SHAME GAME
Embarrassment won’t stop until Mets show some fight
L OS ANGELES — For three straight games, the Dodgers rubbed it in the Mets’ faces. The Mets, heading into Thursday, had been humiliated in every phase of the game on this West Coast trip, allowing 10 runs per game to the Dodgers in their first three losses and being outscored 20-2 in Games 2 and 3, making three ugly errors over those two games.
This is lifeless baseball at its worst. The Mets have had no sense of urgency from the start, emulating general manager Sandy Alderson’s patient approach. The time for patience is past.
Terry Collins called a team meeting to try to clean it up before Wednesday’s game and the Mets promptly went out and got crushed, 8-2, committing two more costly errors and striking out 15 times.
Collins said this is the most frustrating year he has had with the Mets.
“Every time we seem like we get something going it seems like something spins in the wrong direction,’’ Collins said before Thursday night’s game at Dodger Stadium. “It beats on you. The fix is to go play because there are no answers.’’
It was home-run heaven against Mets pitchers as the Dodgers had blasted 12 homers in the opening three games of the series. During that same span, the Mets were 1-for-18 with runners in scoring position.
At least try to keep the ball in the ballpark. At least try to make opposing hitters uncomfortable.
The Dodgers have had their way with the Mets physically and mentally, challenging Collins’ team in every way.
When Yasiel Puig admired his fourth-inning, three-run home run Wednesday night — he later was asked if he took a bullfighter’s pose at home plate — first baseman Wilmer Flores showed some spark by telling the prancing Puig to act professionally.
“I don’t think he knows what having respect for the game is,’’ Flores said.
Puig promptly dropped an F-bomb on Flores.
Later, Puig was counseled by Yoenis Cespedes to run faster on his 32-sec- ond home-run trot, which is really ironic when you look at Cespedes’ trips around the bases.
Collins and Jose Reyes said they were happy Flores said something to Puig. “You’re mad,’’ Collins said. “I love it when people get mad. I was a little guy, but I played the game angry. Flo said the right thing. But we can’t dwell on that. How about us hitting a couple balls over that stinkin’ fence? “They care,’’ Collins said of his 31-40 team. “[Cespedes] said something to me last night when the game was over. Make no mistake, these guys care in there. They’re frustrated. The pitchers are frustrated. Hitters are frustrated.’’
“I was surprised because Wilmer doesn’t talk that much,’’ Reyes said. “But that was good that Wilmer said something. If you are going to pimp the homer, don’t walk for four or five steps and then run slowly.’’
Puig said: “We’ve been hitting a lot of home runs and if that’s the way that [Flores] feels it might be a result of them not playing so well.’’
At least Flores spoke up, that’s a start.
In every way, the Dodgers have let the Mets have it. If the Mets had any life in them at all, they would have had to show it in the series finale Thursday night. Enough is enough.
The Mets are 11 games back in the loss column to the Nationals, who think so little of the Mets they haven’t even bothered to get a closer yet. The Mets also are 13 games back in the loss column in the wild card, needing to jump over six teams.
The Dodgers think so little of the Mets that they pushed back Alex Wood to face the Rockies on Friday night and pushed up lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu to face lefty Steven Matz. Opponents came into the night hitting .413 against Ryu’s four-seamer.
It’s soul-searching time for the Mets. Perhaps Puig woke them up with his home-run antics.
Perhaps the Mets will turn that negative into a positive. Collins said his team is mad. Flores made it clear enough is enough. We’ll see.