The Mets have found their personal patsy, and lo and behold, it’s none other than the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies.
That makes all the Mets very happy, maybe even their perpetually peeved co-ace Max Scherzer.
Behind a truly mad Max, who’s still battling Major League Baseball, this time over an extra warm-up toss no less, the Mets beat the Phillies 4-2 to complete their sweep Thursday and put a punctuation mark on their utter domination over the division rival that’s nearest to them geographically and spiritually.
One would think the talent levels of the two teams are similar, too. But the rivalry remains about as one-sided as ever. If the Braves own the Mets, the Mets possess at least the rights to the Phillies.
At the moment, of course, the Phillies (25-31) have bigger problems than being bullied by the team from the bigger (and obviously better) city 90 miles to the north. They are losing to a lot of teams following their wonderful and unexpected World Series run last year. And they seem about as shocked as the rest of us.
“We have to figure something out fast. We can’t go about it that baseball owes us something because we had a magical run down the stretch last year,” Phillies star Nick Castellanos told The Post. “Whatever fire we have as a group, I think it’s about time it shows.”
After winning the winter, the Phillies own one of the better rosters in baseball. Yet they have continued to play well below their level into June now. The names are great in that room, and the ability is top-notch. But it’s hard to tell from the games.
If you think Scherzer was mad at MLB over being prevented from throwing his customary eighth warm-up pitch in the fifth inning due to time constraints, and apparently he was, there was steam coming out of some corners of the Phillies’ clubhouse. And Castellanos laid it on the line.
“I feel fantastic about the talent in the clubhouse, and it’s no secret up until this point we’ve done a very poor job of putting it together to get wins,” Castellanos said. “That’s something we have to figure out how to do, and we need to do it fast.”
Phillies manager Rob Thomson, the darling of the city last year when they pulled off two upsets and reached the World Series, pointed out the past three National League champions all started slowly. A World Series hangover may exist, but there’s no denying it’s getting concerning.
Thomson suggested he didn’t sense complacency, but there wasn’t much else positive he could say. Phillies starter Taijuan Walker, the ex-Met, was “just off.” Their approach at the plate “comes and goes.”
There’s a long way to go, which may be a blessing or a curse.
The Phillies are vying now for the title of MLB’s most disappointing team, which is shaping up as quite a competition. The Padres, who they beat in the NLCS; the Cardinals, perennially the favorites in the NL Central; and the White Sox, annual underachievers, all are in the running. The Mets have played their way out of the unhappy conversation, thanks to the Phlllies.
“I have faith in the talent and character we have,” Thomson said.
The talent, and the names, are obviously terrific. They have two ace pitchers: Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola. They have one-third of Team USA’s World Baseball Classic All-Star lineup. They have two $300 million-plus superstars: Bryce Harper and Trea Turner.
The Mets have spent a lot of money, too, and whatever you want to say about their shortcomings, they appear to have the Phillies’ number — to the extreme of a 17-5 record since the start of 2022.
No matter that the Mets spotted the Phillies two runs Thursday, one coming courtesy of rookie catcher Francisco Alvarez heaving the ball into left field on a Turner steal attempt.
No matter that their top two players, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso, failed to register a hit and continue to tote low batting averages.
No matter that noted Phillies-killer Scherzer found something else to upset him, which to you, me and everyone else in the world seems like very little, but to him might be grist for the anger that drives the future first-ballot Hall of Famer. For all his issues this year, he now stands with a 5-2 record (yes, we still count wins and losses here) and a 3.21 ERA.
For those who thought he was done, well, you can forget about that. Scherzer remains great. And the Phillies remain one shockingly pleasant opponent for the Mets.
Nobody can really explain these things. But Adam Ottavino gave it a shot.
“We’ve just played well against them, and they haven’t played as well,” Ottavino said. “It’s not like you’re licking up your chops when they come in. They have a very good lineup, a good bullpen and good starters. At some point, they’ve got to roll, you would think.”
At this point, these Phillies are only rolling out of town, dejected and a little further down in the standings — as usual.
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