3 questions facing Mets after being dealt first sweep of '25

NEW YORK -- For the first time this season, the Mets on Sunday suffered the indignity of a series sweep.

Their 9-0 loss to the Rays at Citi Field epitomized a series that saw cracks -- in some cases, for the first time all year -- surface in various corners of the roster. The sweep itself was not overly damaging for the Mets, who still lead the National League East by 2 1/2 games and hold the best record in the NL.

But even for a roster this good, questions exist.

How solid is this rotation, really?
Two things can be true: The Mets can hold Major League Baseball’s lowest rotation ERA (2.93) while also harboring questions about the long-term viability of that group.

The most obvious sign of trouble occurred Thursday, when Kodai Senga strained his right hamstring. Though the injury turned out to be far from a worst-case scenario, Senga, the Major League ERA leader, could miss a month or more.

Senga’s injury was merely one low point in a longer string of misfortune. Saturday, Tylor Megill submitted his worst start of the season in a loss to the Rays. The following afternoon, Griffin Canning allowed a season-high six earned runs en route to the sweep.

Early this season, Megill and Canning were the darlings of a Mets pitching program that had proven highly effective; through the end of April, those two were a combined 7-3 with a 2.18 ERA.

Since May 15, Megill and Canning are 3-4 with a 5.63 ERA.

“Just falling behind guys, walking guys, probably shying away from contact a little too much,” was how Canning diagnosed the problem. “Against a good lineup, a hot team right now, you can’t give them free bases.”

While Mets officials always foresaw some rotation regression, they also believed that by this point, injured starters Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea would be nearly ready to pick up the slack. Both have instead struggled on their rehab assignments -- particularly Montas, who could move to the bullpen if he doesn’t improve in his final Minor League outing this week.

Viewing the problem from afar, this rotation is far from a mess, considering how well David Peterson and Clay Holmes have performed. But it’s clearly a bit messier than it was.

What’s the optimal infield mix?
One other area in which the Mets may face difficult decisions is the infield -- particularly third base, where Mark Vientos is due back from a strained right hamstring before the end of the month.

• Vientos to begin rehab assignment Tuesday; Manaea struggles at Brooklyn

Vientos struggled both offensively and defensively early this season, to the extent that he was trending toward becoming a full-time DH before his injury. Yet in his absence, no one has taken the third-base job and run with it.

Yes, Brett Baty crushed the hardest-hit homer of any Met in Saturday’s loss, but he’s batting .136 overall in June with a 28.6 percent strikeout rate, and now he’s dealing with some right groin discomfort. Yes, Ronny Mauricio hit the Mets’ longest home run of the season last weekend in Denver, but he went 2-for-15 on the homestand.

The Mets could theoretically option Jared Young when Vientos returns, leaving enough space on the roster for all three of Baty, Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña.

But is that what’s best for the team? For weeks, Mets officials have defended Acuña’s roster spot because of what he provides as a late-game pinch-runner and defensive replacement. It remains to be seen if there’s a world in which all four young Mets infielders can not only coexist but do so in productive fashion.

Have the Mets truly exorcised those Atlanta demons?
When Francisco Lindor hit a playoff-clinching homer in Game 161 last season at Truist Park, the Mets seemed to break whatever decades-long hex the Braves had cast upon them. At least that’s how the narrative goes.

The reality is that the Mets are going to have to prove it all over again. While this version of the Braves may not be quite as formidable as the rosters of recent years, it’s still a talented bunch. And Atlanta is about to throw three of the best starting pitchers in baseball -- Spencer Schwellenbach, Chris Sale and Spencer Strider -- at the Mets during a three-game series this week.

The Atlanta series opens an early test that will see the Mets play 10 in a row against the Braves and Phillies.

“We knew there were some good teams -- really good teams -- in our division, in the National League overall,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Here we are. We’ve got to get ready. The next 10 days, we’ve got to play well.”