Mets' bullpen needs Help! It falters again as Mariners rough up Ryan Helsley, Brooks Raley
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza takes the ball from relief pitcher Brooks Raley during the seventh inning against the Seattle Mariners at Citi Field on Friday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
On Beatles Night at Citi Field, the Mets again got no help from their bullpen in an 11-9 loss to the Mariners before 41,200 on Friday.
With the Mets holding a 6-4 lead built in part on the strength of two home runs by Francisco Lindor, Tyler Rogers gave up a run in the sixth and Ryan Helsley and Brooks Raley combined to allow five runs in the seventh.
It was a long and winding road to the Mets’ 14th loss in their last 16 games. They maintained a half-game lead over the Reds for the final National League wild-card spot but fell six games behind the NL East-leading Phillies.
It was another hard day’s night. (Sorry, just couldn’t let it be.)
“Good question,” Raley said. “Not sure I have an answer for that. Haven’t seen anything like this. Been playing a long time. But I feel like everybody in here is doing everything they can to show up and play hard.
“Our offense did that tonight. Those guys were great. Score nine against a team like that, you feel like you should win the game. I was part of the problem. We didn’t get it done.”
The Mets’ bullpen woes have been constant since David Stearns traded for Rogers and Helsley at the deadline. The Mets have blown leads in seven straight games, six of them losses.
First — after homers by Lindor and Juan Soto (No. 30) on consecutive pitches gave the Mets a 6-4 lead in the fourth — Rogers allowed a run in the sixth on Cole Young’s two-out RBI single.
For the second straight night, Helsley could not get the job done when handed a one-run lead. He blew the save on Thursday and was the losing pitcher in Atlanta’s 4-3 victory at Citi Field.
The trend continued on Friday. Only the details were different. Helsley again was charged with a blown save and again was the losing pitcher.
Helsley allowed the tying run to score on Eugenio Suarez’s one-out double and was charged with the eventual winning run when Dominic Canzone hit a run-scoring double off Raley.
Raley, who faced five batters and recorded one out, then gave up an RBI double by Donovan Solano off the top of the leftfield fence to make it 8-6. It nearly was a three-run homer, but the reprieve was short-lived for the Mets as Young touched Raley for a two-out, two-run double to give Seattle a 10-6 advantage.
Things got so bad that deposed starter Frankie Montas was on the mound for the Mets for the final two innings. He gave up back-to-back doubles by Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez in the eighth to make it 11-6.
Francisco Alvarez hit a three-run homer in the eighth to trim the Seattle lead to 11-9. You may have noticed that also was the final score.
“It’s coming down to one or two innings that other teams are outplaying us,” Lindor said. “It doesn’t feel good to lose. But we’re staying together.”
The Mets celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Beatles’ legendary Shea Stadium concert. A Beatles cover band played before the game. Photo mockups of the Mets players in Beatles mop-tops and outfits were featured on the scoreboard. Classic Beatles tunes were piped in all night long.
It was a great atmosphere again at Citi Field. Just not a great outcome for Mets fans.
“Trying to stay positive. Right now, it’s tough,” starter Sean Manaea said. “I think everyone here is doing the right thing. Things are really, really tough.”
Manaea’s struggles continued. Unlike his previous two outings, he did not throw shutout ball (for four and three innings, respectively) before faltering. This time he gave up four runs in the first three innings, including Raleigh’s MLB-leading 46th home run, a two-run shot that gave him 100 RBIs.
With the Mets trailing 1-0 on Rodriguez’s RBI double three batters into the game, Lindor led off the bottom of the first with an opposite-field homer off righthander Luis Castillo. It was Lindor’s seventh leadoff home run of the season, which tied Curtis Granderson (both 2015 and ‘16) for the club single-season record.
Mitch Garver led off the second with a homer to give Seattle a 2-1 lead. The Mets took the lead back in the bottom half on two-out RBI singles by Alvarez and Lindor.
Manaea was touched up for a two-run blast in the third by Raleigh, but Lindor struck again in the fourth, hitting a two-out, two-run homer to put the Mets ahead 5-4. Soto's blast made it 6-4.
Manaea reversed his recent trend and finished with a pair of scoreless frames. In five innings total, he allowed four runs and six hits. He was in line for the win before the bullpen imploded. Again.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
