Cincinnati, meanwhile, is humming. Elly De La Cruz and Eugenio Suarez each cracked 2-run doubles in Tuesday's win, and Chase Burns picked up his 4th straight start with a win on Monday. Andrew Abbott (4-2, 3.97) gets the ball Wednesday looking to finish the job after a 5.1-inning, 1-ER outing in Philly his last time out. He walked 3 in that start, which is the one thing to watch — a Mets lineup missing this much firepower needs free baserunners to manufacture anything.
The injury list is honestly the whole story on the Mets side. Francisco Lindor (calf), Francisco Alvarez (knee), Jorge Polanco (Achilles), Kodai Senga (back), Luis Robert Jr. (back), and now Tyrone Taylor (hip) headed for an MRI — that is a starting lineup's worth of guys in the trainer's room. There's some light at the end of the tunnel — Lindor has started a running progression and Alvarez could beat his 8-week timetable — but none of it helps tonight.
- Day-To-DayConnor Burns (C) — no05/08
- Day-To-DayJosh Staumont (RP) — The Twins reinstated Staumont (calf) from the 15-day injured list Friday and optioned him to Triple-A St. Paul, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILKe'Bryan Hayes (3B) — Hayes is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.05/22
- 10-Day-ILJose Trevino (C) — Trevino is expected to miss 3-to-4 weeks after being diagnosed with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.05/18
- 15-Day-ILRhett Lowder (SP) — Lowder (shoulder) is expected to face hitters Wednesday, MLB.com reports.05/26
- 15-Day-ILEmilio Pagan (RP) — Pagan (hamstring) is throwing from his knees in order to keep throwing while not putting stress on his strained hamstring, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox19.com reports.05/20
- OutCarson Spiers (SP) — The Reds re-signed Spiers (elbow) to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training Monday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILHunter Greene (SP) — Greene (elbow) threw a successful bullpen session Tuesday, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.05/26
- 60-Day-ILBrandon Williamson (SP) — The Reds transferred Williamson (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Wednesday.05/08
- Day-To-DayMike Tauchman (RF) — Tauchman (knee) is still rehabbing at the Mets' spring training complex and has yet to resume baseball activities, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.05/18
- Day-To-DayGrae Kessinger (3B) — no05/13
- Day-To-DayJoe Jacques (RP) — The Mets signed Jacques to a minor-league contract Wednesday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayKevin Herget (RP) — Herget signed a minor league contract that includes an invitation to spring training with the Mets on Thursday, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayNick Burdi (RP) — The Red Sox reinstated Burdi (hip) from the injured list Saturday and optioned him to Triple-A Worcester.05/08
- Day-To-DayJose Rojas (3B) — Triple-A Salt Lake placed Rojas on its COVID-19 injured list Sunday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILTyrone Taylor (CF) — Taylor (hip) will be sent for an MRI, but the team expects that he'll require a stint on the injured list, Andrew Tredinnick of The Bergen Record reports.05/26
- 10-Day-ILFrancisco Alvarez (C) — Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Monday that Alvarez (knee) has already resumed hitting and could return well before his projected eight-week timetable, Max Goodman of NJ.com reports.05/25
- 10-Day-ILFrancisco Lindor (SS) — Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Monday that Lindor (calf) has begun a running progression, Max Goodman of NJ.com reports.05/25
- 10-Day-ILJorge Polanco (1B) — Polanco (Achilles) has been taking live at-bats at the Mets' spring training complex at St. Lucie and could begin a rehab assignment soon, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.05/25
- 10-Day-ILLuis Robert Jr. (CF) — Mets manger Carlos Mendoza said Tuesday that Robert (back) is still experiencing lingering symptoms and "is not progressing the way we would like," Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.05/12
- 10-Day-ILRonny Mauricio (SS) — The Mets placed Mauricio (thumb) on the 10-day injured list Sunday.05/08
- 15-Day-ILKodai Senga (SP) — Senga (back) gave up two earned runs on four hits and a walk over 3.1 innings in a rehab start for Single-A St. Lucie on Friday. He struck out two.05/23
- OutRobert Stock (RP) — Stock (shoulder) said Sunday that he'll require surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome and could be sidelined for the remainder of the season, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILClay Holmes (SP) — The Mets transferred Holmes (fibula) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday.05/19
- 60-Day-ILReed Garrett (RP) — The Mets placed Garrett (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILDedniel Nunez (RP) — The Mets placed Nunez (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Sunday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILJustin Hagenman (RP) — The Mets placed Hagenman on the 60-day injured list Saturday due to a rib fracture.05/08
- 60-Day-ILTylor Megill (SP) — The Mets placed Megill (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.05/08
The market sees the gap. Pinnacle has the Mets as a modest -114 home favorite, but DraftKings actually flipped them to a +101 underdog with the Reds at -122 — and the EV on both sides of the moneyline is negative, which is the book's way of saying don't bother. The total is the more interesting split: Pinnacle at 8.5, DK shaded down to 7.5, which tracks for a bullpen game on a night when the home offense has scored 6 runs over its last 5 games combined.
Bottom line — if the Mets are going to stop the bleeding, it probably has to come from Brandon Nimmo and Juan Soto playing pepper with the gaps and the bullpen patchwork holding a Reds lineup that has put up 7 runs in back-to-back games. That's a lot of ifs. The Reds look like the better team, they're playing like the better team, and they've got their best matchup of the series on the mound. Carlos Mendoza needs a win here before this thing turns into a full-blown crisis.