The Mets offense couldn't pick up a disastrous start from David Peterson on Wednesday night, scoring just three runs to suffer their first sweep of three games or more all season.
The first team to break out those brooms? The lowly Cubs, who improved to 61-82 on the season.
As the bats continue to struggle to break, out, Buck Showalter was asked after the game whether he thought the Mets lineup is pressing at the plate as they continue to search for results.
"I hope so," Showalter said. "You bet, yeah. It's human nature. You've got a deadline, you're pressing to get it…it's the way life is. It's can you function when you have that sense of urgency? That's the challenge."
The Mets' lead in the division is down to 0.5 games, tied with the defending champion Braves in the loss column. A series with the putrid Pirates awaits, but New York has been suffering frustrating losses to inferior teams for over a week, so Pittsburgh hardly suggests a sigh of relief.
In what feels like a missed opportunity to regain control over the NL East, New York instead suffered losses to the Cubs, Nationals, Pirates, and Marlins since the calendar flipped to September.
"We're trying to get to that finish line and have us be the last team standing," Showalter said. "All those goals are still there for us…we've had challenges this year. We know it hasn't always been aesthetically pleasing. Because of the time of year and the things that are going on, there's a lot more focus on it.
"We don't want it to happen to us, but it seems to happen to every team at some point. We've been able to respond to those challenges."
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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