Carlos Mendoza emphasized before Sunday’s match against the Athletics that the early season games hold as much weight as those later in the year, especially for the Mets, who are aiming for a playoff spot.
Unfortunately, the news isn’t great for the Mets, who seem to be hitting a rough patch.
They capped off a series with a tight 1-0 defeat against the Athletics at Citi Field, marking five straight losses.
To add to their troubles, they are now heading to Los Angeles for a three-game set against the two-time World Series champions.
By the end of a rather dull game, the Mets pitcher managed to avoid any serious backlash, as he had a clean sheet for the second time in three outings.
This particular loss fell mainly on Freddy Peralta, who was on the mound. He managed to limit the Athletics to just one run over six innings, with the only blemish being a solo homer from Nick Kurtz in the third.
The Mets’ offense was again largely absent, seemingly on an extended break throughout this losing streak.
Right-hander Aaron Civale faced a tough time, as he was taken down 13 times in a row after a double from Jared Young in the first inning.
Peralta showed resilience, striking out Denzel Clark to escape trouble in the second, but the tide turned in the third when he allowed the solo home run on an unfortunate 0-2 curveball.
In the fourth, Peralta faced more challenges, walking Max Muncy and then conceding a double to former Met Jeff McNeil.
However, he rallied, striking out Darrell Hernaiz and making an incredible diving catch to deny Denzel Clark a potential two-run homer, which kept the score manageable.
After leaving two runners on in the first and missing a scoring chance with Bo Bichette’s strikeout, the Mets went quiet until Luis Torrence managed a single in the sixth.
With one out, Francisco Lindor added his second hit, but the inning faded as Jorge Polanco grounded out with runners in scoring position, and pinch hitter Mark Vientos wasn’t able to deliver.
Post the fourth inning, the Athletics tightened their defense, as Peralta and Sean Manaea collaborated effectively to prevent any runners from reaching base.
