Even when things seemed to be going well, the Mets managed to create a disaster.
This time, Carlos Mendoza made one of the first questionable pitching changes of his managerial career as his team lost 6-3 in overtime to the Tigers in the first game of a doubleheader on Thursday afternoon. .
The Mets won the nightcap 2–1 to regain the split.
Starting pitcher Adrian Hauser pitched well through the first five innings of his debut for the Mets, holding a 3-0 lead into the sixth inning, and it looked like the Mets were finally getting closer to their long-awaited first win of the season. Ta.
Hauser was dominant, posting three 1-2-3 innings in the first five frames.
However, starting in the sixth inning, he gave up a walk to Parker Meadows and then allowed a single to Spencer Torkelson, creating a situation with no outs on first and third base.
Mendoza saw enough for the team to poach Hauser, acquired from the Brewers this offseason after he threw just 67 pitches.
“This is his first game of the year, but it’s his first time facing a major league hitter in three weeks,” Mendoza said of his decision. “The last two games at the end of spring training were minor league games, and it was already a big deal for him. [in the sixth inning], that was the decision. ”
Brooks Lally replaced Hauser and allowed a sacrifice fly to Andy Ibanez, cutting the Mets’ lead to 3-1.
Then, in the seventh inning, Jake Diekman gave up a run on a wild pitch, and in the eighth inning, Adam Ottavino allowed a solo home run to Riley Greene, making it a 3-on-3 try.
It stayed that way until Michael Tonkin allowed three runs in the 11th inning.
Mendoza’s move to go to the bullpen early certainly backfired.
“It’s been a week and a half [since pitching in a game]” Hauser said, echoing Mendoza’s sentiments. “With the game being postponed, it will be the first time in a week and a half that we’ve been in a game, and it’s going to be even longer before we’re playing against major league hitters. Be careful, especially since it’s so cold outside at the beginning of the season. Probably early. It would be a wise choice to leave the game and hope for a good pitch. …I staggered a little there. It’s been a week and a half since I participated in the game, and I was feeling a little slow. I wasn’t able to achieve as much as I could.”
Hauser pitched five innings, allowing three hits and three walks, giving up one earned run, and striking out three batters.
The early move to the bullpen forced the Mets to use a whopping seven relief pitchers, which certainly wasn’t ideal in Game 1 of a doubleheader.
To make matters worse, due to rainy weather on Tuesday and Wednesday, Thursday’s first game was the first of 15 games in 14 days.
And now their bullpen is already depleted.
“We knew we had a doubleheader, we knew we were going to have to pitch a lot today,” Hauser said. “I was just trying to get out front, attack early and run as long as possible. I was hoping for six or seven innings, but I just couldn’t get it done.”
