Mets Manager Carlos Mendoza Discusses Second Career Ejection

The New York Mets weren’t the only poor performers in Friday night’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

In a brutal 8-4 defeat to the NL Central champions that dealt a massive blow to their playoff hopes, the Mets had to deal with an all-around bad game from home plate umpire Ramon De Jesus; given the importance of the game, it’s hardly surprising that the team was incensed by a highly inconsistent strike zone.

Of the 12 calls De Jesus made that were inaccurate, eight of them came at New York’s expense. Things would come to a head in the top of the fourth inning, when the Mets were trying to claw back from a 5-2 deficit; Francisco Alvarez represented the tying run at the plate, and despite taking a called strike clearly out of the zone, he battled to extend the at-bat to 10 pitches. The 10th pitch from Milwaukee starter Frankie Montas appeared to be ball four, but De Jesus called it strike three to end the inning.

Both Alvarez and Mets manager Carlos Mendoza were furious with the call; in particular, the normally even-keeled Mendoza was ejected by De Jesus for his outburst. It was just the second time this season (the first time was on July 12) that Mendoza was tossed from a game.

After the game, Mendoza acknowledged how difficult it is for umpires to call balls and strikes, but he was still irked by the overall quality of the strike zone, especially given how badly the Mets needed to win.

“They have a tough job. I know they’re working really hard,” Mendoza said. “I didn’t agree with it. He didn’t have a good game behind the plate. Not only was that call but there were some other calls I wasn’t happy with. I know they try but we gotta move on.”

Mendoza alluded to Milwaukee getting borderline pitches called in their favor as early as the first inning; this led to starting pitcher Sean Manaea issuing a pair of walks before allowing a grand slam to Rhys Hoskins that broke the game open early. The at-bat to Alvarez, though, proved to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.

“Not at all [surprised I was ejected],” Mendoza said. “I went out there and needed to protect Alvy.”

Due to the Mets’ eventual defeat, they are now tied with the Atlanta Braves (who won their game against the Kansas City Royals) for the third and final Wild Card spot; both teams have identical 87-71 records and have a doubleheader scheduled for Monday. This puts New York in a highly inconvenient position, as they likely need to win at least three of their final four games to secure a playoff berth.