Flushing, NY — The Mets season came to a faltering end Sunday evening as the San Diego Padres clobbered New York 6-0 in Game 3 of the National League Wild Card round. A disappointing ending to a 101-win regular season and a devastating blow to a crowd of 39,241 at Citi Field.
“We didn’t come through. We didn’t finish,” said Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor. “Our expectation is to win a World Series, and we didn’t do that. We came up short.”
“Hopefully, we can gain something from the pain,” said Mets manager Buck Showalter. “It’s one of those things that you can’t do anything but say it was self-inflicted. It’s not like — you seek your level, and we’re not going to be able to continue to play.”
Mets Game 3 starter Chris Bassitt was simply not the answer. San Diego’s damage on Bassitt began in the second inning as a two-out bases-loaded jam surfaced. What followed was Austin Nola delivering a 0-2 curveball to left field for a two-RBI single, lifting the Padres up 2-0.
And the piling up on Bassitt continued until he was removed after the fourth, surrendering four earned runs across three hits and three walks. “No matter where you lose, it’s stunning,” Bassitt said. “I’ve lost in this one. I’ve lost in the next round. It don’t matter what round you lose in. It just sucks.”
Photo Credit: George Napolitano/ Latino Sports
The right-hander seemed compromised by San Diego’s dynamics in taking their time between pitches, stepping out of the box and remaining patient.
When asked about the Padres taking time in between pitches, Bassitt said, “I don’t have any problem with that. That had literally no correlation to the end result, so no.”
The 33-year-old entered the win-or-go-home scenario with a 0-2 record and a 6.60 ERA against San Diego across three career outings. This is potentially his final outing as a Met due to Bassitt’s mutual option in his contract this offseason.
If so, Bassitt will be a coveted target on the market since he proved his worth this regular season with a 15-9 record, 3.42 ERA, and 167 strikeouts across 181.2 innings.
Nonetheless, the focal point for the Mets offense, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso, endured a difficult Wild Card weekend, combining for five hits in 20 at-bats with three walks and six strikeouts in the best-of-three series.
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor watches his team from the dugout, hoping the offense could gather an ounce of momentum in Game 3, but falls short of advancing to the NLDS. Lindor ended the night going 0-for-3. 📸 Photo Credit: George Napolitano/ Latino Sports
But, overall, the Mets’ offense fell into complete disarray, combining for one hit with only two left on base in Sunday’s Game 3 loss. Mostly responsible for the Mets crater: Padres starter Joe Musgrove.
Besides the win-or-go-home scenario, Musgrove entered Sunday with vengeance out for the Mets. In six career outings against New York, Musgrove was 1-5 with a 5.83 ERA.
San Diego Padres Joe Muscgrove made his first postseason appearance since his Game 6 outing in the 2017 World Series as a member of the Houston Astros. Musgrove would dominate the Mets offense through seven innings, allowing a sole hit as the Padres advance to the NLDS. 📸 Photo Credit: George Napolitano/ Latino Sports
Marking his eighth career playoff appearance and first postseason start, the 29-year-old right-hander displayed utter dominance on the mound, not allowing a hit until the fifth inning.
“He was on a mission today,” said Padres manager Bob Melvin.
In an odd case of events, umpires stopped the game in the sixth inning to investigate if Musgrove was using a foreign substance or, in other words, ‘sticky stuff.’ As Citi Field became a warzone with reigns of heckles towards Musgrove, he answered back by retiring the side unscathed and even heckled back.
The umpire crew discussed with San Diego Padres starter Joe Musgrove that they will perform a substance check in the sixth inning of Game 3 of the NL Wild Card series. After a thorough check, the umpires did not discover any substance on Musgrove. 📸 Photo Credit: George Napolitano/ Latino Sports
“I’ve seen him do it before, checking the pitcher,” Musgrove said. “I get it, dude. They’re on their last leg. They’re desperate, they’re doing everything they can to get me out of the game.”
“I’m charged with doing what’s best for the New York Mets,” Showalter explained. “If it makes me look however it makes me look or whatever, I’m going to do it every time and live with the consequences.”
Regardless of the stadium’s animosity, Musgrove remained in full control, completing seven innings, fanning five, and allowing one hit and a walk. He became the first pitcher in MLB history to allow one hit while completing 7.0 shutout innings in a postseason winner-take-all elimination game.
“It motivated me a little bit, man. It fired me up,” Musgrove said about the sixth-inning situation.
The Mets missed out on their opportunity to fly to Los Angeles and take on the Dodgers in the National League Division Series. In a combination of a lack of execution on the bases and poor pitching performances, the Mets’ path to the 2022 World Series resulted in an early October exit.
Pete Alonso watches on as the San Diego Padres pitchers hush the Mets offense for the second time in the best-of-three series.
📸 Photo Credit: George Napolitano/ Latino Sports
Instead, San Diego will make the trip to Dodger Stadium with plans to upset the top team in all of baseball. The Dodgers finished with 111 regular season wins, tying for the fourth most wins in MLB history.
So what’s next for the Mets? Back to the drawing board for the 2023 season.
“It’s tough, it’s really tough. That’s going to be a tough pill to swallow for a while,” said Alonso.
