Mets’ Split Squads Walk It Off Against Miami, Drop Game To Washington

The New York Mets spent Sunday playing two games. The split-squad affair saw half the team travel to West Palm Beach to take on the Washington Nationals. Meanwhile, the other half stayed at Port St. Lucie and played the Miami Marlins at Clover Park. The squad who took on the Marlins erased a 6-1 deficit and tallied a 7-6 win courtesy of a José Iglesias walk-off solo home run. The team against Washington blew a late lead, losing 9-8.

One of the early signatures in spring training for New York has been their elite pitching. Entering Sunday, New York lead the league in spring ERA. However, Sunday painted a much different picture, as the team gave up big run totals in each contest.

Similarly, in each game, the starting pitchers struggled mightily. At Clover Park, the Mets’ Opening Day starter, José Quintana, was shelled for eight hits and six runs (four earned). He was only able to go 4 1/3 innings, throwing 71 pitches (49 strikes). Quintana gave up eight hard-hit balls, an extremely alarming number. His spring ERA now sits at 4.15.

In West Palm Beach, against the Nationals, Tylor Megill was only able to last 3 2/3 innings. He allowed five hits and four earned runs while walking two. He allowed a long ball as well. After pitching so well to begin spring, Megill hit a bump in the road on Sunday. His spring ERA sits at 3.45.

Elsewhere, pitching, Austin Adams struggled after being so strong to begin spring. After not allowing a run in 3 2/3 innings, he allowed four in the game against Washington. Adam Ottavino also allowed his first run of spring training in that contest against the Nationals.

Against Miami, the pitching got much better after Megill left the game. Drew Smith, Edwin Díaz, Phil Bickford, and Tyler Jay posted scoreless frames behind their starting pitcher. Smith was the only one of the group to allow a hit (two).

Offensively, each of the Mets split-squad teams had big days at the plate, something that has been rare this spring training as the Mets ranked 28th in the league with a team OPS of .677 entering Sunday.

Against Washington, Pete Alonso (2-for-3, RBI), Omar Narváez (2-for-2), and Joey Wendle (3-for-4) had big days. As a team, New York wreaked havoc against Nationals’ starter MacKenzie Gore. He allowed nine New York hits and eight New York runs.

At Clover Park, in Port St. Lucie, the Mets were led by huge days from Mark Vientos and Harrison Bader. Vientos struck for a 439-foot home run that left the bat at 108.3 mph. Meanwhile, Bader had a long ball of his own. José Iglesias put a bow on the game with his walk-off home run to left field.

Overall, it was a day that featured the complete opposite of what we have seen from the spring training version of the Mets this year. The team’s pitching, which has been elite, struggled, and relied on big offenses to keep them in it.

Statistics of the Game: 1-2-3 Inning

In Port St. Lucie, Edwin Díaz took the mound for the second time this spring. He may not have been as electric as his first outing since coming back from a torn patellar tendon a few games ago, but he was still extremely effective.

The Mets’ elite closer set the side down in order, getting Will Banfield, Andres Valor, and Jesús Sánchez. After a hard fly out by Sánchez (102.3 mph), he got softer ground outs by the last two Marlins. Díaz was sitting close to 98 mph with his fastball.

It is early, but Díaz looks great in his two appearances since returning.

Player of the Games: Mark Vientos and Omar Narváez

Both Mark Vientos and Omer Narváez had huge days in their respective games.

Entering Sunday, Mark Vientos was in dire need of a big day. He was coming off a game he struck out four times and his batting average was down to .171. On Sunday, he exploded, hitting a three-run home run that went 439 feet. He also tallied another hit in the contest. A big game when he needed it most.

In the other game, Omar Narváez owned Nationals’ starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore. He went 2-for-2 on the afternoon with a double and two runs batted in. A nice performance for Narváez who is projected to begin the season as the Mets’ backup catcher.

On Deck

The Mets will finally have a day off Monday before springing back in action on Tuesday. On Tuesday, they will welcome the St. Louis Cardinals to Clover Park for a 6:10 pm ET first pitch on SNY.