The Mets have long maintained a face of optimism through their current slide, with clubhouse leaders like Pete Alonso assuring fans that the turnaround was coming, and that by the end of the season, the current skid would be nothing more than a frustrating obstacle, or a necessary detour that still led to a playoff berth.
Now, as the losses pile up and the regular season calendar dwindles, that optimism might be giving way to realism.
New York's bats were once again silenced on Tuesday in an 8-0 loss to the Giants, as Francisco Lindor's return wasn't enough to spark a lineup that has been slumping badly for nearly a month. The Mets had geared up for this current stretch against the perennial Dodgers and Giants as a way to prove their postseason worthiness, but now, with two games left in what many saw as a make-or-break gauntlet, New York is 2-9 against two of the best teams in the National League.
After plating seven runs in Los Angeles in a much-needed win on Sunday, the Mets managed just five hits in Tuesday's shutout loss, and have scored more than five runs in a game just twice in their last 13 games.
"We felt pretty good about going into this game and maybe seeing the guys take some good hacks and have some hard contact, and that wasn't the case," manager Luis Rojas said. "I thought we were in between in our approach and we didn't his the ball hard…it was almost like we were chasing one pitch at the time and we didn't get it…I thought our approach was off against Long tonight."
Still 6.5 games back of the Braves with just over a month left to go in the season, there isn't much more time for relentless optimism. The Mets need to drastically turn things around immediately, or watch their five-year playoff drought continue into 2022.
"We don't have a lot of time," Lindor said. "Thirty seven games, it's time to go. It's been time to go. We have to find a way. We have to continue to compete and continue to grind and not make any excuses. We just gotta go out there and battle."
The message coming out of the Mets clubhouse has been one of unshakeable, and sometimes unrealistic, positivity since the slide from first to third place began. But that front is starting to break down and give way to the reality that optimism hasn't been leading to wins. If the team doesn't find a way to change the results on the field quickly, the assurances that the season will turn back around will turn into empty promises. No matter how positive the team remains, there is no denying that time is almost out.
"We get paid to go out there and compete and give it our best," Lindor said. "A month is not a lot of time. It's time to go. It's been time to go. I would love to say we have the answers to why we're struggling and why I'm struggling, but I don't. We work hard, we grind and compete day after day, and we just haven't gotten the results we wanted."
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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