Royals 4 Mets 0 (Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO)
Mets record: 50-57
Mets streak: Lost 2
WP - Cole Ragans (3-3)
LP - Kodai Senga (7-6)
Seat on the Korner:
We select the star of the game and virtually invite him to a Seat on the Korner, just as Ralph Kiner used to do for his studio postgame show on WOR-channel 9 broadcasts in the early decades of the Mets.
Cole Ragans weaved in and out of trouble, but his six shutout innings kept the Mets at bay as the Royals cruised to a 4-0 victory.
Need to Know
Brandon Nimmo missed his second straight game with quad tightness.
Cole Ragans pitched six shutout innings, scattering seven hits and one walk, striking out eight in the process.
The 9-1-2 part of the order was the crux of the Royals' success tonight. Kyle Isbel went 2-for-4 and scored a run from the 9 hole, Maikel Garcia went 3-for-4 and scored a run from the leadoff spot, and Bobby Witt Jr. anched that by driving in a run and going 2-for-4 from the second spot.
M.J. Melendez was the only Royal starter who did not get a hit, but he scored a run.
Jeff McNeil went 3-for-5 from the leadoff spot for the Mets, and Danny Mendick went 2-for-3 while batting in the ninth spot.
Phil Bickford made his Mets debut and gave up a solo HR to Drew Waters in the bottom of the 8th.
The Royals now have a five game winning streak.
Turning Point
Michael Massey's two run double in the first got the Royals off on the right foot, and they never looked back.
Three Keys
Senga's All Wet: Kodai Senga had a shaky start where he was dealing with a light drizzle, giving up three runs in his first two innings of work. He settled in after that and went 5 and 2/3's, but he gave up 11 hits and two walks in that time, striking out six. The Royals were ambushing his first pitch fastballs, and laying off the ghost forks as much as they could.
Just play the position you want: As you saw from the Witt RBI single above, that was Danny Mendick playing left field. With Pete Alonso at DH tonight, you had a defensive lineup where Mark Vientos was playing first, and Mendick was playing left field. Mendick had played three games in left field in his major league career. With the roster depleted and the reserves up to fill spots, you're going to see a lot of defensive lineups like this.
Chances Are: The Mets had chances to score. Single and a walk to lead off the first, no runs. Two singles to lead off the third, no runs. Two straight singles with one out in the fifth, no runs. They finally get a hit with a runner in scoring position in the 6th, and this happens:
Then in the ninth, the Mets muster a two out rally with two walks and a single by pinch hitter Daniel Vogelbach to load the bases with the score 4-0. Jeff McNeil, with three hits on the night, comes to the plate. Grounds out to second to end the game.
It's been a running theme with the Mets this season, leaving small villages on the basepaths, as Harry Doyle would say. And that was with the decent lineups. WIth the ones they're going to trot out now? Yeesh.
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