Mets Drop To 4-1 With Loss To The Nationals

After spoiling their fans with four consecutive wins at the beginning of the 2012 season, the Mets finally dropped a game. They didn't look too good in the process, but Terry Collins had set a very weak lineup for the game, even before David Wright was removed for further examination of what turned out to be a broken pinkie finger.

If Wright does not hit the disabled list with his injury, Justin Turner and Ronny Cedeno figure to get the bulk of the playing time at third base. Neither player is a desirable everyday option. If Wright does officially go on the shelf, the Mets could and should recall someone who can play third the grand majority of the time while he's gone. Josh Satin and Zach Lutz come to mind since both players are on the Mets' 40-man roster and have shown offensive skill in the minors.

Regarding the game itself, it's not exactly shocking that the Mets lost. While Terry Collins' decision to start Scott Hairston was understandable, the concurrent inclusion of Mike Nickeas and Justin Turner in the starting lineup is generally not conducive to scoring runs.

Like Mike Pelfrey last night, Dillon Gee suffered a rather unfortunate fate while posting strikeout and walk numbers that were better than his career norms. Gee showed a propensity for the strikeout towards the end of his minor league career, and it's not impossible that he can at least improve upon his previous rate at the major league level.

Given the large deficit the Mets faced shortly after Gee's departure, it's a positive that only two relief pitchers were used to finish the game. Bobby Parnell's outing was uneven, but his four strikeouts were a silver lining. Miguel Batista is clearly the last man out of the bullpen at this point, which renders Terry Collins' suggestion that he could serve as an alternative closer all the more irrelevant.

On top of a general lack of offense, the Mets didn't look very good playing the field. All in all, it's just one game, and getting too worked up about any of the team's deficiencies this evening would be as foolish as celebrating its early-season success as some sort of championship.

Despite the loss, the Mets have the opportunity to take the three-game series from the Nationals tomorrow afternoon at 1:10 pm. Johan Santana takes the hill for the Mets, and Stephen Strasburg will start for the Nationals.

SB Nation Coverage

* Traditional Recap
* Boxscore
* Amazin' Avenue Gamethread
* Federal Baseball Gamethread

Win Probability Added

Big winners: Ronny Cedeno, +11.4% WPA
Big losers: Daniel Murphy, -14.3% WPA, Bobby Parnell, -11.6% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Wilson Ramos GIDP in the second inning, +10.7% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Ian Desmond's home run to lead off the game, -10.2% WPA
Total pitcher WPA: -14.3% WPA
Total batter WPA: -35.7% WPA
GWRBI!: Not applicable - Washington's third run scored on an error.

Game Thread Roll Call

Nice job by Brooklyn Dodgers Mets Fan; his effort in the game thread embiggens us all.