Livescore
As the Mets were handily beating the Dodgers in what was a crucial Game 2 of the NLCS, a mistake by one of their most sure-handed fielders almost did them in.
With runners on first and second and no one out in the bottom of the sixth inning of a game New York was leading, 6-1, Sean Manaea induced a weak grounder to second base off the bat of the hobbled Freddie Freeman that looked like a tailor-made double play.
The ball took a bit of a weird hop as it bounced toward second baseman Jose Iglesias, but he remained in front of it and in position to field it — and start the 4-6-3 double play that would’ve been enormous.
But Iglesias bobbled the ball and allowed it to trickle behind him. All three runners were safe and the bases were loaded.
The error didn’t doom the Mets, as the Dodgers plated only two runs in the inning and never got closer for the rest of the game. But that mistake, combined with how Iglesias has been performing at the plate in the postseason, should’ve given the Mets something to think about.
Iglesias, who was one of the Mets’ catalysts during the season — on and off the field — and a big reason why they reached the playoffs, has been struggling at the plate over the first nine postseason games — though he did have a huge infield hit in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Brewers.
In 69 plate appearances, Iglesias is slashing just .226/.273/.222.
He has struck out 13 times while drawing only three walks, and does not have an extra-base hit.
Iglesias’ calling card isn’t his power, but he was strong in that regard during the regular season, slugging .448.
As Iglesias’ bat has gone cold, he has dropped from fifth to seventh in the lineup.
And as his struggles have deepened, Iglesias’ at-bats have gotten less competitive, with him chasing pitches down out of the zone with regularity.
Given how well Iglesias performed at the plate during the regular season, and taking into account the perseverance he showed while changing his game and clawing his way back to the majors after being out of the league in 2023, it’s quite possible he turns things around.
But when the Mets return to Citi Field for Game 3 of the NLCS on Wednesday, they should pencil Jeff McNeil in at second base.
McNeil, who suffered a fractured wrist when he was hit by a pitch on Sept. 6, worked his way back and was included on the NLCS roster as the Mets dropped a pitcher.
He had one at-bat (as a pinch-hitter) in Game 1, but that’s been his entire contribution so far.
Before being added to the roster, McNeil got at-bats while playing two games in the Arizona Fall League. But it’s hard to know how ready he is for high-level pitching in the cauldron that is the NLCS.
But the Mets should at least find out what McNeil can offer as the starter.
Before he got injured, McNeil was on a tear.
From July 23 to Sept. 6 — a span of 136 plate appearances over 37 games — McNeil slashed .285/.382/.491 (.874 OPS) with 12 doubles, four homers, 14 RBI, and 19 runs scored.
That’s not to say he’ll pick up where he left off, but what if he does? Even if McNeil is a bit rusty, there’s a chance he’ll be a better option than the current version of Iglesias.
Right-hander Walker Buehler, who is starting Game 3, allowed left-handers to OPS .890 against him during the regular season.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is expected to start Game 4, actually had reverse splits this season. He held lefties to a .193/.258/.267 triple slash, while righties hit .263/.291/.453 against him.
So perhaps McNeil simply gets a look in Game 3 before the Mets turn back to Iglesias for Game 4 and play the matchups after that.
But with the way Iglesias has been trending, McNeil deserves a chance to show what he can do — and the Mets could set themselves up for success by finding out.
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