It’s not hard to pick out reasons why a team with a 31-45 record, in the dregs of a seven-game losing streak, is struggling. They are everywhere you look. On Monday, the Mets found a new one: their gloves. In particular, that of third baseman Luis Guillorme.
Things started to go downhill from the game’s first batter, Starling Marte, who tapped a routine grounder between second and third base. Guillorme charged in to get it, then bobbled the ball.
Marte came around to score on a sacrifice fly later in the first, but Guillorme wasn’t done yet. After fielding another ground ball, correctly this time, in the third inning, he sailed the throw right by first baseman Kevin Plawecki. Instead of turning Josh Harrison into the third out of the inning, the 23-year old gave life to a Pirates rally.
“Just a bad throw overall, really,” Guillorme said. “Just let it go too high and that’s what happened.”
Two batters later, Elias Diaz singled home Harrison, who scored from second after Jose Reyes, 35, failed to get to the hole for a ground ball.
Of the three runs Seth Lugo gave up in five innings of work, two were unearned. They ended up being decisive in a 6-4 loss.
“I just didn’t make the plays,” Guillorme said. “There’s really nothing behind it, it just didn’t go my way.”
In the ninth, Guillorme made yet another mistake. He tried to bare-hand a slow ground ball from Josh Harrison and lost it, setting the Pirates up with the bases loaded and nobody out. Guillorme wasn’t charged with an error, but the ensuing run — which came on a one-out Diaz sacrifice fly — would have been prevented had he made the play.
“[Guillorme] hadn’t played very much,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “That’s not an excuse, he takes ground balls and throws the ball to first every day, you know, in practice, but he hasn’t been out there a ton.”
Third base isn’t Guillorme’s natural position. He’s played mostly shortstop and second this season, with time spent in both Triple-A Las Vegas and Queens, but that’s little solace after a loss.
For all the grief their hitting has taken, the Mets’ fielding is remarkably bad as well.
But you didn’t need any stats to see that on Monday. Only a pair of eyes.