The Put it in the Books Show

The Mets have won 5 of their last 7 games heading into San Diego, which means things are either starting to turn around… or this team is once again setting us up like a bunch of idiots with cable packages and emotional damage.

This week on The Put it in the Books Show – S9 E9, Farace, Rodriguez, and Producer Joe break down a Mets team that continues to be the most confusing thing in New York sports — and that’s saying something considering Farace is currently half-distracted by the Knicks being in the NBA Finals. If he starts comparing Bo Bichette to Jalen Brunson, someone please cut his mic.

Bo Bichette finally had himself a game, going 4-for-4 with three RBIs as the Mets beat Seattle 7-1, snapped their two-game skid, and avoided getting swept by the Mariners. Now the question is simple: can Bo actually build on that, or was this just one of those “look, I’m alive” games before disappearing again for a week?

The offense continues to be offensive, but at least there were signs of life in Seattle. Bichette broke out, Carson Benge stole home during a double steal, and the Mets actually played aggressive baseball instead of standing around waiting for Juan Soto to solve every problem like he’s customer service for the entire lineup.

Speaking of Soto, he’s still the main event while the “psychopaths and Soto” outfield experiment continues to somehow function. It may not be normal. It may not be relaxing. But honestly, nothing about this team is normal or relaxing, so why start now?

On the pitching side, the Mets keep getting mostly good work from the staff, but consistency remains the problem. Jonah Tong was optioned back to Triple-A after control issues, with Joey Ge**er coming back up to give the bullpen a fresh arm. That’s the kind of move Rodriguez will explain calmly for 40 seconds before somehow turning it into a full organizational indictment.

Kodai Senga is healthy enough to keep working through rehab, but still inconsistent enough to make everyone nervous. Translation: we’re encouraged, we’re concerned, and Producer Joe is already cranky.

We’ll also hit Francisco Alvarez already working his way back from his knee injury, David Peterson’s bullpen role, Tobias Myers being optioned to Triple-A, and the ongoing roster shuffle as the Mets try to survive this stretch without turning every pitching decision into a group therapy session.

We’ll also squeeze in Keith Hernandez talking about one of the biggest regrets of his career: finishing with a .296 lifetime batting average instead of staying above .300. And honestly, that’s the most Keith Hernandez regret possible. Not “I wish I made more money,” not “I wish I played longer” — this man is still annoyed that the baseball card didn’t say .300. Respect the obsession.

And yes, Rodriguez has been negative lately. Very negative. Almost impressively negative. The Mets win 5 of 7 and he still sounds like he’s reviewing a restaurant that gave him food poisoning. Meanwhile, Producer Joe is cranky enough to put Rodriguez to sleep, which might actually be the most productive thing he does all episode.

Next up, the Mets head to San Diego for three against the Padres before coming home to face the Cardinals and Braves. This is the part where we find out if winning 5 of 7 actually means something, or if the Mets are just giving us another brief emotional coupon before charging full price for disappointment.

Baseball. Sarcasm. Knicks distractions. Rodriguez negativity. Producer Joe crankiness. Soto doing group projects alone.

Just another normal week on The Put it in the Books Show.

LGM.

The Mets are officially back to being consistent again… unfortunately it’s the bad kind of consistency.

After winning 5 of 6 and giving fans a tiny little taste of hope, the Mets responded by immediately losing 5 of 6, including getting swept in Miami by the Marlins — which should honestly qualify as emotional terrorism at this point — and then dropping 2 of 3 at HOME to the Reds because apparently Citi Field is now a charity organization for mediocre baseball teams.

So this week, Farace, Rodriguez, and Producer Joe try to figure out whether this team actually has another turnaround in them… or if Mets fans are just being dragged through another 162-game trust exercise.

This weekend also brings one of the weirdest and most Mets celebrations imaginable: Bobby Valentine Day. Yes, fans will receive disguises in honor of Bobby V’s legendary fake mustache dugout return, proving once again that no franchise in sports celebrates chaos quite like the Mets. On top of that, the Mets Hall of Fame ceremony honors Carlos Beltran, Lee Mazzilli, and Bobby Valentine himself on Saturday at Citi Field.

We’ll also dive into Jose Reyes naming his Top 5 Mets nemesis list and give our own. Braves? Phillies? Chipper Jones? The entire state of Florida? We’re opening old wounds tonight.

Meanwhile, Juan Soto has basically become the entire offense by himself, smashing 8 home runs over his last 12 games while the rest of the lineup occasionally shows up like substitute teachers. If Soto cools off for even 48 hours, somebody may need to legally classify this offense as missing persons.

On the pitching side, McLean has hit a rough patch, and the Mets continue struggling with consistency from both the rotation and bullpen. Yet somehow… despite all the frustration, this team currently has the SAME record as the 2024 Mets team that finished with 89 wins. So now the question becomes: does this roster actually have another run in them or are we all just coping?

We’ll also get into early trade deadline chatter after Jon Heyman said he wouldn’t be shocked if the Mets eventually consider moving Francisco Lindor. Mets Twitter handled that news very calmly and rationally of course. Definitely no overreactions there.

Plus:

* Opening Day Mets baseball card set opening
* Grading the Opening Day roster
* Producer Joe preparing emotionally for ANOTHER west coast trip because apparently MLB thinks the Mets live in California now
* And the show’s long-standing goal remains the same: get this team back to .500 by the All-Star break… even if fans have every right to still be furious watching this team lose to bad baseball clubs.

Next up: 3 against the Marlins at Citi Field before heading to Seattle and San Diego for what feels like the 800th west coast trip of the season.

Baseball. Chaos. Sarcasm. Soundboard abuse. Mets pain.

Just another episode of The Put it in the Books Show.

LGM.

Well look at this. The Mets are actually playing competent baseball again. After the disaster movie that was April, the Mets have gone 8-4 in May, averaging 4.75 runs per game while allowing just 3.33 runs per game — a massive turnaround from April’s painful 2.81 runs scored and 4.46 runs allowed per game. Amazing what happens when the offense remembers its job description and the pitching staff stops treating every inning like an escape room challenge.

Farace, Rodriguez, and Producer Joe break down a Mets team that suddenly has energy, confidence, and — somehow — young players stepping up in huge spots. Jared Benge walked off the Tigers last night and continues to look like one of the few people in this organization who doesn’t seem terrified of big moments. Meanwhile, Ewing gets the call to the majors and immediately keeps raking like he skipped the “adjustment period” memo entirely. The kids are alright… which honestly might be the most shocking development of the season.

The offense has also finally started manufacturing runs instead of waiting around for somebody to hit a 3-run homer into another zip code. Small ball? Situational hitting? Productive at-bats? What is this, actual baseball? We’ll get into what’s changed offensively and why this lineup suddenly feels more connected than it did a month ago when everybody looked like they met each other in the parking lot before first pitch.

On the pitching side, the young arms continue to flash potential while also driving everyone insane with inconsistency. The stuff is there. The command? That’s another story. We’ll talk about the growing pains, why catchers and pitching coaches need to react faster when guys clearly lose the zone, and why leaving struggling pitchers out there too long keeps turning manageable innings into full-blown disasters.

Injury-wise, Juan Soto survived what initially looked like a scary ankle situation, while Francisco Alvarez was not nearly as lucky after tearing his MCL. Francisco Lindor’s calf is reportedly improving, but the Mets still haven’t given a real timeline because apparently mystery injuries are now part of the organizational identity.

And now comes the fun part.

Fresh off a 3-game sweep of the Tigers at Citi Field, the Mets now welcome the Yankees to Queens for a huge weekend Subway Series before heading out on a 7-game road trip through Washington and Miami. So yes… the vibes are finally improving. Which for Mets fans usually means preparing emotionally for something ridiculous to happen next.

We’ll break down all of it the only way we know how — baseball, sarcasm, chaos, soundboard abuse, and probably at least one unnecessary shot at the Yankees before the night’s over.

LGM.

Mets vs Twins tonight.

McLean needs to be the ace. The stopper. The guy.

And maybe… just maybe… score more than 2 runs.

8 in a row.

Enough with the excuses. Enough with the “almost.”

Just win a damn game.

Cubs are next. Fix it.