Series Recap: Mets Get Roughed Up By Rockies, Drop 3 of 4

By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

New York Mets vs. Colorado Rockies

Series Recap, May 1^st – May 4^th

May 1st	Mets 4	Rockies 7
May 2nd	Mets 2	Rockies 10
May 3rd	Mets 10	Rockies 11
May 4th	Mets 5	Rockies 1

Click here for Game 3 Recap

The New York Mets ran into a buzz saw once again in Colorado, as the Colorado Rockies were able to take three of the four in the series this weekend. It was a rough weekend for the pitching staff as a whole, as the hitter’s haven of Coors Field did not disappoint. The Rockies have one of the best offenses in the MLB and they showed the Mets exactly why. The Mets record now sits at 16-14 with a road record of 8-6. The Rockies ran their record to 19-14, with a record of 11-5 at home.

-Positives

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Dillon Gee continues to be an ace for the Mets. He was the only starting pitcher to conquer Coors Field on the weekend, tossing six shutout innings. He gave up only six hits and one walk while striking out five. It was quite a dominant performance by Gee after seeing how tough a go at it the rest of the Mets’ starting pitchers had. The stellar performance is the fourth consecutive one for Gee, who has tossed shutouts in three of his last starts, and against some stiff lineups. He has a career-high 16 inning scoreless streak going that he will take into his next start. He is also only the fourth Met ever to throw six or more scoreless innings in at Coors Field, joining Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey and Pete Harnisch. Gee runs his record to 3-1 on the season, dropping his ERA to 2.51 in the process.

Juan Lagares produced well at the top of the lineup for the Mets. After manager Terry Collins named him the everyday centerfielder, he responded with some exceptional play. He got a hit in every game, going 8-20 in the four games, scoring three runs and knocking in two. With what he brings defensively he deserves to be in the lineup most nights, but if he can continue producing at the top of the lineup in this fashion Collins won’t be able to take him out of it.

Chris Young was given the opportunity to start in every game of the series and he made the most of it. Young, like most of the position players in this series, had a great weekend at the plate. Young wernt 7-16 with five runs scored and three RBI. Young will most likely be the player who is in a platoon with Eric Young Jr., but if he is able to continue producing outside of Coors Field it will be hard to take a bat out of the middle of the order of an offense that usually struggles to score.

Curtis Granderson’s struggles have been well documented this season, but against the Rockies he was able to get going a little bit. Granderson had his best series of the season, as he registered a hit in each game, getting two in each of the middle games. He raised his batting average 37 points, from .136 to .173 over the weekend. He also scored three runs and knocked in five.

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In the four games, the Mets offense as a whole really clicked. They registered 43 hits and scored 22 runs. Inflated stats are expected at Coors Field, but for a team that struggles to score as much as the Mets do any offensive production is nice to see, no matter where it comes.

-Negatives

Ruben Tejada was virtually the only Met who did not benefit from playing in the thin air of Denver. Tejada was able to get two hits in the first game of the series, but went hitless the rest of the way. His batting average actually dropped, as he came into the series hitting .221 and he will be leaving with one below the Mendoza-line at .192. Tejada is arguably the worst player in the National League, but for now he is all the Mets have at shortstop and he will continue to be trotted out there.

Outside of Gee, the starting pitchers did not get the job done this weekend. All three of the other starters were unable to get through the fifth inning, the first time this season a Mets starter was unable to do so. Bartolo Colon got tattooed in the series opener, surrendering seven runs on 10 hits and one walk in 4.1 innings. Zack Wheeler did not fare much better, throwing a career shortest four innings, giving up seven runs, six of which were earned, on seven hits and two walks. Jenrry Mejia was actually cruising along before he got into the fifth inning, not surrendering a run until the Rockies exploded for eight in the frame, capped off by a Nolan Arenado grand slam.

The backend of the Mets bullpen, namely the closer spot, continues to be a big problem. Kyle Farnsworth blew the save Saturday, as the Mets were unable to hold onto any type of lead that night. The bullpen suffered another blow, when arguably their best performer thus far, Daisuke Matsuzaka, injured his right calf and could miss a couple of days. The idea of moving Mejia into the bullpen has been tossed around, and may not be a bad idea. He just does not look capable of going deep into games as a starter, and looks better suited for a late inning role.

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For as well as the Mets offense produced, the Rockies were able to outdo them. The Rockies combined for 45 hits and 29 runs, just hammering the Mets pitching staff outside of Gee. The long ball hurt the Mets throughout the series, as the Rockies knocked six out of the park, two off the bat of Justin Morneau. Troy Tulowitzki also continued his torrid pace at home, where he actually raised his batting average at Coors Field to .591 on the season. That is not a typo; Tulowitzki has gone 27-69 from the plate at home, using the friendly confines to his advantage.