Shohei Ohtani’s greatest feat yet, plus the Mets’ resurgence
When Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said in spring training he thought the team could make the playoffs, Kodai Senga was healthy, Jose Iglesias was a non-roster player and Mark Vientos was ticketed for Triple A.
No season ever works out as planned, but this sure isn't the script most envisioned for the Mets back on June 2, when their 24-35 record was the third-worst in the National League. Since then, they stormed into playoff position by going 61-33, including 16-4 in their last 20 games.
Looking back, the Mets really only had one bad month: May, when they went 9-19, blew seven saves and hit into poor luck. As The Athletic's Tim Britton and Britt Ghiroli wrote today , a number of in-season decisions by Stearns and manager Carlos Mendoza put the Mets in position to ignite.
The promotion of Iglesias from Triple A was one. Moving Francisco Lindor to the leadoff spot was another. Acquiring backup catcher Luis Torrens from the Yankees also made a difference, as did shuffling the bullpen and acquiring outfielder Jesse Winker and reliever Phil Maton at the trade deadline.
Iglesias, playing for his seventh major-league club, brought energy, contact ability and yes, the musical talent that turned his song, "OMG," into the Mets' 2024 anthem. When the Mets cut him in spring training, retirement crossed his mind. But Iglesias, 34, said Stearns and Mendoza showed such sincerity in explaining during his exit meeting that the team ultimately might need him, that he decided to report to Triple A.
The Mets are full of such stories. Right-hander Luis Severino , who joined the team as a free agent, attributes his revival in part to an offseason visit to his Tampa home from the Mets' nutrition coordinator, Jeremy Chiang, and head athletic trainer, Joe Golia.
Severino learned from Chiang that the supplements and vitamins he was taking were only 20 percent of what a professional athlete needs. Golia instituted a training routine to help Severino keep his arm loose, the kind of thing most pitchers do only on their start days. Severino does it every day, and he believes an offseason visit to a sleep doctor also contributed to his improved health.
The latest unlikely Mets hero is 22-year-old Luisangel Acuña , the younger brother of Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. Luisangel, summoned to fill in for the ailing Lindor, has started his career 8-for-19 with four extra-base hits. The way the Mets see it, Luisangel should at least turn into a super-utility man capable of playing second, short, third and center. But maybe that is selling him short. Maybe he will exceed expectations, like the team he just joined.
Reminder: Tim Britton and Britt Ghiroli did a deep dive on the many storylines around the team's unexpected revival.
Tyler Kepner's "Sliders" column asks: what about a High Quality Start? He also tells us how a $25k waiver claim in 1991 led to the Guardians landing closer Emmanuel Clase .
An injury scare for Juan Soto , who banged his knee into a wall in Seattle. He stayed in the game, but will have X-rays taken as a precaution.
The Phillies gave Taijuan Walker another shot at starting. It did not go well .
Manager Craig Counsell got pretty honest yesterday, acknowledging a "big gap" between his current team ( Cubs ) and his former (Brewers).
Andrew Baggarly tells us about Giants broadcaster Jon Miller making a return trip to Baltimore in this, his 50th season on the air.
Jim Bowden makes his predictions for all the major awards.
AL wild-card check-in: The Twins are in trouble , y'all. With their loss yesterday, they fell into a tie with the Tigers for the third and final wild-card position. Cody Stavenhagen tells us about Detroit's Trey Sweeney , who was an under-the-radar pickup at the deadline. Meanwhile, don't look now, but the Mariners are only two games out.
NL wild-card check-in: The Mets and Braves both won, keeping New York's lead for the final spot at two games. The Giants became the latest team to be officially eliminated .
Most-clicked in yesterday's newsletter: The video of Julio Rodríguez 's base-running brain fart .
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