Tuesday night’s collapse against the Nationals left Mets fans speechless and it was the final dagger put through what was a disappointing season. It felt like a collapse was incoming, but I did not believe it was actually going to happen.
How Did It Start?
The bullpen was garbage once Seth Lugo left the game. The Mets padded the lead to 10-4 in the top of the ninth, but it was not enough for the bullpen. Bringing in Paul Sewald was move that is hard argue with. A six run lead should have been plenty to protect for him, but he had absolutely nothing on the mound. He only managed to get one out and Luis Avilan needed to pitch.
"It looks like Diaz's stuff is electric, and they just hit it…man, that's tough" – Mickey Callaway pic.twitter.com/oag7jk79jc
— SNY (@SNYtv) September 4, 2019
Avilan is where it went down hill, in terms of Mickey Callaway’s decision making. He was going to face Juan Soto and Matt Adams, the two lefties. Which was good move if Justin Wilson was already used and the Nats were out of right handed hitters. There was no chance Adams was facing a lefty whether Avilan retired Soto or not, especially with Ryan Zimmerman on the bench. Wilson should have been in the game because he can get hitters from both sides of the plate out and has been the team’s second best reliever.
Disappointing Diaz
The entire 2019 season has been a nightmare for Edwin Diaz. He has been in the middle of the worst losses the Mets all season. When he seemed like he was back, he proved it was just a fluke. Diaz came in and allowed Zimmerman to double and then Kurt Suzuki to win it with a three-run walk off home run.
Justin Wilson: 2.10 ERA, 3 HR allowed.
Edwin Diaz 5.65 ERA, 13 HR allowed.
Guess which one this manager goes to in a huge spot?
Like I said Sunday, he's not cut out for this job. #mets— Zach Braziller (@NYPost_Brazille) September 4, 2019
We will get to why Diaz should not have entered the game later on, but lets dissect the Suzuki at-bat. Diaz got ahead with a nasty slider which has become his best pitch again. He followed up with another great slider that just missed away, then one in the dirt. After that one he had no choice but to throw a fastball and missed inside with that one. Diaz threw his best slider with the 3-1 pitch and Suzuki swing right over it.
Going with the 100mph fastball was a good move, especially when it was up in the zone. He had a good swing at that one along with the next one which was a borderline pitch. It was not fooling him and it seemed a slider would be the correct selection based on how the others were thrown in the at-bat. Diaz decided to try to come at him with the 100 mph heat and Suzuki yanked it over the left field fence to in the game. It is understandable to not put the winning run on base, but it would be better to have Eaton hit with the bases loaded against Wilson instead of throwing a fastball that Diaz was not spotting well.
Thankfully Mickey Callaway Will Be Gone Next Season
Diaz should not have been in the high leverage in the season. He had looked so much better lately, but still was not ready for a big moment. Regardless of the name and their past, Justin Wilson is a better pitcher than Edwin Diaz right now. It is not a tough concept to understand especially for someone who was a pitching coach like Callaway. Wilson should have been in the game when Avilan entered and at that point they would have had to live and die with Wilson.
It is tough to see Diaz playing with the Mets in 2020 and they would be better served to avoid using him again this season. They are still in the Wild Card race but it is hard to see them bouncing back from this loss. If Diaz was an average reliever this season, we would be talking about the Mets holding onto one of the Wild Card spots.