It’s deja vu all over again for the Mets and their fans.
Through 148 games last season, the Mets were 83-65, and in the midst of their epic collapse, losing a seven-game lead in 17 games to miss the playoffs entirely. After the Amazin’s bullpen blew two late inning leads in three games over the weekend against the Braves, the Mets are, once again, 83-65 through 148 games.
Having seen their lead over the Phillies shrink from three games to one (and from four games to two in the loss column) over the weekend, the Mets will attempt to right the ship tonight when the begin their final road trip of the season in Washington against the Nationals (7:10, SNY, WFAN).
To do that, though, the Mets will have to find a way to forget about their latest bullpen woes, after allowing three runs in the eighth inning of Saturday’s first game and a five-spot in the ninth inning yesterday gave away two games the Amazin’s should have won.
“I felt like I had good stuff,” Luis Ayala said after allowing two singles and a home run – without recording an out – to blow a 4-2 lead in the ninth. “I just have to keep going and try to win as many games as I can. It was a bad day for me.
One thing the Mets have done this season, and particularly lately, is rebound from losses. Since Aug. 5, the Mets have lost more than once in a row three times – and each time, the downward trend stopped at two games. They proved that mental toughness Saturday, when after Johan Santana and the bullpen allowed three runs in the eighth to lose 3-2 in the first game of the doubleheader, rookie Jonathan Niese threw eight shutout innings and the Mets won the nightcap, 5-0.
“We’ve had some tough losses this year – there’s no doubt about that,” Wright said. “These last two losses to the Braves are two of the tougher loses, but it seems like the tougher the loss, the better we play.”
If the Mets want to avoid any comparisons to last year’s Amazin’ collapse, they’d best do that again today.
Tonight’s Pitching Matchup:
Mets: RHP Pedro Martinez (5-4, 5.44 ERA): Martinez has had plenty of success against the Nationals in his career, going 5-2 with a 2.40 ERA and a save in 15 games (seven starts). It’s been awhile since he’s seen Washington, though. The last time he pitched against the Nationals was in his first two starts in 2006, when he beat them in New York and Washington. He allowed four runs on five hits in six innings in his first start, and then allowed one run on three hits in seven innings in the following outing.
Nationals: LHP John Lannan (8-13, 4.09 ERA): The Long Beach native will be making his fifth start of his career against the Mets tonight – the most times he’s faced any team. He’s gone 0-2 with a 6.53 ERA against the Mets, and they’ve won all four games. The most recent matchup was Sept. 9, when they chased the 23-year-old lefty after he’d given up five runs on eight hits in three innings.