Written by James Wagner at New York Times.com
The words had clearly been stewing inside Terry Collins for some time, and not simply during the agonizing three hours of Thursday’s 9-0 loss during which the Mets fell to .500 because of an embarrassing three-game sweep at Citi Field by the lowly Arizona Diamondbacks.
Collins, the Mets’ manager, took only one question during his postgame news conference and delivered a four-minute speech that challenged the attitudes of his players, his tone blending exasperation and determination. He then addressed the team in a closed-door meeting.
“There has to be passion to come and play,” Collins told reporters, waving his hands. “There has got to be a sense of: ‘This is what I do for a living. People who pay to see me play are going to see my best effort.’”
The details of what happened at Citi Field on Thursday afternoon were ghastly, but the most salient takeaway was this: The Mets, who entered this season with sky-high expectations after winning the 2015 National League pennant, have tumbled to a 57-57 record. The mark was worse than that of the rebuilding Yankees (58-56), who recently traded away some of their best players.
The last time the Mets were at .500 was on April 20, when they were 7-7.
“We have to stay resilient and optimistic,” said Noah Syndergaard, Thursday’s starting and losing pitcher.
The players reiterated that they hoped their talent would lead to a hot stretch, but the Mets are 10-16 since the All-Star break.
“This is still a good team,” outfielder Curtis Granderson said. “We still have the potential to do a lot of amazing things.”
Despite their injuries and struggles, the Mets remain in the hunt for a playoff berth in the crowded National League wild-card race. They may be a .500 team, but they were only three games out of the second wild-card spot on Thursday afternoon.
