The New York Mets returned to their losing ways with bonehead plays and bad decisions in last night's loss.
The New York Mets got a brief respite from losing on in the first game of their three-game set against the Los Angeles Angles, but it didn’t last long as the Mets dropped a 4-3 decision to the Angels in ten innings that tied the series at a game apiece.
Nolan McLean put the Mets behind early by giving up a painful run that shouldn't have happened. The Angels rallied with two outs on a pair of singles by Jorge Soler and Nolan Schanuel and a third single by Jo Adell plated Schanuel as Soler got thrown out at third. Replays clearly showed that Soler was out before Schanuel scored, but the Mets failed to challenge and the run stood.
"He missed it,” manager Carlos Mendoza said of Harrison Friedland, the Mets’ replay coordinator as the manager promptly threw Friedland under the bus, in a piece written by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. “We called, obviously, and he missed it. Harrison is one of the best at his job, and it obviously ends up being a big play when you lose by one run.”
The Mets got the run back on an RBI infield hit in the third by Bo Bichette, but McLean gave it up in the fourth on a two-run RBI single Vaughn Grissom to make it 3-1 Angels. McLean’s final line was three runs in four innings despite striking out six, and he was behind in counts all night long and admitted that he didn't execute pitches well.
New York finally came from behind to tie the game in the seventh off Angels starter Reid Detmers. A double by Mark Vientos started the rally, and Marcus Semien followed with a single. New acquisition Andy Ibanez drove in the first run on a sacrifice fly, and a single by Tyrone Taylor brought home Semien for the second.
The score stayed at 3-3 through nine innings, and but the Mets couldn’t score first in the tenth. A Bo Bichette double-play ball took out two runners after Brett Baty reached on a catcher’s interference call, and Francisco Alvarez couldn’t get the run home with a fly ball after the Angels intentionally walked Juan Soto.
The Angels loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning as Soler walked and Adell singled, moving ghost runner Adam Frazier to third. Reliever Austin Warren managed to get two outs, but a single by Oswald Peraza produced the walk-off win for the Halos, with Warren taking the loss as Ryan Zeferjahn got the win for the Halos after pitching two innings of scoreless relief.
The rubber game of the series is set for this afternoon, with Clay Holmes on the mound for the Mets against Jack Kochanowicz for the Angels. The Mets also got some bad news on the injury front with backup shortstop Ronny Mauricio headed to the IL after he fractured his left thumb sliding into first base after hitting a chopper to first baseman Nolan Schanuel.