The Mets dropped Game 3 of the NLCS, 8-0, to the Dodgers on Wednesday night.
Now trailing 2-1 in the series, here are some notes on the game and what to expect moving forward in the series…
Francisco Alvarez to remain in lineup for Game 4
The young backstop has a lot of promise but he’s going through it right now. After going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts in Game 3 — a couple coming with men on base — Alvarez is now hitting .143 with 13 strikeouts so far this postseason.
Alvarez looks lost, evidenced by his three strikeouts being called looking — and manager Carlos Mendoza knows it.
“Offensively he’s in-between. I think he’s late making his move which is not allowing him to make some good swing decisions,” Mendoza explained. “That’s why sometimes you see him taking that fastball or late on the fastball and then chasing.
“He’s a good hitter, man. He’s a good player. We’re facing an elite pitching staff as well. He’ll come through for us.”
When the Mets skipper was asked about potentially starting Luis Torrens behind the plate, Mendoza shut that down, stating “Alvy is playing tomorrow.”
Brandon Nimmo ‘fine’ after Game 3
Nimmo dealing with plantar fasciitis is not new. The Mets outfielder has said it bothers him when he starts and stops and sprints at full speed, but Game 3 was the first time he looked uncomfortable at the plate, and it wasn’t what the Dodgers pitchers were giving him.
Mendoza lifted Nimmo in Game 2 to get him off his feet, but he didn’t on Wednesday. The skipper was asked about whether Nimmo’s foot injury is affecting him at the plate.
“I’ve been checking with him and he wanted to continue and finish that game,” he said. “That’s where it bothers him the most when he’s jogging when he stops when he has to go full-speed. But at the box, offensively, he’s fine.”
Nimmo went 1-for-3 (an infield single) with a walk in Game 3 and is 8-for-36 with a home run in the playoffs.
Did cold weather cause Mets’ power outage?
The Mets offense stalled in Game 3 on two fronts. The first was the lack of clutch hitting with runners on base. They left eight runners on and were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. And the other was the lack of home runs.
It was 56 degrees at game time on Wednesday with a noticeable wind making it feel like it was in the 40s. There were a few notable batted balls by the Mets that died in the outfield that could have potentially been home runs on warmer days.
Francisco Lindor‘s fly out in the fifth inning was 110.9 mph off the bat an estimated 350 feet. It would have been out in just one ballpark — the Astros’ Minute Maid Park — but the Mets shortstop doesn’t buy the weather being a factor.
“Not for them. They hit it out, just not us,” Lindor said. “I feel like I had quality at-bats, just didn’t get any hits. On mine, I don’t think they would have gone out. Just have to get hits and make something happen.”
The Dodgers wound up hitting three long balls while the Mets almost had three of their own. Aside from Lindor’s long fly, Pete Alonso‘s third-inning fly went 351 feet at 95.7 mph off the bat. It would have been gone in four parks (Boston, Houston, Philadelphia, Toronto).
Mark Vientos — the hero of Game 2 — hit a fly ball that was 103.6 mph off the bat and went an estimated 388 feet. It would have been out in two stadiums (Cleveland, Dodgers).
Despite the weather, Lindor put the onus on the team to get the big hit when there were men on base.
“When we have people on base we have to execute,” Lindor said. “They executed their pitches when we had people on base and we didn’t execute, I didn’t execute. That’s what it comes down to. … that’s part of the game. You tip your hat today and hopefully come back tomorrow and execute.”
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