🔥🏟️ Da Mos Expensiv Team in Baseball No Moa Getting Any Betta! 🔥🏟️

Fo’ da Mets, anodda 😔 disappointin’ lolo wen feel like mo’ of da same. “Hopefully,” one Met said, “deah’s light at da end of da tunnel.” 🙏🌟

Almost half da way through da 2023 season, da mos 💸 expensiv team in Major League Baseball history stay mo’ closah to last place den first. Aftah one dispiriting 7-6 loss to da Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday, da Mets an’ deah nearly $500 million 💰💰 roster – once luxury taxes stay considered – stay lef’ wit one 35-42 record, dwindlin’ odds of reachin’ da playoffs and a growin’ number of questions. ❓❔

Da Mets on’y wen win five mo’ games den da Washington Nationals, one franchise mired in a rebuild an’, fo’ da moment, da on’y team keepin’ dem off da bottom of da National League East. Da Atlanta Braves, who have won da division five years in a row and lead it again as of Sunday, stay 15 games ahead of da Mets. 🎇🔝

Even Managa Buck Showalter seemed to acknowledge on Sunday dat his team has limited options to turn things around. Leadin’ da Phillies by 6-3 enterin’ da eighth inning, da Mets endured one disastrous four-run meltdown in which dey surrendered only one hit. Instead of usin’ some of his bettah relievers to close out da game, Showalter, sayin’ dey had been overworked recently, turned to less-established bullpen options. 😬🤷‍♂️

“It’s frustratin’ fo’ da playahs an’ everybody,” Showalter said aftah Sunday’s loss. “We shot every bullet we had, just ’bout.” 💔💣

Josh Walker, one rookie left-handa, had loaded da bases by walkin’ two and coughin’ up one single. In came Jeff Brigham, one right-hande reliever, wit one tall task. But Mets tird baseman Brett Baty, 23, made one throwin’ error to second base, turnin’ one potential double play into one Phillies run instead. 😱⚾️

“There’s really no excuse,” Baty said. “Dat play needs to be made 10 times out of 10 and it cost us da game, it cost us da series.” 😤💔

Da inning then furtha unraveled. Wit da bases loaded, Brigham walked Brandon Marsh, an’ den hit both Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner wit pitches to allow three mo’ runs and give da Phillies da lead. 😫💥

“Hopefully deah’s light at da end of da tunnel,” Brigham said, addin’, “Deah’s definitely a lot of pressure as da season goes by.” 🙏✨

Da season is certainly passin’ da Mets by. A roster wit stars such as Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Francisco Lindor, and Pete Alonso had on’y one 16 percent chance of reachin’ da postseason aftah Sunday’s defeat, according to FanGraphs. Befo’ da season, da Mets were ‘spected to contend wit Atlanta fo’ da N.L. East title and even challenge fo’ one spot in da World Series. 🏆🌍

“Usually dat’s wat happens: We don’t play well, people lose jobs,” Lindor told reporters ova da weekend. “But I don’t see us as one team dat’s goin’ to sell out. I see us as one team dat’s goin’ to contend, dat’s goin’ to be deah. We’re built to be contenders.” 💪🔥

If dey continue to lose at deah current rate, dey may not be in one position to add reinforcements ahead of da Aug. 1 trade deadline. Instead of shoppin’ fo’ one late-season push, dey may be lookin’ instead to shed playahs — and salary — to otha teams wit actual playoff hopes. 😔🔄

Da on’y otha option would be to ask da billionaire owna Steven A. Cohen to try to patch da Mets’ problems wit trades dat could mean furtha bloating da team’s playah budget, which already includes one record $377 million 40-man roster and an estimated $105 million in luxury tax penalties. 💰🔄💼

On Friday, da Mets made one modest move dat didn’t quite fit eitha direction, sendin’ da veteran tird baseman Eduardo Escobar to da Los Angeles Angels in exchange fo’ two pitchin’ prospects. ⚾️🔄

Seen as one key playah ahead of last season, Escobar struggled dis year and lost playin’ time to Baty, one rookie. But in ordah to bring back bettah pitchin’ prospects in da deal, da Mets agreed to pay most of da remainda of Escobar’s $9.5 million salary. But nuthin’ in da deal will immediately improve one pitchin’ staff dat entad Monday wit one 4.65 earned run average, sixth worst in M.L.B. 📉⚾️

Scherzer, 38, and Verlander, 40, are both multiple-time Cy Young Award winners, but each has been alternately injured or pitchin’ poorly. Da rookie Kodai Senga has been bettah (3.52 E.R.A.), but he pitches on’y once a week in his first season from Japan. Da rest of da rotation — Carlos Carrasco, Tylor Megill, and David Peterson — has struggled. 😫⚾️💔

Da troubles of da startin’ rotation have on’y been exacerbated by one bullpen dat entad da season wit holes, chief among dem da injury to da star closa Edwin Díaz. Showalter’s use of da bullpen hasn’t helped eitha: He saved David Robertson, da Mets’ best healthy relieva, fo’ da ninth inning on Sunday rathah den use him when da game was on da line in da eighth. 😖🤷‍♂️

“I jus’ can’t pitch da same people every night,” said Showalter, who also declined on Sunday to use relieva Adam Ottavino fo’ one second day in a row an’ Brooks Raley fo’ one third. “I jus’ can’t do it. Wat else can we do?” 🤔🔄

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NOW IN ENGLISH

🔥🏟️ The Most Expensive Team in Baseball Isn’t Getting Any Better! 🔥🏟️

For the Mets, another 😔 disappointing loss feels like more of the same. “Hopefully,” one Met said, “there’s light at the end of the tunnel.” 🙏🌟

Almost halfway through the 2023 season, the most 💸 expensive team in Major League Baseball history is closer to last place than first. After a dispiriting 7-6 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday, the Mets and their nearly $500 million 💰💰 roster – once luxury taxes are considered – are left with a 35-42 record, dwindling odds of reaching the playoffs, and a growing number of questions. ❓❔

The Mets have only won five more games than the Washington Nationals, a franchise mired in a rebuild and, for the moment, the only team keeping them off the bottom of the National League East. The Atlanta Braves, who have won the division five years in a row and currently lead it, are 15 games ahead of the Mets. 🎇🔝

Even Manager Buck Showalter seemed to acknowledge on Sunday that his team has limited options to turn things around. Leading the Phillies 6-3 entering the eighth inning, the Mets endured a disastrous four-run meltdown in which they surrendered only one hit. Instead of using some of his better relievers to close out the game, Showalter, citing that they had been overworked recently, turned to less-established bullpen options. 😬🤷‍♂️

“It’s frustrating for the players and everybody,” Showalter said after Sunday’s loss. “We shot every bullet we had, just about.” 💔💣

Josh Walker, a rookie left-hander, had loaded the bases by walking two and giving up a single. In came Jeff Brigham, a right-handed reliever, with a tall task. But Mets third baseman Brett Baty, 23, made a throwing error to second base, turning a potential double play into a Phillies run instead. 😱⚾️

“There’s really no excuse,” Baty said. “That play needs to be made 10 times out of 10, and it cost us the game, it cost us the series.” 😤💔

The inning then further unraveled. With the bases loaded, Brigham walked Brandon Marsh, and then hit both Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner with pitches to allow three more runs and give the Phillies the lead. 😫💥

“Hopefully there’s light at the end of the tunnel,” Brigham said, adding, “There’s definitely a lot of pressure as the season goes by.” 🙏✨

The season is certainly passing the Mets by. A roster with stars such as Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Francisco Lindor, and Pete Alonso had only a 16 percent chance of reaching the postseason after Sunday’s defeat, according to FanGraphs. Before the season, the Mets were expected to contend with Atlanta for the N.L. East title and even challenge for a spot in the World Series. 🏆🌍

“Usually that’s what happens: We don’t play well, people lose jobs,” Lindor told reporters over the weekend. “But I don’t see us as a team that’s going to sell out. I see us as a team that’s going to contend, that’s going to be there. We’re built to be contenders.” 💪🔥

If they continue to lose at their current rate, they may not be in a position to add reinforcements ahead of the Aug. 1 trade deadline. Instead of shopping for a late-season push, they may be looking instead to shed players — and salary — to other teams with actual playoff hopes. 😔🔄

The only other option would be to ask the billionaire owner Steven A. Cohen to try to patch the Mets’ problems with trades that could mean further bloating the team’s player budget, which already includes a record $377 million 40-man roster and an estimated $105 million in luxury tax penalties. 💰🔄💼

On Friday, the Mets made a modest move that didn’t quite fit either direction, sending the veteran third baseman Eduardo Escobar to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for two pitching prospects. ⚾️🔄

Seen as a key player ahead of last season, Escobar struggled this year and lost playing time to Baty, a rookie. But in order to bring back better pitching prospects in the deal, the Mets agreed to pay most of the remainder of Escobar’s $9.5 million salary. But nothing in the deal will immediately improve a pitching staff that entered Monday with a 4.65 earned run average, sixth worst in M.L.B. 📉⚾️

Scherzer, 38, and Verlander, 40, are both multiple-time Cy Young Award winners, but each has been alternately injured or pitching poorly. The rookie Kodai Senga has been better (3.52 E.R.A.), but he pitches only once a week in his first season from Japan. The rest of the rotation — Carlos Carrasco, Tylor Megill, and David Peterson — has struggled. 😫⚾️💔

The troubles of the starting rotation have only been exacerbated by a bullpen that entered the season with holes, chief among them the injury to the star closer Edwin Díaz. Showalter’s use of the bullpen hasn’t helped either: He saved David Robertson, the Mets’ best healthy reliever, for the ninth inning on Sunday rather than using him when the game was on the line in the eighth. 😖🤷‍♂️

“I just can’t pitch the same people every night,” said Showalter, who also declined on Sunday to use reliever Adam Ottavino for a second day in a row and Brooks Raley for a third. “I just can’t do it. What else can we do?” 🤔🔄