Mets in free fall after losing 10th straight game

CHICAGO — The Mets will have to defy the odds if they plan to make the playoffs this year after losing their 10th straight game Saturday, a 4-2 loss to the Cubs.

Only three teams in the divisional era (since 1969) have made the playoffs after a double-digit losing streak, including the Cleveland Guardians last year.

“Nobody is going to feel sorry for us,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said after the latest loss. “We have to keep going. We haven’t been playing good baseball. We have 5 1/2 months ahead of us. We have an opportunity to make our own history.”

The Mets say they can’t point to anything that led them to their longest April losing streak in franchise history. They certainly aren’t hitting enough, scoring just 18 points during the streak, the fewest for them in 10 games since June 3-5, 2018.

They also make bad throws, like the one reliever Brooks Raley made to pinch hitter Carson Kelly in the sixth inning Saturday. Kelly deposited Raley’s first pitch into the left field bleachers for a three-run homer to break a 1-1 tie. From there, the Cubs cruised to victory.

“We couldn’t put together a complete game,” Mendoza said. “It’s either the offense or the start of the throw, like not making it [that] throwing, not playing, not getting a big hit. I’m just having a hard time playing a full game right now.”

Mendoza’s job appears to be safe after president of baseball operations David Stearns said Friday he thinks his third-year manager is doing a good job putting players in a position to succeed. Of course, things can change if the losses continue to pile up for the Mets, who missed the playoffs last year after a disastrous second half.

The team is trying not to focus on the negative at the start of the season.

“It’s a big boy’s league,” infielder Marcus Semien said. “There’s no time to linger tonight. Tomorrow is a new day. … It’s as simple as showing up tomorrow with a good attitude. I hope other guys see a smile on my face when I show up.”

Semien and Mendoza offered few solutions to the team’s plight, although the return of All-Star Juan Soto from a calf injury should help. But that won’t happen for a few days. With designated hitter Jorge Polanco (wrist) also on the board, the Mets will need others to step up.

A late winter overhaul by Stearns has led to a positive feeling about the team entering this season. But those additions, like Saturday’s starter Freddy Peralta, haven’t produced enough. Third baseman Mark Vientos hit a long home run in the loss, but New York’s offense was mostly quiet the rest of the day.

Mendoza was asked how he thought Mets fans were feeling right now.

“They have a right to be upset and frustrated,” he said. “They care. Just like we do. … I understand how they feel. I’d be pissed, too, if I was a fan. I’m pissed. They’re pissed.”

The 10-game losing streak is the longest in April since the Chicago White Sox 2023. The Mets are seven games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East, an unusually large deficit for this time of year.

“It’s frustrating to lose baseball games, and when you lose that many in a row, it gets worse,” Semien said. “The game doesn’t owe you any wins. You have to go out and get it.”

The Mets rank in the bottom half of the league in most offensive and pitching categories, including home runs. They’ve hit just 15 this season, just ahead of the San Francisco Giants for the fewest in the National League. Their starting pitching isn’t much better, ranking 21st in ERA.

The team hopes Sunday will bring different results.

“We have to do something to get into the W column,” Semien said. “No one shows up thinking about how this is going to happen again. We’re thinking about how we’re going to win.”

Mendoza added: “We’re putting ourselves in a hole right now. There’s only one way to [get out of] he. Come back tomorrow, ready to go.

ESPN Research contributed to this report.