Pitching woes strike again, and the Mets just got into a 5-game skid. The Phillies—whom they once swept in August—are now just one game away from sweeping them. The timings couldn’t have been worse for the team whose goal was to “win division” are now finding it hard to make it to the playoffs. And the skipper? Well, Carlos Mendoza seems to be okay with his strategies.

Wednesday night felt like déjà vu in the worst possible way. Clay Holmes started the game as the starting pitcher but only lasted four innings, giving up four earned runs in an 11-3 blowout. And the game prior to that wasn’t great either; Sean Manaea fell apart in a 9-3 loss, giving up runs like a batting practice pitcher. Instead of anchoring this rotation, both starters gave the Phillies easy wins.

After the two back-to-back bad pitching performances, when asked by Carlos Mendoza about both arms, he remains defiant. “You know, we’re counting on them — I said it yesterday about Sean, and the same thing applies to Clay. We need those guys.” The manager’s unwavering faith comes even after both pitchers had big mistakes. Holmes couldn’t get into a rhythm early on, and Manaea let up a lot of home runs and had a terrible performance.

Here’s the kicker: Holmes was a bullpen pitcher for his whole career until the Mets made him a starter this season. The change hasn’t gone smoothly. His ERA is 3.75 over 29 starts, which is not good, and he hasn’t shown that he can regularly go deep into games yet. Manaea’s numbers for 2025 are just as troubling. He has a terrible 7.71 ERA in his last seven outings, and he has given up four or more earned runs in six of those games. The Mets can’t afford that kind of inconsistency right now.

Amid this, Holmes has faith that they can still make it. “People want to figure this out and really put our best baseball in front of us. I think there’s a belief that we will. I think there is a belief that we will.” “There’s no doubt we’re super talented. We still believe we have what it takes.” 

Well, the Mets still have the second Wild Card slot open. However, their lead is melting away. The Giants and Reds are narrowing the gap, while the Diamondbacks (73-74) and Cardinals (72-74) are still behind. With only 2 1/2 weeks left in the regular season, one of these teams will need to perform exceptionally well to beat the Mets. And if NYM keeps losing, it will make things easier for the other teams. The margin for error is now very small. On top of that, Carlos Mendoza’s choice to rely on struggling starters could be a mistake that might end their season.

As if that wasn’t enough, the Mets’ pitching depth took another huge hit..

Here we go again: Megill to IL, Mets’ pitching troubles roll on

The Mets’ pitching problems don’t seem to be getting any better, as yet another pitcher is out of action. Tylor Megill, who was recovering from an elbow sprain, was shut down again after saying he felt tight while throwing secondary pitches in a Triple-A rehab game. Carlos Mendoza, the manager, said that Megill is “getting multiple opinions on his elbow” and that “we’re running out of time” for him to come back this season.

The rehab isn’t going well either. Megill’s last time in the minor leagues saw his ERA rise to 6.60 over 20 innings, which is a big difference from his 1.73 ERA in April. That decline, along with his arm problems, shows how weak the Mets’ pitching is right now.

This is in addition to a five-game losing streak that started in early September and has become worse because Clay Holmes and Sean Manaea have been having difficult starts. Megill’s absence takes away what could have been important depth at a time when the squad needed it the most.

Between all the rotation meltdowns, injury setbacks, and Carlos Mendoza’s decision, the Mets have turned October dreams into a September nightmare.