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Lowest moments of New York Mets’ 2026 season (so far)

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  • Jorge CastilloMay 1, 2026, 07:00 AM ET

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      ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

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Less than 24 hours after the New York Mets finally snapped a stunning 12-game losing streak, president of baseball operations David Stearns made a declaration.

“I still think we’re a good team,” Stearns said last Friday. “I recognize we had a stretch where we did not play good baseball and it cost us and cost us repeatedly. But I think we’re a good team and I think we’re going to show that.”

The Mets have not shown that. After an embarrassing three-game sweep at home against the lowly Colorado Rockies and losing two of three to the young Washington Nationals this week, the team with MLB’s second-highest payroll has the worst record in the majors.

How did they get here? The Mets’ roster, thanks to injuries and underperformance, has holes everywhere, but the offense has been the foundation for their abysmal performance. They rank last or next-to-last in several major offensive categories, including runs scored, OPS and wRC+. The deficiency became so apparent so early that the Mets have already reached out to teams, searching for offensive help with a willingness to trade one of their starting pitchers not named Nolan McLean, Freddy Peralta or Clay Holmes, sources told ESPN.

The sample size is growing too large to disregard, and history is not on their side. The Mets are the 139th team to experience a 12-game losing streak. None of the first 138 clubs reached the playoffs.

“I don’t think anybody anticipated something like this,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “You know you’re going to get hit with injuries and you’re going to face adversity. But to have everything at the same time is crazy. But, hey, we got to keep going.”

Will May bring better results? As the calendar turns to a new month, here’s a look back at the lowest moments of the Mets’ miserable start.

March 26: A frosty moment between Lindor and Soto goes viral

Clubhouse dynamics, a topic of discussion last season and through the winter, take center stage again — before the season’s first pitch is thrown.

During an offseason makeover, the Mets parted ways with franchise home run king Pete Alonso and longest-tenured position players Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil — leaving Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto as the team’s primary veteran stars. Early in spring training, Lindor and Soto each addressed their relationship, which has been a source of speculation since Soto joined the team last season. Both dismissed the notion of a rift between them.

Fast forward to Opening Day at Citi Field, where Soto’s locker is no longer near Lindor’s, as it was last season, but across the room — and their icy interaction during pregame introductions goes viral. While the Mets chase Paul Skenes, the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, in the first inning and beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-7, the video of their less-than-enthusiastic greeting — in which Soto and Lindor warmly welcome their teammates and all but ignore each other — lingers on social media, igniting further speculation about their dynamic.

April 3: Soto gets hurt

Soto strains his right calf while running the bases in San Francisco and exits in the first inning. Soto, known for his durability, ultimately lands on the injured list and misses 15 games.

The aftershock is delayed. The Mets score 28 runs over the next four games, all wins. The Mets beat the Giants that night and again the next two days to take the four-game series, and return home to outlast the Arizona Diamondbacks when Ronny Mauricio, in his first at-bat after beginning the season in the minors, delivers a walk-off single in the 10th inning.

“Baseball,” Mendoza says. “It’s crazy, right?”

Prescient words.

April 11: Lindor’s month of mental mistakes

Lindor continues an unusual spate of gaffes by not covering second base on what should be an inning-ending double play against the Athletics, allowing a run to score in an 11-6 loss.

It’s Lindor’s fifth notable mental mistake of the young season. Two days earlier, he was flat-footed attempting to turn a double play in the third inning, then was caught off third base on a ground ball to first baseman Nick Kurtz in the sixth with the Mets down by a run. On April 1, against the Cardinals, he lost track of the number of outs fielding what should’ve been a routine double play in the first inning, then was picked off first base while fiddling with his batting gloves in the sixth.

“Not sure,” Lindor says when asked if he can attribute the lapses to anything. “I feel like I’m locked in. I feel like I’m in the game. It just happens. Got to be better.”

Slow starts are not foreign to Lindor. Two years ago, he batted .195 with a .634 OPS through May 1. But the previous struggles were limited to offensive production. This is different.

“It’s weird because that’s not him,” Mendoza says. “It’s hard to explain.”

April 14: An offense only Steve Cohen could love?

It’s one of the best pitching duels you’ll see this season: McLean — one of the few Mets performing to expectations this season — opposite Yoshinobu Yamamoto at Dodger Stadium. And the rookie right-hander McLean goes toe-to-toe with the World Series hero, allowing one run on two hits with eight strikeouts over seven brilliant innings while Yamamoto yields one run across 7⅔ innings.

The Dodgers — after a walk, a sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk — seize the lead in the eighth inning on Kyle Tucker’s RBI single off reliever Brooks Raley. With three outs to extend the game, the Mets go down flailing in the ninth inning. Dodgers left-hander Alex Vesia strikes out the side — Jorge Polanco, Bo Bichette and Francisco Alvarez — on 10 pitches. Just one lands in the strike zone.

After the game, Steve Cohen, who wades into social media waters more than any other owner in baseball, attempts to spread some positivity to the distressed fanbase. Fans do not reciprocate.

April 18: First base? Try first aid

The Mets invested $40 million over two years in Polanco to replace Alonso at first base, a position Polanco has barely played at the professional level. The transition has come with its hiccups. But that goes on the backburner when the 32-year-old Polanco begins experiencing discomfort in his left Achilles, limiting him to designated hitter duty after just two starts at first.

Ultimately, a bruised right wrist sends him to the injured list — the seventh time Polanco has landed there since 2022. Alonso has appeared on the injured list twice in his career and never played fewer than 152 games over a full season in his seven years with the Mets.

“I’d call it week-to-week at this point rather than day-to-day,” Stearns says nearly a week later. “Every day we get a little bit more information.”

April 19: The wrong call at Wrigley

The Mets have a prime opportunity to snap their losing streak at 10 games — still astonishing for a club with one of the highest payrolls ever, but a stretch that teams have overcome to reach the postseason. The bullpen, however, can’t lock it down.

The Mets lead the Chicago Cubs 1-0 going into the ninth inning when closer Devin Williams, after the leadoff hitter reaches on a ground ball through the left side against the shift, yields a game-tying double to Michael Conforto. An inning later, with the speedy Pete Crow-Armstrong at second base to begin the extra frame, Craig Kimbrel is summoned and opens his outing with a wild pitch, allowing Crow-Armstrong to advance.

Two batters later, Mendoza chooses to pitch to Nico Hoerner, one of the sport’s best contact hitters, and Hoerner delivers the game-winning sacrifice fly. After the game, Mendoza defends not walking Hoerner to face the struggling Michael Busch, arguing that Hoerner would’ve just swiped second base.

“In that situation, especially with Hoerner, you put him at first base, they are going to take second base there,” Mendoza tells reporters. “There is a contact situation there, but they have got some of their best hitters coming up after that too, so just going right after him.”

But that run didn’t matter. It is perhaps Mendoza’s most glaring strategy blunder of the season — and the most scrutinized given his club’s freefall.

April 21: 12 losses in a row!

The Mets return home and squander another chance to end the streak. This time, they blow a 3-0 lead against the Minnesota Twins — with the Twins scoring two runs in the ninth inning off Williams, who doesn’t record an out and leaves the bases loaded. Austin Warren strikes out the next three batters — and leaves the field to MVP chants — but the effort is for naught as the Mets go down in order for their 12th straight loss.

April 22 (Part 1): Soto returns, adds fuel to clubhouse concerns

Remember those questions about a clubhouse rift? Soto is activated from the injured list and he immediately causes a stir when he bluntly admits before the game that he didn’t stay in touch with his teammates during the two weeks he was sidelined.

Soto’s lack of communication is not considered abnormal in the clubhouse — the team was on the road for most of his IL stint, and it’s not a problem for the players. Soto’s candor, however, makes for bad optics externally when every move and every quote is under the microscope.

April 22 (Part 2): Mets finally win … but lose Lindor

Soto’s return coincides with the Mets finally ending their losing streak with a 3-2 victory over the Twins. Soto goes 1-for-3 with a walk as the team’s designated hitter. His two outs are a 104.3 mph lineout and a 104.2 mph flyout.

But the sigh of relief is muted by Lindor exiting the game with a left calf strain. The Mets immediately know it’s more serious than the calf strain that sidelined Soto. Lindor is placed on the injured list the next day for the first time since July 2021.

“There’s definitely some concern,” Lindor says. “I’ll be out for a minute. I don’t know how long.”

Lindor is instructed to use a walking boot for a week. He will be reevaluated in mid-May, three weeks after sustaining the injury. So far this season, the Mets have had Soto and Lindor, their two best players, in the lineup together for just seven full games.

“We can’t use it as an excuse,” Mendoza says. “It’s difficult to lose a player of that caliber. We saw what losing Juan Soto meant while he was out. It’s unfortunate that the day Soto returns, Lindor falls. We have good players, good major league players. They’re going to keep receiving opportunities. Nobody is going to feel bad for us. We can’t use this as an excuse. We have to continue.”

On the bright side, they’re giving young Mets fans a lesson in grit, at least according to one therapist with an Instagram account:

April 23 (Part 1): Vientos runs through a stop sign

The Mets win their second straight, but it isn’t pretty. In the sixth inning, Mark Vientos runs through third-base coach Tim Leiper’s stop sign and is thrown out at home by several feet. After the game, Vientos doubles down on his blunder, citing his “instincts” and desire to remain aggressive.

But Mendoza sharply condemns Vientos’ take the next day, shaking his head when asked about his comments.

“It was addressed, ” Mendoza says. “We handled it. I talked to him. Can’t have that.”

April 23 (Part 2): The miscommunication continues

With the Mets leading the Twins 10-7 and three outs from a win, Williams is summoned from the bullpen for the save. At least that is Mendoza’s plan — until an unusual case of miscommunication creates confusion.

While Williams jogs in to start the ninth, Huascar Brazobán, who the previous inning had helped blow a four-run lead, takes the mound again, believing he had been told to stay in the game. The rulebook stipulates a pitcher must face at least one batter once he crosses the base line, so Brazobán retires a batter before Mendoza replaces him with Williams.

“It was on me,” Mendoza says. “I didn’t tell him in Spanish.”

Williams runs into trouble for his fourth straight outing, giving up a run on three hits before finally sealing a win that shouldn’t have been nearly as close as it was.

April 26: Swept — and trolled — by the Rockies

New York’s momentum from winning two straight games over the Twins quickly evaporates with a feeble weekend showing. The Rockies, fresh off a 119-loss season, sweep them in three games, including a Sunday doubleheader. The Mets score four total runs in the series — and just one in Sunday’s 18 innings. They emerge having scored two or fewer runs in 14 of their first 28 games. The offense, simply, has fueled the catastrophic month.

Afterward, the Rockies’ social media team trolls the Mets with a photoshopped image of the Empire State Building lit up in purple.

April 28: Phillies fire Thomson; is Mendoza next?

The Mets and Philadelphia Phillies begin the week with the same 9-19 record, the worst in the majors. But the NL East rivals decide to handle the disappointment differently.

The Phillies fire manager Rob Thomson on Tuesday ahead of their series against the Giants. Thomson, who led the club to four playoff appearances in four seasons and a trip to the World Series in 2022, becomes the second manager dismissed this season after the Red Sox sacked Alex Cora and six of his coaches three days earlier.

Like the Red Sox and Phillies, the Mets are a large-market, high-payroll franchise in the Northeast scuffling through a shockingly dismal start. But they keep their manager going into their series against the Nationals.

New York briefly hushes the calls for Mendoza’s job with an 8-0 thumping in the opener on Tuesday. That is short-lived. The calls for a firing are reamplified the next game when the Nationals throttle the Mets 14-2 on a rainy night in front of a scarce home crowd, and again Thursday when the homestand ends with a 3-6 mark.

Next up: A flight to Anaheim, where they will welcome May with a nine-game road trip and a 10-21 record.

“It’s not early anymore,” Mendoza says after Thursday’s loss. “So, yeah, it’s obviously frustrating for a lot of people in here.”




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