PHOENIX — At this early stage of the season, off to one of the best starts in franchise history, the Mets’ path to success has been obvious: Boast the best starting pitching in baseball, and the rest will fall into place.
But on Saturday, in a 5-2 loss to the Diamondbacks, they encountered about the only problem that could exist with such an approach: They didn’t have a starting pitcher.
Deploying a series of relievers instead of calling up a one-day fill-in, the Mets fell behind fast and never recovered. Trevor Williams, the first of those relievers, allowed four runs and seven hits in two innings (plus one batter in the third), and Arizona added another run against Adam Ottavino in the sixth.
And so the Mets (11-5) will settle for a rubber match Sunday as they seek their fifth consecutive series victory to begin the season.
Entering the day, the Mets’ rotation led the majors in ERA (2.07), WHIP (0.82), opponents' batting average (.173), strikeouts (89) and innings (82 2/3). And that was without ace Jacob deGrom, who is out indefinitely with a stress reaction in his right shoulder.
They were lacking a starter Saturday because of their rainout Monday and doubleheader Tuesday, which meant neither Tylor Megill nor Max Scherzer will be fully rested. They will pitch on Sunday against the Diamondbacks and Monday against the Cardinals, respectively.
The trouble for Williams started early. Daulton Varsho’s leadoff single, David Peralta’s well-executed hit-and-run single and Christian Walker’s RBI groundout yielded a run in the first inning. The Diamondbacks plated two more in the second when the bottom-third of the order — Carson Kelly (.063 average entering the day), Sergio Alcantara (.091) and Geraldo Perdomo (.120) — loaded the bases via soft singles. And Walker scored in the third after ripping a double down the left-field line.
It was a tough assignment for Williams, who has been a starter for most of his career but pitched just 1 2/3 innings (two appearances) across the team’s first 15 games.
“Trevor’s the one guy that I haven’t felt good about creating a lane for him to contribute yet,” manager Buck Showalter said before the game.
The D-backs’ spot starter, meanwhile, largely cruised. Right-hander Humberto Castellanos lasted five innings and gave up two runs, barely facing any trouble until his final frame. Jeff McNeil’s triple scored Dominic Smith (double), and Tomas Nido’s infield single scored McNeil.
The bright spot for Mets pitching was Sean Reid-Foley until he left due to leg cramping. He covered 2 2/3 scoreless innings, though he did allow the runner he inherited from Williams.
