Gut Reaction: Pirates 12, Mets 1 (6/29/25)
The Pirates slugged eight extra-base hits – the only reason it wasn’t nine was because a ball cracked down the line hit the third-base ump and stayed in the infield – en route to a 12-1 shellacking of the Mets Sunday afternoon in Pittsburgh. In the three-game series, the Pirates outscored the Mets, 30-4 – the largest margin of defeat in franchise history.
After the Mets went down 1-2-3 in the top of the first, the Pirates had three extra-base hits, including two homers, in their half of the inning. It was 5-0 and the game was effectively over.
How bad was it? Travis Jankowski pitched the final inning, throwing the junkiest junk you could possibly imagine. And while he gave up two runs, he might have been the Mets’ best pitcher of the day. He’s the only one who didn’t allow an extra-base hit.
The Mets had seven hits – two each by Jeff McNeil and Luis Torrens, with the team’s catcher providing the only run with a solo homer in the fifth inning. The Mets managed just one walk, so they were only 0-5 with RISP. The sequencing of hits is lousy and it’s tough to get wins when as a team you have an 8.0 K/BB ratio.
Mercifully, the club has a day off Monday. The fans need it more than the team after watching the Mets go 3-13 in their last 16 games. It probably wouldn’t make a lick of difference but my preference would be for something or someone to go postal. Everything turned around last year when Jorge Lopez threw his glove away. Maybe Huascar Brazoban can threaten to show Jay Horwitz Santo Domingo.
Time for Stearns to smash the status quo and trade for another impact player or two. The division is there for the taking, but not with this pitching staff and not without a bottom end of the order being terribly unimpressive. Mullins from the O’s to plug the hole in CF and bringing a good bat with him, and a Sandy Alcantara to bring a star arm, even if he’s still coming back from injury, to help anchor this pathetic rotation. Lots of prospects to let go in a deal plus a piece or two from the current roster if necessary. There must be something they can pluck off the rosters of the White Sox, Rockies, A’s or Orioles as those teams will be buried in their respective divisions for years to come without a rebuild. Make the trades now and not in a month.
There doesn't seem to be any water cooler-smashing players on this team. Everybody is too content with their potential. It's a few superstars surrounded by a team full of band-aids