The New York Mets fans don’t want Carlos Mendoza to defend his players’ poor performances anymore. They would rather have the skipper hold them accountable. As Mendoza defended a Mets southpaw following a disastrous outing during their 9-2 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, the fanbase completely rejected his excuses.

David Peterson has left his All-Star form in 2025. Now in his seventh season with the Mets, he is playing on a one-year, $8.1 million contract. With a salary that high, fans expect reliable pitching. Instead, he has struggled from the start of the year. His bulk relief pitching against the Cardinals obliterated all the progress he made in May with three wins. However, Mendoza still chose to defend him.

“I look at him as a guy that we’re going to need to get big outs for us,” Mendoza said, per SNY. “I’m confident in Peterson even though it’s been hard for him. You continue to trust him and continue to work with him.”

On Wednesday, Peterson took the mound as a bulk reliever in the second inning. He lasted 3.2 innings and could not hold off the Cardinals’ lineup. He surrendered six earned runs on seven hits, including two homers, two walks, and managed to strike out only one batter.

While admitting to Peterson’s struggles at the mound, Mendoza blamed pitch selection, execution, and walks for his failures.

“It’s hard to describe,” admitted Mendoza. “He’s a good pitcher, and we’ve seen flashes, especially coming out of the bullpen as that bulk guy. But yeah, I think it’s just outings where, whether it’s a walk, whether it’s pitch selection, not executing, and today was one of those.”

Among his 14 outings this season, Peterson started seven games and holds a 5.75 ERA with a 3-5 record. While his game on Wednesday went very poorly, he was dominant in the game before. Against the Miami Marlins on May 31, Peterson pitched a scoreless four innings, allowing only one hit, coming out of the bullpen.

During the Mets’ 9-2 loss, both the players the lefty walked reached home on a two-run shot from Nelson Velázquez and Jordan Walker’s three-run blast. In the top fourth, Peterson launched a 92-mph fastball in the middle of the plate to Walker, who smashed it to give his team a 7-0 lead. On Wednesday, the Mets’ offense went quiet again.

Francisco Alvarez hit a two-run home run. Those were the only runs the Mets scored all game.

Although the Mets managed to bounce back with a narrow 5-4 win over the Cardinals on Thursday and slightly improve their record to 30-38, they remain stuck at the bottom of the NL East. And Mendoza continues to face serious anger from the fans.

Mendoza’s defense of Peterson sparks fan rage

“How many chances r u going to give a guy who continually lets you down. For Christ’s sake. Mendoza, Stearns, Peterson, Manea, and Vientos need to go. This is utter craziness,” wrote one fan.

As the Mets remain eight games under .500, fans don’t just want the organization to release poorly performing players. They want the skipper, Mendoza, and GM David Stears gone, too.

Peterson is not the only pitcher struggling. As a bulk reliever, Sean Manaea is going through a tough stretch as well. He holds a 1-1 record in 14 appearances and a 5.02 ERA. Infielder Mark Vientos also failed to have a solid impact on the lineup this season, hitting .211. Vientos went hitless against the Cardinals as a pinch-hitter.

“Mendoza should be fired for this quote alone. Peterson sucks and shouldn’t see the mound again,” remarked another fan.

Peterson is scheduled to be on the mound again on June 12 against the Atlanta Braves. But the Mets fans do not want to see another outing from him, as the lefty allowed 12 runs in his 12.2 innings. Wednesday was the fourth time Peterson has surrendered at least 6 runs in a game this season.

“Big outs? You need 27 outs per game. I would take ANY outs,” a user commented while calling out Mendoza.

Against the Cardinals, Peterson threw 63 pitches, 40 of which were strikes. However, he managed only one strikeout. This is the second time since April 19 that he struck out just one batter in an outing.

A fan commented, “Why does he constantly have to give positive feedback? Is he afraid of hurting his feelings. Just say he hasn’t been good and needs to be much better. Period.”

Though Mendoza showed Peterson support after Wednesday’s game, he had called the pitcher out recently. During their 7-2 blowout loss against the Cincinnati Reds, Peterson forgot a basic rule when he threw a wild pitch. He did not protect the home plate. The skipper publicly called out his mental mistake, saying, “It can’t happen, especially at this level.”

Another fan appeared least interested in press meets, unless the Mets win a game. The fan wrote “Blah, blah, blah… Same BS, just a different day #Mets, what the second highest payroll in the MLB, are a complete embarrassment.”

With the luxury tax, the New York Mets’ payroll amounts to $381 million this season, per Spotrac. But their offseason success, like signing Bo Bichette for $126 million or acquiring Luis Robert Jr via trade, did not translate to the field. Despite the huge payroll, the Mets remain almost five games behind a Wild Card spot.

Mendoza keeps protecting his struggling players. Until the team starts winning, fans will stay angry at the manager.