KANSAS CITY -- Sean Manaea got the first one out of the way, and his season debut for the Mets provided a rollercoaster of emotions.
In the end, Manaea surrendered a walk-off RBI single to Nick Loftin that sent the Mets to a 3-2 loss to the Royals in their final game before the All-Star break. But the overall 3 1/3-inning performance by Manaea was impressive and bodes well for how helpful he could be for the New York pitching staff the rest of the season.
After battling through oblique and elbow injuries that kept him sidelined through the opening 96 games, the veteran left-hander came out of the bullpen on Sunday with a purpose. Manaea promptly served notice that he intends to be a factor in the second half for a Mets’ team that finds itself in a heated battle with Philadelphia for supremacy in the National League East.
Manaea struck out seven and didn’t allow a walk. At one stretch through the sixth and seventh innings, he fanned five consecutive Kansas City hitters.
“It feels really good to be back and to be healthy,” Manaea said.
Manaea came on for Clay Holmes in the sixth with the Royals holding a 2-0 lead. Bobby Witt Jr. promptly ripped a changeup for a single with a 113.7 exit velocity. Vinnie Pasquantino grounded out weakly to first before Manaea fanned the next five Royals hitters.
“Typical Sean Manaea,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Fastball playing at the top of the zone and getting swings and misses. The sweeper was really good. We saw that the whole year [in 2024], and it was good to see it again today.”
It looked as if Manaea’s day was over when he finished his third scoreless inning in the eighth. But the Mets rallied in the ninth to tie the game on Jeff McNeil’s RBI triple and Jared Young’s sacrifice fly.
That meant Manaea had the opportunity to stretch out for a fourth inning. With one out in the ninth, speedy Tyler Tolbert singled and stole second. In each of the opening two games of the series, the Royals appeared to have crucial late-inning stolen bases, but runners were called out upon review.
Moments later, Loftin drove him in with the game-winner. Mendoza said Loftin was going to be Manaea’s last hitter regardless.
“A couple of singles at the end, but I thought he was really good overall,” Mendoza said.
The Mets head into the All-Star break after getting both Kodai Senga and Manaea back from injuries in the Royals’ series.
The New York offense was quiet during the final two games of the series, and left-hander Noah Cameron kept them off-balance for the most part on Sunday.
“We’ve been through some [offensive] stretches where it’s hard for us, but we’ve been through other stretches where it’s clicking,” Mendoza said. “You have to give their guys credit, too. That’s a good pitching staff over there. It looked like we had a hard time picking [Cameron] up. I thought he mixed his pitches well.”
Mendoza said the Mets will announce their pitching rotation for the resumption of the season in a couple of days.
“We are waiting on the guys who pitched [Sunday] and how they are feeling,” Mendoza said.
For now, the Mets just want to enjoy a few days of rest and relaxation.
“Recharge,” McNeil said. “Come back the second half and play good baseball. We’re getting healthy now, which is nice.”