The New York Mets' starting rotation has been a major ongoing issue this season. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza is dealing with drama in his pitching staff as his team fights for a playoff spot. Fortunately, Brandon Sproat cruised through the first six innings of his start against the Texas Rangers on Saturday. However, Mendoza pulled him and eventually, Edwin Diaz lost the game.

Sproat has turned heads since arriving in the major leagues less than a week ago. Despite another good start, Mendoza refused to give the rookie starter a longer leash. He turned the game over to his relievers, who have been inconsistent for the past couple of weeks. Tyler Rodgers and Diaz gave up one earned run each, with Diaz giving up the go-ahead run in the ninth inning.

Sproat spoke about his start with SNY, saying that he was happy with his performance.

“Just go out there and compete, just fill the strike zone up,” Sproat said. “I thought the sinker was working really well. I was getting a bunch of ground balls and quick outs.”

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Mets fans could not help but be curious as to why Mendoza decided to pull Sproat from what was an effective start. New York's manager spoke to SNY and other reporters about the call, saying that it was because of a significant drop in pitch velocity.

“Even though it was only 70 pitches, when you looked up in that sixth inning, there was a big-time velo drop. We're talking about five, six MPH there from 97-98 to 93, and there were some hard-hit balls there,” Mendoza said. “When I saw that sixth inning, I wasn't going to take any chances.”

After the loss, New York is tied with the Cincinnati Reds for the final National League Wild Card spot. Mendoza has less than two weeks to get back on track and have his team in the postseason. However, his pitching decisions have some Mets fans nervous as the season winds down.