Just change the name of the ballpark to Pity Field, already.
You only can pity the Mets, who have been so bad lately their 1962 cousins must be chuckling. But these Mets aren’t laughing.
Last night, they took the misery to a new level with a 16-1 loss to the Phillies at Citi Field that officially eliminated the Mets from the NL wild-card race.
”People paid money to see this tonight,” manager Terry Collins said during a terse post-game press conference.
Have the Mets quit on the season?
”You have to ask them,” Collins said. “I don’t want to say publicly.”
So have they quit?
”We haven’t quit,” Ike Davis said. “It’s our job. This is how guys feed their family. No one wants to not do good.”
David Wright also said the Mets haven’t quit.
”We’re in this together and obviously Terry is a part of this and everybody in here is accountable,” Wright said. “We’ve been awful and when you play as poorly as we have a lot of people are upset.”
The Mets fell to 4-24 at Citi Field since the All-Star break in losing for the 11th time in 12 games overall.
The ugliness includes a franchise record 16 consecutive home games in which the Mets have scored three runs or fewer. In the second half they have been outscored 148-61 at home, and the Braves and Nationals each have more victories at Citi Field during that stretch than the Mets, who extended their home losing streak to nine.
”Those statistics point to the fact we’re probably not on the whole very good,” R.A. Dickey told The Post. “You can break that down however you want, but it’s ridiculous to refute that. You have to be honest about that at this point in the year or you won’t ever get better. If you think we’re just a piece away, then you are fooling yourself. We’ve got to do a lot of things better.”
The Phillies all but ended last night’s game in the first inning by scoring eight runs, knocking out starter Jeremy Hefner before he could retire a batter. Hefner allowed six hits and a walk and was charged for seven of the eight runs.
Collins still is searching for answers. He has shuffled the lineup, changed the time the Mets taking batting practice and listened to just about any suggestion offered by the coaching staff and general manager Sandy Alderson.
The manager said he and Alderson still have their focus on 2012.
On the road, the Mets are 16-19 since the All-Star break. Had they managed to play at that same pace at home, they would be on the periphery of the NL wild-card race instead of already guaranteed the franchise’s fourth straight losing season.
But Wright said the only winning seasons are those that include a playoff appearance.
”You want to win, but not going to the playoffs is not going to the playoffs whether we have a losing record or a winning record,” Wright said. “Moral victories don’t do it for me. If you don’t go to the playoffs, you don’t go to the playoffs. That’s my opinion.”
Dickey disagreed.
”It doesn’t matter to him, probably, but to a lot of other people it does,” Dickey said. “I can appreciate David’s perspective, but I also can see wins as a measurement of progress. I want to win playoff games and go to the World Series and in order to do that, you have to be able to have a measurement of progress. “
* Rookie reliever Josh Edgin will be shut down for the season.
The left-hander made his final appearance last night and surrendered a grand slam to Ryan Howard in the ninth. Collins said Jeurys Familia will be given a more prominent late-inning role.
* Dickey’s next start has been moved from Sunday to tomorrow against the Marlins. The switch would allow him to shoot for his 20th victory at home instead of in Atlanta should he get No. 19 tomorrow.