at the New York Mets when finding a scapegoat for the team’s shortcomings. They can’t simply skate by through the rest of the season and make the playoffs. Becoming one of the better clubs in the league is the requirement to become relevant in the National League Wild Card standings.

A problem with the Mets is not one person can be held solely responsible for how badly they’ve done. Among the potential scapegoats, we have one person to question, another worth being patient with, and one final patsy who’ll end up getting more of the blame than he deserves.

1) Mets manager Carlos Mendoza is giving us reasons to question him

Carlos Mendoza has hit a lot of the right buttons this year. He has also come up short at other times. In just the last week-plus he has made some questionable calls. From unnecessarily removing Brandon Nimmo and J.D. Martinez from a game all while losing the DH spot in the lineup in the process to giving Edwin Diaz just one appearance out of the closer spot only to insert him in there the very next day, Mendoza is managing the team boldly yet sometimes ineffectively.

How much power Mendoza has in the decision-making process is questionable with the way MLB teams operate these days. How much is being forced on him? How many of the questionable calls he makes with the bullpen, lineup, and rotation are fully in his court?

The real test for Mendoza will come behind the scenes. He needs to make believers out of the players. With the way the team has played, they aren’t buying in and maybe a lot of it has to do with the expectations of the team and how short-term many of the players are.