CHICAGO – After the Mets were forced to use six relievers Tuesday, manager Carlos Mendoza said this time of year requires “all hands on deck.”
On Wednesday, that deck was sinking. And then set ablaze.
The Mets fell victim to a rough outing by Jonah Tong, yet another offensive blackout, and more sloppy defense as they got walloped by the Cubs, 10-3 at Wrigley Field.
The bullpen situation, heavily taxed after getting 23 outs on Tuesday, meant that Mendoza had to turn to Clay Holmes and Sean Manaea, both of whom pitched Sunday in a piggyback outing, to get outs (they did, but in less than stellar fashion).
And one day after completing a five-run comeback, their biggest of the year, the offense, as it often has done, looked lifeless, managing just four hits.
The one saving grace was that the Reds, trailing the Mets by one game, lost to the Pirates in extra innings. The Diamondbacks, who entered the day also back by one, played the Dodgers in a late game, but own the tiebreaker. Now, with just four games left in the season, the Mets must find a way despite that beaten up relief corps and no clear option to start against the Marlins Saturday.
Tong got into trouble at the outset, but Tyrone Taylor, newly reinstated from the injured list, bailed him out. The rookie allowed a leadoff double to Michael Busch and walked Nico Hoerner and then, with one out, Moises Ballesteros poked a grounder by a diving Francisco Lindor that skittered into center.
Taylor, though, broke for it, ignored the cutoff man, and shot a laser to Franciso Alvarez to get Busch about a second before he touched the plate. Busch was originally ruled safe, but a challenge overturned the call. Seiya Suzuki then hit into a force out to end the inning.
Tong loaded the bases with no outs in the third, on a Matt Shaw single that went just over Jeff McNeil’s outstretched glove, a walk, and a sharp single to left by Hoerner. Ian Happ then pulled a 1-and-1 changeup down the right-field line to put the Cubs up 2-0. Ballesteros chipped in an RBI single of his own, this one passed a diving Mark Vientos.
Suzuki then lined a two-run double passed Vientos, who was slow to react, giving the Cubs the 4-0 lead and ending Tong’s night without an out in the third. Pete Crow-Armstrong’s one-out sacrifice fly off Richard Lovelady but the Mets down by five.
Tong allowed five runs and seven hits with two walks and one strikeout in two innings, and has a 7.71 ERA after being fast-tracked to the majors on Aug. 29.
Lovelady let up a 396-foot solo homer to Matt Shaw in the fourth. That started the unorthodox bullpen carousel, as Holmes began to warm up despite having just pitched Sunday when he finished off Manaea’s start.
Alvarez, whose two-run homer won the Mets the game Tuesday, added another two-run shot Wednesday, this time off Matthew Boyd with one out in the fifth, drawing the Mets to within 6-2. It was only the Mets’ second hit of the game, the first being Vientos’ leadoff single that inning.
Holmes finally entered the game in the sixth, after Lovelady walked the leadoff batter; Holmes got the first two outs and was almost out of the inning when Crow-Armstrong hit a ball to third that Vientos threw away to score a run and land Crow-Armstrong on second. Holmes then sailed a wild pitch over Alvarez and failed to cover home in time, allowing Crow-Armstrong to score for the 8-2 Cubs advantage.
Mendoza then turned to Manaea in the sixth, but the lefty allowed a single to Shaw and then hung a sweeper that Busch slammed deep into the right-field stands for the 10-2 lead. Soto homered off Aaron Civale in the eighth, his 43rd.
Taylor back, Siri DFAed. The Mets Wednesday reinstated Taylor (hamstring) from the injured list and designated Jose Siri for assignment. Siri, whom the Mets traded for in November, missed most of the season with a broken tibia, but struggled in 16 games, slashing .063/.167/.125.
Senga struggles. Kodai Senga will remain in Florida for at least the rest of the regular season after he showed little improvement during his 45-pitch live batting practice Tuesday; his velocity was still down at around 93-mph on his fastball.
“He feels he’s healthy but it’s just not clicking,” Mendoza said.
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.