Mets Trailing In NLCS After Sloppy Game 3, Must Improve In Game 4

The New York Mets are on the back foot in the NLCS after a brutal Game 3 loss at home against the Dodgers. With two more games remaining at Citi Field, the team will have to find more ways to compete with their backs once again up against the wall.

The Los Angeles Dodgers received a lot of credit for their offensive performance in an 8-0 Game 3 victory, but the truth of it is New York took itself out of the game early. Los Angeles scored its first two runs on just one hit, as Mets starter Luis Severino lost control of the strike zone while the team suffered multiple fielding miscues in the cold.

New York had its chances to respond against Walker Buehler but squandered several opportunities to even the score. With the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the second, Francisco Alvarez and Francisco Lindor both struck out to end the inning. The young catcher arguably had the better opportunity with just one out, but Lindor’s shortcoming had a greater impact. The presumptive N.L. MVP runner-up has been a rock for the team for months, and seeing him fall short in a big spot seemed to take the air out of fans and players alike.

After a two-run home run by Kike Hernandez in the top of the sixth inning, the Mets performed a tactical retreat, leaving in Tylor Megill to eat innings on the mound and finish off the game. The Dodgers capitalized and scored another four runs, including a titanic three-run shot by Shohei Ohtani, but the additional scoring was largely meaningless and the Mets did little to prevent it.

Entering Game 4, the problems for New York are clear. On the mound, they’re walking far too many batters, which is also leading to sloppy defense. Dodgers batters are not chasing pitches like the Phillies did in the NLDS. At the plate, they’re beginning to have trouble with runners in scoring position in a postseason defined by timely hitting. 

If the Mets lose to the Dodgers, it would conform to the general consensus entering the series. Many people who picked the Dodgers to win the series also picked them to win in overwhelming fashion. Box scores of Games 1 and 3 suggest that the Mets have been blown out twice, but they created and wasted chances in both games and gave in early to spare the bullpen. In Game 2, Mark Vientos capitalized with the bases loaded and the team won in commanding fashion. 

New York still has two games remaining at home, but to have a realistic chance of winning the series, the team likely has to win Game 4 on Thursday. Going down 3-1 with two of three games remaining in Los Angeles would effectively end it. At some point, the team will have to win two in a row to get back into winning position. The sooner it starts, the better.

Jose Quintana will face off against Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a pitchers’ duel that could decide the season. Quintana has been phenomenal for the better part of three months, though he does his best work while getting batters to chase pitches outside the zone. Yamamoto has been effective for the Dodgers since returning from injury in September but hasn’t gone longer than five innings. He also got rocked for five runs by the Padres in Game 1 of the NLDS, though he settled down to help put down San Diego for good in Game 5.

While the Dodgers’ story this season has revolved around billion-dollar expectations and dreams of another championship, the Mets’ story has been one of wildly unexpected and exciting success. This is the first time the Mets have trailed in a series this postseason, but the team is still on very familiar ground, fighting from behind. New York clawed its way back into contention for months during the regular season, and every player on the team has seemingly had a massive moment in recent weeks. If the story ends here, the season will still be an overwhelming success. But if this team has anything, it’s grit, and there’s still some road ahead.