The New York Mets came home after a brutal road trip looking to change their losing ways, but they wound up dropping yet another game to the Minnesota Twins, 5-3, as the Mets blew a three-run lead and closer Devin Williams once again imploded in the ninth inning to extend their losing streak to 12 games.
This one actually got off to a good start for the Mets. Nolan McLean came out dealing as he struck out eight Twins and allowed no hits through the first four innings, and McLean went 15 up, 15 down over the initial five frames. Francisco Lindor gave McClean a cushion with a three run homer in the third, but that was all the Mets got on this particular night.
McLean ran into his usual problems the third time through the order, and they happened right away as Byron Buxton hit a two-run homer in the sixth to narrow the Mets lead to 3-2. It got worse in the seventh when McLean started throwing up in the zone, and the Twins response with a double by Kody Clemens and an RBI single by Luke Keaschall to tie the game at 3-3.
The Twins bullpen came into this game with an ERA of 5.70, but the Mets helped lower that number by making 12 straight outs against three Twins relievers.
It was Devin Williams who lost this one by unraveling in the ninth again. This time is it was his total inability to throw strikes as Williams walked the first two hitters, and a mistake by first baseman on a sacrifice bunt by Kody Clemens loaded the bases when Vientos tried for the force at third and his throw was late.
Keaschall once again victimized the Mets when he bounced a single over the head of third baseman Bo Bichette with the infield drawn in to give the Twins a 4-3 lead. Williams’ third walk of the inning to Matt Wallner forced in another run.
Journeyman reliever Austin Warren rescued Williams to get all three outs by striking out the side, and Mets fans provided a note of comic relief as the Bronx cheers that greeted his first strike quickly turned into chants of “MVP” when Warren temporarily turned into a strikeout king.
But the Mets had nothing to offer against reliever Cole Sands, who pitched the last two innings of shutout relief to get the win, with Williams taking the well-deserved loss. The Mets gave up one at-bat after another down the stretch in this one, and they can only hope the return of outfielder Juan Soto will somehow energize the Mets to start playing credible baseball.