3 Up, 3 Down: Mets Can’t Find Clutch In Minnesota

Clutch was the missing ingredient for the New York Mets in Minnesota.

The Mets dropped two of three to the Twins, only the second time this season that the team has lost a series. Furthermore, New York also lost back-to-back games for the first time in 2025.

What was the main culprit behind those woes? A lack of clutch hitting.

Granted, the Mets have struggled to come up with the big hit when it matters most all year. Those struggles were only accentuated in Minnesota, though, reaching a sobering crescendo in the final two games of the series.

To that end, let’s dive right into another edition of 3 Up, 3 Down…

3 UP

WELCOME TO THE SHOW

With Griffin Canning scratched due to illness, the Mets needed a Plan B for the series finale against the Twins. The backup plan proved to be Huascar Brazobán starting as the opener, with Justin Hagenman coming in after. After several seasons grinding it out in the minors, Hagenman was finally a big leaguer. And the righty impressed on the mound in his big league debut, allowing just one earned run on three hits with no walks and four strikeouts in 3.1 strong innings. He gave the Mets exactly what they needed in what was essentially a bullpen game. Granted, Hagenman’s stay in The Show will likely be a short one. But, with that said, watching a player achieve his dream after years of hard work and sacrifices is always a really cool story.

Plus, although there isn’t anything overly flashy about Hagenman’s game, he showed on Wednesday that he can deliver on the big stage. He did what was asked of him and then some on an overall tough day for the team. So maybe it won’t be that long before we see Hagenman back up with the Mets after all.

FAST STARTER

Clay Holmes has been handling his transition to a full-time starter like a pro so far. And he delivered his best outing of the year in the series opener on Monday. Holmes allowed just one run on two hits and two walks with eight strikeouts over five innings. It was both a standout and efficient start from the former closer, who is settling into his role nicely. Holmes now has 18 strikeouts over his last two starts. His command and stuff have both been really impressive. Granted, the righty only pitched five innings again on Monday. But, given that his workload is going to increase exponentially this year, building him up slowly is the only move. Lack of length aside, Holmes showed what he’s capable off as a starter with an outing to remember against the Twins.

STAYING HOT

I wanted to mention Juan Soto‘s two home runs but looking at the box scores, Pete Alonso didn’t have a bad game in this series. In fact, the slugger did all he could, again, to give the Mets every chance of winning the series. He went 2-for-2 with two walks, an RBI and a run scored in the opener on Monday. He followed that up with another two hits, including a double and a home run, in Tuesday’s game. Then, in the finale, Alonso went 2-for-4, including an RBI double that helped to spark a game-tying rally in the eighth. He also drew a walk in the 10th inning to put runners on first and second with no outs. All in all, Alonso remains the only clutch hitter in this lineup right now.

3 DOWN

INJURY BLOW

The worst fears with Jose Siri were confirmed after an MRI exam and a CT scan revealed a fractured left tibia. As a result, the outfielder will now be on the shelf for a while and the Mets have lost depth in centerfield. They’ve also lost speed and Gold Glove caliber defense in the field. Now, granted, Siri wasn’t exactly off to a great start given that he was hitting just .050/.208/.100/.308 prior to getting hurt. However, he showed before fracturing his tibia that his speed can make a huge difference on the basepaths. And his absence means more pressure will be heaped on the already-struggling Tyrone Taylor to produce offense from centerfield.

ERROR-LADEN OUTING

Francisco Lindor is currently trying to battle his way out of another early-season slump. He’s had his moments, including a rally-starting single in the finale on Wednesday. However, it was a rough series overall for the shortstop in Minnesota. He went 1-for-5 with a strikeout on Monday, before going 1-for-5 again the next night with two strikeouts, including striking out in the ninth with a chance to tie the game. Furthermore, Lindor also committed an error in the third inning that led to two runs being scored, ultimately dooming the Mets to defeat. The two-time Gold Glover already has four errors this year, which isn’t like him at all. It goes without saying that the Mets need Lindor to become vintage Lindor, both offensively and defensively, and soon.

LACK OF CLUTCH

This offense is perplexing. The Mets put together an offense that was supposed to be explosive. However, through the first 18 games, it has been anything but that, especially in clutch situations. The Mets went a combined 3-for-16 with runners in scoring position across the two games they lost against the Twins. In all, they were just 5-for-28 with RISP in the series. They also went 12 consecutive innings without scoring before breaking through in the eighth inning on Wednesday.

There were too many golden opportunities wasted with runners on throughout this series, especially in the finale. Jesse Winker was thrown out at home when attempting to score from second base in the second inning. Juan Soto, who went 0-for-5 in the finale with three strikeouts, grounded out into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the fifth. Brandon Nimmo – who looks lost at the plate with runners on – popped out in the 10th. And Mark Vientos and Brett Baty have combined for 12 strikeouts and only two hits in 28 at-bats with RISP this year.

Overall, the Mets are now next to last in MLB with a .166 batting average with runners in scoring position. There is no doubt that this lineup has explosive potential, but it has to start cashing in with runners on soon.

The post 3 Up, 3 Down: Mets Can’t Find Clutch In Minnesota appeared first on Metsmerized Online.