Raise the White Flag

It was a tough night for the Mets, who faced off against the last-place Royals in what turned out to be one of their ugliest losses of the season, falling 16-12. It was an odd opener to their homestand at Citi Field.

The Mets started strong, taking a five-run lead by the fourth inning. But then, everything went south as they allowed ten consecutive runs before finally scoring again.

In a bizarre twist, the Royals essentially gifted the Mets a Little League home run in the first inning, courtesy of three errors on the same play. It was just an appetizer for a strange night that ended in defeat. The Mets’ pitching crew struggled against the Royals, who had already put up 15 runs against the Phillies the night before.

Kodai Senga, for instance, showed that he can be just as ineffective in relief as he was starting.

Despite having built that five-run lead earlier, it quickly evaporated. Austin Warren, in his fifth inning, allowed all six batters he faced to reach base, with five scoring, leading to an unexpected tie at 9-9. This overshadowed a notable performance by AJ Ewing, who reached base five times and hit his sixth home run of the season.

The game was tightly contested as they went into the seventh inning. Long Island’s Matt Seelinger, making his MLB debut, gave up seven runs, which definitely added to the trouble.

He faced immediate challenges, beginning with a walk to Lane Thomas and a double by Salvador Perez. Things spiraled further when Nick Loftin launched a two-run homer against him later in the inning.

Even with a scoreless eight innings from another pitcher, it was too late to change the outcome.

Returning home after a modest streak in Atlanta where they won six out of seven, the Mets were optimistic. They aimed for their first three-game winning streak since a four-game sweep at the end of May but instead endured another tough loss.

Cionel Perez had a strong first inning, but it turned sour in the second when Tyler Tolbert hit a two-run single. In the fourth, though the Mets threatened with a walk, Chiga allowed Thomas to hit a powerful double, making the score 5-4.

If not for Juan Soto’s diving catch, two more runs might have scored as Salvador Pérez hit a deep liner to left. Soto went on to hit his 20th home run of the season in the same inning, briefly giving the Mets a sense of security.

But that was not to be the case tonight.

Interim manager Andy Green addressed the challenges posed by the depleted bullpen before the game, but this particular outcome was unexpected.

With the All-Star break approaching, it looks like the Mets may not find relief anytime soon, especially without a clear solution in sight.