Mickey Callaway Leaves the World Dumbfounded as Mets Fully Collapse in 7th Inning Against Braves
By Thomas Carannante
Steven Matz came up to bat for the New York Mets with two outs in the top of the seventh inning. After all, he was only at 79 pitches, so he's good for the bottom half of the inning, right?
Nope. Even though Matz delivered with a single and then came around to score the game-tying run, manager Mickey Callaway took him out in favor of reliever Seth Lugo.
The result? A complete collapse and five-run inning for the Atlanta Braves.
Maybe Mickey was scared of Donaldson-Matz Part 3.
— Matt Ehalt (@MattEhalt) August 15, 2019
But, if so, worst Donaldson does is tie the game.
Why not give Matz, at 79 pitches, the right to go deeper after he's retired 14 straight?
Granted, this wasn't exactly Lugo's fault. He was the victim of inconsistent umpiring and softly hit singles that allowed the Braves to chip away. This is something Callaway needs to answer for.
Steven Matz: *Throws 6 amazing innings on 79 pitches*
— Anthony DiGiorno (@DigiornoAnthony) August 15, 2019
Mickey Callaway: pic.twitter.com/SEDQiDdDzf
Why are you taking out a guy who hasn't even hit 80 pitches and allowed just one run on two hits and a walk over six innings? He retired 14 straight!
steven matz: *shutting down the braves, has a low pitch count*
— steve (@sschreiber13) August 15, 2019
mickey callaway: alright, it's time to do some managing
The only explanation has to be Matz got injured running the bases because there was absolutely no reason to make this change. The Mets' bullpen is rarely a unit to rely on, so making the call when you don't need to is just about as unnecessary as it gets. After all, you want these arms to rest as much as possible with the final stretch of the regular season approaching.
We can't wait to hear what he has to say after the game.