3 NY Mets to blame for inexcusable sweep by Braves
By Josh Wilson
The Mets suffered a historically bad series sweep against the Atlanta Braves, extending their losing streak to five games. Here’s who to blame.
The New York Mets have a $345 million payroll. The Atlanta Braves clock in at $202 million. While Atlanta sits atop the NL East at 38-24, the Mets are 30-33 and on a five-game losing streak. Those dollars, at least so far, have not gotten the Mets where they want to be.
Put another way, the Mets have spent $4.7 million per win so far this year. The Braves have paid $2.03 million per win.
Barring a major turnaround, the first year of the Steve Cohen spending spree has not panned out. Ultimately, it could lead to major changes in the organization, and this Braves series could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
A sweep is one thing, but to make matters worse, the Braves led in all three games by at least three runs. They didn’t just lose, they blew out the tires and crashed the car.
Here are the three Mets that need to be blamed the most after this unforgivable series sweep.
Mets to blame: Drew Smith, P
Drew Smith only pitched in one game of this series, but it was enough to land him on this list. The relief pitcher came in for the bottom of the sixth inning in the opening game. He got two quick outs, but then gave up a two-run double to Marcell Ozuna.
Right after, a wild pitch from Smith advanced Ozuna to third base and he scored after that.
The Braves were up by a run when Smith came in. They were down by one when he left after 26 pitches to get three outs.
Smith has generally a pretty good track record in high-leverage situations, with the second-best (0.25) clutch rating of relief pitchers this year. It escaped him in the opening game of the series, and it was bad enough to land him on this list.