Mets Chase a Needed Win but Get Burned

Reds 7 Mets 2 (Citi Field, Flushing, NY)

Mets record: 22-33

Mets streak: Lost 5

WP - Chase Burns (7-1)

LP - David Peterson (3-5)

Seat on the Korner: Chase Burns

We select a Star of the Game and virtually invite him to take his Seat on the Korner — just as Ralph Kiner did on WOR-TV Channel 9 during the early days of the New York Mets.

Continuing the tradition of Rheingold Beer sponsoring Kiner’s Korner, this season every seat is proudly presented by The Main Event Restaurant & Sports Bar.

With locations in Plainview and Farmingdale, The Main Event features 80+ HD TVs, fresh daily seafood, and Black Angus certified steaks—so you never have to choose between great food and the big game.

For the second straight night the Mets have lost to the Reds by a score of 7-2. And, for the second straight night, it was the Reds starting pitcher who most deserves the Seat on the Korner. This time, however, it's one of the best pitchers in the league. In his first full season in the majors, Burns has been dominant, and he kept that going tonight. He struck out the side in the first, and struck out 8 through 5 innings, allowing just 3 base runners in that span. He tired a bit in the bottom of the sixth, giving up a Bo Bichette single followed by a two-run home run to Juan Soto. When the next batter, AJ Ewing, singled to right, Burns' night was done. In 11 starts this season, Burns is now 7-1 with a 1.96 ERA (sixth-best in the majors) and he is tied for fourth in the NL with 72 K's.

Need to Know

• The Mets are now 11 games under .500, tying their season high (season low?).

• The team extended their losing streak to 5 games. They have a 5.10 ERA, and have been outscored 24-6 over those 5 games.

• They have now been held to 2 runs or fewer in 6 straight games. The last time the team owned a streak this long was from June 21-27, 2016.

• Their batting average over these past 6 games is a paltry .168.

• Mets starter David Peterson allowed a career-high 11 hits in his 5 innings of work.

• The Mets made a series of moves before the game: Nick Morabito and Jonathan Pintaro were option to Triple-A Syracuse, Tyrone Taylor was placed on the 10-Day IL, Luis Robert Jr. was moved to the 60-Day IL, Eric Wagaman was called up from Syracuse, while Jared Young and AJ Minter were reinstated from the IL and added to the roster.

• Minter made his first appearance in a major league game since April 26, 2025. He gave up a single to the first batter he faced before striking out the next two and getting the third out on a pop up to third.

• As rough as Peterson's first inning was, it was almost worse. MJ Melendez was able to stop the bleeding by throwing out Eugenio Suarez when he tried to score from second.

• This was the 25th game out of 55 in which the Mets scored two runs or less.

• The Mets are now 60-88 in their last 148 games.

• Huascar Brazoban will open the game tomorrow night.

Turning Point

For a team that's been struggling to score runs all season, and especially in the last week, it's important to get through the first inning without giving up a run. David Peterson and the Mets were unable to achieve this goal tonight thanks to a 2-out 2-run double by Eugenio Suarez.

Despite walking Blake Dunn, the game's leadoff hitter, David Peterson found himself with two outs and nobody on in the top of the first. He got Elly De La Cruz swinging and caught Dunn trying to steal second (with help from the replay booth). But the third out proved much harder to come by. Peterson gave up a Sal Stewart single and then walked Spencer Steer to put runners on first and second. Still, he was one strike away from getting out of it before Suarez's liner in the gap brought put the Reds up 2-0, and they never looked back.

Three Keys

Soto Lining

Juan Soto is not the Mets problem. This is not news. But just in case people had forgotten about him after missing 2 games due to illness, he was happy to provide a reminder. Soto's 2-run home run in the bottom of the sixth broke Chase Burns' shutout and breathed a little bit of life into the Mets offense.

The home run was Soto's 11th of the season. He now was 7 HR's and 12 RBI's in his last 11 games, including 5 in his last 6 games.

I Am Manea

Mets pitcher Sean Manea provided 3 solid innings of relief tonight. He replaced David Peterson in the 6th inning and gave up 1 run on 3 hits with 2 walks and 6 Ks.

Manea's relatively sharp appearance, combined with Peterson's rough outing, might impact the starting rotation in the coming week.

Luis Two-Hits

Mets catcher Luis Torrens has been thrust into a starting role due to Francisco Alvarez's torn meniscus injury. Known more for his fielding than his hitting, Torrens broke an 0-12 streak with a third-inning double off Reds starter Chase Burns. Torrens would add another hit, a single to lead off the bottom of the 8th. His 2-3 evening put his batting average back over .200, as it now stands at .202. Still, Torrens is known for his play in the field for a reason, as evidenced when he caught Reds leadoff hitter Blake Dunn trying to steal second base in the first inning. (Watch the full clip...)