Mets' offense has been the worst in baseball during their 11-game losing streak
The Mets' Mark Vientos returns to the dugout after being forced out during the eighth inning of a game against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday in Chicago. Credit: AP/Erin Hooley
Plenty of finger-pointing has occurred throughout the Mets’ 11-game losing streak that has sent them spiraling to an MLB-worst 7-15 record.
There’s been heat from fans toward Carlos Mendoza for his in-game decisions and David Stearns for his remake of the roster. There have been games in which the Mets have come oh-so-close to getting back in the win column, like Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Cubs in 10 innings despite holding a 1-0 lead entering the bottom of the ninth, and blowouts, like the seven losses by at least four runs during the streak.
But this much is a fact: Since the Mets’ 11-game losing streak began on April 8, they have the worst offense in baseball.
Over that span, the Mets rank last in MLB in runs scored (19), RBIs (18), on-base percentage (.239), slugging percentage (.289), OPS (.528) and wRC+ (51), according to FanGraphs. They also rank toward the bottom of MLB in batting average (.200, fourth worst), homers (seven, tied for third worst), walks (18, second worst) and walk percentage (4.7%, second worst) since April 8.
“The coaches are doing an outstanding job of preparing us,” said Francisco Lindor, who during the losing streak is batting .239 (11-for-46) with a solo homer (his lone RBI of the season), a double and no walks.
“We know what we’re going to get and we have a great game plan. We just got to execute.”
The Mets’ pitching during the losing streak hasn’t necessarily been better, either. Their 5.70 ERA since April 8 is the second worst in MLB, including a 5.43 ERA from their starters (seventh worst in MLB) and a 6.05 ERA from their relievers (fourth worst.)
But the Mets’ offense — which endured a 33-inning stretch between April 11 and last Wednesday with only one run — has been the main culprit.
The obvious missing piece to the puzzle has been Juan Soto (right calf strain), who hasn’t played since April 3 but is expected to return during the Mets’ upcoming nine-game homestand. Lindor noted that Soto, who is slashing .355/.412/.516 this season, is “irreplaceable” and his return “is going to help us a lot.” But his absence hasn’t been an excuse, nor will it automatically fix everything.
“Even when he comes, we’ve still got to get it done,” Lindor said. “It would be unfair to just throw everything on him.”
Another component of the Mets’ offensive challenges has been their inability to lift the ball. The team has the fifth-highest ground ball percentage (45.6%) in MLB this season and the sixth highest (45.1%) since April 8, according to FanGraphs. Their average launch angle over both the whole season and the 11-game skid is 10 degrees, the third worst in MLB this season and the fourth worst since April 8, according to Baseball Savant.
“In general, we’re just not impacting the baseball as a team,” Mendoza said after Sunday’s game. “They put us on the ground a lot today, again. Other than [MJ] Melendez [who had a solo homer], we didn’t hit that many balls hard today.
“We’ve got to get better at-bats, for sure.”
The Mets are hitting the ball decently hard over the 11-game slide, with their 34.3% hard-hit percentage ranking 10th in MLB since April 8, but to no avail.
Brett Baty, for example, has a 25% hard-hit rate during the losing streak. He said Friday that his at-bats were “terrible” as he was “chasing balls, not hitting the ball hard and being timid.” He has a career 31.6% hard-hit rate.
“Personally, I need to just get back to my approach and swing at strikes and taking balls and hitting the ball hard, really — really hard all over the place,” added Baty, who is batting .138 (4-for-29) during the losing streak.
Only three players are hitting over .250 during the losing streak, and it’s been those with limited at-bats: Melendez at a team-best .357 (5-for-14), Jared Young at .286 (2-for-7) and Tyrone Taylor at .267 (4-for-15). Melendez is only on the team because Young, who wasn’t expected to be a major contributor, is on the IL with a left meniscus tear.
Nine players have at least 20 plate appearances during the losing streak, and Francisco Alvarez’s .241 batting average (7-for-29) is tops among them; Alvarez also has been the Mets’ top power source all season with a team-high four homers, but he has only five RBIs.
Other notable averages during the losing streak include Bo Bichette at .238 (10-for-42), Marcus Semien at .237 (9-for-38), Luis Robert Jr. at .211 (8-for-38), Carson Benge at .200 (6-for-30), Jorge Polanco at .100 (2-for-20) and Mark Vientos at .067 (2-for-30).
“Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got to find a way.”
Newsday’s Laura Albanese contributed to this story.
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
