The New York Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 on Tuesday, thanks to a Brandon Nimmo walk-off single. Edwin Diaz picked up five straight outs in the eighth and ninth to help the Amazins pull off the win. But Mets reliever Ryan Helsley allowed a homer to Harrison Bader that tied the game, and manager Carlos Mendoza put him on notice after the game.
“People got to step up,” Mendoza told ESPN's Jorge Castillo. “People got to do their job. We just got to get [Helsley] right. Too good of stuff for them to be taking really good swings on fastballs, really good takes on the sliders. So we got to look back and see what we're missing here because for teams to have comfortable at-bats like that, something's going on here that we have to figure out.”
The Mets picked up Helsley from the St Louis Cardinals ahead of the MLB trade deadline. Since joining the team, he has a 10.38 ERA in 11 appearances. In 36 outings with the Cardinals, he had a 3.00 ERA as their closer. Helsley and Diaz could be an elite combination on the back end, but the former has been dreadful.
The Mets are holding down the last NL Wild Card spot, but the Cincinnati Reds have not come charging for it. They now have a 3.5-game advantage over Cincy, and are just five games behind the Phillies for the NL East lead. New York could have a hot September and roll that into a magical October. But Helsley needs to turn it around to make that happen.
The good news for the Mets is that their offense is firing on all cylinders right now. Nimmo's single knocked in the 43rd run for the Amazins in the last five games, in which they have gone 4-1. They can complete the sweep against the Phillies on Wednesday night.
