The New York Mets lost to the Dodgers again, this time due to some poor defense behind starter Nolan McLean.
The New York Mets dropped the second straight game of their three game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-3, as the Mets once again got behind early and didn’t have enough offense to come back.
The Mets wasted another solid start from rookie Nolan McLean, but the right-hander was done in by his defense as the Mets got behind early.
The Dodgers scored three off McLean in the third inning, with Kyle Tucker hitting a solo homer to get LA on the board. The next run came via an Andy Pages forceout, which got Dalton Rushing to third after a throwing error by first baseman Brett Baty. Pages scored the third run on a passed ball by catcher Francisco Alvarez, who leads the National League in tha category.
Pages singled home another run in the fifth to make it 4-0, and the Mets finally got on the board on an RBI single from Bo Bichette to cut the lead to 4-1.
Yamamoto wound up going six innings and giving up just that lone run as he struck out five and scattered five hits and three walks. McLean, meanwhile, gave up four runs in six innings, but just two were earned as he gave up scattered hits and two walks.
The LA bullpen took over after the sixth, but the results were uneven. The Mets were able to get back in the game on an RBI double from Tyrone Taylor in the eighth that scored two and made it 4-3, but Brock Stewart came on in the ninth to stop the scoring and pick up his first save of the year.
Baty has now made key errors in right field and at first base in the last week, and it’s clear that the idea of turning him into an instant super utility player was a bad one. He plays well defensively at second and third, and Baty isn’t bad in left field, but the other positions have been an ongoing fiasco without an extended stretch to learn them.
As for Alvarez, the plusses and minuses are a familiar story by now. He hits well and supplies some power, but he’s a defensive adventure behind the plate. He’s rumored to be a trade candidate, and he can’t spend much time on the field in any team that’s built around the idea of run prevention. The Mets will send Freddy Peralta to the mound against Emmet Sheehan for the Dodgers.
