October 29, 2015 11:33 AM ET
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Mets have seemed like the coolest young kids on the block throughout this wonderful run of theirs. But something happened when they got here.
Just a guess: It’s maybe not the town but the stage.
Never has a group of New Yorkers seemed more nervous in Kansas City.
“It’s the World Series, guys,” pitching coach Dan Warthen reminded the surprised scribes who’ve been following this Mets team and hadn’t seen them fail as spectacularly as they did in the 7-1 Game 2 defeat. “There’s excitement and adrenaline.”
The Royals are acting like they’ve been here before, which only makes sense since they were in the World Series only a year ago. As for these fresh-faced Mets, it’s all new. And suddenly, the team that won a winner-take-all game at Los Angeles against the $300-million Dodgers, then swept the beloved Cubs, the darlings of the moment, looks like neophytes.
Jacob deGrom, perhaps the coolest kid of them all, “got a little anxious” (Warthen’s words) in the defeat that left the Mets needing to win four of five games against the toughest, most resilient, resolute team in the game in the Royals.
deGrom is not alone. The game has heated up in a hurry for most of these young Mets.
That vaunted rotation that is the youngest and most cost-efficient to make the World Series in modern times (not one of this fab four has even been to arbitration yet) is finally showing its youth. They are getting pitches up and they are throwing pitches in the middle of the plate against a team that will hit all night if you give them the chance.
The Mets were one ill-advised quick pitch from indomitable closer Jeurys Familia away from winning Game 1, but instead flew back home in a rather large 2-0 hole in games against a team that may be the most determined in baseball, a team that would have won it all last year if not for the extraordinary heroics of one Madison Bumgarner.
Since the Mets don’t have a grizzled World Series veteran like MadBum, it’s going to take a village. And it’s going to take a lot more than that.
“I still think we’re going to win this thing,” said Warthen, who brings the right attitude to a seemingly dire situation. Of course, Warthen is in his late middle age. The pitching coach is also playing psychologist to a bunch of kids with golden arms who may be on their last legs.
Warthen’s proclamation isn’t exactly the stuff of Joe Namath. But the Mets need more of that in their room. They seem down, if not disconsolate. They need to fix their mindset.
They need to fix a lot on the fly, and here’s a sampling …
1. They need to take advantage of Citi Field. The Mets, for once, were exceptional in their home park, and their power now plays in a park that yields to them, perhaps giving them a chance to be kings back in Queens. The atmosphere is fantastic here at The K, where fans are anxious to see the Royals win a World Series for the first time in 30 years.
Mets fans have waited nearly as long; their championship came one year later, in 1986. And for inspiration, maybe the Mets can recall the team that lost the first two games of both those World Series went on to win it, anyway. Right now, they’ll just be happy to see some smiling New Yawkahs for Game 3. “I think it’ll be nice playing in front of some people cheering for us,” Mets star Daniel Murphy said.
2. They need Murphy to go back to being inhuman again. He’s been fine the first two games, with two hits the Game 1 and two walks in Game 2. But it isn’t the homer-a-day dramatics we’re used to seeing from the new Mr. October.
The Royals quite apparently had a game plan to keep the ball away from Murphy, who has proven to be deadly against the best when the ball is on the inner half. But according to Murphy, he’s had his chances. “I”ve gotten a couple pitches to hit,” he said. “I’ve just missed ‘em.”
3. They need to field it better. Three-fourths of their infield — shortstop Wilmer Flores, second baseman Murphy and first baseman Lucas Duda — looked a step slow against the Royals unending stream of hard grounders and liners here. The Mets have not been very good defensively at all.
It was probably a mistake to try to play a less-than-100-percent Yoenis Cespedes in center field in Game 1, and they paid for that gamble right away, when Alcides’ Escobar’s long fly ball bounced off Cespedes’ leg for a freak inside-the-park homer. In Game 2, they just seemed out of sync. Most of the infielders seemed either out of position or a step behind the play. And even Juan Lagares, the defensive whiz inserted in center, misplayed a catchable ball. They have to get their defensive game back if they are to have a chance against team that doesn’t let up.
4. They didn’t get the best from co-aces Matt Harvey and deGrom in Games 1 and 2, but here come the really young kids. The two rookies — Noah Syndergaard and Steve Matz — are next up in the rotation. Syndergaard is a big fearsome presence, and he’s really good at home, so he’s not a bad one to have going in a virtual must-win game. “We have a ton of confidence in him,” David Wright said. “He’s throwing the ball as well as anyone.”
5. The Mets need to make sure they aren’t tipping their pitches. there was speculation along those lines for both Familia and deGrom. Regarding Familia, one Mets person called the pitching tipping claim “bull—-.” (Warthen had a different explanation, saying, “I was not pleased with the quick pitch.) As for deGrom, Mets people just thought he wasn’t his usual self. In this environment, that’s easy to be.
6. They need to grab a lead so they can avoid the teeth of baseball’s best bullpen. This goes without saying against the Royals, who did not give up leads late. The Mets avoided the Royals’ vaunted pen in Game 2, but not the way they wanted to. They didn’t see it, but only because Royals starter Johnny Cueto lived up to his Johnny Beisbol nickname and dominated them on a two-hit complete game (and even those two Lucas Duda hits weren’t struck especially hard, someone in the Mets clubhouse conceded).
“The Mets NEED to score early,” one scout said. “The Mets aren’t out of it with their starting pitching, but their lineup has to give them some breathing room.” If they see Kelvin Herrera and Wade Davis at the end, that spells trouble. Those two pitchers must be avoided if the Mets are to have a real chance.
7. The Mets need to calm down. Which is easier said then done, of course.
Hitting coach Kevin Long noted that Mets cleanup hitter Yoenis Cespedes was “more relaxed” in Game 2. But unfortunately, others were less so. deGrom, who may be the easiest going guy on the team, got lost in a fifth inning that never seemed to end. “He got a little flustered and started to overthrow,” Warthen said. He got overaggressive, and tried to overpower folks.
The hitters also showed their nerves. “We started maybe pressing offensively,” David Wright admitted. The day off will do them good, he also said, because it gives them a chance to decompress. However they do it, they need to relax, and be themselves. They haven’t been a semblance of their best selves to this point.
Who knows? Maybe Warthen’s right and they can still do it. But they are going to have to turn things around in a hurry.
More Inside Baseball…
| Team | News |
|---|---|
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Baltimore Orioles News |
| Chris Davis will be positioned as the top positional player in free agency by agent Scott Boras. After 47 home runs, a case could be made, though Cespedes could have something to say about that. | |
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Kansas City Royals News |
| Royals owner David Glass explained the team’s resolve in an interview with CBS Sports: “None of us was very happy with the way it ended last year. The only way to fix it is to do it right this year.” GM Dayton Moore, the architect of the two World Series teams who was featured here Wednesday, hasn’t been approached about an extension yet. To which Glass responded, “I can’t imagine he’s going anywhere else. We’re all in this together.” He did praise Moore, saying, “Dayton’s done a great job. He had a plan. And he’s stuck to that plan. Even though there was pressure to try a short-term strategy. He resisted that. He’s put together a pretty good team.” … Alex Gordon will decline his $14-million player option. There’s been no evidence of discussion about an extension (the team is kinda busy lately) but they intend to try to keep him, if they can … Ben Zobrist has risen to become a $15-million-a-year player, one agent (not his) said. Look for him to shoot for that amount, or more … Without the DH, the Royals might try to play Kendrys Morales at first base and Eric Hosmer in right field in Citi Field. But that might be a gamble for a team with a lead … We don’t always offer a lot of praise in this space for Ned Yost, but he handled the bullpen brilliantly in Game 1. It was smart to get Ryan Madson in there after some recent struggles (“Yost would have been killed if that didn’t work,” said a scout) and very smart to employ an improved Chris Young for the final three innings of Game 1 … A security person asked to see Moore’s credential when I was talking to him Tuesday. Moore isn’t a celebrity GM, But you’d think the security people would know who at least he is. (I ID’d him for the fellow.) | |
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Miami Marlins News |
| Don Mattingly will be the next Marlins’ manager. Nice move for Miami, which needs a calming influence. Dan Jennings actually did a nice job late in the season, but owner Jeffrey Loria was determined to hire Mattingly all along. In some ways this works out better for Mattingly, who will get a longer contract and more autonomy. | |
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New York Mets News |
| Many think the Mets will be serious players for free-agent shortstop Ian Desmond. The Mariners, Padres, White Sox, Twins and others could also be in the Desmond market. He recovered in the second half to play close to his career norm after a poor first half, and still likely will have a robust market, thanks to his talent and potential … Matt Harvey’s camp was thrilled he came out after 80 pitches in Game 1. Harvey had nothing, and six innings was enough, they thought. Boras is still trying to protect his client … Updated prediction for Murphy’s free agency: $75-million range. He’s made himself up to $50 million with his big postseason … A Royals person offered a very apt comp for deGrom: a young Bret Saberhagen with slightly less command (of course Saberhagen is remembered much more fondly in KC than he is in Queens) … Tyler Clippard is a key man in this series. Lefthanded hitters batted .137 against him this year, thanks to his great changeup, and three of KC’s main power threats – Eric Hosmer, Kendrys Morales and Mike Moustakas – are lefthanded … Belated congrats to Mets co-owner Saul Katz who correctly predicted the four-game sweep of the Cubs in the NLCS | |
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New York Yankees News |
| Alex Rodriguez had a brilliant comeback campaign, but with $40 million to go through 2017, one GM said he remained “untradeable.” … CC Sabathia, due out of rehab around the end of the week, is said to be doing well … Joe Torre says he loves what he’s doing (he’s baseball’s on-field rules chief) and has no great desire to get back into managing. Though, he did note he misses managing World Series games. | |
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San Diego Padres News |
| Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman were here for the Reliever of the Year award (it went to Mark Melancon and Andrew Miller), and the question is, whether Hoffman, who’s on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time next year, is a Hall of Famer. No full-time closer has ever made the Hall on the first try, but the suspicion is Hoffman makes it eventually. And he deserves to be there. | |
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Washington Nationals News |
| There seemed to be some significant support for Dusty Baker, though Bud Black eventually got the managing job. Good job by the Nats winnowing things down to two very good candidates for the win-now situation … The Nationals are expected to move Anthoiny Rendon back to third base, his preferred position. | |
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Major League Baseball News |
| It was weird to see only four-fifths of the on-air FOX pre- and post-game crew on the field — Alex Rodriguez, Kevin Burkhardt, Raul Ibanez and Frank Thomas — before the game. Remember, the fifth member of the team, the guy who plays the crazy uncle on the FOX shows, Pete Rose, is still not allowed to roam the field. | |
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